Most of you already know that we’re currently reinventing ourselves from a thirteen-in-a-dozen Java/J2EE IT company into one which is formed by Semco principles. As part of this effort we organized our very first SAM (Software Art Meeting) yesterday. Although we weren’t sure what to expect from this first meeting, initial results are very promising…
Becoming a full fledged Semco style company is a goal, we’re not sure how to get there, or even if we want to go all the way (everything might change, no guarantees, no long term vision, all we know is what we want to achieve right now). Along the way we might stumble upon something which works even better! We do know that in order to get there, we need to involve the entire company in the decision making process. It depends on the people within the company, and their current interest in which direction we as a company will be moving.
So, our starting point is that the entire company decides where we’ll be heading. To kick start this process we decided to organize a biweekly session called SAM (Software Art Meeting). Basically the goal of this session is to establish a shared goal, one that’s supported (and liked!) by all members. To provoke discussion during this session, and (like yesterday’s meeting demonstrated) come up with really cool ideas for new products/services/etc, everyone is asked the following three questions:
- What’s your last brilliant idea?
- What have you been doing?
- What do you want to do?
Initial results? Well, after the meeting ended around 19:30 we agreed that it might be best to timebox these meetings 
The meeting was fun though. Each participant’s ideas and thoughts let to a discussion on the wildest ideas and features, sometimes ending up as separate “things to work on”. Of course, it makes no sense to blindly follow your ideas, without regard for what we, as a company, (L)earn, or gain. As we’re still a relatively small company we decided it’s best to focus our energy (for now) on just one of the ideas discussed during this meeting. After a quick evaluation, we all agreed (based sheerly on possible revenue, and the maturity of the idea) to focus on developing a new product, which you’ll all hear about pretty soon (heck, our launching customer is expecting us for a demo next week). Even though we strive to blog just about everything that’s happening in and around our company, there are limits Keep tuned for news about our cool new product, which we’re sure everyone will come into contact with!
Developing new products requires us to invest a lot of time and money. Since we cannot yet sustain a dedicated product development team for this project, we still need to generate income by working on (part time) customer projects. Meanwhile, everyone is free to donate as much time and energy as possible to further the development of our new project. Will this hamper progress? Not sure, we all know what to gain by making this work: a chance to work in the coolest product development company out there…
Conclusion
Much was discussed, but we agreed on a shared goal. Everyone understands why it’s important, and what’s to gain. This blog is in part a result of our meeting, documenting how Software Art works. Not just for the outside world, but also for ourselves. Looking forward to our next SAM already!
Coming soon
A blog which will provide more details on how Software Art is structured, the revenue streams and how we inform the entire company of our situation! And last but not least, an article on how to join Software Art, the coolest company out there…
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