Blogs

Do you ever have one of those projects where you get so hung up on the details that you miss the big picture? Recently, while working on our Grant and Prospect Research article, I hit a horrible snag. Here I was with, essentially, a “few good tools” article, but I couldn’t get any information on the tools themselves. 

In case you haven't noticed, we at Idealware are a talkative bunch. With all sorts of videos, webinars and phone calls, noise is a major part of life in the Idealware office. That's a good thing! It means that we're all busy. You wouldn't blame a hive of hardworking bees for buzzing a bit, would you?

Sometimes, though, the noise can be a problem. If I'm shooting an AskIdealware video in one room, I don't want to hear someone's phone call from another room. And you'd be surprised at how much noise a microphone can pick up. Listen close in most videos, and you'll hear the taka-taka of someone's keyboard, hard at work.

A lot of noises can be avoided just by checking everyone's schedules and moving the shoot time to a time when no one has any meetings or webinars. But there's a lot of noise that's inherent to the office, and that's the kind that you can't just schedule around.

Our old office, for example, was on the ground floor of the building, with big windows facing a busy road. Poor Andrea had to deal with constant road noise--car horns, sirens, truck brakes, road rage. The other side of the building faced the parking lot, and suffered from that one car alarm that went off at the same time everyday. It was also a public building, with people walking and talking up and down the stairs all day, and the sound of footsteps from the office upstairs. To top it off, we were next to a dentist, with all the nasty noises involved there--drills, unhappy patients, x-ray machines.

As you can imagine, it was a nightmare to record any video or audio there. I imagine our older webinars were frequently punctuated by footsteps and angry drivers. There wasn't really anything we could do to fix that, either. So we moved!

OK, that's not the reason we moved, but it's definitely one of the advantages of our new space. Our new office is on the top floor, so no more footsteps from upstairs; we're also at a less busy intersection, so fewer cars go by (but we still get the horns from time to time). More importantly, however, you hear much, much less of each other working and talking. Since everyone now has an office with a door, you get less keyboard clacking across the office. And, since the walls are thicker, and we have new carpet, we don't hear as much of each other between offices. We even have a room dedicated solely to small meetings and audio recording. 

Ultimately, this soundproofing comes down to the layout of the office, and how we use the space. The fact that everyone has a door to shut probably makes the biggest difference (although I'm pretty sure the doors and walls are higher-quality to begin with). Now we just have to get used to a quieter workspace.

The attic was an improvement--at least that's what Laura Quinn, Idealware's founder and executive director, thought. She began Idealware in her Brooklyn apartment, herself the founder and sole employee, and when she moved to Maine, it went with her. There, she set up an office in the attic, with an oversized dormer for a conference room. The perfect place for a fledgling startup. What more could you ask for?

A few years later, Idealware had grown to a staff of four and moved to a "real" office on the outskirts of Portland. The attic had become too cozy for comfort, the new office a tangible sign of Idealware's credibility. 

But with 2012 drawing to a close, Idealware--now seven people strong--has moved again. If the last office was about credibility, the new office at One Pleasant Street signifies success. Our energetic and passionate staff members fit right in with bustling downtown Portland, and the new space atop the Cinamon Building fits the current iteration of Idealware perfectly. There are four offices, a conference room and a recording studio--the right combination of open concept and private space for all the staff to see how Idealware is poised for an amazing future. And the ocean view isn't bad, either...

Moving an entire company is no small feat. A huge amount of credit goes to our senior researcher and de facto move coordinator, Elizabeth Pope, for her organization and orchestration at each step of the way. She was able to oversee all the details from phone systems and furniture to recycling bins and pens so that Idealware was offline for just a few hours on a single morning. (Unfortunately, the new office refrigerator did not have nearly as smooth a transition due to what is officially designated as a "mishandling or damaging incident.") Of course, everbody pitched in--that's the Idealware way--and we're on our way to fully settling in.

Pictures still need to be hung, and office supplies still need to be put away. But we'll find time for that--in the meantime, we're already hard at work, even if we do tend to get distracted by the view.

Want to see our new location for yourself, and come meet the team? We're having an official office-warming party from 4 pm to 7 pm on Thursday, December 6, with the entire staff--including Chris Bernard, our editorial and communications director, who works remotely from Portland, Oregon--on hand. We'd love for you to drop by. Just click here to RSVP: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/4844380673. 

 It's Idealware's Black Friday Sale! We're blowing out The Field Guide to Software for Nonprofits.

We only have 100 of these fantastic resources remaining! When they're gone! They're gone! Click the flyer to purchase yours.

Idealware is looking for a couple of good interns, and we like to think the experience is one that you won't soon forget. It's a great way to make a difference in the nonprofit community, to work with some interesting people passionate about their organization, and have a little bit of fun. We asked some of our former interns to tell us a bit about their time here in Idealware's Global Headquarters in Portland, Maine.

Speaking from experience as Idealware's inaugural intern, I can tell you this: don't expect to be sent out to get coffee for everyone. You'll be treated like a part of the team and involved in research, writing and all the other things that make Idealware such a respected organization. (I can also tell you that if you did bring some lattes to the office, no one would complain). 

Interested in joining Idealware as an intern? We're seeking two for the upcoming semester. Read more about the research internship at www.idealware.org/about/staff/research-intern and the training internship at www.idealware.org/about/staff/training-intern.

Or give us a call and talk to one of our former interns--two of them are now regular staff members.