"Culture is a thousand things, a thousand times. It’s living the core values when you hire; when you write an email; when you are working on a project; when you are walking in the hall." — Brian Chesky, Co-founder and CEO of Airbnb.
At Meesho, we're all about teamwork! We choose big-picture goals over solo victories, mix data with real conversations with our users to gather gold nuggets of insight, and race to solve problems faster than a tracer bullet. 🚀 This isn't just a rulebook; it's our Meesho DNA!
How you ask.
We keep going back to the drawing board, discussing and envisioning what should be Meesho’s strategy in the coming years. The crux of our behaviours and success is now in the 9 revamped mantras.
Presenting to you Meesho’s updated mantras:
User First
What it means -
- Obsess over Users. Users are the greatest source of truth.
What it doesn’t mean -
- Ignoring data/trends and focusing only on user insights. Not doing market research and not thinking about competition.
What to do to get better -
- Frequently take user feedback, uncover insights and incorporate them in your roadmap.
User First has been a core value that’s been ingrained in Meesho since the very beginning. We even have a ‘Listen or Die’ programme, a Meesho ritual, to inculcate the habit of listening to users from day one. Through this programme, new joinees are required to call Meesho users and get feedback from them within the first 15 days of joining, and present their insights to a panel of senior leaders.
Think 10x, Take Risks
What it means -
- Empower 10x innovation through experimentation and Calculated risk-taking
What it doesn’t mean -
- License to engage in reckless behaviour
What to do to get better -
- Take audacious goals and look for exponential change and not incremental change
Meesho’s exponential growth over the last eight years is owing to the audacious goals we have set for ourselves at every turning point. Even as we celebrated our sixth anniversary in July 2021, we reminded ourselves how Thinking 10X and Thinking Longterm has served us well, and this reflects in our updated mission and vision as well.
Problem-first Mindset
What it means -
- Nail the problem before jumping to solution
What it doesn’t mean -
- Re-inventing the wheel and not learning from the best-in-class
What to do to get better -
- Ask 'why' until you get to the core problem before solving it. Challenge the status quo and solve from first principles.
Hire & Grow Exceptional Talent
What it means -
- Raise the bar with every hire and promotion. Develop people and enable them to be the best version of themselves.
What it doesn’t mean -
- Only others are investing in your development, You ALSO need to invest in your OWN development.
What to do to get better -
- Hire the best. Have a strong culture and Values filter. Remove biases and learn from the best interviewers.
- Embrace giving and receiving feedback. Coach seriously and coach often. Build the habit of being 1% better, everyday.
“We have clearly defined hiring processes with set expectations to ensure that we only hire the best among the best for all roles big and small at Meesho. Simultaneously we are committed to ensuring that all our talented hires get the opportunity to grow and evolve throughout their time at Meesho. Everything from the Buddy programme that helps new joiners hit the ground running to the monthly fireside chat Meesho Speaker Series, where industry experts share their experiences and insights with Meeshoites are all designed with this goal in mind.” — Ashish Kumar Singh, CHRO
People-centric Workplace
What it means -
- Respect people, cultivate a culture of empathy and understanding
What it doesn’t mean -
- It is only the HR team's responsibility to create a great workplace
What to do to get better -
- Spread positivity and celebrate wins
Company > Team > Individual
What it means -
- Put company and team interests above your own
What it doesn’t mean -
- Individual interests don’t matter
What to do to get better -
- Display teamwork and collaboration, Ensure alignment and feedback, Disagree and commit
This Meesho Mantra will help align our individual goals to this macro goal and keep the spirit of collective ambition alive in all of us
LightSpeed
What it means -
- Light is the fastest thing in this universe and unless we move at the speed of light, we are not moving fast enough.
- Lightspeed personifies the need to move at the fastest level possible. The pursuit of Lightspeed always means that we can keep moving faster than what we think is possible today
What it doesn’t mean -
- Does not mean speed for the sake of speed without any impact orientation
What to do to get better -
- Start with an aggressive deadline, Always ask yourself “how can this be done in HALF the planned time”
- Prioritise high impact items first
- Always display swiftness in action and intent
Growth Mindset
What it means -
- Taking continuous effort towards org, self and team improvement
What it doesn’t mean -
- Learning without a business goal or objective
What to do to get better -
- Being imaginative, curious and open-minded to feedback and improvement
Meesho also stands by its mantra Problem First Mindset, and every action/initiative of growth and learning is tied to a broader problem statement/business goal or objective.
Think Long Term
What it means -
- Build stuff that stands the test of time - around business, culture, organisation, systems.
What it doesn’t mean -
- Ignoring the short term goals
What to do to get better -
- Before implementing or coming up with any solutions always ask “Will this stand the test of time”
What Meesho core values do you resonate with the most? Let us know in the comments.
Meesho turns 6: Leaders share birthday wishes and audacious goals for the future
