Another Mayfield Fellows Program “Summer Journal” Entry…
Topsy is located in the SOMA district of San Francisco in a complex shared by three other startups and a chiropractor (random, I know). Our unit itself is divided into two “bunkers” (as described by our CEO) which are physically separated. Both of these “bunkers” are fairly open with employees shifting around freely within them. It’s interesting to note, however, that while there technically are no “assigned” desks or offices, the CEO and COO (the two founders who also have board seats) both spend about 80% of their time in Bunker 2. The CEO and COO will often have strategy meetings in Bunker 2 with the other founder (and myself). Generally, other employees do not attend these strategy meetings, and they rarely spend time in Bunker 2.
Bunker 2 is one large room with a few desks and lots of whiteboards. Our accountant / secretary works out of Bunker 2 a few days a week at her own desk, and the founders work on Ikea couches. There are a number of desks, but no one in this room sits at them.
Bunker 1 has our main presentation room where we have our full team standup meetings. It’s littered with bean bags, shag carpets, Ikea couches and chairs, and some random pieces of furniture. Bunker 1 also has a few “offices” which really are two other large rooms. These “offices” are shared by two to four people (again, people usually shift around, depending on the projects they are working on). Our CEO will come and spend time in Bunker 2 and hang out with other employees (our COO by contrast pretty much keeps to himself in bunker 2).
While I have come to like our space, when I first came to interview, I was underwhelmed. By the time I interviewed with Topsy, I had already interviewed with 15 or so startups, and many of them had really cool furniture, art, or lighting. There is very little in our space and virtually no personalization of the space. Our VP of Operations has some pictures of his daughter on a wall where he usually works, but that’s about it. I would like to see more personality, because it’s just very barren and sparse for now.
In terms of answering the “key questions,” I think there should be more personalization of the space. Topsy is definitely a welcoming place by virtue of the employees being friendly, but the physical layout doesn’t reflect this. As I mentioned earlier, the space is very barren, and I think there should be more color and personalization to make it a more welcoming place. Additionally, I think Topsy could benefit from having one large “bunker” which has some attached rooms (e.g. conference rooms). Having two separate bunnkers seems to create some sort of divide between the founders and the other employees. The CEO mentioned that he wants to get a new space for this very reason, so we may be moving soon!
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