It is easy enough to tour our HQ or peruse our website and gather that our culture is pretty extraordinary. However, what's more meaningful are the chronicles that illustrate it through personal insight. How we do business is equally important as what we do.
My first anecdote emphasizes the open-mindedness and transparency of the people that shape the tekMountain culture. I am a marketing and psychology student at UNC Wilmington, and was last May frisking the fine dining scene of the greater Wrightsville Beach area for a summer job. Brasserie du Soleil, an authentic French cafe, seemed fitting since I retained a sliver of the language and an appreciation for the cuisine from studying abroad. I suppose I was a bit of a spectacle walking in; oblivious that I was entering through the back door (only realizing after, of course), and arguably overdressed in business attire. Nevertheless, I pressed on towards the front. After employing my limited French vocabulary to ironically sell myself to the American manager, he informed me that they were not hiring. On to the next one, I pivoted back towards that back door to escape the awkwardness, but was stopped. Two men enjoying lunch by the door asked if I was hired, and if I went to school. I responded, and with that they invited me to sit down,. They assured me not to worry; I would leave with an internship. I had no idea what was going on, but felt I must rise to the occasion.
One of those men was Brett Martin, resident entrepreneur of the UNCW Cameron School of Business and founder of tekMountain. We discussed my studies and experience in depth, as well as our commonality of French travels. I eagerly absorbed every moment of this serendipitous interview, and later toured the headquarters. I could only begin to conceive the magnitude of opportunity that was being extending to me.
This story is evidence of the eye that tekMountain executives have for conducting business. They focus on building relationships, bound by the constraints of predetermined business objectives, but by investment of time and interest in people. It is through digging deeper and giving chances where it’s not obvious that possibilities are discovered. This ideology exudes a humble essence that has established an air of accessibility. Executive offices are adjacent to members, positioning them as some of the most valuable neighbors a startup could have. Their “garage doors” are always open for entrepreneurs to chat and learn from their expertise. President Joe Finley personally meets with each and every new employee after they're hired just to get to know them. Brett invites people of the community into the space just to talk and to explore future possibilities; whether or not there’s an initially obvious common ground. And our new HQ is open to the public to share our realm. Unrealized potential cannot be thoroughly exhausted through a set schedule. Follow an inkling instead of a rubric. People are more than their resumes, and life is more than a calendar of appointments.
By: Alex May, tekMountain Team Member
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