Growing Within

As a company we’ve continued to evolve as our users, the community, technology, WordPress etc. have imposed certain demands on us. One of the areas of our business that has undergone a complete revolution since Magnus, Mark & I started the company, is the WooTeam which now has 8 full-time members (almost 3x the size of the team when we started out in 2008).

So how did we do this? I’d like to believe that we’ve always allowed our team to grow from within. For example, prior to Cobus & Fox joining the team, they were working with me on a side-project (radiiate) – so I had known them both and even though it was with a difference, they grew into more prominent positions.

In a similar vein, Tiago started out as a (junior) support / forum ninja and grew into the position of Master Ninja in our support forums, whilst also becoming our lead (and only at the moment) Drupal developer. Kirstin too started out as a (junior) forum ninja, turned into an Affiliated Woo Worker and we’ve now also released some of his designs as themes on WooThemes. The latest feather in Kirstin’s cap is the upcoming release of Coda, which Kirstin both designed & developed.

Our Strategy

We’re firm believers in organic growth and even more so with trust, friendships & relationships. As a result, we’ve always preferred to establish relationships and work with the people that we know best.

By allowing everyone within the WooTeam to grow into their own niche positions has been hugely beneficial, as we’ve been fortunate to fill much-needed gaps this way. To date the only gap we filled from outside our circle, has been the addition of Jeff (last November). Since Jeff joined the team though, he has carved out his own position and he is now doing stuff (and hence adding value) that we were never able to do before (as is evidenced by his development of the WooNav and ultimate contribution to the WordPress 3.0 core).

So next time when you look at your team, consider what we’ve done to grow our team organically. Not only has this growth strategically made the most sense to us, but it also means that the whole WooTeam is one helluva tight-knit group (which has its own obvious benefits).

More about our journey here.