giveforward culture deck
TRANSCRIPT
THE GIVEFORWARD CULTURE DECK
SO WHAT IS CULTURE?
CULTURE ≠ PING PONG
LET’S START OFF WITH WHAT IT’S NOT
CULTURE = LIVING YOUR MISSION VISION VALUES
WHY DOES CULTURE MATTER?
AN INSPIRED AND PASSIONATE TEAM IS THE GREATEST COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE A STARTUP CAN EVER HAVE.
GREAT CULTURE ATTRACTS INSPIRED AND PASSIONATE PEOPLE.
INSPIRED TEAM = INSPIRED PRODUCT = INSPIRED CUSTOMERS = WIN
THE GIVEFORWARD CULTURE CHEAT SHEET MISSION: EMPOWER COMPASSION VISION: BE THE FIRST PLACE PEOPLE TURN WHEN A LOVED ONE IS GOING THROUGH SOMETHING DIFFICULT VALUES: 1. CULTIVATE THROUGH COMPASSION 2. TAKE FUN SERIOUSLY 3. AUTHENTICITY IS KING 4. BE THE CEO OF YOUR POSITION 5. BE FIRST MANTRA: CREATE UNEXPECTED JOY
GIVEFORWARD’S MISSION: EMPOWER COMPASSION
“PEOPLE DON’T BUY WHAT YOU DO, THEY BUY WHY YOU DO IT.”
-‐ Simon Sinek
THE MISSION IS WHY WE ARE ALL HERE. IT’S WHAT DRIVES US TO GET OUT OF BED EVERY MORNING.
OUR MISSION IS BASED ON TWO UNDERLYING PREMISES. WE BELIEVE: 1. NO ONE SHOULD HAVE TO GO THROUGH A DIFFICULT TIME ALONE 2. PEOPLE WANT TO HELP BUT DON’T KNOW HOW 3. EMPOWER COMPASSION MEANS BRIDGING THIS GAP
At our core, we make it easy for people to give and receive LOVE
BE THE FIRST PLACE PEOPLE TURN WHEN A LOVED ONE IS GOING THROUGH SOMETHING DIFFICULT
GIVEFORWARD’S VISION:
HOW ARE THE MISSION AND THE VISION RELATED?
ACHIEVING OUR VISION SIMPLY MEANS WE EMPOWER COMPASSION AT SCALE
*Scale, on a tangible level, means every team member personally knows one or two or three people from their network who are ac9vely par9cipa9ng in GiveForward communi9es
. VISION = MISSION x SCALE
GIVEFORWARD’S CORE VALUES 1. CULTIVATE THROUGH COMPASSION 2. TAKE FUN SERIOUSLY 3. AUTHENTICITY IS KING 4. BE THE CEO OF YOUR POSITION 5. BE FIRST
HOW ARE OUR VALUES AND VISION RELATED?
ACHIEVING OUR VISION IS THE END GOAL. OUR VALUES ARE THE SWIM LANES THAT KEEP US ON TRACK.
“VALUES MATTER. A LOT. IN A HYPERCOMPETITIVE WORLD WHERE TECHNOLOGY EATS AT EVERY ADVANTAGE YOU HAVE OVER TIME IT IS GOOD TO HAVE UNIQUE AND DISTINCT VALUES THAT YOU LIVE AS A COMPANY. IT MATTERS AND IS AT THE CORE OF BUILDING GREAT COMPANIES.”
- Fred Wilson, Union Square Ventures
CULTIVATE THROUGH COMPASSION
VALUE #1:
NONE OF US AT GIVEFORWARD HAVE THE LUXURY OF BEING THE SMARTEST PERSON IN THE WORLD, BUT ALL OF US CAN STRIVE TO BECOME THE KINDEST PERSON IN THE WORLD. WE WILL WIN IF WE CONSISTENTLY SURPRISE PEOPLE WITH UNEXPECTED GIFTS OF HUMOR, COMPASSION AND HUMANITY. WE WILL WIN BY BEING THE MOST HUMAN AND CREATING A USER EXPERIENCE THAT FAR EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS. WE WILL WIN BY GIVING OUT MORE HUGS AND HIGH FIVES THAN ANYONE ELSE. WE WILL WIN BY BEING THE MOST AUTHENTICALLY COMPASSIONATE AND TREATING EVERY INTERACTION WITH A USER AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE THAT PERSON’S DAY JUST A TINY BIT BETTER. WE MAY NOT ALWAYS OUTSMART THE COMPETITION BUT WE MUST ALWAYS OUT-‐CARE THE COMPETITION.
TAKE FUN SERIOUSLY
VALUE #2
THERE IS MORE TO WORK THAN JUST WORK. WORK MUST BE FUN. IF YOU ARE NOT HAVING FUN AT WORK, YOU SHOULD QUIT AND FIND HAPPINESS ELSEWHERE. LIFE IS FAR TOO SHORT TO NOT SPEND YOUR DAYS LAUGHING.
A GIVEFORWARD POEM (OF SORTS) hugs, high-‐fives, and posicve vibes float trips and boat trips -‐-‐ the cmes we all imbibe One Direccon desk wraps, the 93-‐inch bear camp songs, magic fire dust, ghost stories that we share white elephants, pink elephants, Giveasaurus Rex, recharge days, Coachtopia, “breathing”, “elder sex” Carebears and Smurfs, Fraggles, and Muppets cat facts, Barbacobras, ice water challenges in buckets ugly sweater pub crawls, zombies, Chinese food squaiy poiy demos of how unicorns go poo 4 Loko, for Lokey, ride or die Ghost pepper pushup contest, Wolfman in the sky Flowdock, Fauxdock, Avengers and more Once you’re GF family, you’re GiveForward to the core RIP Paul Walker. If you are not familiar with any of the above, please consult Markipedia
Weirdo extraordinaire
AUTHENTICITY IS KING
(VALUE #3)
EVERY SINGLE ACTION WE TAKE AT GIVEFORWARD MUST BE AUTHENTIC. WE BELIEVE THAT GENIUS COMES FROM BEING ONE’S SELF. IT IS ONLY WHEN PEOPLE TRY TO FIT IN THAT THEIR BRILLIANCE BECOMES HIDDEN. WE VALUE INDIVIDUALISM AND OPEN-‐MINDEDNESS AND ENCOURAGE ALL GIVEFORWARD TEAM MEMBERS TO LET THEIR PERSONALITIES SHINE THROUGH. THIS IS WHEN BRILLIANCE HAPPENS.
“BE YOURSELF. EVERYONE ELSE IS ALREADY TAKEN.” -‐ OSCAR WILDE
IT’S BETTER TO HAVE TEN TRUE FANS THAN ONE THOUSAND PEOPLE WHO HAVE USED YOUR PRODUCT AND ARE AMBIVILENT. BE YOUR WEIRD SELF. CREATE A WEIRD PRODUCT. THE WEIRDOS WILL FALL IN LOVE WITH IT AND TELL THEIR WEIRD FRIENDS ABOUT IT. AUTHENTICITY BREEDS PASSION. CONFORMITY IS DEATH.
WEIRD = GOOD
BE THE CEO OF YOUR POSITION
VALUE # 4
ASK FOR FORGIVENESS, NOT FOR PERMISSION. BY FAR OUR BIGGEST ASSET AT GIVEFORWARD IS OUR PEOPLE. BUT WE CAN ONLY OPERATE AT OPTIMAL CAPACITY IF EVERYONE IS EMPOWERED TO USE THEIR BRAINS. EVERYONE AT THE COMPANY IS EXPECTED TO OWN THEIR POSITION, BE A DECISION MAKER AND TAKE RISKS. WE WILL NEVER PENALIZE ANYONE FOR TAKING A RISK AND FAILING. WE WILL ONLY PENALIZE PEOPLE FOR NOT TAKING ENOUGH RISKS OR NOT TAKING ENOUGH ACTION.
IDEAS COME FROM EVERYWHERE. NOT JUST FROM THE TOP. SPEAK UP. NO ONE’S IDEAS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANYONE ELSE’S. IDEAS ARE GOOD BUT ACTION > IDEAS. IT’S EVERYONES JOB TO TAKE THE TRASH OUT.
QUESTION AUTHORITY. ALWAYS. IF YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY WE ARE DOING SOMETHING ASK WHY WE ARE DOING IT. NEVER DO SOMETHING JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE TOLD YOU TO DO IT. UNDERSTAND WHY WE ARE DOING IT AND HOW IT RELATES TO A BIGGER GOAL.
THIS IS YOUR COMPANY. WHAT DO YOU WANT IT TO LOOK LIKE? READY. SET. GO.
BE FIRST.
Am I living in my comfort zone at basecamp or am I pushing myself to my limits?
VALUE #5
BE FIRST MEANS BEING THE BEST IN THE WORLD AND DOING EVERYTHING* IT TAKES TO GET THERE.
BE THE FIRST TO STEP UP TO A CHALLENGE BE THE FIRST TO TAKE THE HARDEST CARD BE THE FIRST TO GET THROUGH THE MOST DIFFICULT CUSTOMER EMAIL BE THE FIRST TO SAY “I WILL WHEN EVERYONE ELSE IS SAYING “WE SHOULD”
* Well nothing illegal or out of alignment with our values
VISION = THE SUMMIT
Q: What is the rela9onship between our vision and the value, BE FIRST? A: Our vision is the summit, the goal we are trying to reach. BE FIRST is a mindset of doing everything it takes to reach the summit
BE FIRST IS…
ITERATING A FEATURE THE EXTRA TWO TIMES IT TAKES TO GO FROM GOOD TO GREAT NOT SETTLING FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN REFRIGERATOR QUALITY WORK MAKING THE EXTRA MORTGAGE PAYMENT
BE FIRST IS NOT…
FINISHING NEXT WEEK WHAT WE COULD FINISH TODAY COMPLACENCY SETTLING 2ND PLACE
BE FIRST is about being a VISION Driven Company
EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS MORE FUN WHEN YOU’RE WINNING.
BE FIRST
The Vision Driven Horse
GIVEFORWARD’S MANTRA:
HEAD ASPLODES! WE’VE GOT MISSION, VISION, VALUES AND NOW A MANTRA? WHAT THE SHIT IS A MANTRA? OUR MANTRA IS OUR SECRET SAUCE. CREATE UNEXPECTED JOY (CUJ) IS AN AMALGAMATION OF OUR FIRST THREE CORE VALUES: CULTIVATE THROUGH COMPASSION +TAKE FUN SERIOUSLY + AUTHENTICITY IS KING ALL ROLLED UP INTO A SINGLE ACTION THAT UNLEASHES UNIMAGINABLE AMOUNTS OF BUENONESS INTO THE UNIVERSE. BUT CUJ IS MUCH MORE THAN JUST THE SUM OF ITS PARTS. THESE THREE WORDS REPRESENT EVERYTHING THAT IS GIVEFORWARD – CUJ IS THE WAY WE CHOOSE TO TREAT EACHOTHER, THE WAY WE TREAT STRANGERS, THE WAY WE LIVE OUR LIVES INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE OFFICE. CUJ IS AN ETHOS.
THERE ARE TWO LAYERS TO CUJ. THE BASE LAYER AND THE FROSTING LAYER. FIRST, THE BASE LAYER: VERY OFTEN, PEOPLE DON’T KNOW HOW MUCH THEIR FRIENDS AND FAMILY CARE ABOUT THEM UNTIL SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS. THEN THEIR FRIENDS START A GIVEFORWARD PAGE ON THEIR BEHALF AND ALL THESE PEOPLE COME OUT OF THE WOODWORK TO LET THEM KNOW THAT THEY’RE NOT ALONE. IT’S LIKE A TIDAL WAVE OF LOVE HITS THIS INDIVIDUAL AND KNOCKS THE WIND OUT OF THEM (IN THE BEST WAY POSSIBLE). THE GIVEFORWARD PAGE ITSELF ACTS AS THE CATALYST FOR UNEXPECTED JOY. THIS VIDEO IS A GOOD EXAMPLE: hips://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIsj2W1XZf8
CUJ: THE FROSTING LAYER: THE FROSTING LAYER IS THE FROSTING LAYER BECAUSE IT’S THE ICING ON THE CAKE. WHEREAS WITH THE BASE LAYER, THE CONCEPT OF CUJ IS BUILT INTO THE PRODUCT, WITH THE FROSTING LAYER, IT IS THE WONDERFUL, AMAZING HUMANS OF GIVEFORWARD WHO ARE GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND TO CREATE UNEXPECTED JOY FOR OTHERS.
THIS VIDEO IS A GOOD EXAMPLE: hips://vimeo.com/70880664
BETWEEN MANTRAS, MISSIONS VISIONS AND VALUES THIS WAS A LOT TO TAKE IN. CAN YOU JUST TELL ME WHAT’S THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF GIVEFORWARD CULTURE?
SURE. BY FAR THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF GF CULTURE IS LIVING IT. IF THERE IS ONE THING TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS DECK IT’S THAT NOTHING ELSE MATTERS IF WE DON’T WALK THE WALK.
“IF YOU BELIEVE IN YOUR VALUES YOU MUST MAKE THEM PERVASIVE.”
-‐ RAND FISHKEN, WELL GROOMED, FLOATING HEAD