Working With Me

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Savoy Companies · Executive TeamAugust 2026
The Readout

Working With Me

Twelve pages. Ten surveys. Six questions. One team.
Familiarity beats talent. Trust is speed.

Seth Bame & Barrett Linburg, Co-CEOs45 minutes
Why we did this3 min

The strongest teams know each other cold. After ten years together we should finish each other's sentences.

Everyone wrote a page. Six questions. Nobody saw anyone else's.
Then a gut-check survey. No looking back at your page.
Today: the two side by side. Names on everything. A user manual, not a review.
One rule today: talk about what surprised you. And when your page and your survey disagree, believe the survey.
Warm-up · Who said it?5 min

Who wrote this? One from each of you. Three at a time. Guess, then tap.

"Obviously I don't think I have any flaws, but I know I do."
Tap to reveal
Seth
"If you don't see me, I may be underwater or close to it."
Tap to reveal
Marc
"I'd rather be caught than finish the wrong thing beautifully."
Tap to reveal
Amber
"When the workload gets heavy, I really don't look any different. I simply figure out a way to get things done."
Tap to reveal
Clay
"I don't naturally like being told no. That's exactly why I need people around me who will do it."
Tap to reveal
Barrett
"Once I'm double-checking your work, we have a different relationship, and it's slow to undo."
Tap to reveal
Tyler
"I do not broadcast stress, so you may not see it coming."
Tap to reveal
Jeff
"I don't blow up. I go quiet and pull inward."
Tap to reveal
Brian
"A timely reminder is helpful, not intrusive."
Tap to reveal
Jeremy
"When I'm buried, I close my door. It isn't personal."
Tap to reveal
Bradley
"If it comes wrapped in sarcasm or avoidance, it won't land well."
Tap to reveal
Lisa
"Starting is easy for me. Finishing is the work."
Tap to reveal
Chris
The room, split · 1 of 53 min

How we decide

Decide fast, adjust laterWhat the pages said

SethBarrettTylerClayMarcLisaChris
Tyler: "80/20 is my default setting."

Gather first, commit onceWhat the pages said

BrianBradleyJeffAmberJeremy
Jeff: "I will not be rushed into a call I cannot stand behind."
Survey says
Only 3 of 10 stayed on "move fast": Seth, Lisa, Chris.
Clay and Marc switched sides. Their pages said fast. Their answers said gather first.
8 of 10 said they move faster when they hear "we can undo this if it doesn't work."
The pages show how we want to be seen. The survey shows how we really work.
The room, split · 2 of 52 min

What to walk in with

Bring me your answerFinished thinking. Numbers. The ask.

SethBarrettTylerBradleyJeffJeremyLisaBrianClayChris
Bradley: "Don't hand me a problem and wait for me to solve it for you."

Bring me in earlyHalf-formed beats finished

AmberMarc
Amber: "I'd rather be in early on a half-formed idea than clean up a finished one."
Survey says
On paper, 10 of 12 of us said "bring me finished work."
Then we answered the survey, and it flipped. Next slide.
The survey's biggest finding3 min
Nobody saw anyone else's answers

7 of 10 want it early.
7 of 10 deliver it finished.

Want it early: Amber, Brian, Clay, Jeff, Jeremy, Lisa, Marc
Deliver it finished: Bradley, Clay, Jeff, Jeremy, Lisa, Marc, Seth
Doing both: Clay, Jeff, Jeremy, Lisa, Marc
Still want it finished: Seth, Bradley, Chris, Barrett. Check before you walk in.
We are over-preparing for each other.
Half-formed on Wednesday beats perfect on Friday. Agree?
The room, split · 3 of 54 min

When we're underwater, what do people see?

You'll see it and hear itVisible stress, asks for help

Nobody

I go quietShorter replies, closed door, no change at all

SethBarrettTylerClayBrianMarcBradleyLisaJeffAmberJeremyChris
All 12 of us go quiet. And 8 of 10 said the person in the next office can't even tell.
So the only warning sign this team gives off is quiet. And almost every page asked everyone else to leave the quiet alone.
This is why work stalls for weeks before anyone hears about it.
Everybody has the same problem. Let's fix it.
The room, split · 4 of 53 min

When you're buried, what do you want from us?

Give me spaceProtect my focus. Batch it. Don't knock.

BradleyLisaMarcTylerBrianBarrett
Marc: "Leave me alone. I'll solve it."

Come get meAsk me directly. Remind me. Cut my list.

JeffJeremySethAmberClay
Jeff: "If you are not sure where I am, ask me directly."
Survey says
7 of 10 picked space. 3 picked come get me: Chris, Clay, Jeremy.
We also asked: "if your way isn't working, can we try the other way on you?" 9 of 10 said yes. Guess who isn't.
Help people the way they want to be helped, not the way you would.
The teach4 min

Throwing life preservers

This room is quiet by nature. Culture Index says almost all of us are reserved. Telling people to speak up won't change that. A routine will.
When someone goes quiet, we assume they're fine. Jeff's page says that's exactly when mistakes slip in.
The three moves
1 · Color your week. Every weekly update gets a green, yellow, or red for workload.
2 · Say it early. One sentence, before the deadline, to whoever it affects: "I'm underwater on X. Y is at risk."
3 · Help their way. Space people: take something off their plate, no meeting needed. Come-get-me people: go knock.
A life preserver is never an insult here.
9 of 10 of you said to poke the quiet teammate. So poke.
The room, split · 5 of 5 · Culture Index3 min

Hard feedback: what comes back, and why

SparksPushes back, asks questions, thinks out loud

SethBarrettTylerAmberJeremyMarcChris
Culture Index · Ingenuity
TylerExtreme
Seth · Barrett · Amber · MarcHigh
JeremyModerate

QuietTakes it in, thinks it over. Give it a day.

BrianBradleyJeffLisaClay
Culture Index · Ingenuity
ClayModerate
Brian · Bradley · LisaTraditional
JeffLow
What Culture Index teaches
High-Ingenuity people think by talking. Traditional people think it through quietly first.
So pushback doesn't mean no. And silence doesn't mean yes.
All 12 pages ask for feedback the same way: direct, specific, and in private. Nobody asked us to soften it.
Talking points · 1 of 42 min
Amber's page

"If you've got a problem with how IT works, I want it first, not fifth."

The point
If you have a problem with someone's area, tell them first. Every department, not just IT.
Survey: 8 of 10 say they already do this. Chris and Lisa honestly said they don't.
8 of 10 of us claim we already do this. So why does news still arrive fifth-hand?
Talking points · 2 of 43 min
Jeremy's page

"New ideas on top of half-finished work creates prioritization distrust."

The point
4 of 10 could not name their #1 priority: Amber, Brian, Jeff, Lisa.
All four work for every division at once. That's where priorities blur the most.
That's not their failure. If four leaders can't name their #1, Seth and Barrett haven't set it.
Right now, in this room: Seth and Barrett tell each of the four their #1. One sentence each.
Talking points · 3 of 42 min
Marc's page, seconded by Jeff and Lisa

"What loses my trust: cheap talk, and silence after I deliver."

The point
Three pages flagged recognition on their own. Jeff: "encourage out loud." Lisa: "praise strong performance."
When good work gets no response, the message people hear is: it didn't matter.
Motivosity is dead. Where does recognition happen now? Let's decide today.
Talking points · 4 of 42 min
Seth's page · Barrett's page

"My guess is some of you would say 'it's Seth's company, you learn to live with his way.'"

The point
Both Co-CEOs put it in writing. Barrett: "I don't naturally like being told no. That's exactly why I need people who will."
So push back on us. It's in writing, from both of us.
Is he right? One sentence each, around the room. We just listen.
Two patterns · 1 of 22 min

Silence is not progress

All 12 of us go quiet under load. And nobody can tell from the outside.
Stuck work doesn't announce itself. It just stops coming up in conversation.
The fix isn't more interruptions. It's making status easy to see: OKRs current in SOS, the weekly color, the one-line heads-up, scheduled check-ins.
New rule of thumb: if we can't see it in SOS, we assume it's stuck, not fine.
Two patterns · 2 of 22 min

We all said it: "I hold on to too much"

Tyler"building the bench instead of being the bench"
Brian · Jeff"delegating the detail instead of carrying all of it myself"
Bradley"my instinct is to do everything myself"
Jeremy · Barrett"delegating outcomes, not methods"
Marc"building the team... room to do the work I'm built for"
Seth"letting people empower themselves to make decisions"
Chris"I start trying to do everything myself instead of handing pieces off"
The point
Nine of twelve wrote the same thing, independently, nearly word for word.
Next year's growth depends on the people below this room. Handing work down is how we build them.
One word2 min

This team under pressure, in your words

FocusedBrian · Jeff · Amber CalmJeremy CommittedClay ResilientLisa SuperchargedSeth "I wanna go FAST!"Chris SiloedMarc
Nine words describe strength. One describes a wall.
Pairs · Work session7 min

Pick one real thing. Change how you run it.

1 · Open the packet to your partner's page. Pick one line. Read it to them: "this is the one I'll act on."
2 · Name one live priority you two share right now. Real work, this month.
3 · Agree the specific change: who does what differently, starting when. It becomes an SOS task.
Marc + Amber
The two "bring me in early" answers. Brand runs on the systems Amber builds.
Chris + Barrett
Capital formation is a two-man raise right now. Align the pipeline.
Seth + Lisa
HR runs through Seth daily. Her formula (outcome, priority, deadline) meets his queue.
Jeff + Bradley
GC meets development. Every handoff between you two is a draw, a budget, or a schedule.
Jeremy + Tyler
Opposite feedback wiring: quiet meets sparks. And equity reports on what renovation builds.
Clay + Brian
PM operations and the money that reports on it. Month-end runs through both of you.
Decide before we stand up3 min

You already pre-voted our new habit. It's close.

4 votes · Say "reversible" or "permanent" up front. Brian, Chris, Clay, Marc. Costs nothing, and 8 of 10 said it makes them faster.
3 votes · Standing check-ins on at-risk items. Amber, Bradley, Lisa. This one attacks the silence problem.
3 votes · Friday recap: commitments, owners, deadlines. Seth, Jeff, Jeremy. Jeremy's page asked for exactly this.
Tyler's vote is still out. He can break a tie live.
Adopt "reversible or permanent" today: it costs nothing. Then pick one of the other two.
If it isn't a task in SOS, it doesn't exist. We create the task before anyone stands up.
Close
Speak up early when you're underwater.
Bring work early, and bring problems to the owner first.
Hand more down. Next year depends on the bench.

Ride for the brand.

Working With Me pages live in the vault · 15-People/Working-With-MeSavoy Companies