Transcript

I wanted to ask you both about leadership. How would you start with Tila? How would you describe your leadership style and what are who? Who are some of the figures or books or what are your inspirations for your leadership style? I would say that. There are certain aspects of leadership that come very naturally and then there are certain aspects that I really have to work on. I think my leadership style is I'm definitely a tinkerer and I like to, to master my craft. I like to be able to do with limited exclusion the job of everyone on the team because it is through that craft mastery that I feel I'm able to coach or lead or support or teach. And so, you know, as a, I would describe my leadership style. As. As informed through experience. Uh, and then there are all the things I'm really bad at bringing people along, I'm not good at. I'm really trying to work on my leadership development for others. I'm not naturally good at that. Uh, and I'm not naturally good at delegating, so those are all things that I have to, to work on. And that I am working on in terms of influences. My mom always right, the great. The infamously great. Reluctant civil rights landmark and Gardner and pie maker Anne Hopkins and I grew up in a kind of a larger than life world where my mom was headed to the Supreme Court to. Make it illegal to discriminate against women in this country. And you know, having had the opportunity with the LGBTQ cases that hit the Supreme Court on October 8th and, and have my mom's case law be the only case law. That was the that that made it illegal to discriminate against LGBTQ. People as well. And to hear of Ruth Bader Ginsburg saying my mom's name over and over again after she had died. Uh, so, you know, certainly in terms of leadership influence, my mom is where I get my core values. It's. You know, and I, I, I wonder, you know what, you know, what would she think? And I wonder, how do I have a fraction of the impact that she had? And then of course, you know, Ben Horowitz, hard thing about hard things. The struggle, I feel like I'm living in the struggle. How about you, Tanya? I would say my leadership style is I'd like to lead by example. And what I mean by that is you will find me rolling up my sleeves. If I need to be on a 3:00 AM go live phone call, I will be in there. If there is a client escalation, I will personally get involved and try to solve the hard problems. I believe that leadership is all about taking care of your people. We're in the business of people at the end of the day, whether we're building. Technology, products, whether we are redesigning systems, at the end of the day, you're serving people, you're working side by side with people. So if people know that they can count on you, they can trust you that you've built an environment where they can be the best versions of themselves, then I believe that that is the key to success when it comes to leadership. My inspiration when it comes to leadership are the two of you. You, we all have very different. Tiles. But I look at you all as very effective leaders and you inspire me every day. And hopefully, if I don't say it enough, I'm going to take this moment right now to tell you that I am. Every day inspired by your leadership. I'm very inspired by my brother. My brother is, as I mentioned, a 26 year Marine. He has led hundreds of troops and their lives are on the line. And talk about an individual that will give you the shirt off his back. He will be the last to do. He'll always make sure his team is taken care of and be the the last to ask for anything in return. And in terms of literature, I would say the hard thing about hard things. I think is the absolute best when it comes to not only leadership, but when it comes to what it really means to run a business, the good, the bad and the ugly and so. That's what I would go ahead and say. Tom, what about you? Uh. I'd say as a, as a team member, so I played sports kind of throughout and so I've always. Gravitated towards being a member of a team and helping to lead that team and and also filling in in the areas where they may be gaps. And so I don't necessarily I think immediately try to go to the front of the room. So try to lead from maybe wherever the the team may need that and I think that it serves. Um, well, in many cases and in other cases are, you know, take maybe it takes me a half a beat to realize that I need to be in front of the room, which I'm comfortable doing, but. So I think, uh, I think my style is of one of the team and, and feeling a comfort from to being able to assist and guide from, from multiple places in multiple positions. I mean inspired by you took my answer, I think both of you just so very, I would say tough, capable and loving. And by my family. Yeah, my parents, I have just really great family, my uncles and aunts as well. And so I draw a lot of strength, especially from a lot of the matriarchs and my family. You know, sometimes we do take it personally because everything is like this for us. Personal and professional at all blends in together. We haven't had very many. We've had. Thousands of hard conversations. We've only had a small handful of really hard. I don't even know what to call them. Disagreements that felt bigger than we could handle and but we handle them. Yeah, we talk all the time. I talk to this 126 times a day. And this one. 52.252.5 on average. We'd like it to be more, but we're always like ohh yeah you know, Tommy and I wanna talk to us right now. And I and I, I would echo what Tila you just said, which is it really, if you build that type of environment where you feel safe and you know, it's coming from a place of love and you really, and I know sometimes people are like, oh, you know, I want the feedback, I want the feedback and then you get the feedback. And then of course, it's not necessarily always taken in the spirit that it's given. But I think if you build, and that's what we've been able to manage to build and I believe we have it at the company as well, you build that environment where it is. Coming from a place of love, it's coming from a place of we can do better, right? I know I can do better. And if anything, I'd love to be an environment that I feel will get me to that next level in a way that I don't feel like I'm being personally attacked. I think it I've tried to describe in different ways, I think it comes down to love. I think that through the years and more so now, right ten years in, but just the level of trust that every conversation that we have, I know through and through that you have my and our best interest at heart. And so it's like I have No Fear of having those difficult conversations because of where you're coming from and that. Um, so it's without a doubt love, and then also without a doubt. The new risk conversation. I can't like 20. It's like, I believe it, right? That's. Yeah. First phone call every day. Yeah. Yeah. 9:00 at night. Weekends included. Weekends included. Yeah, there's definitely what's going on. What happened? Fill me in. What did I miss? God forbid. War on an airplane. Ohh. Together, it's like it's been 85 years. 85 years. It's like the Titanic, Yes. That that's what I would say also. I mean, 2001 is a long time we've managed to stick together this long, you know. What's one more? Minor friction point. Yeah, I would want to ask your perspective on the Icky guy because Icky guy is really at the forefront of how we like to describe ourselves as a company. So maybe I will start with Tom, if you could just define what is Ikigai and then or maybe I maybe I could help you with you guys, you guys the intersection of what you're good at, what the world needs. Which you can be paid for and what you love. And that's that's what you guys all about. And if you can find that intersection every day. Well, gosh, even once a year, forever, ever, you know, that's what it's all about. And I think having pivoted the company so many times, uh, pivot or die, pivot or die, adapt, be resilient. Having pivoted so many Times Now, I, I feel like we've pivoted into our IT guy. I feel like we are doing what I know I'm doing, what I love, what I'm good at, what the world needs and what the, you know, what somebody will pay us to do. So that's, that's, that's what I would say. I feel that every day and I think I mean I felt it before the award of the the new VA contract and this is it just. Adds to sort of the the richness of of what we get to work on and who we get to work with. Yeah, it is. I I view it as. Just the very fortunate situation, kind of a miracle. It is a miracle every day. And you know, I think it's true. We say it doesn't feel like work. And so, so very fortunate to wake up every day and to be able to feel like that. The only thing I would add is I very much believe we've achieved the ekey guy for ourselves and the folks that work for us, and what I'm really excited about is bringing others in so that they can experience their icky guy as well. What a gift. Hopes for the future Where do we go now that we're over 10 years in? What do I hope for the future? What I hope for the future is that we can continue to provide a place where people not only can achieve their icky guy, but where we can continue to solve really hard problems with the latest and greatest technology. Jen AI being at the forefront and the possibilities are limitless. I want to continue having as much fun as I've been having. And I want to build a company where my kids can come work, where my brother's kids can come work, and we can continue doing great things, solving hard problems alongside great people. That's my hope for the future. What about Utila? Boy, I just hope I don't have to get a job. I'm completely incorrigible at this point and totally uncivilized and I think if I had to get a job I'd really be in trouble. No, but in all seriousness. Umm. It's hard to imagine. That it could be. Better than it is already. Hopes for the future that we can continue to serve our customers, that we can continue to. Provided a safe place for people to work and earn their livelihoods and. Give back to the world and and to our customers. And you know, who knows? Who knows what could be next? I agree with both what what both of what you said, I also think I think of in terms of impact. So my hope for the future is that. The work that we're doing matters, and that this, the Phoenix, is a vessel for talented, passionate people to work together as a team to solve hard problems. In mortgage and in housing and to help shape where. Where we're going. As. As a country, as a, as a, as a group of people and I so my hope is that what we are building here and what we've been able to build is, is lasting and makes a, makes a meaningful impact on the world. It's always good to close on time though your sofa. President Oak Tree. If you had too many titles to mention, yeah, I know, I know, I know, I know.