For startups, it’s easy to tout a transparent culture when everyone in the company collaborates on a weekly, if not daily, basis.
But successful startups move fast, and transparency at scale is no simple feat.
Along with other inevitable growing pains, it gets tougher for leaders to deliver honest answers and maintain the open-door policies that once came naturally. However, transparent communication holds a company together through the good and bad, fostering loyalty and trust writ large. In New York City, some companies have managed to build this type of culture — here’s how they put transparency into practice.
Livestream is bringing the ability to stream high-quality live video to the masses. The company works with some of the most notable organizations in the world to help them broadcast live events and reach a wider, global audience. We spoke with Livestream’s VP of People Matt O'Leary to find out more about how a transparent culture has lent itself to the company’s success.
What tactics do you use to foster a transparent culture among your employees?
We try to share as much and as often as possible. For example, we review our quarterly P&Ls with the entire company and how that relates to our strategy and mission. We present our board decks to the entire company after each board meeting and we hold monthly AMAs where leadership answers nearly all questions from staff about any subject. Anonymous questions are encouraged and our people team is continuously building and developing relationships across the org to ensure everyone feels safe and supported. We also send a weekly update on all primary business, product, CX activities and KPIs every Monday to the entire company.
Why is transparency important while building a startup?
The more transparency, the more trust. The more trust, the more candor. The more candor, the faster you work through challenges and the more creative you are in tackling opportunities.
Transparency also iteratively builds context and alignment. When people know what the company is doing they build knowledge of how their contribution relates to the progress and ultimately the success of the business.
Are there any challenges you've faced in remaining transparent? How did you overcome them?
There are some things we just can’t share, however we always try to provide a reason we can't answer specific questions. Also, full transparency doesn't work in a vacuum. You have to have a narrative so that people know what you want them to take away from the information you are sharing, and so they have context around financial results (good and bad) that helps them to better understand the business, our objectives, our goals and their contribution.
What advice would you give to other leaders when it comes to building transparency within your company?
Don't be scared and trust your team. There is a tendency for leaders to be protective or scared of sharing because they fear people don’t know how to use the information responsible. What it's actually done is helped our teammates to ask more astute questions and to give everyone in the org context as to how their contribution impacts our end results and bottom line.
4C is a global data science and media technology company specializing in solutions for multiscreen convergence. Its software helps marketers improve media planning, measurement and buying. We caught up with CEO Lance Neuhauser to find out how he has helped foster a transparent culture within the company.
What tactics do you use to foster a transparent culture among your employees?
It starts at the top. As an executive team, we always try to be open and straightforward in our communications so everyone knows what’s happening and where everyone stands. We hold monthly town hall meetings where we go through everything from vision to roadmap to financials. This keeps everyone on the same page.
Why is transparency important while building a startup?
If you want people step up and achieve amazing things, you have to empower them. Empowerment starts with trust. And trust starts with transparency.
Are there any challenges you've faced in remaining transparent? How did you overcome them?
Occasionally you get burnt and when that happens you have to tighten up the system but we still believe the default should be transparency. We don’t want to penalize 100 percent of the staff for the 1 percent chance something will go wrong. Bottom line, if you want people to act like adults, treat them like adults.
What advice would you give to other leaders when it comes to building transparency within your company?
Allow people to be comfortable in their own skin. That’s how you get the most loyalty and best results.
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