Dear Team,
I hope this message finds you well. I am sure you are all still processing the news of last week, and I am sure that like me, you will be for some time.
There isn’t much I can say about the deal itself, which I know will be unsatisfying to many. In the words of Warren Buffett, “what is smart at one price is stupid at another,” and here we are. Only time will tell.
I have spent hours agonizing over what I would say when this day came to pass. And yet today, I find myself smiling as I write, because this is not the ending to our shared story, but actually just the beginning.
While I am very proud of what we built at Managed by Q, what I am most proud of is how we built things together.
We were driven by a genuine curiosity for the world around us and were unafraid to challenge convention. We held an insanely high bar for execution and a drive to get the job done. We strove tirelessly to empower our customers, partners, and each other.
What made Managed by Q such a special place to so many people for so many years was our culture, which you all created.
Together, we created a set of shared principles and challenged each other to live by them. We came to view problems as fuel for progress, and in the face of adversity, rather than fold, we continuously reinvented our business and ourselves. What a wonderful way to live and work.
Culture can’t be bought and it can’t be sold. It can’t be taken from you when you leave. I hope our culture is with you throughout your career and I suspect it will be. As for your laptop, you’ll have to ask Maria.
It is a privilege to go to work every day and build things that matter with people you love and respect. You all have given that gift to me and I want to thank you for that. As long as I live and work I will never accept any less, and I expect no less for you.
For the past six years Managed by Q was the context for our culture, and now it will be something else, probably many things. I could not be more excited to watch the infinite potential of this team and our culture continue to unfold.
Many of your colleagues have already gone on to start businesses of their own. Saman is building the future of healthcare at Ro, Shaival is making it easier to buy a home at Ribbon, JT is preparing communities for a changing climate at Forerunner, and Allison is preparing expectant mothers for parental leave at Parentaly.
The list is too long to name them all, and I know there are other irons in the fire. I encourage each and every one of you to consider if you might be next in this proud tradition of founders. There has never been a better time to start a company, and there is a community of amazing investors who would be happy to hear from you.
There also never have been so many incredible start ups with diverse and compelling missions that you might consider joining. Our network in the early stage community is dense, and you would be a gift to any early team. Perhaps you could help them avoid some of the mistakes you watched me make.
You can also go work at a large company to see if that might be for you. If you do so, I will be glad to come visit for lunch in your cafeteria. The reputation of our team precedes it, no matter which path you choose. There really are no bad choices for anyone on our team.
In whatever context you choose, remember this: Nobody really knows what they are doing. If you have a vision for the future and work like hell to make it so, you can change the world forever. It’s never happened any other way and it is our culture to do so. I hope that you feel empowered to change the world in a way that moves you, big or small. The world needs it.
We all owe a tremendous thank you to Ron, Maria and Tyler for navigating a very challenging past few months with grace and poise. They have been your tireless advocates through this process, and have maintained our culture of integrity, transparency, and accountability for our team to the very end. I also want to thank those that will remain to ensure a smooth transition for our customers and our partners. I know you will make us proud.
Please consider me a resource to you now and always. Whether you worked at Managed by Q for 6 months or 6 years I am forever in your debt and grateful for your contribution to what has been the best chapter of my life. I hope it has been for you as well.
As always, the best is yet to come.
DT
👋 Recruiters today is your lucky day — please find updated interests and contact info for MBQ team members here.
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