REWORK

Maintaining a business partnership, simple product design, and other listener questions Aug 28, 2024

Show notes

This week on the REWORK podcast, 37signals co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson answer another round listener questions. Jason and David talk about the ups and downs of their long-running business partnership and friendship, tackle a critical question about Basecamp, and share their thoughts on starting a new company. Plus, they reveal the inspiration behind their Campfire software.

Key Takeaways

00:34 – How Jason and David's partnership has stood the test of time

09:21 – A listener's opinion on Basecamp's shortcomings

14:56 – Advice for building a new company from the ground up.

25:35 – Creating products out of a need versus seeing a business opportunity
Links and Resources
Is group chat making you sweat?

Google pulls Dear Sydney ad

Using AI for Writing, Being Facebook Free, and other Listener Questions Aug 21, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson, co-founders of 37signals, return from a summer hiatus to answer a new set of listener questions. They dive into topics like the role of A.I. in writing and their updated thoughts on staying Facebook-free. REWORK host, Kimberly Rhodes also gets in a question of her own.

Key Takeaways

00:38 - Emphasizing the importance of using your own voice in writing rather than relying on AI

05:50 - Discussing how targeted advertising can be beneficial for some but not for everyone

08:50 - One disagreement with a company or person shouldn't lead to complete condemnation

19:28 - David shares his reflections on taking a summer break from X (formerly Twitter)

Links & Resources

Google - Dear Sydney Ad

37signals on X

Scratch Your Own Itch (Replay) Jul 17, 2024

Show notes

In their book REWORK, Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson write about the benefits of building products and services that you use yourself. "The easiest, most straightforward way to create a great product or service is to make something you want to use." In this episode, originally aired November 2, 2021, Jason and David sit down with Shaun Hildner to discuss creating products that scratch your own itch.

Key Takeaways

00:43 – The origins of Basecamp and how it fulfilled an internal need
04:38 – Building to solve your own problems vs. someone else's
06:27 – The evolution of HEY and how it was created to solve their own frustrations with email
09:50 – How building for yourself leads to better quality control
14:25 – The problem with creating MVPs (Minimum Viable Products) and building based on customer feedback alone

Links and Resources

Listener Questions: Ops Edition Jul 10, 2024

Show notes

In this episode of the Rework podcast, host Kimberly Rhodes chats with Eron Nicholson from 37signals' operations team. He shares insight on his role and the department's various functions. The conversation covers details on the ops team structure, system reliability, global expansion projects and more.

Key Takeaways

00:38 - Meet Eron
02:17 - The structure of the “ops” team
05:15 - On-call coverage and schedule
08:40 - Managing data center outages
13:25 - Balancing project cycles with system administration
16:56 - A sneak peek into the Amsterdam project

Links & Resources

Listener Questions - HR Edition Jul 03, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Andrea LaRowe, Head of People Operations at 37signals, joins host Kimberly Rhodes to answer questions about the company's HR practices. They discuss the company's management structure and performance evaluations and what the company looks for when hiring. Andrea also shares what's involved in the All Hands meeting and tips for planning a company meet-up.

Key Takeaways:

00:42 - Meet Andrea
02:19 - 37signals' managerial structure and one-on-one process
06:15 - 360 evaluations and annual employee reviews
09:38 - What job applicants can do to stand out
12:45 - All-hands meetings
17:21 - Company meetups
21:57 - Hiring employees using the ‘manager of one’ concept

Links and Resources:

Jobs at 37signals

Once software products

The Aim for a Name Jun 26, 2024

Show notes

In this podcast episode, Kimberly Rhodes talks with Jason Fried, CEO and co-founder of 37signals, about the process of naming products. He discusses practical considerations like domain availability, trademarks, and logo design.

Key Takeaways:

00:28 - The process of naming a product

03:05 - Researching domain names and trademarks

07:14 - The style of a product name

10:04 - The journey from the working title to the official title

13:11 - Designing and updating branding logos

20:48 - Gathering input on the name

Links and Resources:

ONCE.com
Jason Fried on Twitter / X and LinkedIn
David Heinemeier Hansson on Twitter / X and LinkedIn
The 37signals Employee Handbook
Books by 37signals
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X

ONCE (again) Jun 19, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Kimberly Rhodes hosts a discussion with Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson, the co-founders of 37signals, about their newest product. And the best news? It will be free and simple to use.

Key Takeaways:

00:26 - The next Once product
02:52 - The excitement of easily sharing free information in book form online
07:02 - Simplified publishing software that you completely control
12:12 - Starting a new product from scratch creates an open space for new ideas
15:55 - The various authors and enthusiasts that may want to use the new product
22:10 - Making the case on why this product is free

25:27 - Q&A from X (Twitter)

Links and Resources:

Founder-led Marketing Jun 12, 2024

Show notes

REWORK's host Kimberly Rhodes discusses the unique marketing approach of 37signals with its co-founders, Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. They talk about how their process is simply sharing their perspectives and products, instead of traditional advertising. They champion genuine interaction over transactional posts and content.

Key Takeaways:

00:37 - What Founder-Led Marketing means for 37signals

02:43 - The journey to finding the authentic voice of the brand

09:24 - Why paid advertising doesn’t always work as intended

16:50 - The love/hate relationship of posting content

27:19 - There are different decorums for different platforms

Links and Resources:

Saddleback Leather Company

Steve Ballmer: Developers!

For the Love of Linux Jun 05, 2024

Show notes

In this podcast episode, REWORK host Kimberly Rhodes talks with David Heinemeier Hansson, co-founder of 37signals and CTO, about his personal shift from using Apple products to exploring Linux and Windows platforms. He discusses the expanded platform integration at 37signals, which now includes all three operating systems.
Key Takeaways:
00:21 - The last straw with Apple

06:34 - Discovering Microsoft’s recent improvements and support of developers

10:30 - Linux and Windows work well together

13:27 - The user-friendly and upgradeable Framework laptop

17:45 - Transitioning 37signals to a multi-platform development team

22:58 - David’s recommended computing and operating systems

Links and Resources: