Our Culture Code
who we are and why

What is culture?

Culture is not office parties, drunken twister and free pizza
(though those things don’t hurt)

Culture is
values
shared beliefs
ways of acting
interpersonal communications

Why is it important to
define company culture?

Company
culture guides
everything
we do

It gives us

It guides decision making

It influences who we hire
who we promote
and who we invite to leave

and each of us being the best we can be
It leads to happiness, productivity

Our culture history

imATHLETE started with friends and family.
Specifically, Jeff’s

A wiki for sports.
Registration and athletic behavior
A way to connect, inform and inspire.

First partner/employee was my oldest friend, Mark
(who is still on the Board and is an investor)
mark
second oldest friend. first investor.
another long-time friend. brother was first advisor

What we did
Worked hard, moved fast
Stayed focused on a goal
Innovated and improved
Celebrated every success
Hired people who shared
our passion

It worked.

But always room to
strive,
grow
and
improve

the imATHLETE culture

To inspire every athlete to live a healthier
and happier life
the imATHLETE vision

Our 7 Core Values
1. Create and celebrate WOW! moments
2. Leadership isn’t a title, it’s a way of acting
3. Be curious, courageous and compassionate
4. Strive for excellence
5. Problem solving, not problem admiring
6. Constructive communication
7. Trust through transparency

#1

A WOW! moment is…
• seeing something that makes
you - or someone else - say
“WOW!”
• learning something new
• going above and beyond the
call of duty (without even
being asked to)
• surprising others with a
positive change

• WOW! moments make us
feel good
• WOW! moments make our
clients feel good
• We all want to be part of
something that makes people
say “WOW!”
Celebrate the WOW!
“Sometimes the best things in life are unexpected surprises”

leadership isn’t a title
it’s a way of acting
#2

A leader is…
• Humble
• Encouraging
• Empathetic
• Honest and ethical with high
integrity
• Approachable
• Willing to make tough decisions
• Self-motivated and proactive
• Able to hold themselves
accountable
• Optimistic, able to turn a
negative situation into a positive
experience

Be
Curious
Courageous
Compassionate
#3

Be Curious
• Proactively find answers and
share what you find
• Ask questions of each other
• Ask questions of our clients
• Embrace your inner 5 year old.
“Why?” “Why?” “Why?”
• Curiosity leads to ideas
• Curiosity breeds innovation

Be Courageous
• Failure is rewarded. Take a chance.
• Stand for what you believe in
• Ask any questions
• Sometimes the scariest thing is just
making a decision. Assess the
options, than do the best you can.
“Great things never came from comfort zones”

Be Compassionate
• Find commonalities not differences
• Give back - internally and externally
• Seek to understand other’s
motivations (especially when you don’t
understand why something was done the
way it was)
• Work to empower each other

strive for excellence
#4

Excellence
• Nobody strives for mediocrity
• Requires intention, effort and
persistence
• It takes a village to achieve excellence
• Take ownership of what you do
• Be proud of what you create

#5

Focus on the solution
• Define the problem
• Explore options
• Never be afraid to ask for help
• Evaluate and select best alternative
• Implement solution
• Learn from the experience and adjust
accordingly
• More important to have ideas for a
solution than to have the right idea

constructive
communication
#6

Constructive Communication
• Be calm
• Be constructive
• Be clear
• Be an empathetic listener
• Avoid reactivity
• Show appreciation and validation
• Let go of your ego
• No personal attacks. Ever.

#7

Transparency
• Open sharing of information
• Honesty
• Regular (constructive) feedback
• It’s ok to ask “why?”
• Don’t avoid the negative
• Admit when you’re wrong