20 lessons learned from 20 years in business
So much ventured. So much gained.
This month, Berenger and I welcome the 20-year milestone of the incorporation of Designlogic as a business.
A business that started with a dream and two people. A business that, like a child, has evolved through many phases over the years. But a business that has always been loved and nurtured according to our own personal values of integrity, accountability, accessibility, fairness, honesty, and inclusion.
Like child rearing, it hasn’t always been an easy ride—the learning curve can be steep at times. In retrospect, we haven’t done everything right, but we have always done the right thing. We have come to understand that it’s how you handle the varied spectrum of experience along the way—the wins and successes, the challenges and attacks—that continually defines and redefines who you are.
In an industry where you are often only as good as your last job, you have to work hard to deliver excellence again and again and again. Our ability to continually deliver excellence has been the foundation of our success. We grew by word of mouth from the quality of work we delivered and, perhaps even more importantly, how we delivered it—not by promotion, nor by fawning over leadership or clients with the most power or money, but by valuing each client interaction equally.
Don’t get me wrong, relationships at the top are important, but what matters to us is that we treat the smallest of clients and the smallest of requests with the same accountability and integrity as those that come from a CMO. We believe that this is what differentiates us.
Equally important as the work we do, is who we are as an organisation. We are born of diversity—half women-owned and half LGBTQ-owned—and making our organisation a place where everyone is welcome has always been at the top of our priorities. My way of measuring this is to always ask myself, is Designlogic a place where I would be proud for my daughter and son to work? And the answer always comes back as a resounding ‘Yes’.
To celebrate our 20-year milestone, I would like to share some of what we’ve learned along the way.
Here we go:
Open, kind and friendly has always been our baseline. Some people will treat kindness with suspicion or think it’s weakness but don’t change—be who you are, unapologetically.
Communicate…communicate…communicate…
Adjust your leadership style to the individual, as we all communicate differently. It’s not one size fits all.
People don’t always meet you halfway so go further.
Good work is the best promotion.
Be active and present in as many relationships as possible. Constant connection ensures your narrative and intention are not misinterpreted.
Focus on continual learning outside of what brings you success to protect you from blind spots in your experience.
Don’t skirt around the edges of issues—avoidance behaviour does not pay—dive in quick and talk.
People will say what they think you want to hear. Engage continually and strive to ask better questions to get to the real picture.
Don’t be scared to grow—take calculated risks to move forward, embracing each and every lesson.
Make people your passion. Believe in them and yourself.
During contract negotiations with large corporations, don’t feel intimidated, ask questions and speak up, they do listen and care about small businesses.
You are never equipped with all the tools. Embrace a journey of continual evolution.
Always include humour even in the darkest of times.
Encourage the voices of the timid as they often see a lot more and have great value to share.
Analytics is everything. Slice and dice the data in multiple ways as there are many stories within.
Perception is always reality.
Actions speak louder than words.
Whenever and wherever you can, pay it forward.
You can’t be everyone’s friend. Trust your instinct. Be YOU and like-minded people will stick.
Jayne Walsh
Co-founder and CEO, Designlogic
