Date post: | 11-Jan-2017 |
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Small Business & Entrepreneurship |
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Community building in the
21st centuryThe people-powered origins of
General Assembly
Matthew BrimerGENERAL ASSEMBLY
About Me
■ Graduated from Yale, moved to NYC
■ Previous startup failed, never had real “job”
■ Founded General AssemblyNow: $50MM in funding, 500+ employees, campuses in 14 cities globally
■ Started (very large) side project — DAYBREAKER Now: 9 cities globally and counting. For a separate talk!
@brimer #hustlecon
The Problem
■ Rewind to 2009: Recession hit NYC, tech was transforming every industry
■ The New York tech scene was burgeoning but disjointed and ad hoc
■ People were seeking new career paths, new skills, new inspiration
@brimer #hustlecon
The Solution
@brimer #hustlecon
Let’s create a community nucleus for the startup ecosystem in NYC - housed in a real, physical place!
How we did it
#hustlecon
1. Activate the core2. Give karma, get karma3. Establish clear norms and values4. Create meaningful offline experiences5. Balance curation with openness
6. Be authentic and live your mission
@brimer
Activate the core
#hustlecon@brimer
■ Focus your early efforts on building a powerful core of true believers
■ Examples:○ 1:1 coffees○ Group dinners○ Space tours○ Manually building email list○ Pre-sold memberships before launch
■ Early adopters you cultivate become evangelists
Give karma, get karma
#hustlecon
Give! Be as useful as possible. Connect, inspire, support.
@brimer
■ Well-placed intros add value to the ecosystem — everyone benefits■ The karma you send out inevitably comes back to you
Establish clear norms and value
#hustlecon
Codify the founding principles of the brand early to shape the community’s ethos
@brimer
■ We encouraged a culture of reciprocity through a “I’m offering / I need” offline bulletin board and online email list
Establish clear norms and value
#hustlecon@brimer
1. People before the machine2. Learning by doing3. Journey over destination4. Passion + purpose5. Curiosity over apathy6. Own your path
We chose these values to inspire and drive our community:
Create meaningful offline experiences
#hustlecon@brimer
■ Think offline UX design! Create experiences that are magical and memorable. Engage people IRL.
■ Examples:○ Live bands + dance parties instead of boring happy hours○ Heart Beats (social event with no work-talk allowed)○ Intimate fireside chats with amazing people
■ People connect far more deeply offline than online
Balance curation with openness
#hustlecon@brimer
■ A tightly-curated membership yields quality people and interaction, yet can be unwelcoming / too “clubby” to those on the outside
■ Example:○ We balanced the two with multiple levels of engagement:
classes/workshops/events open to the public, but membership & courses were selective
Be authentic and live your mission
#hustlecon@brimer
■ Be earnest, be authentic, care about your people. The spirit of your community should flow from within you. Live your community’s values.
■ Examples:○ It should feel like a grassroots political campaign!
■ As the community builder, you are a convener, a facilitator, and a public servant — not a celebrity!
A “nucleus” of the startup ecosystem
#hustlecon@brimer
■ Within 6 months of launch, people were telling us that GA was the central nucleus of the NYC startup ecosystem
■ 10x the number of applicants that we could physically accept into the space and almost every night we were running a sold-out class, workshop, or event
■ Our community + brand became well-known and respected in the industry, and we realized we had a much bigger vision on our hands
The Future
#hustlecon@brimer
■ Helping people transform their lives for the better and empowering them to pursue their calling
■ Building a long-term educational institution (to last for decades!)
■ Growing our community to become indispensable, personally and professionally, for our alumni
■ Continue to expand around the globe, both online and offline
http://ga.co@GA
MATTHEW BRIMERCO-FOUNDER
#hustlecon@brimer
Twitter: @brimer Facebook: /brimer Instagram: /brimer