The Village as a Startup

Atlanta Tech Village is a startup. Consider us a well funded, already raised capital (thanks David!), startup. Because of this we are traveling a similar journey to many of the companies within our walls- developing culture, creating goals, making iterations, and searching for our ideal customer. All of these are part of a healthy startup cycle, and it's one heck of a ride. Here's a glimpse at how some of our story has gone. Culture If you have read any Atlanta startup tweets or blogs recently, this is an often discussed topic. Do amenities create culture, the people in the community, the leaders, the values and mission of the company? We think they all contribute to culture, but it is set from the top down. David has instilled the Village values in the our team, and we are doing our best to create an environment (scooters and all) conducive to them- Be nice. Dream big. Work hard, play hard. Pay it forward. Talent Developing our team is something I can take zero credit for, but am blessed to be a part of. We simply are a great team of positive, supportive, and self starting folks. Internally, we refer to ourselves as a starfish, where we all have equal parts and each has authority over our domain. We operate as a results only environment and honestly? Our team is kicking butts and taking names. Johnson Cook wrote a great blog about our antifragile team here.IterationsDid you know that not a single one of us had experience in commercial real estate or coworking facilities before the Village? That's right folks, just like many startups, we are learning as we go. We have the talent and vision, and we have set our goals. But as any member who has been with us since the beginning can tell you, we have made many iterations. It has been a purposeful (most of the time) and continued growth of our ideas and plans as we have received feedback, done research, and learned what works and what doesn't. Realignment As you can imagine, the ideas flow! There are always new ideas, new technology, new events, new programs, and new companies we want in our space. This dream big concept is at the heart of every entrepreneur and in the fabric of the Village. But some ideas just aren't what are best for us. This part can be hard, but as each idea comes, we ask ourselves- Does this align with our Values? Does this help us achieve our goals? These questions quickly allow us to realign and stay on track.Atlanta Tech Village is for startups, but we are a startup ourselves. We are a community working hard together, making iterations, defining and redefining our goals as we work towards our ultimate product- 103,000 square feet of a resource filled, supportive community that will help launch our city into a top 5 tech hub in the US.