"Being similar and managing the company together is our great competitive advantage", explain Olga Llopis (42) and Javier Velilla (44) who, in addition to being managing partners of the branding agency, have been together for almost thirty years "We are very complementary and super aligned. We are very clear about our roadmap. In addition, we have a lot of space to talk", they tell La Vanguardia in their offices located in Poblenou.
In a survey by the job portal Infojobs last year, 14% of workers declared that they had or had a romantic relationship with someone in their work environment. More than half (56%) of these relationships still last.
When this same inquiry was made in 2018, in a pre-pandemic context, the percentage was just over double (31%). What happens when work and love mix?
"It can be very beautiful because we share the same passion, the same goal. This means that they can have a lot of complicity in their day-to-day life and a very strong understanding. In most cases, they don't need to communicate that much to understand each other", says Júlia Pascual, psychologist founder of the Center for Brief Strategic Therapy in Barcelona.
In these couples - indicates the expert - there can be a mutual harmony and understanding with regard to logistics, schedules and peaks of stress or more work. "If they are both health workers, for example, they will not demand that their partner disconnect from work when they have an admitted patient or an important surgery the next day. He will understand. This makes it a lot easier. You feel supported", says Pascual, although he clarifies that the other side is that both are under a lot of stress.
"We have to travel a lot to Latin America for work. They are trips of more than ten thousand kilometers. It's not the same for me to tell Olga or she to me, as having to explain it to someone who works for someone else", says Javier Velilla.
"Our vital moments at home and at work are the same. If you've had a bad day, you don't need to tell me, I already know. This makes it much easier for the personal part to be in tune with the professional part and vice versa", points out Olga Llopis, his partner.
Like soccer teams that seem to play by heart, they don't need to explain things to each other to know that the ball will be in the right place, at the right time. They can read each other and make quick decisions. They have their own language; so much so that one of his biggest challenges is coaching his managers so they can keep up with his pace of ball movement and not be left out of the conversation.
This fluid tiki-taka is what surely explains his victories. "It gives us a lot of agility, it allows us to be more decisive and get where we want to go more quickly and solvently", says Olga. In 2022 they invoiced 1.5 million euros, of which 30% correspond to international projects. In twelve years, his company has accumulated more than 800 projects in eleven countries.
Paula (24) and Juan (28) have been running the Veteporahi travel platform together for a year. He studied tourism and she studied journalism. "They are two worlds that converge very well", they say. Before they met, they both had similar projects in mind. They didn't imagine they would end up doing it together.
"Contrary to what is commonly believed, which is that working together is exhausting, it is also very enjoyable. It's very satisfying to see that we both put a lot of effort into something and it works. It strengthens us as a couple," says Paula. For them, their project is more than just a job. "It allows us to do what we like the most, travel. It's not just sharing a job, but also something we've both always enjoyed," says Juan.
"There are couples in which the members are very secure, have a lot of maturity and a great knowledge of themselves, very good communication and separate the personal part from the professional very well. In these cases it can be a great benefit for the couple", says the director of the Center for Clinical Psychology in Badalona, Mercè Rovira, although she warns: "but many companies do not want to have couples in their teams. It can be difficult to wear. If it doesn't work, then they have to continue working on projects that can be pigeonholed and a bad atmosphere can be generated."
For her, the mix between work and love "is usually complex, because there are often fears, ghosts, insecurities and expectations that sweep everything away. They may work very well as a couple and then not be complementary at work, or vice versa. When it comes to a couple undertaking their own project, there are even more difficulties. The smaller the project, the more complicated it is to separate and say: 'Today is Sunday, we're going to enjoy it'".
The main problem observed by Júlia Pascual in her consultation "is when there is a difficulty in separating personal life from work. They take the work home. If they are also two very passionate people who really like what they do, it is difficult for them to disconnect. If they have children, this can affect them greatly. In therapy, we are looking for them to start leaving work at work."
“If you don't plot, the work tends to take everything. In a case like ours, where we are both partners in a company that is continuously growing, there is no limit if you don't set it", says Javier Velilla. "When we come to the office we talk about work. When we return home, only things from home", explains Olga. "This helps us, because when we pick up our daughter from school, we have our head where it belongs. In front of her, we don't talk about work", assures Javier.
For Javier and Olga, having a single common agenda helps them maintain a clear line between the two worlds they share. "We have everything together, the staff and the professional of each one, so we can both see how to square activities at a glance", they indicate. When one of the two has to travel for work, do a training or take a class, the other covers the housework and the care of his eight-year-old daughter. They work like a perfect cog. "We even think about our training plan so that the sum of their abilities and mine is as broad and complementary as possible", says Javier.
According to the Infojobs report, 73% of relationships occur between co-workers of the same rank; relationships with managers are 14%, and with subordinates, 8%. Men declare more relationships with subordinates (12% compared to 4% of women) and women more with superiors (15% compared to 12%). How do couples manage this hierarchy in the workplace?
Carla (this is not her real name), 33 years old, started working with her partner when they had been dating for five months. He was the owner of an industrial machinery company and she joined the company as a general assistant. "From the beginning, everyone knew who I was," he says.
"We really liked going to work together every day. We complemented each other very well and when he was away for work I was left in charge of everything. It was his most trusted person, his eyes. No one would take care of the company more than him or me", explains Carla.
Working in the same company had many advantages. "We had lunch, went on business trips together and then stayed for two more days of vacation. If I felt unwell or had to do some procedure, I stayed at home and didn't have to notify anyone", he explains. "We worked together for six years until our son arrived, two years ago. After maternity leave, I decided to be self-employed, to manage my schedule and also to change the atmosphere of the family a bit. Now he's asking me to come back, but I'm very comfortable with my new job."
Sharing the work environment also posed challenges. "In the corridors I could hear the typical criticisms in my head. When I found out about a problem, I had no other choice but to tell him", says Carla, adding: "From day zero we made it a rule not to talk about work at home, even though many times it was impossible and we ended up bringing work problems home. We discussed work issues at home and moved issues from home to the office."
"I recommend that there is a pact of silence at home. There is no talk of work at home and the use of mobile phones is limited. This should be the norm, with minimal exceptions. If you need to talk about a pending work issue, you can ask your partner about it and set a specific time and place to do so. You need to have good communication and establish very clear limits", says psychologist Júlia Pascual.
"We had discussions that we wouldn't have had if we didn't work in the same place," says Rafael Lozano (43), who met his current partner, Ana Gálvez (24), at work, almost two years ago.
Both are emergency medical technicians. He has accumulated 18 years of experience and she a little more than the time they have been together. They both value spending more time together and Rafael likes being able to offer his partner career advice.
But the fact that their colleagues knew they were a couple has caused resentment. "People sometimes talk, some think that this may have favored her in some way. It is not like that, everything he has achieved has been due to his good work", says Rafael Lozano.
"If the couple has the same position, there is no problem at the group level. The problem comes when one has a lower charge. Many feel watched and judged as the 'protected', the 'placed', as if there is favoritism towards them; they feel that what they do is not valued fairly and they can suffer a lot of insecurity, anxiety and feel the impostor syndrome", says Júlia Pascual.
It also often happens that one member of the couple feels bewildered by being together for so long. "It is necessary to organize very well so that the two can have their time and space for privacy, to live without the other", says Pascual.
"If I need time alone, I make it clear. I am more than in need of an individual, independent space. I say it, I go out for a run and that's it," says Juan. The project he has with his partner Paula means that they are often together 24/7. Both are clear about the best way to lead their day to day life. "The more communication, the easier everything is", they say.
"In the beginning there were more problems, but we talk to each other and try not to take work home with us. Our strategy is to talk about everything", says emergency technician Rafael Lozano.
For Paula and Juan it is also important not to commit too much to their point of view. "You have to learn not to get carried away. There is no need to argue over things that lead nowhere. The other person may have a different thought, but that doesn't mean it's wrong," explains Paula.
For the directors of Comuniza, it is also important that their views do not compete, but rather complement each other. "We don't argue because of 'I'm right' or 'I want to do it this way'. It's not that my idea has to go ahead, I don't care whose it is. The important thing is that the client has the best answer", assures Olga Llopis.
"In a football team, it is just as important who stops the goals as who scores them," explains clinical psychologist Mercè Rovira.
"He is more about looking for ideas, solutions, exploring paths...", explains Olga Llopis about her partner and partner, Javier Velilla. "And you manage to get us to the place", he completes.
