MM – Are They for Real?

Back at the beginning of 2012, I was in a very different place. The company I worked for was, for me, typical of what corporate America has become today. I felt like I was on a treadmill that kept gaining speed and there was no “Off” button. 

During that time I came across an article in Forbes by Eric Jackson, titled “The Seven Habits of Spectacularly Unsuccessful Executives” (emphasis added). Eric ends his list of caveats with the statement: “If your boss or several senior executives at your company exhibit several of these traits, now is the time to start looking for a new job.” I was sensing that it was time for me to move on, but this article added a more than compelling affirmation that I had to get off the treadmill.

Then I stumbled across a posting for a job that hinted of a wildly-different kind of company. Karen Mathews, Product Owner at MeetingMatrix, had posted a brief ad that baited the hook. A casual glance was all I intended when I went to the MeetingMatrix website.  Hmmm, solutions for the hospitality industry.  I was intrigued by the products they offered in a niche that was unfamiliar to me. The try-it-now links gave a chance to kick the tires. So, my casual site review was turning into an adventure.  

The more I saw, the more I wanted to see. My clicking frenzy eventually led me to the social media links on their site, including the Culture Studio on Facebook, the MMCulture Studio on YouTube, and this Splice Blog.  Talk about different, wow!  Beyond an interesting array of hospitality industry solutions, an image of a culture that puts emphasis on humanity, individuals, dignity, and respect started to emerge. 

This hook was now firmly in my jaw. Hours passed as I became enamored with what was either a well-spun tale or a world that was polar opposite to any business I have ever seen. 

One thing led to another, and I found myself talking to the Karen in a phone interview. She told me a few things about the company and culture with phrases like “we’re kinda’ like a bit of a hippy culture.”  That might have shocked me if it weren’t for the hours that I spent looking at their social media links. Now I had two reasons to look deeper: first, I was done with the treadmill, and second, I was ready for something very different.  

There were a three books that seemed to frame the central philosophies that MeetingMatrix espoused. Tribal Leadership, Leadership Agility, and Delivering Happiness.  Of course I had to follow the rabbit trails from those as well. The persona of MeetingMatrix was starting to gel.  They were different. They appeared have a company culture that understands and deliberately avoids those seven habits described by Eric Jackson. 

I am not a writer, author, marketer, or salesman.  I am, among other things, a Quality Assurance Engineer. We QA guys are not known for being politically correct.  We just call them as we see them.   I made a promise to myself that if MeetingMatrix became part of my life that I would share with others what MM looks like from within.

I wrote this piece about MeetingMatrix as “they” and “there” -- an outsider looking in.   Well, I am happy to say that I leaped off the treadmill.  MeetingMatrix has adopted me into their tribal culture/family.  I’ll tell you more in Part 2 about MeetingMatrix from  an “us” and “here” perspective. 

-Paul (Pave) Avard

Quality Assurance Manager

The Evolution of T.I.M.E. - Part 3

With the intent of rolling this out at the beginning of 2009, the committee put together what we called the "T.I.M.E. Declaration," which consisted of ten bullet points outlining the underlying mindset of T.I.M.E. It was hoped that this would help others better grasp, and eventually embrace, this new workstyle. We started with ROWE’s 13 Guideposts and adapted them to fit our unique culture.

1. Work isn’t a place you go – it’s something you do. Nobody should feel guilty, overworked, orstressed-out as a result of their job.

2. Associates can work wherever they want, whenever they want, as long as the work gets done and both internal and external customers are always taken care of.

3. Associates have the freedom to work in the style that works best for them as long as they meet the objectives and performance criteria of their job and have no negative impact on other Associate’s productivity.

4. Associates make themselves available on a consistent basis to other Associates via their choice of Instant Message, Telephone or E-Mail and manage expectations and their availability appropriately, realizing that there may be periods of time when the Associate is just not available.

5. People have an unlimited amount of "paid time off" as long as the work gets done. There is no concept of vacation or personal time. However, any hourly Associate is paid the vacation and personal time as defined by the company.

6. The company will not incur any additional expense or un-reasonable IT requests to facilitate associates working outside the office. It is up to the Associate to make T.I.M.E. work for them not look to the company to provide the solution.

7. All meetings with the exception of mandatory and staff meetings are optional as long as the Associate contributes in advance if their input is needed, reviews the notes from the meeting and is responsible for any action items that apply to them.

8. All internal meetings are open and anyone can attend any meeting including requesting a forum at the Team Leader Meeting. You must announce yourself or be logged into the Live Meeting to attend. It is up to the meeting facilitator to manage the flow and content of the meeting.

9. It is the expectation that all Associates including Team Leaders think through their goals and objectives and plan ahead to avoid last minute scrambles taking into account that external customer expectations may be different than ours.

10. No one is measured on how many hours they work or how they spend their time, just the results that they produce. There are no defined work schedules, only schedules defined to meet the needs of our internal and external customers.

The Declaration was sent to the entire staff on Dec. 22, 2008 by Jmîchaeĺe, with a note saying to review and discuss with your Team Leader any additional concerns or questions, as it was to be approved in the next Team Leader meeting. On January 7, 2009, the finalized T.I.M.E. Declaration was delivered to all associates and we were off and running!

Snow storms? Bring ‘em on! School vacations? Sweet, the kids need a break now and then. Got tickets for opening day at Fenway? Lucky dog, see ya!

The shift to the new workstyle impacted different people in different ways, as one would expect. For some, it was hard to fathom that they could just stop working and leave if they wanted to. You were no longer required to go into the office, and sit at your desk for a set number of hours. Instead, you were able to manage your work on your own . . . as long as it got done. I likened this to transitioning from high school to college. I don’t know if it’s still the case, but when I went to college, they didn’t necessarily take attendance in each class. Instead, if you missed class, you were responsible for the content and any work that was assigned. Get your work done in an acceptable manner, and you were pretty much good to go.

We were being treated like grownups. How cool is that?

Until the next installment,

Karen Mathews
Product Manager

The Evolution of T.I.M.E. - Part 2

The time for the meeting to discuss this otherworldly workplace notion finally arrived. As you can imagine, everyone was quite punctual to this one. Jmîchaeĺe gave a quick overview of something he’d been reading. He was very happy with his lifestyle and the freedom he felt and wanted to pass this along to all the associates in his company.

He cited a book called Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It by Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson, the developers of a management strategy called R.O.W.E. – Results Only Work Environment. He encouraged us to actually not read the book (yes, I cheated and went out and bought the damn thing on my way home that night), but instead consider their statement that “work isn’t a place you go, it’s a thing you do.” Also, imagine a work environment with no more vacation days, no more personal days. If you need to take time off, do it. It won’t be tracked anymore.

Whoa. I suddenly felt as if I were about 16 and my parents asked me to consider if a new Ferrari would work as my first car. There was a time of rather stunned silence, but then questions started pouring out. So anyone can work from wherever they want, whenever they want? Yes, as long as the job gets done. What if someone only works a couple hours a week? If they’re getting their tasks done, then fine. But we’d also have to consider if they have enough to do. So, someone could join a conference call while at the beach? Yup. What if you needed to contact someone who’s not showing online in our company IM system? Try calling them. If I want to take tomorrow off, I don’t need to submit anything or get approval? Nope, just post it on your calendar. And perhaps alert others who work with you, as a courtesy.

Good gravy! Could this be for real? It felt so liberating, yet unreal. How could someone possibly say no to this? There was initial excitement, but as the meeting progressed, folks starting airing some concerns. What about those who slack off? We still work with clients who have a traditional “workstyle,” so how to deal with that? What if you simply cannot reach a person who’s crucial to what you’re trying to accomplish? Do I have the self-discipline to make this happen? Will I be getting phone calls at 10 PM from someone who prefers to work late at night? Does this mean I’m “available” 24 hours a day?

It was a lot to consider. We started meeting in the late summer, with the idea of hashing everything out and launching this new workstyle at the beginning of the new year. One thing was crystal clear from the get-go, though. If you wanted to take advantage of this, you had to make it work. Don’t look to the company to provide all associates with laptops and T1 lines to their homes. There was immediately one hard, fast rule: MeetingMatrix was not to incur additional expenses because of this new undertaking.

We established certain questions we all needed to ask of ourselves and our departmental teams. We agreed to have regular meetings to consider next steps, and to get buy-in on all aspects of this endeavor which would show themselves over time.

First on the agenda, though, was to come up with our own name. There was a brainstorming session and we eventually agreed to go with T.I.M.E.,which stands for Task Inspired Management Environment. We absolutely loved the irony of that name, because one “mandate” is that no one is measured by how much time they put into the job, but rather the results they produce.

As word spread about what we were doing, the resistance we encountered was quite surprising. Initially, it was hard for other associates to look past the fact that there were no longer any vacation or personal days. It took a good deal of coaxing to get them to understand that it didn’t matter. Later, it appeared that despite completely eradicating all past “rules” of work, people needed guidelines to help them travel this new path. So, our committee had each person talk directly to their department to uncover and document concerns and questions, and bring them back so we could address them collectively.

To be continued (again)...

Karen Mathews
Product Manager

The Evolution of T.I.M.E.

I’m sure everyone’s all too familiar with this scene: You drag yourself out of bed in the morning after hitting the snooze on your alarm far too many times. Your brain informs you that it’s only Tuesday. You have your morning cup of whatever to help you wake up, take a shower, get dressed, get in the car, and begin the daily commute to work. Of course, if you have kids and / or critters in the picture, this routine is compounded eight-fold.

A Work Culture

Across the world there are almost 200 countries, each one of these has its own individual features, characteristics, rituals, and traditions. These form the culture(s) of a country. The culture of a society affects everything from how people eat, work, play, and how they interact with each other and newcomers.

As a newcomer to countries, I find it fascinating to see how different cultures accept and welcome visitors. In Malawi, when you are greeted, you shake both hands with your right hand, and with your left you hold your right wrist to show respect. In Uganda, people will stop what they are doing as soon as you arrive and come see you. When you are offered something (i.e. a drink) it can be deeply insulting to say no. In France, a warm welcome would be to receive a bisou or bisous (kisses).

There are rules around these greetings and traditions that can be difficult to understand and follow for someone who is not accustomed to them. There are many similarities between cultures. Many dictate that each guest be treated with the up most respect and generosity and that their needs be met no matter what the cost. In Kenya, if a visitor were to come one evening asking for somewhere to stay, a member of the household would give up their bed and their meal for the guest.

When we move to a new and foreign place, we become aliens. The definition of which is 'a resident born in or belonging to another country'. As an 'alien' in a foreign country, that is the last thing many of us want to be. As humans, we like to fit in and be accepted, therefore it is up to the country we are visiting to welcome us into their culture and to be hospitable. As one of three interns at MeetingMatrix this summer, I have experienced some of the American culture including the American way of greeting and welcoming newcomers; and so far it has been fantastic.

MeetingMatrix has done everything for us; the only thing we had to do ourselves was step onto the plane! From the moment we were on the plane, everything was organised (transport, accommodation, meals...). For some of you reading this, you may be thinking, 'well, that's just standard, that's what I would expect of them.' If that's the case, then MeetingMatrix is the company for you because they didn't just stop there. Since our arrival, we have been sailing, gone out for dinner with the staff, given company jackets, and allowed to use the company car for a road trip. All of that was done in just over a week. Week two, here we come!

As a company, MeetingMatrix promotes a very relaxed work ethic. Staff are free to come and go as they like. They choose to work at home or at the office. As we sit and work in our 'office' which we've taken over for the next few weeks, we often have associates coming in for a chat, to introduce themselves, to see how we're finding things, or what we got up to the previous evening.

This atmosphere that is created in the company is incredible. Its one where people are motivated to work by being somewhere they want to be, not have to be. This causes a great amount of respect for management and those running the company.

Whether they know it or not, the staff at MeetingMatrix are deeply engaged in the culture of their workplace and their position as hosts. This is vital to the 'aliens' they are receiving. Their hospitality has been so sincere, that in just a couple of weeks, we don't really feel very alien at all.

Laurie Frank
MeetingMatrix Intern

Does Music Boost Productivity?

There have been many studies done as of late about whether or not listening to music while working on any task would boost productivity. I know that I, a college student, have been listening to music while doing homework, projects, or any tasks assigned to me ever since elementary school. I feel that in silence I can get distracted far too easily, and music helps to activate the part of my brain that wanders and keeps it occupied; for as long as I like the song that is.

There was a trial done a few years ago where 75 out of 256 workers in a large retail company were given a Walkman to listen to while working, and were pleased to notice that there was a 10% increase in productivity. Another study done by the University of Illinois found a 6.3% increase when compared to the people who don't listen to music. It has also been proven that while listening to music with an upbeat rhythm can reduce stress hormones levels by a whopping 41%!

I was personally amused to learn that the two best genres of music that would help you work were baroque and rock music. I listen to neither, much preferring to listen to the awesome music that is Lady Gaga, Gorillaz, and Michael Jackson while working. Intrigued by this, I decided to look up some popular groups that people have said inspired them to get their work done better and faster, and the top grounds I found were Queen, Eminem [odd, because he's rarely uplifting], Bon Jovi, Chumba Wumba, and Europe. Quite a mishmash!

I'm not saying that you should be jamming out to some hard core rap while trying to draw diagrams, but perhaps having one earbud in your ear with some softly playing classical or classic rock wouldn't hurt. I know I certainly enjoy it!

Sarah Mathews
Data Quality Specialist

PCMA Convening Leaders 2011

Certain events in a person’s life irrevocably change the sequence of events that follow. PCMA in January was such an event for me this year. It’s taken me a couple of weeks to really understand, comprehend, and appreciate all that has happened in the weeks that followed. My hope is that I successfully convey every INCREDIBLE moment to those who read this blog entry.

Tony Hsieh, of Zappos.com fame, gave the PCMA Keynote speech this year. When the session broke, you could almost feel the tendrils of energy and excitement flowing back and forth among the attendees. ‘Wow’ was a word that seemed to be a chorus as attendees moved to their next session, but it was hard to tell whether they were talking about the WOW service at Zappos.com, or that Tony himself wowed them.

Jmîchaeĺe Keller, our President and CEO attended PCMA and moderated a Student Panel discussion (which is another blog in and of itself). More importantly, he heard Tony Hsieh’s keynote and it resonated deeply within him

The keynote and Jmîchaeĺe’s reaction to it set off a chain of events within MeetingMatrix that are still occurring.

Jmîchaeĺe has always been a visionary and has brought concepts to our Company that many would consider unconventional. One such concept is T.I.M.E. (Task Inspired Management Environment) which gives everyone in MeetingMatrix freedom to craft their work schedules (hours, days off, vacations, etc.) in a way that meets each individual’s personal goals, as well as company goals.

As a result of the PCMA Keynote and Jmîchae?e we at MeetingMatrix are now on a quest to adapt and mold a version of the Zappos.com Culture to our own.

This may sound like a simple undertaking…. just make some changes to how you hire and fire, right? Not so fast.

Jmîchaeĺe purchased Amazon Kindle readers for every MeetingMatrix Associate plus two books: Tony Hsieh’s “Delivering Happiness” and “Tribal Leadership”. These became the foundation for what we call our Cultural Re=Evolution. Everyone has read both books and become immersed in reinventing our company.

A Cultural Re=Evolution Team was formed to give a focus and facilitate integration of all associates within the company in driving this change. Our annual company meeting which we affectionately refer to as “staff”, will take on a completely different format this year. Changes will take place in areas including seating style, our team building event, and our ‘fun’ night.

To join in our Re=Evolution visit Culture Studio™, the cure for the common workplace.

Lydia Montgomery
Assistant Director of Sales