Greatness is a decision. It must be chosen. And making that choice is a defining moment.
Being Axelerant is about why we’re at Axelerant, what we’re going to accomplish together, and providing expectations of how we’ll do so, which ultimately defines Axelerant’s Best Interest.
The purpose, mission, values, and principles shared within Being Axelerant are always at the top of our minds to make decisions and act in representing Axelerant. These aspects are our minimally acceptable standards that every Axelerant team member demonstrates or does not work against.
Because Being Axelerant is the sole authority to our everyday actions or mindsets, there is no separate code of conduct, mutual work agreement, or other kinds of guidelines to prevent ambiguity or confusion. So, it’s okay when the time comes that we disagree or move on. We’re grateful for the shared journey to making Axelerant better for our peers, clients, families, and communities.
Table of Contents
Our Purpose
The top reason why we’re here.
We empower people in ways that matter to them to create substantial value for our customers and positively impact the world.
Our Mission
The topmost outcomes we’re working together towards.
We accelerate digital outcomes and scale with our customers as their partner of record.
Learn more about being a partner of record.
Our Mission Slogan
An easy to recall phrase pointing us in the right direction.
Digital Outcomes, Accelerated.
Our Values and Principles
Values define a person’s principles or standards of behavior that shape our mindsets and determine the actions we take. For each of Axelerant’s values, we share our intent and context to help us better understand the unwavering expectations we have for every team member, regardless of their role.
Enthusiasm
When we say we value enthusiasm, that means that we avoid lethargy, status quo, wilful inaction, sabotaging another’s action, and similar behaviors that demonstrate apathy or dullness. Further, enthusiasm means we value learning over being comfortable, action over detailed planning, quick decision making over dwelling on details, and failing fast over getting everything right.
Axelerant Principles of Enthusiasm
Self-Management
We are curious, can make decisions on our own, initiate change, and take action independently. Taking action doesn’t mean we do everything alone. Instead, we know when to collaborate and when to ask for help.
We manage ourselves and don’t need someone to tell us what to do to be productive. Our first instinct is to take the initiative rather than expect a policy or ask for permission.
Quality
We create working, maintainable, and understandable software that is enjoyable and easy to use. We improve the quality of the process and the client’s environment.
We believe that designing and building quality software means improving the product’s security, privacy, and accessibility; this belief requires life improvements and reduces harm for all users, contributors, and the people they affect.
Continuous Improvement
We recognize that we can always be better. We confidently go forward while remaining open and eager to better ideas. We take the initiative to improve ourselves, the company, and our community.
We believe that there’s always room for improvement. Each day, we become a bit better than before. We learn new things and share those things with our peers and community.
While continually working to make things better, we prefer long-term viability over shortcuts as it is critical that Axelerant sustainably exists now and in the future.
Examples of Enthusiastic Behaviors
Actively find new things to know and share those with peers.
Brainstorming ideas and leaning towards action in a team or a peer group.
Often recognize the efforts of team members as it influences our culture with positivity and motivation.
Participating in team or group activities.
Speaking up proactively regarding tasks at hand.
Thinking about our actions in the context of ourselves, our team, and Axelerant’s business.
Thinking widely of the business aspects of a task and not just the technical aspects.
Trying new things in the spirit of learning.
Kindness
When we say we value kindness, that means we dwell on inclusivity, accessibility, and doing what’s right. It implies that ego and envy have no place in our interactions. Kindness is about having someone’s best interest at heart, whereas being nice is about being liked. Further, kindness means we value people over process and performance, psychological safety over chasing numbers, and frequent feedback over worrying about not being liked.
Axelerant Principles of Kindness
Relationships First, Results Second
By deep-diving into our industries and clients’ why and means, we own the impact of our combined success.
We are committed to building an encouraging, caring, and supportive environment with clients, partners, users, and peers as people first. We’re champions of a collaborative mindset towards generating meaningful value.
Fulfillment
We maintain an inclusive environment where we can thrive professionally and personally. We keep a sustainable pace of productivity and whole lives outside of work.
We maximize our ability to take on any project by creating a diverse team that can bring their experience and perspectives to solve problems. We are proud of our work and believe it is meaningful, worth existing, and improves society and human well-being.
Humility
We listen without judgment while working together towards mutual success, even with better ideas than ours.
We recognize individual accomplishments and know that nobody is worth more than the team. We have imperfections, admit our mistakes, and strive to improve.
Examples of Kind Behaviors
Calmly giving and respectfully receiving feedback.
Collaborating on tasks.
Introspecting and understanding the human aspects of a situation.
Mentoring people–improving capabilities.
Providing meaningful and timely feedback.
Sponsoring people–taking leadership or direct ownership.
Openness
When we say we value openness, we always think about the visibility of our work and its impact on others. It means that we lean towards making all information available and accessible to the relevant people in an appropriate form. Openness also means questioning when something should be private due to sensitivity or personal nature and whether it should be internally public.
On the flip side, openness also means being open to all feedback and ideas and considering them critically with the intent of making Axelerant a better place. Further, openness means we value overcommunication over not disturbing people, clarity over playing it safe, honest feedback over causing worry, and public channels over private conversations.
Axelerant Principles of Openness
Respectful, Trusting Candor
For each other, we expect the best, give the benefit of the doubt, encourage ourselves to take the initiative to improve ourselves and the company, plus provide direct and constructive help.
We foster transparent conversations, collaborative expectations, and meaningful systems to communicate openly within projects, Axelerant, and the public.
We insist upon working with peers and for clients who trust our role and experience. We do our best to collaborate, solve problems, and run projects respectfully without orders.
We show trust and respect for each other by telling the truth with positive intentions while demonstrating honesty and integrity in our actions.
Accountable Transparency
Our teams are built upon strengths and retrospect together to overcome weaknesses. We respond to failure with facts and effort to collaboratively resolve the situation.
We ensure that people understand their requirements by clearly defining roles and expectations. We foster transparent conversations, collaborative expectations, and meaningful systems.
We prefer transparency of information whenever possible. We do all of this while maintaining the privacy and confidentiality that every person and organization deserves.
We proudly share what we learn and what we make in an accessible manner.
Effective Outcomes
We strive to be effective by developing performance measures, regularly evaluating performance, clearly communicating results, and implementing changes needed. We drop low-impact and low-value activities when found.
We strive to use well-fitting off-the-shelf and relevant best practice-based solutions. We hold ourselves mutually accountable for achieving our desired objectives.
We use our values and principles as the basis for making decisions. We do our best to collect, analyze, discuss and share information about everything we do so that people can be faster and more confident with their decisions.
Examples of Open Behaviors
Being Accountable in doing what you say you will do and communicating openly about why you could not keep that promise.
Documenting the context of a decision and the reasons behind it.
Having clear and consistent communication.
Making documents reasonably accessible to relevant audiences.
Posting timely status updates.
Providing clarity and reasoning behind decisions.
Providing fair and complete feedback.
Providing the context required to do a task well.
Responsibly planning and booked leaves in advance.
Sharing ways to make Axelerant better.
Axelerant’s Domain Principles
We work together in many ways, and each manner has its expectations of desired behavior shared below.
Consistent Customer Experience
How we look to provide great experiences that matter to our clients consistently.
Always keep our promises
Deliver quality and service reliably
Mutually improve profitability
Ensure long-term relationships
Be desired-outcome focused
Be easy to work with
Practice fair negotiation and agreements
Decision Making
How we look to make decisions at Axelerant.
Act in Axelerant’s best interest per Being Axelerant's intent and context.
Always use good judgment to create contextually relevant outcomes–don’t blindly follow guidelines.
Avoid decisions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-SbRExnMLc&t=1s.
Pick a good enough decision now over a future perfect one.
Treat Axelerant, its people, and its resources preciously.
We are not a democratic or consensus-driven company; the person closest to a must-decide situation owns it by listening to all helpful feedback and deciding after.
We respect disagreements and differences, yet we all commit to the given decision.
When relevant, use the #disc- Conversation Creator to help collect feedback.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity
How we are becoming a globally aware team.
Respect, appreciate, understand, and support every aspect of diversity.
Welcome people with differences, regardless of nationality, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, physical abilities, family status, religious beliefs, perspectives, experiences, or other ideologies.
More at Diversity and Inclusivity.
Feedback
How we ask for, give, and receive feedback.
Feedback is an act of kindness.
Focus on improvement. When you meet people, always ask what they think we can improve.
Influence comes from value-added, not title.
It is encouraged to disagree and have constructive debates, but please argue intelligently.
We give feedback, lots of it. Don’t hold back on suggestions for improvements.
We value truth-seeking over cohesion.
More at Feedback, Asking for and Feedback, Giving & Receiving.
Freelancing
We’re open to your freelancing given that such work never conflicts with Axelerant’s best interests.
Axelerant work should always be the priority, without exception.
We hope that your freelancing brings value to yourself and Axelerant.
When in doubt, ask People Operations to verify conflicts of interest.
When Axelerant fits your project, please let us help and earn a commission.
Getting Things Done
How we do our best to get the most relevant tasks done first.
Coordination will occur through collaboration, not centralization
Organizational boundaries will be porous
Strategy making will be a dynamic, company-wide conversation
Strive to make the organization simpler.
Structure emerges where it creates value and disappears everywhere else.
We will achieve control through transparency and peer feedback
We work asynchronously by writing relevant things down as they happen.
Meetings
How we get together respectfully.
Align meetings by purpose and share notes before the meeting.
Do your best to support asynchronous actions due to timezone and work timing differences.
Leave the meeting when it’s no longer relevant to you.
Only invite the relevant people to meetings.
Respect people’s time by being on time, starting and ending meetings as scheduled. Plus, not waiting for others to show or repeating things for latecomers.
Video on is friendly yet not required unless expressly stated otherwise.
When ending a meeting, summarize the salient points and calls to action.
Work towards unblocking decisions or systems without needing a meeting.
You can enjoy the first minutes of a meeting by sharing what is happening outside of work.
Ownership
How we act as owners of what we do in our role and beyond.
Be the CEO of yourself and your role by taking responsibility to set goals and appropriate timelines.
Collaboration is imperative to ensure that systems work together
Communicate clearly with your team and people leader on the status of your goals. Act quickly to address areas that pose a challenge or reassess goals that are not as reachable as shared.
Contributions will matter more than credentials.
Every idea will compete on an equal footing.
Everyone will think like a business owner and be accountable for what they do.
Individuals will compete to make a difference, not to climb a pyramid
Leaders are those who inspire others
Unacceptable Behavior
Axelerant team members act per Being Axelerant, and when not, Exceptional Situations are the consequence. Axelerant has zero-tolerance for breaches of our values and professional ethics, Safe Space violations, and the following non-inclusive examples of unacceptable behavior.
Discrimination: demeaning, intimidating, racist, sexist, or threatening behaviors
Disrespect: treating others in a disrespectful or discourteous manner, using abusive or offensive language
Harassment: bullying, sexual, or any other form of harassment
Incompetence: failure to meet job performance standards, severe misuse of judgment
Insobriety: reporting for work under the influence of alcohol, drugs
Insubordination: refusal to follow work instructions, role-related activities
Negligence: failing to report to work at assigned times, misusing company time, and delaying projects
Anti-Enthusiastic Behaviors
Resistance to new learning.
Resisting novel techniques to solve problems.
Anti-Kind Behaviors
Withholding feedback from the team or Axelerant.
Working alone on a team.
Anti-Open Behaviors
Withholding relevant feedback from peers and Axelerant.
Exclusively communicating using private channels.
Not paying attention to documentation or not prioritizing it.