Yesterday, we were talking with our buddy, David Malamud (VP at the awesome shop, Oak), and he suggested we write a post about what we are doing. What a novel idea; I love to talk to about us. We have new clients, a new office and a lot of cool stuff going on, but the best thing we have is our people. When we moved out of our original office we dubbed "the dorm," we got some new space for the original five. It was roooooomy! Soon we realized we needed more hands on deck. Jeff, Nik Joe, Paulina, Sarah and I had such a good vibe it was a little scary when that dynamic was forced to change. But we needed help. So we hired two new humans.
Linda Ho is our first ever full-time project manager. Thank you to our friends at our favorite jeweler in Houston, Hal Martin's, for recommending the multi-talented Linda.
In her first week, she saved our butts. For weeks, we had been going back and forth about a complex website verification issue. The client, myself and outside vendors were totally stumped. The only solution was going to require a ton of work and a lot of money. This is not something a client wants to hear. When Linda arrived, I asked her to simply look at this issue with some fresh eyes. Linda did something no one saw coming. She exercised an ancient and almost forgotten practice.
She picked up the phone.
She talked to all the human beings involved. She figured out it was a very simple problem. Then she solved it. Bravo, Linda Ho, bravo.
Gabe "Gouda" Gonzalez is the fastest person to get a nickname in 5 + 8 history. In Gabe's first month, he made a peculiar request that would cling to him much like his melty, Dutch namesake. Nik Joe was headed down to Starbucks and politely asked if any one wanted anything. Gabe responded with haste, "Can you get me two bacon and gouda sandwiches?" Good God, man! What kind of request is this? And, two? Whose footing the bill for you double-downing on these delicacies?
Since this first faux-pas, Gouda has been killing it. He is our go to for crafting, managing and tracking our client's social media accounts. An extraordinarily time-consuming role that is increasingly important for clients. It's the kind of thing everyone knows they need to be doing, but few are willing to allot the appropriate effort. Gouda writes smart posts, lays them out with care and immerses himself in 'why' behind their failure or success. The kid is money.
When we started 5 + 8, I assumed my favorite part would be the freedom to work on projects we chose. Or, maybe just being my own boss. But, it has become clear to me that my favorite part is the people.
81 percent of American respondents said they get Sunday-night blues according to a Monster.com poll. Haha, remember monster.com? I used to get that way, but thanks to these fools I am now in the other 19%.
