Luke Aulin

Luke is the Co-founder and CEO (aka the Mayor) of RTOWN - a company named one of the Top 15 digital marketing companies in British Columbia by BC Business Magazine. Luke Aulin is a recipient of Business in Vancouver's Top 40 Under 40, an entrepreneur, and a keynote speaker. RTOWN serves SMBs all over North America by acting as their digital CMO for hire with the team to execute the plan. Metrics-driven, performance marketing for a fraction of the cost it would take to build the right team in-house.

How do you define culture at the highest level??

It’s lived behavior. It is not what’s said, it is what is done.?

Let's say you're joining a new organization, or you're starting a new business or a new company, and you can create the ideal organizational culture from your own perspective with no restrictions around costs or time. What are the first three things that come to mind for you in creating the ideal organizational culture??

1. The top-level leader has to live the values and values have to be aligned with the organization.
2. Culture must tie into the overall game the organization is playing and they are setting out to win.
3. Build a team that can make the decision and makes it suitable to the organization and industry.?

When we’re talking about creating an ideal culture it is very entrepreneur or leader specific. First and foremost, whatever core values the top-level leader has will make or break the cascade through an organization so if those are misaligned then it’s not ideal at all, it’s the exact opposite. From there the ideal culture is organization-specific. What industry are they in? What are they trying to accomplish? What kind of game are they playing and how are they set out to win? The culture must serve what the company is setting out to do.?

When developing RTOWN’s culture, I knew that I have more weaknesses than strengths so one of the values that came out of that was “team over individual”. We built our core values as a team, after one year it got serious, and we decided to build our culture with intent. We had to be proactive in what we wanted our culture to do. We all had a hand in shaping what our core values would become and that worked for us because we are team-based. My weaknesses are greater than my strengths, so I need to surround myself with smart, capable, and great people. There’s no way we’re going to build this company with any hero at the top where they’re all-knowing and all-powerful. We build a team of people who can make decisions in the context of the organization. We have a very highly engaged team-based culture here. There’s no right answer, it depends on what the company needs and is set out to do, the ethos of the people starting with the founder.??

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When you think of poor organizational culture what are the first three things that come to mind?

1. A top-down command and control structure: You’ve got to pull info from the best experts across the team and can’t make decisions alone or in a silo.?
2. When words and actions are not in harmony. Not doing what you say you’re going to do.?
3. Getting stuck in your biases and doubling down on bad decisions by allowing egos to get in the way and not recognizing that everyone is fallible.?

?The world is changing at such a rapid pace, I think the starting point for organizations in today's age is to recognize that not all knowledge is conjectural, that every human is fallible, and that the world is changing at a pace that no one individual can quite get their head wrapped around.

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What are the top areas of opportunity for your team this year around people and culture??

?We are blessed to have started our company as remote first from the start and then pulling together an office. We had no trouble shifting back to a remote primary structure. We’ve got a head start and I am excited to formalize some of the opportunities around that that bring us together. We can use the funds we’d otherwise spend on a lease for team-building opportunities that get the team excited and amped up together because they actually want to, not because it’s a work thing they are obligated for.?

Creating moments and bonds for the team is the focus regardless of where they are is our top opportunity this year. Most of it is digital and virtual, but when we come together as a team, we're doing something that makes a lasting impact and it's memorable and impactful, and it's not necessarily just work-related, but it creates a moment. It creates that bond and, so that is the kind of thing I'm excited to explore and build out over the next year.?

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How do you see yourself managing the different ways people feel about getting together in real life in a post-pandemic world?

There’s never one thing that will work for everyone. There are always going to be different perspectives so make space for those. We’ll make sure that nothing is forced or required and that all participants are willing volunteers. I try to cultivate a space where lots of contrary opinions are held and as little judgment as possible is passed. The perfect example is what we’re working through right now. We are working through a perfect example right now. I think a lot of organizations are working through it and I'm trying to be mindful of my communication around the pandemic. Frankly, we've got people in the world today and they work at our companies and some of them are worried about vaccines.

How can we blame anyone for taking a stance on any one way of doing this whole thing? It has been so confusing for so many people, that's just one example and, for the record, I'm pro-vaccine. I got my shot, I have been wearing a mask and I am that way, but I don't hate on the people who have concerns about these vaccines. I don't like it but, it's genuine and I don't think they're bad people. I think they're approaching this through a lens that makes sense to them and right now, that's deep for them. So, that's just one example of how I try to communicate around that and create space for all people and perspectives.?

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Recently two companies (Coinbase and Basecamp) made public announcements regarding their desire and initiative to not weigh in on political and sensitive topics. This is being seen from two extremes as either a smart move or a cowardly move. How do you think organizations can navigate the increasingly challenging world were taking a side on an issue may alienate the opposing group? How do you see these moves by these organizations??

?Any attempt to control what people are allowed to say and discuss in any sphere of life is a recipe for disaster. If history is any teacher, we must be careful with the freedoms we restrict or take away. I take a human nature approach to this question. I think of kids. If you make a rule humans will often just go around it.? Prohibition of alcohol did not stop alcohol from being sold or consumed, it just worsened the issue. Regarding Coinbase and basecamp, it is not for me to judge. Those actions are not my style and I do not see myself ever leading a culture where some things are okay to talk about or some are not.

As soon as we pick and choose what is okay to discuss we are in for a long road of pain where a lot of things get tabled because no one really knows what is okay anymore.?

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What are the most effective things you do to translate the organizational vision for the team???

I repeat myself a lot. Over and over and over again until people’s eyes are rolling in the back of their heads. It’s about repeating a lot of the same things over and over again. That's the number one right there for sure.

Luke's interview continues on cultureindex.io. Read it now.

If you’d like to connect with Luke you can find him on LinkedIn.?