Our Story

Similar to our mission, there is a story behind the word Aktïga. In an effort to find a word that was general in its scope but still evoked a sense of team and collective, I stumbled upon the word "aktieägare" which is Swedish for "shareholder." When I first read the word and saw the abbreviated version, I knew this was something I could not pass up. At the time, I wasn't sure what the word would be for: was it a tool or a platform? Or was it something larger, like a group of folks working together with a common goal? I tried to use the word for a couple of software products without ever feeling like it was the right use, and when the time came to spin up a new business for my development team, I knew exactly what we would call it.

At the end of the day, the hope is that the word becomes synonymous with 'team'. My intent is to create a large business (most folks think I'm crazy because I actually want to lead a large company - I'm aiming for 1,000+ people) and I want that business to be different from basically everything I've heard about how bad large businesses are. Literally everyone I know that has worked for a large business talks about how poorly it is run, or how bad the culture is, or how ridiculous the onboarding was.... and I know it can be done right. There are a few examples out there that I hope to model Aktïga after, but I think what we are trying to do will be unique on many levels. 

Essentially, my goal is to build an awesome environment for creators - that includes designers and developers, engineers and product managers, team leaders and sales managers, executives and janitors - basically everyone. I was recently exposed to Rick Rubin's book and I think he pretty much nails it: everyone is a creator. The act of living and being human is to be a creator. We are responsible for the world we live in and our perspective of ourselves and our place in the world is also something we create on a daily basis, regardless of whether or not that is something we are doing consciously. To build a company intentionally with the understanding that it is a co-creative effort and everyone takes part in building a space where we want to be and where we can do the work we love, so we never feel like we are working... that is what Aktïga means.