Emulate the 'Almost-Feeding Frenzy' Of High-Tech Culture

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, June, 2000

You don't have to be a high-tech company to have a fast-paced, high-tech environment. The publishing industry is moving at a rapid pace too, points out Bill Slapin, founder of 101 communications, which focuses on information-technology, business-to-business niche publications. "The industry we're in--whether we call it publishing or information services--is changing rapidly," he says.

"Does this mean publishers should be looking at changing their culture to keep up? Absolutely," Slapin says. "We're very much emulating a high-tech culture, not a traditional bricks-and-mortar publishing company." How is 101 doing this? (1) The environment is no-frills (although it did recently buy some plants). Everyone is in cubicles. "The cubicles are an outward manifestation of our culture," says Slapin. "We can just stand up and talk over the walls." (2) Meetings are brief. "Ninety-nine percent of communication is by e-mail," he says. (3) Formal hours are for legal purposes only. (4) Organizational structure is flatter than most. (5) Management leads by example. "We've had nine acquisitions in 11 months, and we expect to continue at the rate of about one acquisition a month," says Slapin. "What we do affects the kind of people who are attracted to and will stay with the company. The people who come here expect high growth, a rapid pace--almost a feeding frenzy." One caveat from Slapin: "Start from scratch--I think we would have great difficulty if we tried to retrofit this culture into a large existing organization."