Haven is in

Haven on bike - CES 
Originally uploaded by Pete Kim.

Another piece of our startup puzzle has fit into place - Brian Haven will be joining my new startup company in September.

Now - before you get the impression that we're building a new syndicated research firm, let me tell you that isn't the plan.  But Brian and I did recently work at the same company, researching similar topics, so you may wonder, what's the deal?

Well for the record, I couldn't actually recruit Brian to join the startup.  However, we've left some public breadcrumbs about what we are doing and Brian decided to bring his distinct and valuable skill set to put to work in our kitchen.  At Forrester, he helped businesses think about engagement.  Prior to that, he worked in design research and strategy, making good use of his master's degree in interaction design.

He's also a good guy - the picture is from when we attended CES earlier this year and rented bikes to breeze past taxi queues and stopped traffic.  (But he looked cool in his bike gear, I looked like a dork.)  We share an affinity for good burritos.  Which is probably a good thing when you work for an Austin-based company...

This brings us to four principals:

• Jeff Dachis, successful corporate architect and entrepreneur, who decided to build a new company.
• Me.  I bring business strategy and social computing skills.
• Doug Rushkoff, an authority on people, culture, and connections.
• Now Brian Haven joins us, bringing design thinking and an engagement focus to the table.

And that's not the end of the story - it gets even better with some of the potential hires we have in the pipeline.

Two closing thoughts:

1. If you think you might be interested in joining us, let me know.  But please first read my earlier posts about the five-tool employee and the known, knowable, and unknown (i.e. how does this opportunity appear along those categories to you?).
2. If you are interested in putting us to work, let me know or get in touch with Jeff.  If you believe that social technology can and needs to be used for more than PR and advertising, we have a lot to discuss.

Comments

[Haven]

Thanks, Pete. I'm really excited to join the team. Now we must conquer the world!

[Dmitri Gunn]

Hi Peter,

Congrats on adding Brian to the team! Is it only a matter of time before you entice Charlene? Looking forward to continuing our conversation from Bryan Person's going away meetup. In the meantime, I'll tide myself over with breadcrumbs. ;-)

@dmitrigunn

[Peter Kim]

Hi Dmitri - thanks! On Charlene - I wish, but legal agreements prevent it (which is why I didn't recruit Brian). (Which is also why we're building a business that implements technology, which is something Forrester doesn't do.) Keep watching this space, there's more to come!

[Dave Knox]

Pete - Looks like the team continues to get stronger and stronger. Looking forward to keeping our conversation going. Lots of exciting opportunities. Congrats and bringing another great member to your team

[Peter Kim]

Thanks Dave. Good luck as you work on your transition as well! http://hardknoxlife.wordpress.com/2008/08/07/my-new-gig-pg-digital-brand-strategist/

[Eric Schurr]

Peter,
I've enjoyed reading your blog, and congratulations on having Brian Haven join your team. I saw Brian speak at the Forrester Marketing Forum in April, and later we met. I enjoyed talking with him and I'm sure you'll make a great team.

good luck.

[Peter Kim]

Thanks Eric. We have some more great stuff in the works, too...