Issue #1

Welcome to issue #1 of Stride, a weekly digest full of useful stuff on the web you might have otherwise missed. This newsletter is for operators, by operators. We’re writing the newsletter we always wish we had as tech execs.

Without further ado, let’s dive in.

WHAT'S INSIDE

• 💻 If you manage distributed teams, it can be hard keeping everyone in sync, happy, and productive. If you haven't adapted to the 'new normal', now might be the time to tweak your management style to fit the needs of both your in-person and remote employees

• 🔺 The Minto Pyramid is a choice framework when delivering status updates to your CEO. But leave the consultant-speak at home if you're trying to get your team fired up or you're out talking to customers

• 🔎 Check out our jobs section to see open roles at Webflow, Duolingo, Atlassian, and more!

• 🏀 How Nike lost a once in a generation player to Under Armour with rookie mistakes during the pitch meeting

A DEEPER DIVE: TAKING THE LEAD IN A REMOTE / HYBRID WORLD

Travel is booming again 🏝💥, even as many countries continue to struggle to get a handle on Covid-19. China recently even had to re-impose lockdowns 😷

Where you live, the pandemic might not impact your day-to-day much anymore. Even still, the workplace may never be the same and that’s forced companies to evolve with the times. While offices around the world have started to open back up, employees have made it clear that they don’t want to entirely give up that home office life 🖥

If you’re a manager who finds themselves leading distributed teams 🌎, these articles might be useful to you.

Remote.com's Remote Handbook

What it's about: As a remote-first company (with nearly $500M in funding and >1000 employees), Remote’s internal operating manual is a useful reference to understand ways of driving org effectiveness across distributed teams

TLDR / Key Takeaways:

• Inclusive practices have been worked into Remote’s corporate DNA, from interviews to async working practices to employee feedback collection and constant iteration

• Remote explicitly defines expectations for meeting management, effective communication, and information dissemination that takes into context their async work culture and global workforce

• They even provide tips for remote office setups to prevent technical snafus and unprepared teammates

3 Reminders for Managers in a Remote Work Environment

What it's about: Tips on how to manage a work environment when all of your team members aren’t in the same room so that no one feels disadvantaged

TLDR / Key Takeaways:

• Each team in an organization should figure out the hybrid structure that works best for them

• Be intentional with preparing new team members so they can be properly integrated and not left behind

• Design meaningful remote interactions, including 1-on-1’s and ‘camera-on’ meetings (we know the ‘camera-on’ vs ‘camera-off’ debate can be dicey - do what works best with your team)

• Make sure all team members get the chance to give input; for example, break into smaller discussion groups after a virtual all-hands to gather additional feedback

5 Practices to Make your Hybrid Workplace Inclusive

What it's about: Tips on how managers can adopt new approaches to workplace culture to maintain a safe and inclusive space for all groups

TLDR / Key Takeaways:

• Consider pairing your new hire with an experienced employee to help build a trusted resource early on

• Keep an eye out for ‘weak ties’ in the organization and build information channels so that employee networks don’t devolve into exclusive cliques

• Perform an audit on which activities get rewarded at your organization and whether this might drive bias or exclusion

FRAMEWORK OF THE WEEK: MINTO PYRAMID

Today we’re talking about a framework that’s known and loved by management consultants 📈🧳.

The “Minto Pyramid” (by Barbara Minto) is a communication framework that’s popular among executives. It's useful for giving the audience the gist of your message so you can move them towards a decision.

Here’s a quick summary on the Minto Pyramid.

For: Executive communication

What is it: A top-down structure to communicate the most important ideas first

When it’s used: Slides, memos, and even conversations — particularly when your audience is time-stretched individuals

When it’s NOT used: Consumer marketing, or any time where the story and journey is essential for buy-in. It’s also not great for delivering performance feedback or other delicate conversations

1. Title explains the conclusion - the ‘so what’ or main takeaway of the slide

2. Subheaders in the teal boxes indicate key components of the conclusion

3. Bulleted lists within each box are supporting details of the key components

Additional resource: Answer First Communication - Management Consulted

YOUR NEXT STRIDE

For a full list of open roles, click here. We refresh this list every week and only add the best high-profile roles suitable for senior (e.g. 10+ years of experience) operators.

If you want to share an open role, please use this form.

This week's featured roles

LIFESTYLE

Wellness 🏅

Sitting down and hunched over screens all day? Here’s a 10 minute stretch to fix your posture

Watch 📺

​How to Change your Mind (Netflix). Psychedelics, once seen synonymous with hippie culture or people who go to burning man, are now being researched by renowned medical institutions on the mental-health effects of pairing them with psychotherapy. This four-part Netflix series features Michael Pollan, the author of How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence​

There’s a lot of interesting research coming out about the benefits of microdosing. Now we still recommend our readers to stay in line with local laws, of course, but there’s no harm in broadening your intellectual horizons 🌅

Read 📚

​Make Time: How to Focus on What Matters Every Day by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky.

If you find yourself constantly saying that you’re “crazy busy”, read this book. Written by the duo behind Google Ventures’ design sprint, “Make Time” provides a customizable menu of bite-size tips and strategies that can be tailored to individual habits and lifestyles. This article on the Make Time blog is a pretty good start if you’re not sure you want to read the whole thing.

And if you’re still short on time and ‘crazy busy’ 👀, here are the Blinkist notes.

Listen 🎧

​Inflation & Drinking Buddies - How a bunch of economists and “fake money” saved Brazil from hyperinflation in the 90s

RANDOM BUT INTERESTING

This section is going to feature one material a week that we found interesting - but couldn’t really fit it in anywhere else. You can think of it as coming down the rabbit hole of curiosity with us just because — or fodder / anecdotes for your next speech 🤷🏽‍♀️

​How Nike lost Steph Curry to Under Armour​

Nike sponsored Steph Curry early on in his career. You’d think closing Curry would be a breeze for a brand like Nike - but this article delves into how Nike lost the deal during contract renegotiation. And just how do you lose a client? Pretty easy apparently - mispronounce their name, have another client’s name on the pitch deck, and fail to bring your A-game to the meeting because you think it’s a slam dunk 🏀

SHARE THE LOVE

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Hasta Luego 👋🏽

​Jay & Zi