Like many of you in Iowa, I sat with my family listening to Governor Reynold's press conference this afternoon. First and foremost, I want to applaud the State of Iowa, Governor Reynolds personally, and her staff for doing what is a very hard thing —keeping composure in an exceptionally unknown and dynamic time. Whether or… Continue reading If Shelter-in-place isn’t mandated in Iowa, what can we do?
Category: written-words
Moving Iowa quickly to shelter in place
For the first time I had a meeting cancel due to a COVID-19 death. The depth of sadness I feel for those impacted right now is something I can feel, but I can't describe. This was definitely a wake up call for me. I'm not a doctor and I can't provide care to others but… Continue reading Moving Iowa quickly to shelter in place
Hiring a new CEO
I told the Dwolla team this morning that we are hiring a new CEO, whom I and the rest of the board are going to recruit. I've replaced myself in every role I've ever had in this company and this will be no different. Change is a required part of growth. I'll stay involved but… Continue reading Hiring a new CEO
Building a $10M+ revenue business on the Dwolla ecosystem
The Dwolla ecosystem is now big enough that businesses can be built around it and start generating substantial revenue. I was talking to a friend the other day who was thinking about starting a new company and I laughingly mentioned the fastest path to revenue I knew of right now was to build around the… Continue reading Building a $10M+ revenue business on the Dwolla ecosystem
Understanding Dwolla Customer Types
When building a Dwolla platform application it's important to understand the Customer Types you can use. These are building blocks for your funds flows and the right end user experience. There are 3 Customer Types to understand. They are outlined on the Dwolla developer website but lately I find myself drawing them on a whiteboard… Continue reading Understanding Dwolla Customer Types
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Jami sent me a text yesterday about it being the last day of the decade and I didn't really think about it that way until I read it. The day itself is not that different than most other days. I said my goodbye's to my family, had a nice black coffee, and came to the… Continue reading 20 20
Capital Pool Conundrums
When money moves, en masse, there are typically collateral requirements somewhere. To oversimplify it, that's basically money (cash) one party has to give someone else in case something goes wrong. Sophisticated organizations might be able to use a bond, letter of credit, debt vehicle, or some other type of asset but most of us get… Continue reading Capital Pool Conundrums
Teaching Iowa Students to Code
I recently attended an interesting group discussion about getting students in Iowa, specifically rural Iowa, access to computer science skills. The state has a desire to do something and the resources to match but one of the challenges has been getting the right teachers in the schools to teach technology classes. It's not a problem… Continue reading Teaching Iowa Students to Code
A Simple OKR Template
Goals are normally driven on a company strategy that is informed by company vision. This could be as vague or sharp as it makes sense for your organization. Ideally vision looks out 10 years, strategy is a 1-3 year thing, and goals are a quarterly thing which can be measured on a daily basis, ideally.… Continue reading A Simple OKR Template
Building Monetery
Building Monetery has been a wonderful experience in building community. The conference experience is influenced by various other conferences around the world. It's quite small and it's meant to be a bit niche. I'd even go as far to say it's a boutique conference... It has its own style and approach. The conference also has… Continue reading Building Monetery