Avalon came to be because we wanted to create the company that we’d be excited to work for.
The type of company where the staff is like a family, proud to be there, and empowered to make decisions and interact with clients. We wanted a place where clients were excited to work with us, build a relationship and able to focus on their own creativity instead of financials and administration.
Like many things, Avalon was born from experiencing what we didn’t want. In 2015 our founder Joe felt like he was working in a Dilbert comic. But without the spacious hellscape offices and poor ergonomics of an accounting troll.
A change was needed to get out of the pessimism and bureaucracy, and so began Avalon. From the get-go, we wanted to be the opposite of the stuffy big firms, we wanted to be the firm that cracked jokes, had fun, and used everyone’s time efficiently. So the basis for our own company culture came to fruition and set the groundwork for who we wanted to be, and who wanted to work with.
The Avalon core values are gone over at every Avalonicon and passed with the consensus of the team. They’ve grown from the beginning, but are as follows:
- Ingenuity - We inventive solutions to problems.
- Reliability - We do what we say we are going to do.
- Collaboration - We succeed and learn together.
- Focus - No squirrels allowed.
- Alacrity - We bring a brisk and cheerful willingness to all we do.
- Buffoonery - We value the ridiculous and amusing.
- Empathy - We seek first to understand.
We live by these values and have them chirping in the back of our minds during our daily operations, when we are bringing on a new team member, or are getting the sense of a potential client. The clients and team members that see the most success are always collaborative, enthusiastic about their work, and enjoy an always appropriate Space Ball reference.
We have also always found value in maintaining a work-life balance, and if achieving that is the goal for our client then we love to help get them there. Sometimes it means thinking outside the box, but that’s something we enjoy.
So many small business owners devote the entirety of their time and energy to their business baby and we understand it and we love it.We work best with businesses held closely by their owner, but we understand that if you aren’t taking care of yourself, it’s hard to take care of your business.
As has been established, we aren’t in a Dilbert comic and don’t want our clients to be either. Those are for Sunday mornings, at home with a coffee. We’ll keep the jokes, but also produce outstanding work, and above all else stay motivated for the success of each client.
