Monday was a big day for us. We cut the ribbon to our Naperville, Illinois location with members of our Kosovo team in town to help with the christening.
When I interviewed with our CEO Ed in August, it was at this office. But it was gutted. No flooring. You could make snow angels in the dust. Wires, joists, ductwork and pipes visible in the ceiling that was being raised. Him with measuring tape in hand mental-mathing a kitchen configuration. Me in Barbie pink mental-noting to swap my pant suit for a track suit next time. And to wear sneakers. Where would the desks go? Which flooring should be picked? Not the questions I expected in a first interview for a marketing role.
But, it told me a lot about the mentality of the leadership. You’d never hear them utter the phrase, “That’s not my job.” And no task is beneath them.
They’d arrive early, stay late, cater in lunch to hang cabinets, design and install accent walls. Hang TVs and shelving. Build desks and tables and chairs. Rebuild the desks to make them larger. Install monitors and run power.
The alley outside our building became the makeshift workshop. We re-learned the rule, measure twice, cut once. A few times, actually. Our Sr. Director of Operations Larry learned just how long he could hold his breath manning the table saw positioned next to the fish restaurant’s dumpster on unseasonably hot days.
Both Ed and Larry learned me saying, “You know what would be so cool?!” was code for, “You should probably go get your drill back out of the closet because I thought of a new project.”
Our COO Yll taught us life lessons. Like, when we received a conference table with the screw holes machined incorrectly. He hypothesized you really only need 2 of the 4 screws anyway. Like, ever. In anything that’s ever built, 50% is fluff. We’re hoping that’s true. I’ll be holding off putting my knees under that table just in case. With an abundance of caution, I’ll also keep using all the screws, bolts, nails provided to me.
He also gave up a Saturday to construct a world map on the wall with his daughter. A feature we love because it symbolizes our global goals and it’s a memory locked in for them.
No matter how big we get, this will always be who we are. In everything we do. Working hard, making it fun. A lean team accomplishing a lot with a little. Because we know the value of getting our hands filthy dirty, throwing our hearts at a task and applying sweat equity into building the things we care about.
— Maria Chambers | Director, Marketing & Employee Services
