Hi There, err... HyThere!
This is my first foray into writing. Over the past twenty years, I’ve been involved in building businesses. Usually technology businesses, but not always.
This will be about those experiences. I’ll focus on the four companies where I was an executive. It’ll include stories on Capitol Advantage (known for CapWiz), Custom Ink (now known as CustomInk without a space), Target (yes the Bullseye) and OptumRx (the nearly $100 billion subsidiary of a frightfully even larger company.)
I’ll also weave in some non-business topics. Perhaps experiences like my adventure in backpacking around the world for a year. Or having a doctor break it to you that there is a giant tumor in your chest and you must start chemo immediately. Or attending and witnessing, not just one, but two foreign political revolutions in-person. Plus I may dabble in the not so ordinary aspects of fatherhood at age 40+.
And this won’t be just for memories.
It’ll also be real-time. Because this is where I will unveil my new role as founder of HyThere™ a software company for hybrid companies.
I’ll share more in the coming days. But for starters, HyThere is for hybrid companies. Remote working works. But it has its limits too.
We all feel it. Hybrid fails when it comes to collaborating with colleagues who aren’t a part of our usual work routines. These so called “weak-tie” relationships are essential to every healthy organization. But without a good weak-tie culture, creativity is inhibited, innovation dulls, worker isolation grows, efforts duplicate and employees lose the fun in a good day’s work.
The companies who first solve this weak-tie problem will thrive. The others will struggle. I experienced these issues leading a multi-hundred person team and have validated this problem in interviews with employees and leaders at 40 companies across a range of industries. I kept hearing this:
Our teams are productive. They’re getting work done. But now it’s siloed and hyper-local. We’re struggling with the more ambitious, cross-company projects that we used to do before we moved to remote work. Now with hybrid, people barely know anyone beyond their immediate team. It’s hurting our creativity and innovation.
The weak-tie problem is real, it’s urgent, and it needs a solution.
I am creating HyThere to fix this. More to come. Until then, thanks for joining me here and following along on this journey.