First-day speakers reconvene to talk culture, what’s not on the resume

Big Omaha speakers Eric Ryan, Laura Weidman Powers and Jason Johnson fielded questions ranging from how to improve company culture to hurdles they’ve had to overcome.   Q: What doesn’t show up on your resume? Thanks to our sponsor Become an SPN sponsor »Meet our sponsors » Eric Ryan: I love pizza. When I was…

Big Omaha speakers Eric Ryan, Laura Weidman Powers and Jason Johnson fielded questions ranging from how to improve company culture to hurdles they’ve had to overcome.

 

Q: What doesn’t show up on your resume?

Eric Ryan: I love pizza. When I was 16 I worked at a Little Caesar’s. That’s where I discovered my love of product and love for experimentation. I always loved the idea of experimenting with product, so I would create pizzas. That’s where I started product experimentation.

Laura Weidman Powers: What’s interesting is there are certain things that are appropriate for your resume, but they’re not always the most influential. For me, it’s the people who influenced the choices I make. My dad is a writer, my mom is a psychologist, and being exposed to them and watching them chart their own path or watch friends who struck out on their own was impactful to me.

 

Q: Tell us about a time when you thought you were onto something but you had to pivot in another direction.

L: I think our Fellows program has terrific traction, but something we realized when we were going through the process was there is actually a lot of work to be done on the company side and the student side. Now, we’re looking at rolling out new programming that serves a different portion of the pipeline. My hunch is that [realization] will happen over and over again.

 

Q: What has made you open to those pivots?

E: As an entrepreneur, externally you have to be consistent and unwavering about your vision, but internally you have to be flexible and optimistic. Walking that dance is the biggest challenge for an entrepreneur. It’s being bipolar.

 

Q: Company culture has been a major topic today. Where’s the best place to start to tackle it?

E: When you’re trying to get the business off the ground, it seems indulgent wasting space talking about culture, but it’s most important. It is so important to find a culture that fits, that you are hiring the right person to define your culture.

L: First, I couldn’t agree more with Eric. Culture is what happens when you’re not around. When I’m on the road, I can trust that my team is executing and doing it with the ethos that I know that they will. I think it’s important to cast a wide net with your advisors and social media to find people you would have never connected with.

J: Culture is key and it starts from the top down. We spend more time in our weeks with our coworkers than we do our families, so you have to like each other. We spend a lot of time trying to have fun. I try to be very transparent as the CEO. We are a community together spending 50 hours a week together. Let’s be open, transparent and have fun.

E: Always think when you meet that person, “Do I want to sit next to them on a five-hour flight. If it’s someone you’re not psyched to sit next to for five hours, do not hire them.

 

Q: What about people who push your buttons, but they create the friction with good outcomes?

E: That’s where you get back to culture. If you have an organization with great values and populate the company that way, you want to build tension in the system. But healthy tension so everyone handles it in an appropriate way.

J: I think it’s critical that everyone in a start-up can challenge everyone in a creative way, even me. Every morning we have a circle meeting to talk about priorities, and I make sure people call me out. I encourage my entire team to assign things to me.

 

Q: How can someone affect the culture when it’s already been predetermined?

E: Culture is human behavior. The culture is really good, it tends to stay good, but if it’s bad, it stays bad. The easiest way to [change culture] is realize it is contagious. If someone does something inspiring, it gets copied quickly.

 

Q: A lot of startup companies are comprised of friends and families. Can you speak to that intimate culture when a problem arises?

L: You have to have a relationship you’re willing to lose. One of my previous ventures started with one of my very good friends, and we went through a tough time and came out of it. For a period of time it was touch-and-go. You really have to be prepared for that. Before you start a company with someone you should lock yourself in a room for 48 hours without leaving. If you still want to start a company with them, you should go for it. That’s a little extreme, but that’s the mentality you have to go with.

 

Q: If you weren’t doing what you’re doing, what would you be doing?

L: I have like 10 other startup ideas, so probably one of those.

J: I love using my hands, I love building things and using power tools, and I would love to build my own house.

E: I want to open a really weird hotel.

 


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This story is part of the AIM Archive

This story is part of the AIM Institute Archive on Silicon Prairie News. AIM gifted SPN to the Nebraska Journalism Trust in January 2023. Learn more about SPN’s origin »

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