An architect by training, CraftJack VP of operations Noah Mishkin discovered early on that the entrepreneurial aspects of architecture held more appeal for him than building design did.
But upon making the transition to the startup world, Mishkin found that many of the skills he honed in architecture school applied just as well to the day-to-day of running a startup. We spoke with him about morning routines, cross-team collaboration and fostering a culture that makes employees excited to come to work.
What does a typical day look like for you?
I wake up at 4 a.m. most mornings to get a good run in. A long run gives me the endorphin boost needed for a highly productive day, and time to digest an audiobook or podcast. 8-9:30 a.m. is used to tackle my email inbox, and 9:30 is our customer service standup meeting.
I spend the rest of my day addressing sales and customer service items that arise, joining product and marketing discussions, and planning upcoming office management and activities. I typically leave the office between 4 and 5 p.m. Additional work that needs immediate attention can be dealt with after my kids go to bed.
What do you spend most of your time on?
Most of my time is spent managing the handoff process from sales to customer service. Those two departments should really be considered as one cohesive team that rely on and support one another, like offense and defense of a football team. They each have their own unique challenges, but neither can succeed without the other.
What are the biggest challenges of scaling a startup?
The biggest challenges for us have fallen into two categories. First, how do we grow while continuing to maintain the expectations of high-quality service that we have come to be known for. Second, how do we offer competitive compensation that scales appropriately over time and is also financially sustainable for the company.
How do you build company structures that incentivize good work?
It comes down to a few considerations: offering a high quality of life, fostering professional growth and setting realistic expectations that employees are made aware of.
First, if you foster a well-natured environment of optimism, people will want to be there, work hard and produce exceptional results. Financial reward is good, but it is by no means the most important factor in everyone’s commitment to their organization. Feeling positive about coming to work is a foundation of success for the employee and employer.
Second, knowing that your company wants to invest in your growth says they care about you and like having you here. It can be small things, like quarterly performance meetings that reverse the traditional roles. Have the employee make suggestions on areas where they think they can do better. Then it’s up to the boss to provide that level of mentorship in guiding the training and growth.
Finally, not knowing how well your manager thinks you’re performing can be stressful — especially in an operations role. A well thought-out model tied to productivity metrics and key performance indicators is a definite must, and it needs to be made known and clear to the employees being held to it.
We share these performance metrics on a real-time dashboard displayed within our call center. That way, no one is surprised or left in the dark. Those kinds of micro-goals can also challenge individuals or the entire team to push harder.
Images via CraftJack and LinkedIn. Answers have been edited for clarity and length.
Do you know of a startup we should be covering? Let us know with a tip or a tweet @BuiltInChicago
