Upstatement at Ten
Last month Upstatement turned ten years old. I’m not going to say I’m surprised, but it’s pretty heavy to think about. We didn’t exactly know what we were getting ourselves into when we began, but I had a vision in my head for the kind of company I wanted to work for. I wanted to do important work and work on big projects. I wanted to learn a lot and do things that weren’t possible at the time. And I wanted to work with the best people. Over the past ten years, we’ve built a place that specializes in all three, and I couldn’t be more proud of where Upstatement is today.
As Upstatement continues to mature, we realize that what got us through the first 10 years won’t get us through the next. When we started the company, we never wanted it to be an organization dedicated to the founders — which is why we didn’t name it after ourselves. For the past ten years Jared, Tito, and I have worked hard to fulfill the original vision and bring Upstatement to life. But now that it’s here, we want to allow Upstatement to fulfill its true potential. Part of that means growth in leadership and making sure that Upstatement is not just a “family business” run by those who were crazy enough to start it.
This is why we’re introducing a significant change to our leadership structure. We’re eliminating the title of Partner — a holdover from our legal structure — in favor of the title of Principal. And we’re excited to announce that Scott Dasse and Kim Miller are joining us as Principals — and peers.
Scott joined us three years ago as creative director and has helped make Upstatement what it is today by elevating our work and growing our team of talent. Scott’s experience as a leader has been invaluable, and I’ve learned so much by watching him work and interact with our team and clients.
Kim’s work as a designer is unparalleled. She makes the hard stuff look easy, blending smart strategy, elegant design, and technology in a way that doesn’t seem possible until you see her at work. She’s a leader who has helped us take our work to the next level, building strong client relationships through incredible work. She’s the designer we all want to be when we grow up.
I’m looking forward to working with Jared, Tito, Scott, and Kim as we plan for the next ten years and take Upstatement to new and exciting places.
👏👏👏
