From Addressing Extractive Capitalism to Generating Inclusive Solutions: Takeaways from the 2023 Baukunst Conference

We were proud to have Allison Fonder in attendance at our recent Creative Technologist Conference in New York, and she was kind enough to share her reflections & insights from the conference with us here…

“There is tremendous value in community in a world where we’re doing hard things.” —Nicholas Johnson, CEO, Orange Charger

Move fast, break things. This is the typical sentiment we've become all too familiar with when bringing new ideas into the world. But what if we adopted a more contemplative approach? What would a society less focused on breaking things, but instead on mending them, look like?

These ideas get to the crux of the conversations at Baukunst’s second-annual conference, where members of the collective came together to discuss progressive ideas about creativity, technology and business (you can check out the full itinerary and read more about the conference here). The collective also came together for the first time to celebrate what’s come from a year’s worth of work bringing Baukunst to life. With core programming grounded in a love for building, General Partners Kate McAndrew and Tyler Mincey unveiled the conference as ”'a peek into process”. Different esteemed founders within the Baukunst ecosystem shared what they were working on, actively asking audience members if they could help, while collective members pushed back with feedback and considered questions.

The ideas presented throughout the two day event within the creative landmark that is New York City’s Hotel Chelsea might have surprised those expecting a conventional business conference. There was ample discussion, for example, about the dangers of extractive capitalism, how to not let your creative practice die, and creating workspaces that welcome unexpected creativity and outside community.

The magic of bringing the Baukunst community together in one place was palpable—we’re beginning to see how the collective is taking shape, and the energy we can build toward a different type of constructive creative community. As Collective member and PROWL Studio co-founder Lauryn Menard aptly put it in one conference panel, “I’ve never had a place where I belong, where I can have the conversations [we’re having in this room].” That’s the kind of sentiment that speaks to the Baukunst mission.

In order to capture some of that magic for members of our community not in attendance, here are some insightful takeaways you can apply to your own work:

It’s not about ‘me’, it’s about ‘we’.

The concept of “ecosystem > egosystem” is one Baukunst has discussed since the beginning: the idea that whatever you build should not center around being highly competitive, but rather highly beneficial to the communities you cater to. This is at the heart of what the conference was all about, nurturing a support network for those bringing progressive new ideas into the world.

Have the utmost respect for the community you cater to.

Beyond merely hearing your user lies the profound opportunity to truly honor their wants and needs in what you create. To hear someone means to give space for someone to speak their mind; to respect them means to admire them, and, fuelled by that admiration, try as best you can to understand their world. An arterial line that connected many of the talks at this year’s conference was evidence of leaders with a love for the community they build for. There was a clear desire to solve a problem not just to profit from a market opportunity, but to create something their target user will truly appreciate. There are many instances in the world at large of massively underserved markets, or audiences that have been wronged by bad design. It’s worth asking, how can you look into a problem more deeply in order to come up with a truly novel and helpful idea? And if you are a leader who also happens to be a target user, all the better.

Small is a superpower.

“Large companies never fulfill the promise of ‘better’,” conference speaker and OMNIBUS CEO Travis Schmeisser boldly asserted at this year’s conference. While some may argue about the accuracy of this statement, it’s difficult to deny the nimbleness of a small team. It was a helpful posturing to frame the small team not as a challenge, but an irreplaceable asset. Small teams are able to run circles around larger ones, and are perhaps the best people to bring a truly revolutionary idea to life more quickly. How can you rethink the power of your small team to bring something truly revolutionary more quickly to market than larger competitors?

Find out how to make work not feel like work.

And no, not in a “free snacks at the office” kind of way. An inspiring talk from Rachael Yaeger and Pam Batstone of digital design agency HUMAN centered around the question of, what makes work not feel like work? For HUMAN, their eureka moment came in 2020 when they decided to move their office from Canal Street in New York City to an inn in a sleepy fly fishing destination upstate. They’ve made many discoveries about what it’s earned them. Primarily, the locale gives them the ability to take meaningful breaks that lead to sudden insight, and facilitate visits with clients on site that become extremely important quality time, solidifying meaningful partnerships and sometimes even work revelations. Rather than succumbing to a “work is life” lifestyle, they embrace the idea that their studio is their “life’s work”. It’s important to see what your downtime affords you and your team, and how imbuing your own personality and personal motives into work can make it even more meaningful.

Progressive ideas for humanity are good for business.

It’s time to dispel the notion that ideas promoting equity are not adjacent to business success. Take the example of Bindery Books, a membership platform that noticed a huge problem for authors and BookTok influencers that kept both parties from making more profit from their expertise. In a panel discussion at the conference, Bindery co-founders Meghan Harvey and Matt Kaye explained the massive impact influencers have on book sales today, and the fact that these influencers receive little to no profit as a result of their efforts. The lack of marketing budget in the publishing industry means influencers are a large element of their marketing strategies, andmany authors being published today are often considered in part because of their huge organic audiences.

Bindery Books is flipping the script on the traditional model, tapping these influencers to become publishers themselves. This now gives these influencers with huge public sway the opportunity to gain much more in profit, while the authors can spend less time marketing, and more time writing. It’s a keen observation on Bindery’s part to see the financial potential of putting these tastemakers in the drivers’ seat. Publishing is traditionally a very tough business to break into, and giving tastemakers access not only promotes more diverse voices in the industry, it makes for a business model much more appropriate for the current cultural landscape.

Flexible systems are key for future manufacturing.

What do we give up when it comes to climate consciousness and innovation when we prioritize bottom line costs? This is one of the questions at the heart of the panel “Manufacturing Excellence” at this year’s conference. There are a plethora of issues at the heart of the supply chain today, including its overall waste and its failure to adapt to evolving demands of retailers and consumers. The panelists all had interesting thoughts as to what’s to be done about it. One key takeaway was the need to embrace new technologies, and major restructuring of current factories. Panelist and CEO of SDA Dr Josef Waltl noted that the US manufacturing automation industry is currently under-apprenticed, despite being a key factor in future manufacturing systems. He proposed that software development and flexible systems are crucial pieces to the development of more adaptable factories. These changes can eliminate the frequent need for expensive tooling and slow turnaround times when it comes to turning factories around to manufacture a new product. “People don’t want the same things anymore,” Dr. Waltl added. Flexible systems allow factories and suppliers to satisfy that demand.

In order for this future to be realized, manufacturers must always keep scalability in mind. Panelists noted this takes precedence over trendy technologies, something engineers can fixate on due to personal interest.

Zone in on who you are building for—and who you are not.

Brand archetypes are a powerful and interesting tool for resonating with your audience—so interesting, in fact, it prompted Baukunst Co-Founder Kate McAndrew and brand strategist Jane McCarthy to write a whole book about it. In a conference talk detailing more about their upcoming book Goddess Guide to Branding: Your Blueprint for Building an Abundant & Authentic Feminine Brand, the pair also shared some deep insights about connecting as a brand to your audience in a truly meaningful way.

Just like any authentic person, an authentic brand focuses less on pleasing everyone, and instead on pleasing those they care about most. An excellent brand knows who they are and what they stand for, so be sure to be clear on your values from the get go. The primary goal of branding should not be just to sell products, but to resonate with your consumer on a heart and soul level. Understanding what your brand does and does not stand for is a great way to get there with the audience you really care about.

Iterate to product market fit.

Products should always be built to satisfy a need in the market that customers want to buy. This takeaway from Orange Charger CEO Nicholas Johnson’s talk serves as a healthy reminder to those still in the phase of research and building of a few things. One, it’s important to fall in love with the problem rather than the solution—it’s important to be nimble in the beginning, and potentially step away from your initial idea if a better market opportunity comes along.

Secondly, the timing of a company matters more than the idea, and how you respond to a moment. Founders ought to have a deep contextual understanding of their market in order to thoughtfully respond to a need, and be the first to present a truly novel alternative that can result in market success. So get to know your consumer deeply and their biggest headaches,, and don’t be afraid of a pivot if it’s what the market demands.

Finding the right team members can have multibillion dollar impact.

As many founders know, finding good people for your team can be an arduous journey, but have you truly metabolized the potentially colossal effect just a few key employees can have on your bottom line? Stack Shift Founder & collective member Chris Quintero might know this better than anyone. In his talk, he discusses the untapped power of the emerging knowledge workforce in locales like Lagos, Nigeria, and at an even higher level, just how important hiring the right people is to the success of your company.

Taking the harder route is rocky—but can put you way ahead of the curve.

In his talk, Nicholas Johnson highlighted the constraints of conforming to existing industry practices when building products, emphasizing the need to challenge these norms for genuine innovation. He admits through personal experience that deviating from these standard industry structures is likely going to be a much harder road to product fidelity with plenty of challenges. But taking this uncharted route might also be the key to creating a standout product with potential for success. To apply this thinking, one should critically assess the commonalities in the products offered within their industry. By identifying areas where competitors struggle, you can devise novel solutions that differ from the existing offerings. This frame of thinking could be your golden ticket to success.