Austin tech loves to compete for the coolest office culture, and we love to tell you about it. But sometimes the thing that makes work so enjoyable is the work you do outside of it.
Here are seven people we've met recently whose work is just getting started when they leave the office.
Brendan Moore, Product Optimization Director and Carpenter
Who I am and what I do for work: I make sure our clients prioritize their biggest problems, validate the best solutions and embrace a data-driven culture. Prior to Clearhead, I was the director of product at Front Gate Tickets, and used to run digital marketing for musicians like Jack Johnson, Lenny Kravitz and John Legend.
How I got started: Two years ago, I wanted to get into gardening as a hobby. After two seasons of complete fruitlessness, I realized I enjoyed making the cedar garden beds more than I enjoyed the actual gardening.
Payoff: From there I started building furniture and am constantly working on new projects and design challenges. After working on a computer all day, there is something very therapeutic about coming home, getting away from screens and building with your hands.
How I balance it with work: Clearhead recently commissioned two eight-foot walnut and oak conference tables with hairpin legs to support our fast growing team. We embrace the opportunity to support our teammates in their activities outside the office — we’ve attended art shows, cheered on runners in the Austin Marathon, hired an employee’s photo booth for our holiday party and spent the day playing with goats at a co-worker’s farm.
You can see more of my work (and my dog Riggins, who is a favorite at the Clearhead office) at https://harney.co. Photos by Cecily Gold.
Kedzie Teller, Social Content Specialist and National Quidditch Champ
Who I am and what I do for work: My name is Kedzie Teller and I’ve been working as the social content specialist at OutboundEngine for just over a year. I manage and produce the company’s social product on behalf of all our customers. I also oversee the company’s social presence, assist with brand and reputation management and play point on media relations.
How I got started: I got started with Quidditch my sophomore year at Boston University when I saw it being played at a nearby park. I had gone to BU as a sprinter on their track team, but after deciding to break my ties with the track program, I was hungry for a new competitive outlet. I had heard people played Quidditch, but always thought it was a joke, and not being a big Harry Potter fan I couldn’t have ever imagined it would be something of interest. But when I saw it was full contact, my friends persuaded me to give it a try, and next thing I knew I was hooked. Years later, here I am.
Most people who haven’t seen it played ask what it’s most like, and my response is always a mix between Olympic handball, rugby and dodgeball. Also, it’s co-ed. So that’s kind of crazy.
Payoff: This year is my seventh season playing quidditch, and it’s been wild. When I joined, I didn’t realized there was actually a governing body for the sport (see the USQ), nor did I expect that it would explode onto the college sports scene the way it did. For you Texans, you may be surprised to hear that UT is the 3-time defending national champion. After graduating from BU, I built a city team called Q.C. Boston, then upon moving to Austin at the start of 2015, I joined a local team called Lone Star Q.C. – a team that has gone back and forth between the the number one and two ranking throughout the last two seasons.
On top of my regular season play, I have been selected for both iterations of the US National Team, traveling across the world to compete against other countries with developing quidditch leagues.
Just recently I joined Athlete Ally as their first every Pro Ambassador from the sport of quidditch. Athlete Ally is a non profit that provides public awareness campaigns and educational programming designed to foster inclusive sporting communities, and by being a Pro Ambassador it is my duty to help spread their messages, promote their campaigns, and help establish relationships between them and quidditch governance.
How I balance it with work: OutboundEngine has been wicked supportive of my endeavors. I’ve had coworkers show up to support me, I am able to build a schedule that works around my training regimen, and I’ve been able to work from home when recovering from physical tournaments. One person was even kind of enough to bring in a gift when my team won the Southwest Regional Championship. I’m the quidditch guy, and whether or not my coworkers really understand what it is I do, I know they’ve got my back.
Casey Wilson, Talent Acquisition Specialist and Roller Derby Girl
Who I am and what I do for work: I am the Talent Acquisition Specialist at BuildASign. I support all departments in seeking talent that will keep pushing our business to be successful and innovative.
How I got started: I’ve been involved with competitive sports since I was young. I grew up swimming and ventured into different sports in my 20’s like climbing and cycling.
Roller derby found me at a time where I was desperately searching to be a part of something again. After moving back to my home town in 2012, I found my closest friends were all so happily busy with their jobs and families. I needed something of my own. That same summer, I was handed a flyer for Houston Roller Derby (HRD) at Free Press Summer Fest in Houston. My best friend looked me in the eyes and said, “you have to do this.” And so I did. And I never looked back.
Payoff: I now skate for the Honky Tonk Heartbreakers, which is one of the Texas Roller Girls home teams in Austin. Roller Derby is hard. You challenge yourself everyday and learn something new everyday. This sport has opened up a whole new world to me. A world where I have an opportunity to be a part of team again, challenge myself in a dynamic sport and meet the most incredible, amazing people.
Photo credit: Control Images
Brooke Grimes, Director of Marketing and Rowing Team Coach
Who I am and what I do for work: I am currently the Director of Marketing at AcademicWorks. I have been with AcademicWorks for a little over a year and a half. I started with the company as a Product Marketing Manager and this past fall, expanded my focus to incorporate both Marketing and Product Marketing.
How I got started: Around the time I started with AcademicWorks, I also returned to a hobby that took up the majority of my time in high school and college, rowing. I decided to start coaching for the Austin Rowing Club Juniors program after a 4-year break from the sport. The Austin Rowing Club Junior Program is made up of a little over 60 dedicated high school athletes from all over the Austin metro area.
Payoff: We compete on a state, regional, and even national level against the top teams in the country. Most days, after work, I race to the Waller Creek Boathouse for practice. Watching the athletes improve and challenge themselves is the most rewarding part of my day. Seeing the growth of the team over the past few years has been so fun. It is great to see their hard work pay off, and many of the athletes are getting recruited to top colleges in the nation including The University of Texas and The United States Naval Academy.
How I balance it with work: Rowing is a sport that teaches teamwork, leadership, and cooperation. I attribute my career successes to the lessons I learned throughout my rowing career as well. It feels great to finally be able to give back to the sport that has provided me with so much. I am very fortunate to work for a company that values a work-life balance for employees to do the things they are passionate about. AcademicWorks values employees who are engaged in their work, but also engaged and passionate in other areas of their lives. This has been very evident from the beginning of my time with AcademicWorks, in their support and flexibility of my coaching career.
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Melissa O’Bryan, Partner Development Specialist and Laughter Yogi
Who I am and what I do for work: My first career, at age 19, was in massage, working with professional golf, tennis and performance athletes in South Florida. After five years I was hired into corporate sales in 1999. I’ve been in sales and entrepreneurship since, mostly in real estate and finance. During my real estate career, I put myself through college and earned a Bachelor of Science in Business from the University of Florida. I have also co-founded a surgical sales company and pet centric sales & marketing business.
How I got started: My roots in health and wellness are very deep and important to me. Needing continuing education credits, I found “Laughter Yoga” as a class and literally…burst out laughing! Who wouldn’t? I signed up and had the best weekend, laughing my a$$ off with a group of strangers in my certification class. I immediately took this to my social groups and as funny as it sounds…when the first person starts the awkward chuckle or the boisterous fake laugh, the contagious laughter ensues. Try it, it’s hilarious!
Payoff: Laughter in any environment (especially church and funerals) is very contagious. Socially, it is the unspoken language of friendship and acceptance. It’s medicinal. It stimulates the immune system and lowers blood pressure. Plus, it’s just fun to laugh and be happy!
Today, I use laughter yoga to gently wake my son in the morning. It’s pretty powerful, he laughs and stretches and begins his day on a great note. Throughout the day, if we have a moment, I can poke him or vice versa we both cave in. Laughter keeps things real around my house.
How I balance it with work: Everyone I’ve worked with at DigitalMarketer has a great sense of humor and the culture around the office supports openness and individual expression. Case in point: Miss Sandy, who is 77 years young, has a super quick wit and is always up for a good belly laugh. We even have a bloopers video of how goofy our people are.
Bottom line, I think it’s really important to surround yourself with positive people who choose to lift each other up through light-hearted joking on a daily basis. It just makes life, and work, more fun.
Jordan Schwob, Marketing Automation Specialist and Cheese Master
Who I am and what I do for work: I grew up in Austin and did my undergrad at Texas Tech in Psychology. I stumbled into Marketing Automation through a reference from a friend. I began my career in the Marketing Automation field at a small start-up of about 20 people. It instantly fascinated me and wanted to learn more. Fast forward five years, and now I am heavily entrenched in the space. At Bulldog, I execute digital marketing programs for various clients. I also run the Twitter account and am part of our Inbound team. I’ve probably been here longer than you (30 years).
How I got started: My queso journey started with a small Cinco De Mayo party that was being thrown by a girl I was dating. She wanted to have a salsa and queso contest. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity to compete and look good.
I asked a friend who was a manager at Torchy’s, “What’s one secret ingredient I can put in my queso to make it awesome?” And her reply was… well, I’m not going to tell you. But lo and behold, my queso beat the other two in the competition and my company, Cheesus, was born.
Payoff: Now, I got the idea that maybe I can compete in the annual Quesoff held at Mohawk. So after about six weeks of testing with coworkers, I nailed down a recipe.
Next step was branding the product and making Cheesus come to life. One of my very talented co-works, Leah Yanez (now the CMO of Cheesus Queso), designed a shirt saying “Y’all Need Cheesus.” It was an absolute hit and people wanted to buy them at the actual competition.
The whole team had a great time and we didn’t even really think about winning, but we felt good about the whole thing. There was a few logistic issues with when we served the judges, but it worked out and Cheesus took home “Best Veggie Queso 2015” for Quesoff V.
I love making Queso and Austin loves eating it. So as a native Austinite and with a modicum of success making it, Queso cooking and the whole Cheesus brand has become not only my hobby, but one of my passions. Something I can easily work hard at.
How I balance it with work: My fellow coworkers love my queso and often ask me to bring it in from time to time. I recently have been testing a “meaty” recipe and brought it in twice and it does not take a long time for the queso to be completely gone.
On March 11th, I competed in a mini Quesoff against 7 other teams (including restaurants) at the Driskill for a SXSW event called “SxBites.” I will also defend my Veggie title at Quesoff VI at Mohawk sometime in July. Given the success and the reaction I’ve had to the brand I am definitely competitive with it and have meetings with potential investors to possibly open a food truck or start bottling it. Who knows what doors Queso will open for me? So far, it’s been a fun ride and can’t wait to see where it takes me.
Callen Huss Thompson, Independent Artist and Senior Interaction Designer
How I got started: I was a Studio Art major at Dartmouth College for undergrad and also went to Cranbrook Academy of Art for Print/Media so I was an artist and non-profit leader before going to Austin Center for Design and becoming an Interaction Designer.
BEAM is my “full-time side business,” with framed prints in stores around the US and one store in the UK, upholstery fabric, paintings and a new line of scarves I just designed in partnership with Kara Weaves.
Payoff: I also designed (along with a then-coworker at Chaotic Moon) the album art for “The Ridge” by Sarah Neufeld (of Arcade Fire/Bell Orchestre), her second solo album that came out in late February.
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