Software companies are in a perpetual arms race with one another, rushing to develop the most nimble, adaptive, and innovative tech solutions. But according to one industry disrupter, the products themselves are only one aspect of a company’s success.
“The products naturally emanate from the cultural ecosystem in which they are produced,” says Maziar Adl, the Managing Director and CTO of Gocious. “Sooner or later, a software company with a weak culture will find its inspiration running dry. Culture provides the necessary infrastructure for long-term innovation and success.”
He would know: Gocious has been heralded as one of the most innovative companies in its space, developing a one-of-a-kind product roadmap management (PRM) tool that’s taken the manufacturing world by storm.
Yet according to the company’s chief technologist, the product itself isn’t the company’s greatest claim to fame. “It’s our robust culture that’s enabled us to flip the script within our industry, and to position ourselves as trusted industry leaders.”
So, what is it that makes the Gocious culture so strong? Adl offers a few talking points.
How to Build a Robust Culture in the Software Industry
Customer Focus
Though it may seem self-evident, it’s actually revolutionary to think in terms of customer focus. Here’s how Adl summarizes it: “We’re not constantly seeking to make our company disruptive; we’re too busy thinking about how to make our clients and customers disruptive. We’re single-minded about providing them with the superpowers they need for massive success.”
Filtering every decision through the prism of customer empowerment is a huge part of Gocious’ success, always providing them with a clear sense of direction and purpose.
Teamwork
According to Adl, teamwork isn’t just a matter of everyone working collaboratively. It’s a matter of everyone understanding how their role fits into the bigger picture.
“Every team member understands what our broader goals are, and how their daily responsibilities contribute to that goal,” comments Adl. “Having a clear sense of purpose and impact is what keeps our employees engaged.”
Candor
Another key element of Gocious’ culture is candor. The team dynamic is built on an openness toward feedback and constructive criticism, where all employees feel empowered to voice their concerns or to suggest shifts in direction.
“Open and honest communication is everything to a team, particularly in a field that benefits from having many creative perspectives on the table at once,” says Adl.
Curiosity
Along the same lines, Adl says curiosity is core to the success of any tech company, Gocious included.
“We want our team members to draw from as many experiences and ideas as possible,” he notes. “That means we encourage everyone to be a lifelong learner, staying abreast of developments in software, in manufacturing, and in the broader culture.”
Passion
The word “passion” can mean different things to different people, but at Gocious the definition is clear: It means showing up to work each day driven to do the best possible work.
“We very much have a mentality of coming in every day to lift each other up, to spur one another to greater success, and to do the best possible work on behalf of our customers and clients,” Adl summarizes.
Diversity
A final hallmark of the Gocious culture is diversity.
“When you work in software, you’re automatically working in a very global setting, where your solutions may be impactful for consumers or businesses across the planet,” Adl says. “We take pride in being citizens of the world, and in incorporating plenty of diverse views into what we do.”
Establishing the Best Culture at Your Software Company
Of course, Gocious’ values aren’t meant to be a recipe or a blueprint for other companies to follow verbatim. Adl says it’s essential for leaders to map out a distinct set of values and to build their culture around it.
“Getting together to codify a few core principles, and then making those the watchwords for everything you do, is a good first step toward cultural development,” he concludes.
Gocious is a leader in the field of product roadmap management (PRM) software, providing comprehensive solutions for product development and engineering teams across countless industries. The company is based in Southern California.
Source: Story.KISSPR.com
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