Proof of Concept - Early company building
The past eight years of my career were at Webflow and One Medical. In Silicon Valley, that feels like a lifetime. I know people who've been at 3-4 companies during my entire time at two companies. There is nothing wrong with switching jobs after a year or two. People have different reasons and circumstances why they decide to leave a company or stay. There was a time period where I stayed at companies only for about a year, but the majority of my endeavors have been multi-year hill climbs: My own company (5 years), One Medical (4 years), and Webflow (4 years). Why do this? Is it the standard vesting cycle? Fear of change? It's simply one thing...company building. Defining company buildingCompany building is contributing to systems and structures in which a business operates and approaches its mission. Building a product and a company have similar parallels. Both require understanding the people who interact with your experiences, starting with an MVP and maturing over time, and growing it. A company builder doesn't have to start it and be CEO. They are also early employees or coming in to help grow an incredible company—this is my sweet spot. When I joined One Medical, the product development team was fewer than 20 people, and became the high hundreds when I left. Webflow was about 100 people and I left saying goodbye to about 650 wonderful humans. As Andrea Conway said, "You have a (company) type." There are aspects of company building you do not want me to contribute to, such as running Finance or the Sales function! It's important when contributing to growing a company you spend time in areas where you are highly skilled. In addition to building design teams, I spend a lot of time with Marketing, Biz Ops, Product, and Engineering. If you decide to continue in a management path or org leadership, the functions you work with are more expansive. The impact of company buildingI will tell you right now that early company building is not easy. It's not for everyone. It requires hard work and a lot of effort over time to make it successful. However, it is one of the most fulfilling things you can do in your career. Here are some of the most gratifying aspects of early company building that resonate with me:
Designers have the potential to be great company buildersWe as designers have fought for years to have a seat at the table of a company. I'd say we've achieved that with more investments in design and executives. However, some of the tables are poorly built. What if we have to rebuild the table, or completely flip the table? Company building is the opportunity to build the table. Design’s superpower is observing and understanding how humans interact with systems and then devising a solution that results in better outcomes for them. This is the core essence of what a company is. When company builders are also designers, magic happens. What often happens with designers is being too heads down, and not heads up enough. We sometimes fall into the trap of spending all this time focused on what we're doing vs. what the company needs. This isn't to say our heads-down work is not important. It's crucial. However, when we go heads up, we look horizontally and cross-functionally. When you're a manager or operator at a late-stage company, it can be difficult to be involved in building the systems. At this point, the systems are already established. Though it's not for everyone, I encourage designers to consider joining earlier companies or becoming founders—allowing the opportunity to design the company culture, operations, and values from the beginning. Company building is a multi-year effortAs mentioned before, company building is very hard and not for the faint of heart. I gave a talk about this at Figma Config in the past about scaling design teams and this is true about companies. To have a lasting impact in company building, it's likely a multi-year effort, and that's what I look for. When I look at new opportunities, I'm looking at not what the company is at this moment today, but at what it can become, and how I can help them. Every time I leave a high-growth company, I say "I'm never doing this again," and yet I do it again. Company building is an incredible journey and the wonderful memories of working with incredible people is the reason I continue to do it. Until the next one. JobsCheck out jobs on Pallet. We are hiring a Product Designer at Replit! Come join us in San Francisco, Brooklyn, or remote!
Hype links |
Key phrases
Older messages
Festina Lente (make haste slowly)
Sunday, April 9, 2023
Issue 138:Smooth speed is a differentiator
A primer to startup advising
Sunday, April 2, 2023
Issue 137: Looking at what advising is and if you should do it
Your personal design language
Sunday, March 26, 2023
Issue 136: The gravity of what you believe in personified in the design process
Don't focus on "achievement unlocked"
Sunday, March 19, 2023
Issue 135: Avoiding the grind to focus on outcomes in video games (and in life)
Have conversations
Sunday, March 12, 2023
Issue 134: A look at talking with substance to build relationships
You Might Also Like
Ritmo, Climate Change, Icons & Typefaces, Click Wheel JS, CarPlay
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
The 5 best design links, every day. Curated by a selection of great editors. Email not displaying properly? View browser version. Sidebar April 24 2024 Meet Ritmo, Musixmatch's cross-platform
Why Jake Arnold Doesn’t Text Clients
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
View in your browser | Update your preferences We've had a remodel! From now on, you'll be hearing from AD PRO in your inbox twice a week—once with a deep dive into trends to watch and subjects
The secret ingredient to media success
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
PR tips from our founder Nora Wolf In this month's edition is all about *the most important* element of successful media outreach—photography. You may have some photos, but if the backgrounds are
#453: Design Systems
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Design system generator, types of design systems and how to consolidate design systems. Issue #453 • Apr 23, 2024 • View in the browser Smashing Newsletter Buổi tối vui vẻ Smashing Friends, Ah, design
👨🏫 Striking Educational Website Designs + 🏆 Challenge Updates
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Your UpLabs Design Updates Await! Let's Get Going! 🎨 Firstly, let's congratulate Mariana Gameiro, the winner of our latest 👩💻 SheCodes Website Redesign Challenge! Congratulations!! Secondly,
Code Connect, JS Naked Day, Shape of AI, Product Design, CSS Grid Level 3
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
The 5 best design links, every day. Curated by a selection of great editors. Email not displaying properly? View browser version. Sidebar April 23 2024 The Right Code for Your Design System figma.com
Accessibility Weekly #393: When Security and Accessibility Clash
Monday, April 22, 2024
April 22, 2024 • Issue #393 View this issue online or browse the full issue archive. Featured: When security and accessibility clash: Why are banking applications so inaccessible? "While using
Bézier Curves, CSS Motion Extraction, CSS Testing, CSS Theming, Women Who Code
Monday, April 22, 2024
The 5 best design links, every day. Curated by a selection of great editors. Email not displaying properly? View browser version. Sidebar April 22 2024 Flattening Bézier Curves and Arcs minus-ze.ro
What makes a great seed stage founder
Sunday, April 21, 2024
Issue 191: What to look for (and avoid) in early builders ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Pierce & Ward’s Secret Sources, Business Advice You Can’t Afford to Miss, and More
Friday, April 19, 2024
View in your browser | Update your preferences ADPro “Minimalism is not my strong suit.” So says Emma Roberts, the muse behind AD's May cover story. (Celebrities—they're just like us!)