by Bill Huseby
I can’t believe SIGMADESIGN is turning 20. You know what they say. Time flies when you’re having fun. I have always tried to instill the importance of having fun at work. To “take time to laugh” is even one of our core values. It turns out to be one of the more difficult ones to assess, measure or instill in the organization. After all “fun” means something different to everyone.
As I reflect back on the last 20 years what I remember most are the “fun” times. Those times where we didn’t have to take time to laugh but where we just laughed. Back when the company was small and there were only about five of us we had a buzzer we sounded every time we received a Purchase Order. It didn’t happen very often as we usually only had one or two jobs active at any moment (now we have hundreds). When that buzzer would sound we would get up and literally run around the table in circles hooting and hollering “aaaaahhhhhhh” as we wondered how we were going to get the job done with such a small team.
A lot has changed over the years at SIGMADESIGN. The buzzer is now saved for the really, really big Purchase Orders, and I leave the running to the younger employees; but engineering solutions to our clients’ problems is still our passion and it is still a joy to come to work everyday. I would say that has been the key to our success. That is the reason why we have persevered through all the highs and lows that the market has thrown our way. With the right team around you, work really can be fun. We are living proof of that and I plan to keep it that way.