Graduating during a time of economic prosperity, I entered the workforce with an optimistic outlook. Shortly thereafter, however, the 2008 recession hit. Millions lost their jobs, including me. As I sat in shock, contemplating how I got here after working so hard, I came to the stark realization that none of it really mattered; nothing would change the situation I, along with millions of others, was in at that very moment. I was forced to adapt and embrace change.
As can be expected during a time of transition, I found myself lost at times, especially professionally, unsure of which path to follow. But five years ago all of this drastically changed when I joined the team at Cuebiq.
The underlying difference between Cuebiq and the various other organizations I’ve worked for boils down to one thing: Embracing change is simply in Cuebiq’s DNA.
Every organization will have its fair share of growing pains, especially a company like Cuebiq that is growing exponentially. In these times, I believe it is imperative that organizations be able to strike a balance between recognizing the importance of maintaining and fostering both curiosity and innovation, while also understanding that those two factors can be enemies of scalability. While it is not always rainbows and sunshine, I wholeheartedly believe that Cuebiq is on the right path to achieving both.
With that, here are three factors I consider important to maintaining a culture of change.
1. Connectivity
Just as Cuebiq connects data to create insights, we at Cuebiq connect to each other to increase operational empathy, better ourselves and our clients, and achieve more together. In order to successfully create any culture within an organization, you must start by garnering the buy-in all the way at the top with executive leadership. Once leaders have embraced the change, in turn, they can empower employees to push boundaries that otherwise confine companies that have a culture of “we’ve always done it that way.” This empowerment can create open dialogue across the organization. Here at Cuebiq we constantly strive for this.
2. Transparency
Transparency means being forthright, which ultimately instills trust. While at first I didn’t realize how much transparency would play into how Cuebiq would grow, I now know the importance of it and how it has enabled us to build and strengthen relationships both internally and externally. I’ve had numerous clients tell me this was the very reason they decided to work with us in the first place and why they continue to do so. Internal transparency, which I may view as even more important, also enables us to foster our culture of change. By being open in communications throughout the company, people do not shy away from sharing their ideas, which only helps us grow.
3. Getting shit done
While every person has their own ideas about how they could change things at work, very seldom do they express or act on them. Not at Cuebiq — here we are willing to put pen to paper, putting our ideas into action and implementing them in our products. As a result, our organizational structure aims to be nimble by being both proactive and reactive to each individual client’s needs. All in all, while we recognize that resources will always be finite, having the infrastructure to implement ideas, or “get shit done,” makes all the difference in the world. We spend a lot of time thinking about how to optimize this side of our business.
In order for any organization to truly believe in and embrace a culture of change, every single person from the CEO to the summer intern must be on board. I was forced to embrace change very early on in my career due to economic conditions. While at the time, I did not comprehend the important life lesson I was learning, I can look back now and say it was a truly defining moment and I wouldn’t change anything about it. Why? Because if I didn’t embrace change, I might still be sitting in a cubicle feeling as though I didn’t have a voice, as opposed to where I am today, feeling I am truly part of an incredible organization.
Now, if I could only get the world to stop calling me a millennial as though it’s a negative thing!
If you’re interested in learning more about Cuebiq and our company culture, be sure to check out our current job openings.
