As the first month of 2023 rapidly approaches its end, many Los Angeles companies have the opportunity to reflect on the current status of Q1’s goals and analyze the potential trajectories for the rest of the year.
It also gives employees the chance to look back on the beginning of their careers, what they’ve accomplished and where they’re most excited to go next. Reasonable questions include “Are my current projects in sync with my internal passions?” and “Do I feel supported through my team and company culture?” For seasoned leaders at three local tech companies, the answer is a unanimous “yes.”
For Mark Anders, it’s the pace and the collective team energy that fuels his productivity to continuously innovate in the AI and robotics space. As a process development engineering manager at Machina Labs, he has continued to embody and promote the same can-do attitude within his team that he’s experienced since his first day on the job.
“In one of my early days, I mentioned to our CEO that I was thinking about building a fixture by attaching slotted plates to a beam,” Anders said. “He promptly threw on a welding suit and mask, took my parts to our welding station, and had the thing built in less time than it took me to describe the problem.”
Like Machina Labs, leaders at Technossus and Reformation also believe in the power of connection. Even with the threat of economic uncertainty lingering into the new year, these teams attribute their continuous growth and sharpened skill sets to a shared sense of purpose in the products they create.
Built In LA sat down with Anders, Digital Product Manager Ariel Kozicki and Senior Architect Gene Rivera to learn more about their big plans for 2023 — and why job seekers should be paying attention.
Reformation is a sustainable fashion company offering shoes, dresses, jeans and more. Regarding its commitment to sustainability, the company is a certified B Corporation and has a goal to remove more carbon emissions from the environment than it produces by 2025.
Think back to your early days on the job. What surprised you or stood out to you most about Reformation’s culture?
I started at Reformation three days before the world shut down because of Covid-19. I was onboarded predominantly remotely and in a time of uncertainty. Despite the turmoil going on in the world, I was so impressed with how the people and leaders at Reformation formed a unified front to buckle down and weather the pandemic together. We thought of new and creative ways to make the business successful, and leadership made it a top priority to keep the team both safe and prosperous.
WHAT IS A CERTIFIED B CORPORATION?
To be classified as a B Corporation, it means that a business has met high standards of performance, accountability and transparency on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to social and environmental practices. At Reformation, that includes maintaining its commitment to sustainability with a focus on climate action and environmental justice — benefitting teams, customers and the world.
What’s the coolest project you’ve worked on recently, and what skills did it help you develop?
This year I had the pleasure of working on our replatform to Salesforce. Previously, my role was in SEO and search, but in working closely with tech during the migration process I fell in love with building features and frameworks. I switched over to our blossoming new digital product team and couldn’t be prouder of the 26 sprints we’ve carried out thus far. I’m grateful for the opportunity I have had to help shape my role in tandem with my strongest skill sets.
Technossus helps companies modernize the technology they use to operate, increase revenue and improve customer engagement through consulting and enterprise software development services.
Think back to your early days on the job. What surprised you or stood out to you most about Technossus’ culture?
I was surprised by the connectedness the leadership of the company had with everyone. I joined in the middle of 2020 when Covid-19 was in full swing, and staying personally connected was difficult for many people. But the leadership team at Technossus had a practice of scheduling one-on-one time with everyone in the company: That included senior managers, executive directors and C-level executives as well.
Having the leadership reach out to spend 30 minutes with people just to talk and get to know them, and to do so regularly and without an ulterior motive was something I hadn’t seen before.
I’ve improved as a communicator, grown as a collaborator and learned how to discuss both technical benefits and the business value of the platform.”
What’s the coolest project you’ve worked on recently, and what skills did it help you develop?
I’ve had the opportunity to lead the rollout and implementation of an enterprise observability platform at a large non-profit healthcare provider. Through this opportunity I’ve improved as a communicator, grown as a collaborator, learned how to discuss both technical benefits and the business value of the platform, and also how to translate between them in order to inform and educate stakeholders. I’ve also developed methods for evaluating and rating workload efficiency in order to inform cost optimization and right-sizing efforts.
Machina Labs’ manufacturing platform combines the latest advances in robotics and AI so great ideas can quickly and affordably turn to reality.
Think back to your early days on the job. What surprised you or stood out to you most about Machina Labs’ culture?
Machina Labs is a manufacturing startup utilizing AI and robotics, and coming from academia, what really stood out to me when joining was the pace and the energy with which everything happens. Upon joining, I was immediately inspired by the get-stuff-done attitude and commitment to our motto “Be a crafts(wo)man” at all levels of the company.
This type of can-do attitude amongst all team members — technicians, engineers and even the C-suite — makes working at Machina Labs so exciting. Not only are we all striving to build something entirely new that no one has ever done before, but we’re also doing it with passion, fervor and a sense of pride. There’s never a dull moment and getting to witness my efforts substantially contribute to the advancement of our technology is incredibly rewarding.
Not only are we all striving to build something entirely new that no one has ever done before — but we’re also doing it with passion, fervor and a sense of pride.”
How long have you been with the company, and what professional growth or development have you seen in that time?
I’ve been with Machina for a little over a year and a half, and I’ve already seen the company transform completely. When I started here, we had a small scrappy team trying all kinds of crazy stuff and throwing everything against the wall to see what sticks. Since then, we’ve successfully demonstrated the viability of our technology, and we’re now transitioning out of the hacky phase.
We’re overhauling everything, doing things properly and in ways that are scalable. The team and the production capacity have grown five times over, our capabilities have matured and the future just keeps looking brighter.
In addition to the company’s advancements, I’ve seen personal and professional growth as well: I came in as the first member of a newly established team, and since then I’ve taken on a manager role and am now responsible for an ever-growing team. I am learning and growing daily in the role as both an individual contributor and manager. Given the tremendous growth that I’ve seen in the last 18 months, I can’t wait to see what the next 18 have in store for us.
