Our PURPOSE
improve the lives of those in our sphere of influence
All our actions should add value to and improve the lives of our sphere because we genuinely care about the lives of everyone within it. We will break this down further as we explore our core values, but our attempts to make the world a better place for as many people as possible in the finite ways that we can are the backbone of our efforts – not money, or recognition, or any of the distractions that often come along with success.
Our VALUES:
1. Relentlessly Pursue Better
Our first core value encompasses the way we think about the way we think. Our culture is one of constant, relentless improvement. Everyone on our team, from interns to the CEO, is a perpetual learner and unsatisfied with the status quo. We’re aware that none of us have all the answers and, as a company, we’re embracing a ‘learning as we go’ method. We learn, watch, and iterate with a curiosity about why things work and why things are the way they are. This coincides with our failure-forward attitude, since we embrace the inevitability of mistakes and learn from them to become better. We don’t fear failure, since we know through failure, we grow, and we believe in our purpose enough to know that failure is a humbling part of the process.
This value relies on transparency and open, honest communication so we can look at the organic machine of our company objectively and with an open mind to identify and address problems. We also understand that progress takes time and effort – as Owen says, “Be patient but persistent.”
In the relentless pursuit of better, we refuse to compromise our moral compass and our ethics. Similar to not basing our actions and attitudes off the status quo, we will not allow our ethics to be buffeted and eroded by what ‘everyone else is doing.’ We take pride in being a consistent force of good, honesty, and integrity when it comes to our culture and the workforce as a whole.
2. Value the Present
In pursuit of better, we can’t neglect the ‘now.’ We must preserve and nurture our operations and our core as we continue to stimulate progress.
Part of preserving what we have is being frugal minded with our resources. We keep an open mind and accept that problems have multiple solutions. In this sense, ‘resources’ encompasses more than just money. We are resourceful and conscious of the value of every single effort we spend, be it dollars or time or something completely different. Regardless of how much profit we make or how low the cost of a particular purchase may be, we think outside the box and consider how we can get the most possible value for ourselves and our sphere.
Part of Valuing the Present is also laying a strong foundation for the future, including ethical standards. We hold ourselves to high ethical standards and will always do what’s right and in the best interests of everyone in our sphere of influence rather than any individuals or single teams. However, we also understand that the stronger and more cohesive our BSS family, the better our work and our personal fulfillment, so we must invest the time and resources to value ourselves and our team.
3. Think Big
We have something amazing to offer our customers and our sphere and we want to make this value available to as many people as possible. To do this, we must embrace scale and think big – bigger than what’s happening now, bigger than our current capabilities, bigger than what feels comfortable.
To make something great will take time, patience, and above all, persistence. We must be aware that greatness – or ‘bigness’ – does not happen automatically. Instead, we must challenge ourselves and our ways of thinking to be constantly seeking and striving for greater.
This will require some out-of-the-box thinking and some discomfort as we constantly push out of our comfort zones to pave the way for a grand future. But it will be the mentality that brings our grand visions to life.
4. Believe in people
No matter how big we get or what successes we achieve, we always know that at the heart of everything – our why and our how – is people. The people on our team, the people who help make and ship our products, the people who buy our goods; the list goes on. None of this is possible without people and the purpose of it all will always be people. We will always err on the side of faith in humanity and trust in our fellow man, since that is who we are.
Creating a positive, supportive, and team-oriented approach to all interaction within our sphere is key to this belief. We want everyone in our sphere to feel happy, safe, and secure at work, and we strive to create an emotional safe space supportive of free thinking, new ideas, and fun.
Our belief in people extends to investing in them, since we believe that using our resources to help people grow – both personally and professionally – will benefit all of us in the long run. We treat people as our most valuable resource because you are our most valuable resource.
5. Embrace the power of profit
As we grow, we make money. As we make money, we are able to add more value to our sphere of influence. We are aware that profit is the fuel allowing us to support our just cause and core vision. The purpose of our company is not to make profit, but without profit, we cannot exist, nor can we further the true purpose of our company – to add value to our sphere of influence.
Profit is to business what gasoline is to a car. The purpose of the car is not to consume gasoline; its purpose is to deliver us from point A to point B. However, without gasoline, the car cannot fulfill its purpose. In this same vein, we operate our business to make a profit so that we can fulfill our just cause and our core vision.
Profit allows us to scale, push inefficient companies out of the way, and gain further profits so we can continue our cycle. When we view scale and profit in this way, it is an immensely powerful and positive thing. We embrace the power of scale and are proud of our successes and the opportunities they bring.
Our core values define why we do business. They describes why we are here, and why we are motivated to continue. All our values are connected and intertwined to support our purpose. No one value is less important than another, and they are all dependent upon one another. Without any one value, our purpose will fail.
Ultimately, we are here to add value to everyone around us: our employees, customers, shareholders, suppliers, partners, and community. We are all in this together. When we execute everyday based on the five values listed above, we will build a truly visionary company we can all be proud of.