What does it look like when an agency is designed around the priorities of its team as much as the priorities of its customers? That’s exactly what Uhuru set out to discover.
Fundamentally, the core of Uhuru is built on overhauling the way an agency normally does business. We thrive because we’re never afraid to say there’s a better way. Our team challenges assumptions, pushes to make great leaps, and knows when to stay the course. Each employee is thoroughly engaged and understands how their role fits into the big picture. We trust each other implicitly and hold each other accountable for excellent work, meeting deadlines, and hitting budgets. We’re able to do this because everything we do is guided by our mission and core values.
Leave people better than we found them by transforming the way people and businesses execute sales and marketing.
For us, “people” means EVERYONE. Our partners, past customers, employees, their families, and anyone else who encounters our company should walk away feeling as though we’ve given them something they needed.
That’s why we’ve been an entirely remote company for several years, and why we run an agile marketing team. We do not want to be in the business of micromanaging time or grading effort. We care that team members produce the necessary results, not about the corporate game of "work theater."
Working 12-hour days is not a good thing and we don't want employees who consistently spend so much time working. It means we're either not being efficient in our work, or we're doing way too much and not giving ourselves enough time to rest, recover, and spend time with our two most important tribes—our families and ourselves.
We value people who focus on and get results. Don't be busy; be productive. Be active.
Our Core Values
Core values are the rules and boundaries that define a company’s culture and personality and provide a final “should/shouldn't” test for all the behaviors and decisions made within the company. They are the soul of Uhuru.
Always educate
Encourage individual initiatives
Hyper-communication & clear expectations
Good fit
Practice what we preach
Leave people better than we found them
Give them more than what they expect
We care the most about what matters most: people, and our relationships with them.
We care about the clients who trust us with their marketing, sales, and companies.
But most importantly, we care about each other.
We believe our relationships with each other define our lives and determine what we can achieve as a team, so we choose to value these connections above anything else.
This means that we show up with empathy and compassion for each other. We see every one of our stakeholders (team, freelancers, and clients) as human beings. In every interaction, we consider their wants and needs (and not just our own), and we act to build trust between each other.
We believe work life and personal life should not have artificial walls between them. At its core, a relationship with a human is the same at work as it is anywhere else. We share our goals, achievements, failures, and celebrations with each other. Plainly put, we bring our whole selves to our work, and we support and cherish that in each other.
Without these relationships, nothing else matters. A business that doesn't begin with people and relationships is not worth doing. We’re not interested in "winning" if we do not have a life that matters and is shared with people we love.
How We Build Our Team
Because culture is such an important component of what we do, every team member who joins Uhuru has to be a good fit. Skills and techniques can be taught. Dedication, passion, humility, and empathy are far more difficult to instill, and our team relies on each other to keep Uhuru a company that leaves people better than we found them.
Prospective employees meet several members of our team through their interview process, and team onboarding can take 60–90 days to fully integrate a new employee. Everyone at Uhuru is dedicated to the success of everyone else, and we regularly hear our team discussing ways to improve not only Uhuru, but themselves, too. Our agency is committed to making Uhuru employees’ personal dreams come true.
Seven things Uhuru team members need to know:
Uhuru is not your typical agency.
We want you to build your career here.
You must bring your whole self.
You need to have a growth mindset.
We want you to be successful.
You’ll have the tools, systems, and training. If you don’t, ask.
We before me.
