Collaboration
Working With Matt Geary
THE MISSION
Our mission is to find common ground and to humanize our interactions, to create space to share our strengths and flaws with each other as a team. I’m excited to learn you and work with you.
So – I’ll go first. Who are you working with?
MY STORY
I was born in Tampa, Florida as a 10th generation Floridian. I grew up building servers and computers in middle school for my family’s IT MSP business. This led me to the fortune of being pulled out of class to fix teacher’s computers and printers at Coleman Middle School and Plant High School which gave me valuable experience and started my passion for being “the IT guy” at the age of 12.
As technology and video games took off in parallel, at the age of 16, I began travelling around the USA competing in video game tournaments as a team captain. I learned how to form an amazing team and learned the art of strategy and what it takes to be the best in competition. Furthermore, I started learning from expert hackers in mIRC chats – from coding to using tools like SubSeven. These formative years led me to be interested in leadership, IT and cybersecurity.
In college, I found a role at the Florida Aquarium performing network administration work, then began contracting for Google to perform Search Engine Optimization and website evaluations, and ultimately landing a role at BioDerm Inc, where I gained experience over 9 years leading the IT and information security in a healthcare company as it grew in value from $6M to $800M.
TALKING POINTS
Some fun facts about me:
1. I can type at 180 WPM – the Guinness World Record is 155 WPM over 1 hour and I beat that in High School! I just need to make it official one day…
2. I lead a guild of 1400 people in World of Warcraft and on raid nights I form 18 raid groups (180+ people) coordinating placing people and the logistics behind supply raid groups, handling people conflict, etc. We’re the 3rd largest guild in World of Warcraft. It took me a lot of time recruiting!
3. I love Tetris and held the “Genius” rank on TetrisFriends.com
Great things in business are never done by one person, they’re done by a team of people
#01 – I love to dress up and go to conventions and renaissance festivals
#02 – I love seeing the marriage of technology and machinery
#03 – I love being out in nature, especially on horseback or in a kayak!
#04 – I love to volunteer and give back whether it’s wheelchair rugby, the foster home, or a local trash cleanup effort!
#05 – I love to travel and keep the world in perspective.
#09 – I love my work and meeting others!
#07 – I love to line dance!
#05 – I love to make pottery, my kitchen is full of my own creations!
#09 – And finally, I love to look back at every one of these experiences and to share in this journey with everyone that’s been in my life.
My Values
- Embrace Creativity and Innovation:
Advocate for inclusivity and diversity, valuing varied perspectives. - Champion integrity and authenticity in all dealings.
Mistakes are OK. Strive for continuous self-improvement and learning. - Promote environmental consciousness.
What we do matters, we can make an impact to the next generation. - Leading with trust and empowerment
I encourage autonomy, clarity, transparency, even in stressful times. - Advocate for Work-Life Balance
Flexible work arrangements and downtime is important to do your best work.
My Leadership Style
- Promote a Culture of Innovation
Encourage innovation and risk-taking for huge leaps, instead of incremental steps. - Provide constructive feedback and support.
Lead with empathy and compassion, addressing individual needs. - Foster Collaboration and Teamwork
Create an environment where teamwork is valued. - Lead by example, demonstrating humility and a willingness to serve.
Ensure alignment and understanding across all levels. - Two way street of communication
Provide regular updates and progress reports to each other.
For My Direct Reports
- Communicating in 1 on 1's every week for at least 30 minutes - substance, not just updates.
I serve you, not the other way around. I'm here to assist you. Feel free to come with a topic you'd like to discuss. This meeting is not for any urgent matters, those should be dealt with immediately.
Feedback
- Feedback Is Wanted
The feedback loop is central to a high-performing team and builds candid conversations on improvement. As a team we need to always critically think about what needs to be acted on.
Team Expectations
- Accountability
The team should assume positive intent for everyone's actions, but hold everyone accountable. - Commit
Even if a decision is not "perfect" or "ideal", commit to it. If you are adamant against a decision, but aren't getting buy-in, improve your argument. It will be heard and considered. - Understand
Ask questions if you do not understand. "Why" is foundational for us as humans. Being busy is not the outcome we want to achieve. We want to do the right things, full of context, and that means understanding it. - Aim
As a team, we cannot just sit around and wait for directions or things to do. You'll need to aim. Make a goal, have a vision, contribute, do not just sit idle.
How You Can Help Me
- Do Your Best
If you are trying your best, it means you are not hindered emotionally or in your work, and that means we are in a mature process and optimized. - Tell me what could be better or if I made a mistake
It's very important you are bringing up your own ideas or noticing things. I am certainly not perfect and always appreciate the extra eye.
My Management Influences
- "The Golden Circle"
Simon Sinek
Your Development
- Embrace Creativity and Innovation:
Advocate for inclusivity and diversity, valuing varied perspectives.