The Next Chapter: Macro Connect

When I left Jottful in August of 2023, I had written this to describe my next steps:

➡️ I’m looking to do the people ops work I so love for a more well-established company. That may be in a strategic, lead people ops or HR role.
➡️ Or I’ll seek out a strong leader who needs a strategic, people-focused number 2 in a COO role.
➡️ I plan to stay in Michigan, likely working remote or hybrid
➡️ I will continue to run my vacation rental business, and will expand it. Still an entrepreneur at heart!!

Fast forward to January of 2024, and here’s the story of what manifested…

The first thing I do once I’ve made a decision to leave an organization is talk to some of my closest friends about what I envision as next steps. I talked to 8 people. These conversations led to: 

• The suggestion to start my own HR consulting business
• My first immediate HR consulting client
• My second consulting client, this time as a Strategic Leadership Consultant -and-
• One of my best friends saying, “Should we talk about you coming to work for our company?”

I’ll write in a future post about the experience of setting up a fractional HR business (People, Teams, & Beyond), consulting, and how I ultimately made the decision to work for a company again rather than building my own business.

But, this post is about the way-finding journey to joining Macro Connect.

The answer to my friend from above was, “Yes, it is the right time to talk about joining Macro Connect.” 

First, some background: 

Detroit-based Macro Connect has been in business for 27 years. I was at their 20th anniversary party. Owners, Matt and Kevin Morin became good friends of mine in 2005 when their parents (who were on the board of the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, an organization I worked for at the time) suggested their tech-savvy sons help our office staff with our computer issues.

After a computer help session and a Detroit beer tour (not at the same time!), a long and rich friendship was born.

What does Macro Connect do?

Macro Connect helps Detroit’s businesses and schools achieve breakthrough performance through technology.

Macro Connect’s Managed IT service provides everything its clients need, including:

• Strategic leadership services
• Infrastructure work
• Helpdesk support -and-
• Proactive remote monitoring and maintenance

Clients trust Macro Connect to handle their IT needs, so they can focus on what’s important. 

Back to the current moment: 

Matt is no longer the CEO of Macro Connect. In fact, he’s mostly out of the business, and helping to run two other businesses within the stable of companies he and Kevin have started (Hunt Street Station & Mark Set Bot).

What Matt promised to do was talk to Macro’s CEO, Miguel Davis, and suggest that at a minimum, we have a conversation. 

While I knew Miguel socially, we didn’t know one another very well. A few weeks later, we met for coffee in Ferndale. 

The first conversation

It was simply a conversation: what we were each seeking. To be clear, there wasn’t an open job. But, when I said: people, culture and ops were my jam, and he said: people, ops, and culture were Macro’s pain points, it was time to have a more serious conversation.

What was really important for me about this first meeting is that I could be who I am, speak my truth, share what I was seeking, why I left Jottful, and what was important to me in my next opportunity. That kind of authenticity is really critical for me in a successful relationship with the person I’d be working with most closely. I wasn’t surprised since Miguel is a CEO who started 10 years ago in a sales role with Macro and worked his way up, working closely with one of my most-respected friends. Still, it was a great realization for me. We ended that meeting this way: 

Miguel: “Why don’t you write your ideal job description? We’ll also write what we need. Then, we’ll come together and compare them.”

Great idea, right?! I thought so too. But, it was harder than I thought! That’s an open invitation. The Universe is huge. What was my “ideal” job? 🤔

What happened next:

We each wrote our descriptions and compared them. They were pretty darn close. Miguel had a working title of Chief People Officer. I’ve written about this before, how little I care about titles, but I liked it. 

Before meeting with the first group of interviewers, Miguel had another request: “Will you write a 30, 90, and 1-year plan of what you expect to do in this role?” 

Miguel admitted that this was, in part, a way to help him be clear about expectations for the role and to help the team better understand the value. Because, remember, this wasn’t a role they had identified needing. 

Luckily, I liked the assignment and had a good time envisions my first year at Macro Connect. I figured it was a good sign that I enjoyed the assignment. We made some tweaks and the next step was meeting the Leadership Team. 

Let’s Get The Interview Process Started

Remember that I’ve know the folks at Macro Connect for nearly 20 years. This meant it was a friendly reception. Gordon, Macro’s CIO (in the middle in the photo below), was the first technician to come help us at DCWS & the Festival when Matt was no longer making service calls to such small clients! He fixed all our problems. We called him Super Gordon! 🦸🏼

A couple years ago, Macro started a mentorship program. Every employee had a mentor. A few outside folks participated. Matt recruited me. I got to work with Nicole, Macro’s Finance Director, as a part of that program. She went out on maternity leave shortly after we started, but we at least had a nice rapport from those conversations.

There was only one person on the team I had not met yet, so it’s about as good as it gets for an interview setting. We sat in the main conference room of Macro’s incredibly beautiful space and they asked very good questions. 

Next Up - The Teams

One of the unique parts about a lead HR role is that it touches everyone in the company. That means the interview process is usually different from other candidates. On a Friday, I met with two cross-functional teams. I was very excited after meeting with these two groups. The talent in the room was evident, and the challenges they laid out were the challenges I love to solve. It was the first moment I really remembered the thrill and excitement I get from doing HR work!

Members of the teams had a few more questions, so we did a follow-up call. An offer was forthcoming. What happened during this process is what should happen in any interview process - if it’s the right fit, both parties should get more and more excited as the interview process progresses. 

Ready, Set…Wait

I accepted in mid-October. I attended the Macro Fest party before I was officially an employee. Since I had accepted a 3.5 month consulting job, my start with Macro was delayed by a couple months. But, we could get started on small projects, ramping up a bit heading into the New Year. 

Ready, Set…GO!

I officially started on January 2nd, 2024. The early results? I LOVE it. I have missed this kind of work so very much. I enjoy the messiness of starting somewhere new - learning new softwares, figuring out the document drive, not knowing where anything is, decoding the acronyms, learning everyone’s names, figuring out the culture ASAP. At the end of the day, I want to do the work I love with people I love. Score! #MacroConnect #TrustTheProcess

In summary, why Macro? 

• Really good humans lead this company
• The work Macro needs me to do is exactly the work I want to do
• The company has been well-run for 27 years
• They have a mission I can get behind
• They run on the operating system, EOS and practice the Great Game of Business
• I really like the people I work with every day
• Macro cares deeply about culture, learning, growth, excellence, and people
• They care about and invest intentionally in the City of Detroit and the community in general

Do you want to work for Macro Connect too? 

Check out our open positions!

Best tips for job seekers who may be reading this post: 

• Everything starts with great relationships!
• Often times, companies have yet to create a job or a posting, so networking is the BEST way to find your next job.
• Be very clear about what you’re seeking in your next role. It makes it much easier for people to help you.
• For both you and the company, the interview process is like a dating process, you should both fall more in love the more the process proceeds. Each step should feel a little better than the last. 
• If a company asks you do do an assignment or an assessment, treat it as an important presentation. Put forth your absolute best work. 

Happy Hunting! Your ideal job is out there!