Company values at SnapStream
August 31st, 2005 at 6:42 pm by rkuo
One of the things we recently did here at SnapStream is codify a set of company values for the entire team. As Jack Welch puts it…”So much hot air about something so real.” I’d venture to say what Jack meant by that is that a lot of companies have values, but fail to make them *real* to their employees. Instead, by inaction they basically opt for equating their values to pithy sayings posted in the hallway.
We’ve had these values for a while in each employee, of course. Writing them down, figuring out what the real core of each value was, and making those values conscious, visible and actionable for all of our employees was the next step for the company.
The trick isn’t really in the writing down of these values themselves, as I’ve found out. Although, don’t get me wrong, that certainly took some time. It’s the process itself…involving people, embedding the knowledge of the values into the company culture, and translating the values into constant action that is the tricky part.
So without further ado, I thought it might be interesting for SnapStream enthusiasts to know what our values here at SnapStream are:
1. Only hire passionate, disciplined, and intelligent people. People are our most important asset.
2. Put a human face on the company.
3. Invest in infrastructure that allows us to get more done with less.
4. Cut waste and inefficiency relentlessly. Leaner and simpler is better.
5. Embrace and effect positive change, rather than looking for reasons not to change.
6. Never stop learning. Seize opportunities to improve yourself and the team.
7. Work together and cooperate to achieve our goals. Tear down any walls that form in the company.
8. Follow up on everything. Ask what the next action is, write it down, and follow up on your next actions.
9. Take the customer’s perspective constantly. Measure the company against the customer’s standard of quality and not just your own.
10. Look for the unexpected angles that will make customers remember us.
11. Make the company a leader. Favor directions that uniquely differentiate us from “regular� companies.
I could write an essay on each of the values…but I’m going to leave it at that for the moment.
Like I said earlier, everyone has to work and think constantly to make sure these values translate into real results. And by real, I mean changes that our customers can see. I and the others here have spent a lot of time working to create these values, and I’m spending more time this week checking up with everyone, getting feedback, and encouraging open thinking about how we can apply our values to our daily work. But I can see hints of change already, so I’m sure the effort will be worth it!
September 1st, 2005 at 7:40 am
Oh boy, looks like snapstream has just entered the corporate world. Bye bye small efficient company, hello bloated staffed company. Please read the Dilbert principle before moving ahead with more “hot air”.
September 1st, 2005 at 9:05 am
Well said, Craig. Of all the principles of heartless multinational corporations that a fledgling could choose to follow, this “cargo-cult” selection of “company values” is the most disheartening.
September 1st, 2005 at 12:33 pm
I did mention in the post that companies which fail to translate the values properly can become Dilbert-esque. I have actually worked with some former co-workers of Scott Adams, so I might actually be better qualified to comment then most.
Despite the many things that can go wrong with creating values, isn’t it a bit defeatist to call getting a team together and establishing some common ground on what they believe in a “cargo cult”? Call it whatever you want, but if it helps create a better experience for customers, I think it will be a “good thing”.
September 8th, 2005 at 12:59 pm
I agree with richard. As a programmer here at Snapstream, its good to have values and vision written down. It makes a hell of a difference when you have to sit down and make choices about things to come. Values help you understand the value of your time and effort, and understanding is priceless. Who would have guessed! ;P Great job on the list.
September 10th, 2005 at 9:39 am
Nice words, but now you have to follow through.
I expect to see significat changes, considering items 5, 9, 11.
Snapstream strikes me, a customer, as a company that doesn’t care much what customers think. The pricing model is bloated compared to the competiton (per tuner licensing), the value add just isn’t there, and please don’t talk to us about published APIs as if that’s the answer when no company is publishing commercial quality, *supported* plug-ins. The BTV4 plans are a classic example. The competition has solutions that are a complete replacement for MCE. Yet we’re told BTV4 will not integrate Beyond Media, that’d they’ll stay seperate programs for an undetermined period. Where is the value for the customer? For years people have asked for parental controls, and you ignore the requests. There’s a lot more examples I could give. You need to rember your company doesn’t exist in a vacuum, that there are seriously frustrated users out here who are really tired of lip service.
September 20th, 2005 at 7:53 am
Too bad number 9 hasn’t trickled down to the people running the company forums.
Very dissapointed with the product, I started a thread about my extreme disappointment that was deleted - as were my objections to this extreme censorship.
If you speak to the mods at the board, tell them I said “Hi!”….and I’m just getting started…..
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:38 am
Thx a lot for giving this info
April 22nd, 2006 at 12:38 am
Fantastic