A NOTE TO THE 1871 COMMUNITY
1. Thanks to all of you who have made an effort to come up and
introduce yourself to me (and/or to Tom Alexander). We are slowly making the
rounds and trying to meet everyone and we got a nice knowledge boost from all
the Google meetings we had with interested member companies. Jasmine is also
setting up some one-on-one company meetings for us. Be sure to take advantage
of those opportunities if you're interested and especially if we can give you a
hand in some way or if you have news, suggestions, complaints (give those
mainly to Tom :)), etc. Thanks also to those of you who have commented on
the art and posters that we are starting to hang around the place to make it a
little less austere and empty looking. This really is our "home" away
from home in many ways (and we spend a great many of our waking hours here) and
we want it to be as comfortable, warm and welcoming an environment as possible
for all. In addition, please note that we have a Town Hall meeting coming up in
a couple of weeks and I hope that you will all also take advantage of that
opportunity to get caught up on all the exciting developments around 1871 and
to share with us any thoughts or recommendations that you might have about making
things even better.
2. We are already making some decent progress on a number of
fronts (we aren't really very good at waiting or being patient as you might
have heard) and we are trying to move as quickly as possible when we can. As an
example, I learned on Monday that several members felt it would be helpful to
them for us to install monitors for presentations in the two small conference
rooms (S3 and S4) and we should have the new monitors (55" HD displays) on
heavy duty mobile racks in those rooms in about a week. On the other side, I
also learned that we weren't doing a good job of making sure that the nursing
room (S12) was essentially reserved for our nursing mothers even when there
aren't any babies in sight. This isn't the only use that Moms make of that
space and, frankly, even though it's tempting to hang out in there when it
appears empty, we want it reserved (regardless of the time) exclusively for the
Moms. Please find somewhere else to hold even the shortest calls, etc. so it's
always there for them.
3. You can expect to see a lot more press and media as well as
strengthened and expanded messaging, but it will be more about telling our
members' stories than about 1871 itself. We will have a regular (weekend air
time) video feature on the tech segment on NBC featuring our companies which
will be shot by Charlie Wojciechowski (NBC Tech Reporter) here at 1871. We want
to spread the wealth around a little more in terms of the companies we feature
(so reach out to Melissa if you think your story is good and ripe for telling)
and we also want to expand our efforts to focus on some broader issues. We will
be taking a page from the stories of several Impact Engine companies because we
want our overall message at 1871 to include and make it very clear that
"making a life is about a lot more than just making a living" and
that, in our actions and our plans, we should be conscious of how we can all be
part of something bigger and more important than just ourselves and how we can
demonstrate that to our community and to our city and state as a whole.
4. Finally, let me just say that I'm very glad and excited to be
here and I regard my primary job as making you and your businesses successful
and self-sustaining. Everything else warm and wonderful flows from that simple
goal.
- Howard Tullman