I Didn't Expect to Fall in Love With a Company. But I Did.

I’ve been in HR for a while now, long enough to stop getting surprised. Long enough to know that most “great culture” claims in job interviews are, at best, a PowerPoint presentation and at worst, a flat-out lie.

I’ve worked with some incredible people before. The kind of colleagues who turn coffee breaks into therapy sessions, deadlines into teamwork marathons, and office messages into mini pep talks. I’ve had leaders who challenged me, supported me, and taught me lessons I’ll carry forever. I’ve seen real impact, the kind that reminds you your work actually matters. I’ve laughed in meetings, celebrated wins big and small, and made friendships that have outlived company org charts. I carry those experiences with me, and I’m genuinely grateful for them.

So when I joined Novelty Technology 1.5 months ago, I told myself:  Be curious. Be hopeful. But don’t expect magic.

But then... magic happened.

And it didn’t come in fireworks or welcome speeches. It came in little things. Things that most companies overlook. Things that told me: This place is different.

A Feeling I Couldn’t Explain at First

My first day, I expected the usual: a rushed induction, a few polite smiles, and an HR checklist to tick through.

Instead, I found myself surrounded by people who weren’t just doing their jobs, they were enjoying each other. Really enjoying. Like, laughing google chat message, teasing one another over lunch, and somehow making meetings feel like conversations instead of chores.

You don’t find that kind of chemistry by accident. You find it in places where people feel safe to be human.

I’ve Seen Culture as a Buzzword. This Time, I Felt It as a Behavior.

The word "culture" is so misused in our industry, I almost flinch when I hear it now.

But at Novelty, I didn’t hear it. I saw it.

I saw it in the way seniors mentored juniors without ego. I saw it in a colleague stopping mid-task just to check on someone’s headache. I saw it in a message someone sent me on my third day: “Hey, just making sure you’re not feeling lost. Want to grab a coffee?”

That was not scheduled. Not strategic. Not performative. It was human, and real.

I Joined to Build Teams. Instead, I Found One.

I’ve spent years helping organizations hire, train, and retain talent. I’ve studied company cultures, diagnosed problems, fixed broken processes. I’ve seen my share of “good places that lost their way.”

But here?

I’ve walked into something rare, a culture that didn’t need saving. Not perfect, no, But honest. A place where you don’t have to put on a work version of yourself. Where the jokes flow as easily as the pull requests. Where disagreements aren’t avoided, they’re handled like conversations between adults, not power plays between departments.

We’re not a family. We’re a group of people who choose to show up with respect, every day. And that choice makes all the difference.

For the First Time in a While, I’m Not Just Doing HR. I’m Building Belonging.

Somewhere along the way, I stopped feeling like I was just managing people operations.

I started feeling like a guardian of something precious, the culture we’ve built, the trust we maintain, the joy we protect.

That’s not in my job description. But it’s in everything I do now.

Because when you land in a place where people greet Mondays without dread, where new hires feel welcome before their laptop even boots, and where your laugh is considered just as valuable as your LinkedIn endorsements?

You protect that.

You build on it. You hire people who won’t just “fit in” but will add to it. You say no to anything that threatens it.

45 Days In, Here’s What I Know:

I’ve worked at good companies. I’ve worked at impressive ones.

But Novelty? This is the first place that made me pause, smile, and think:

I could spend the next few years of my life here and never feel like I wasted a single day.

No pretense. No politics. Just purpose, people, and the kind of culture you can’t fake, not even with fancy job ads and corporate hashtags.

If You’re Job-Hunting Right Now…

Here’s my honest advice:

Don’t just look for roles. Look for rooms where your voice will matter, where your weirdness will be welcomed, and where your growth won’t come at the cost of your peace. Look for people you’d want to have lunch with. Look for a place that feels like more than just a career move.

I found that at Novelty. And I’m still wrapping my head around how lucky that makes me.

We’re hiring. But honestly, more than that, we’re inviting.

Inviting good humans to build great things. To write beautiful, efficient code. To make real decisions, not just tickets. To join a crew that has your back, even on the messy days.

But make no mistake, this isn’t a casual stroll into a job.

To get in here, you need to be ridiculously good at what you do. Not just good on paper, good when you’ve got five variables, two hours, and zero room for guesswork.

We don’t say this to intimidate you. We say it because it’s true. The bar is high. On purpose.

Because when you walk through these doors, you're not just handed a job. You're handed trust, ownership, and a team full of people who will outwork, out-think, and out-care most of the industry.

If that sounds like home, we’re here. We’re still building. Still growing. Still figuring some things out.

But damn… it feels good to finally be home.

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About the Author

Pawan Joshi

HR & Operations Manager | Novelty Technology

Connect with Pawan on LinkedIn