Five Lessons from Five Years of Zartico
This week, Zartico celebrates its fifth birthday, which has me reflecting on some of the lessons from this journey so far, and learnings for the future.
1. Unleash power of our team: Some of the greatest moments have come from seeing Zarticans step into the moment and shine their brightest. With the right mix of encouragement, opportunity and psychological safety, I’ve witnessed innovation, creativity, drive and resilience beyond expectations. Looking ahead: How can we create more opportunities for our team members to step into their brilliance?
2. Clients as guides: Destinations are using data as tools for leadership, community engagement and advocacy, sometimes in ways that we could not have anticipated. Looking ahead: Work to make Zartico's products easier to use, more versatile and more powerful for our clients to accelerate their own innovations.
3. Our North Star: A mistake I often made in the earlier stages of the company was emotionally “day-trading”. There will be successes and failures, accomplishments and mistakes. Learning to weather the daily ups and downs while staying patient and true to the ultimate vision takes discipline, trust and the support of a strong team. Looking ahead: More clearly articulate the long-term goals to everyone, inside and outside the company so that when things get chaotic, everyone has the same North Star.
4. Owning Mistakes: Being transparent and trustworthy is always the right thing to do, especially in difficult situations. When in the hot seat, it is tempting to deflect, defer or make excuses and at Zartico we’ve created a culture of transparency inside and out. We own our mistakes and missteps. By naming the problems, making improvements and putting better systems in place, prior challenges like data quality, have now become one of our strengths.
5. It takes a village: Success never comes from one person. We would not be celebrating this milestone without the contributions of a great many team members, supportive network of partners, vendors, investors and clients who believe in us and challenge us at every step. For everyone who has contributed a line of code, a turn of phrase, opened a door or provided a “what if…”, thank you. This would not be possible without you.
In looking to the next five years, there are no shortcuts to where we are going. And, every day I see evidence that we are on exactly the right path. #onlyZartico
Vice President, Enterprise Solutions I NAAEI Faculty
3moI could not be more proud of each of these Avantians. I have personally watched each of you grow and take chances and be leaders…even when nobody is watching. Thank you for setting the example. I cannot wait to see the favorable impact you each have in your new roles! #celebratethesummit 🥂🎉☀️