Most people decide to join a company once. After that, staying is a series of smaller, quieter decisions. Shivaram made that decision nine years in a row, and what that says about a person, and a place, is worth talking about.
Where every year felt less like time, and more like belonging.
In most workplaces, people come and go. Some stay a year, others a bit longer, and some leave quietly. That’s just how it is.
In a time when two years at one company is considered solid, nine feels almost countercultural. Careers are more fluid now, and that reflects something real about how people grow and what they need. Which is exactly why, when someone stays this long, it's worth pausing to understand why.
Shivaram recently completed 9 years at Novelty. It didn't feel like just another reason to celebrate. It felt like something to recognize properly : time spent, built slowly through daily work that often goes unnoticed.
What 9 Years at Novelty Actually Means
Nine years is a lot of smaller moments, quietly adding up. It's easy to see the number and call it a milestone. But what lies behind it is harder to put into words. It's time that was actually spent, days that were actually lived, and a place that kept feeling worth coming back to.
Nine years includes early mornings and late deadlines, moments of doubt, and phases that were harder than others. And through all of it, Shivaram chose to stay , again and again, quietly, over the years.
Something Less Defined
People stay this long for reasons that are hard to name. The work matters, so do the people, the growth, the sense of stability, but none of those things alone fully explain it. It’s more of a feeling: that things still make sense, that showing up is still worth it.
That feeling builds slowly. It accumulates through small moments, most of which go unnoticed at the time.
A Note from HR & Operations Manager
The things that actually matter tend to be smaller and harder to measure: whether a manager noticed someone was burning out before they said anything, whether a difficult conversation was handled honestly instead of avoided, and whether someone’s growth was supported without them having to fight for it
From our side, moments like this feel like something to sit with more than something to celebrate. When someone stays for 9 years, it makes us reflect on what we got right, and stay honest about what we still need to.
We get these things right sometimes and miss them other times. But when someone chooses to stay this long, it tells us that, somewhere along the way, it all felt worthwhile. That means something to us.
Looking Back, Quietly
Nine years rarely arrives with a defining moment. It comes together through regular days, familiar faces, ongoing work, and progress that takes time to see.
Over time, those things carry more weight than the obvious ones. They shape how a place feels, quietly, and often without anyone naming it.
It has been a great 9-year journey with a lot of ups and downs, lots of learning, project experiences, and real-world software development challenges that has helped me to grow.
Shivaram Prajapati
Principal Software Engineer
One Last Thought
Most people decide to join once. After that, staying involves a series of smaller decisions made over time. Nine years means that decision was made again and again.
And that’s what makes it worth saying out loud.
“Happy 9 Year Anniversary from Novelty Family.”
Join us as we celebrate the people who make Novelty what it is. One story, one journey at a time.
