At the all company retreat a stranger at the table nearby happened to have this hat and was kind enough to share it for a photo. Happy birthday to me! I have an awesome new job at HELM!
Today is my 42nd birthday, which means it (and me?!) are the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything! (At least according to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.) And while I certainly don’t feel like I have all the answers, I’m so grateful that the past year brought me the lessons, people, and experiences it did. And I’m thrilled that this new year is kicking off how it is. I recently participated in My 24th Annual Pilgrimage to the Oregon Country Fair and then headed straight to the HELM Construction Solutions annual all-company retreat in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. I’m thrilled to be the newest HELMster (as we affectionately call each other)!
I have been following HELM from nearly the beginning of its 10 years of existence because I have been following Kate Stephenson, one of its founders, since I first became a student at Yestermorrow 15 years ago. Kate is one of those leading-edge people who gets conversations going that the rest of the world aren’t quite ready for yet; but, once we catch up, we’re grateful for Kate’s insight and her foresight. Kate teamed up with Mel Baiser to create HELM Construction Solutions, a company dedicated to its vision of “purposeful businesses with a diverse and inclusive workforce engaged and prepared to lead the construction industry toward a future grounded in climate justice.” (Yeah, I got teary-eyed when I read that, too!)
It was fun to be welcomed BACK to Vermont as a HELMster. After the retreat I spent the rest of the week working from HELM’s Brattleboro headquarters before flying back home to the Pacific Northwest.
When I decided to move to Vermont 5 years ago, I talked with Kate, who connected me with Mel, too. As I got to know Mel - both because Brattleboro, VT is a small town and because they graciously shared time with me over a cup of coffee a few times a year - I became ever-more impressed with them and with HELM. HELM is revolutionizing the building industry by helping designers and builder move forward in this upside-down world in ways that promote inclusivity, justice, prosperity, and climate-conscious construction. The company models best practices for the industry as they support design-build companies in becoming ever-better. Now that’s my kind of meta!
I participated in HELM’s Construction Business Bootcamp (which I believe was a precursor to Construction Business Basics) when I first got to New England. I also had the opportunity to meet HELMsters through workshops and conferences, including BuildingEnergy Boston and Better Buildings by Design. Mel facilitated my introduction to Andrew Webster of Graphite Studio, where I worked in Design & Operations for 2-1/2 years. When Graphite Studio was a client of HELM’s, I really appreciated the creativity and wisdom of the business consultants and coaches with whom we worked. We even had the opportunity to work with a handful of HELM’s current team when they were clients of Graphite Studio. Needless to say, I’ve long admired this company and dreamt about someday being part of it.
Right after I finished telling Paul, whom I’d met when he was a business consultant for Graphite Studio, stories about my travels around the world, this gorgeous rainbow appeared. It seemed an auspicious sign for the kick-off of our all-company retreat and for my HELM career.
When I saw that HELM was hiring for a Project Manager, I was eager to throw my name in the hat. Given all those connections, I was especially grateful that the month-long selection process had the protocols in place (of course it did!) to eliminate bias. I knew the selection pool would be talented, wholehearted, and experienced. When I found out I was selected as HELM’s newest project manager I was so excited I nearly fell out of my chair! It felt like fruition and honorably so. It’s a fully-remote position so I’ll be working from Corvallis, OR, but I love having this tie back to New England and to Brattleboro in particular!
What an incredible group of humans to work with, learn from, and attempt to emulate!
Now that I’ve had the opportunity to engage with my new teammates at the all company retreat, I’m even more excited about working for HELM. We played silly games together, we talked about strategic plans, we told stories about or families and our travels, we reviewed case studies, we went on a hike, we reviewed updated org charts, we ate s’mores around the fire, and we enjoyed the beauty of the White Mountains in summertime. Every single one of the HELMsters would be worth being trapped in an elevator with.
I have no illusions it will be perfect, but this incredible group of humans has their hearts in the right place and we’re collectively skilling up and helping others to do so to make the biggest and best impact possible in the design-build industry. I know I have a lot to learn and a lot to share and I am eager to do my part! I took yesterday off as my birthday observed (because that’s one of the bennies!) and today, on my actual birthday, I’m honestly looking forward to working! Time to get to it!
That rainbow though!