S1 #2 Bobby DeSimone
Building and Nurturing Great Engineering Cultures at Open-Source Startups
I first met Bobby through an investor friend. I thought he was thoughtful about his open-source approach to building his startup. So, I invited him to join us on The 1st10 Podcast to discuss how he builds and nurtures a great engineering culture at Pomerium, which is a fully open-source product and I am so glad I did!! Our conversation delved into the unique challenges and opportunities of building and nurturing great engineering cultures at open-source startups.
Bobby emphasized the importance of trust and openness in building a strong company culture. He highlighted the significance of prioritizing these values over flashy keynotes or external appearances. By fostering an environment of trust and open communication, Pomerium aims to bring out the best work from its team members.
One of the biggest challenges, according to Bobby, in building the culture at Pomerium has been concretely articulating an environment that brings out the best work and the best in people. Bobby stressed the importance of repeated communication and the discovery that building a culture of trust is the biggest part of company culture. He drew parallels to the trust found in great sports teams, where individuals work together towards a common goal without judgment or sniping.
Pomerium isn’t Bobby’s first rodeo - he previously founded a mobile security company called SureLock, which was acquired by BeyondTrust. So, as a founder with experience in building multiple companies, I asked Bobby to share some insights into the learnings and adjustments he would make if he were to start Pomerium all over again. He emphasized the importance of staying focused on making a great product and trusting the process, while also acknowledging the small and large mistakes that come with the territory of company building.
Finally, I asked if Bobby had any advice for founders looking to build early engineering teams. Bobby’s advice was simple and straightforward. He said and I’m paraphrasing here: “Look for passionate individuals who share the same worldview and can contribute to the core of what the company is doing” and further emphasized the importance of finding people who can level up the team in different areas, driving the overall growth and success of the company.
About Us:
1st10 was founded on the simple philosophy that there is nothing more important to the success of your startup than the first ten engineers you hire. Because the first ten will impact the next ten and any wrong misstep can be the difference between success and failure. 1st10 works with visionary founders and exceptional engineers to build world class engineering teams.
1st10 was founded by Boris Epstein, original founder of Binc, the firm best known for pioneering embedded recruiting in Silicon Valley. Binc built early teams for Pinterest, Ripple, Stripe, Square, Airbnb, Reddit, Tesla and many more. Binc was acquired by Robinhood in 2021.