Host: Good morning over there in the USA, and welcome to another Nacho Tuesday. Here I have Lee Rubin with Confetti. Without further ado, we would love if you can introduce yourself and your company.

Lee Rubin: Awesome. Hey Andy, good morning. And I know you're in Bangkok, so good evening to you. I'm Lee Rubin. I'm the founder and CEO at Confetti. I've spent the last 11 years working in the corporate culture, events, HR space. It's really been the entirety of my career, and I've been CEO at Confetti for over eight years now, leading general revenue functions and the catalog of experiences that we have.

Host: Very nice. What inspired you to start the company?

Lee Rubin: What inspired me to start the company? So, the idea for Confetti came when I was asked to plan an event at a startup that I was working for, and what seemed like a really simple task turned into a surprisingly complex project. There was coming up with ideas, negotiating with vendors, navigating internal approvals, just stressing over the execution of the event itself. And I kept on thinking to myself, "There has to be an easier way to plan great events". But there wasn't, so I built one. I'm realizing that maybe the audience people don't actually know what Confetti is, so maybe I can also share a little bit about that. Do you think that's right, Andy?

Host: Absolutely. Yeah, I'd just love to hear more about it, and how do you guys operate exactly? I know your company offers team-building experiences. I'd love to learn more about how you guys do that.

Lee Rubin: Yeah. So, at its core, Confetti is a platform that helps companies build stronger teams and culture through curated experiences. We have a catalog of hundreds of live-hosted and self-guided experiences, everything from virtual escape rooms and cooking classes to just celebrating one of your team members' birthdays or wellness activities, etc. What makes Confetti different is that we don't just connect companies with these vendors. We really handle the entire event planning life cycle: discovery, customization of your events, logistics, host coordination, communication, payment, feedback, and more. And we do this all automated through our proprietary platform. So the result is really just a seamless, worry-free experience for both the planners and the participants.

Host: Team building is a critical component of company culture. How do you see the two intertwined? And how is this different than typical office perks or some of the fun events that people try to put together on their own?

Lee Rubin: Yeah. So, the way that I view it, and it feels like maybe you were asking also how we define company culture and how it differs from office perks or fun events. Company culture to me, and to us at Confetti, is really the shared set of values, the behaviors, and the experiences that shape how people work together. And unlike perks or parties, culture really isn't something that you add. It's how a team really operates daily, communicates, and makes decisions when no one's watching. Yep.

Host: And the team-building exercises really make people feel like they're a part of something, right? And that's kind of where part of that culture really starts, you know, breeds, is that your team members are actually hanging out, enjoying time with each other. Those kind of relationships really, really matter.

Lee Rubin: Yeah, totally. There's an amazing sentence, and I don't want to butcher it, but it's really about the power of play and how spending just an hour with somebody playing a game is often more powerful than what we could be doing just on our regular day-to-day basis in terms of getting to know somebody. So, yeah. So, what do you think about the challenges of today's hybrid or remote environments? What are some important signals that you'd use to see if a company culture is actually thriving in such an environment? And what do you think in terms of how you bring these people together to have these team-building exercises, even if they're very far apart from each other, like Bangkok and Miami?

Lee Rubin: Well, culture is thriving when you feel it, right? When people feel safe to speak up, when you celebrate each other, when you take ownership. When communication breaks down or engagement drops, that's really an early sign of erosion, especially in hybrid teams. And it's important to be very intentional when you're investing in your culture. I often compare a lot of the things at work to the things that we have at home and in life. You can't just go on a date with your significant other once a year during the holiday party season. It's a constant work of building on that relationship and improving on it. Yeah.

Host: So, what do you think in terms of companies that are scaling fast? What cultural foundation should be established before their growth really takes off? And it sounds to me like one of the things you're highlighting is consistency, encouraging people to consistently build those relationships with their peers. Do you have any other insights or tips that a company should consider to define their culture before the company grows too fast and becomes something else entirely?

Lee Rubin: Yeah, I think before rapid growth, companies really need a clear set of values. They need those communication norms to be set up. They need to make sure that leadership is aligned with that, and that, in fact, should be communicated directly from leadership. Without that foundation, culture really becomes inconsistent and difficult to scale. It's important that leadership is driving the culture that they would like to see within their business, and the rest, after that, people follow. Yep.

Host: So, what do you think in terms of the companies that everybody says, "We want to have great culture," but what are some of the common mistakes these people make in terms of not being able to properly implement this culture? It sounds like leadership not buying in is one of the key sources of failure. Do you have any other ideas on why some companies fail to get a really good company culture going?

Lee Rubin: Yeah. And I think, look, one of the main elements, and maybe that's the difference—even at Confetti, I wouldn't say that our culture is perfect, but there is this desire. We care about culture. We want to have a great culture. We're constantly assessing what it takes to have a great culture. And I think having that mindset specifically from leadership is one of the core elements that ultimately gets people to have that be their strength within their organization. One of the most common mistakes that I see companies make when they say that they want to have a great culture but they struggle to get there is that they confuse culture with these one-off events or these one-off perks, instead of intentional behavior. So, the biggest mistake is not really defining what a great culture means and looks for them and failing to really live it through with consistent actions. Yep.

Host: And some of the things that your company does is create more engaging activities as well, which is much better than just showing up to a free pizza party. You could actually engage with and have fun with your co-workers.

Lee Rubin: Exactly. Yeah. And the experiences range. It's not always a one-size-fits-all, although we have some experiences that are definitely loved by most, if not all. It's really doing the surveys and understanding what your team wants and needs when it comes from culture through regular pulse checks, and catering to those needs by creating custom programming for different teams, departments, or your organization. So, there are different levels of company culture. It's not just the company; it's that a team might have a different culture or a department might have a different culture. Yeah.

Host: Yeah, that's a good point, actually. The one-size-fits-all doesn't work for everybody. So, I guess what other tips would you have for a company to really embed its culture and make sure that its consistency stays there? It's not just a slogan you put up on the wall, right? Do you have any other tips in terms of how you really incorporate that culture into individual groups or the company as a whole?

Lee Rubin: Yeah. In terms of how to really embed, let's say, core values that are driving behaviors, I think that those values really need to translate into specific, observable behaviors that can be reinforced through recognition, feedback, and hiring. So, an example of that is at Confetti, we have a gratitude wall. It's part of our Slack channel. Anybody can come in and just write publicly who they're grateful for. Other people sometimes chime along. And when you're submitting gratitude, there is the opportunity to select which company values are associated with that piece of good feedback. So when values really guide daily decisions, they become part of the company's actual operating system and not just wall art. You really want to take a look and say, "Hey, how can we integrate these values into the daily work of our systems and our workflows and processes?" 

Host: That's a good point. So, in terms of leadership and their ability to accelerate the culture development within the company more quickly, what type of tips would you offer any sort of leader to really drive this home for people? It sounds like consistency is a point that keeps coming up over and over again. Do you have any other ideas on how a leader can step into that role today and really accelerate that cultural development within their organization?

Lee Rubin: Yeah. Leaders need to model culture every day through everything that they do, right? How they communicate, how they make decisions, how they handle mistakes, how they address policies and the changes to those policies. Their behavior really sets the tone far more than any written policy or company handbook. So, it's important that the leaders understand the gravity and the importance of their impact within culture, and that they lead through action.

Host: Yeah, I've seen so many failed points of leadership where a lot of people believe as a leader that the rules are for thee, not for me. That's a common mistake I see. If you're going to project your rules on people, you should definitely be following the rules yourself, too, right?

Lee Rubin: Yeah, and look, it's tough, right? I mean, I started leading when I was 23, and I think a big portion of the first few years was a bumpy ride for me as a leader. We are bound to make mistakes, but I think learning from those mistakes, seeing how we want to come back and do better for our team, for our people, is really one of the things that will kind of separate the good leaders from maybe the less good leaders, that maybe always think that they're right or don't really look into how their team's thinking, feeling, behaving, adjusting, all that stuff.

Host: Definitely. So, along your journey, what are some of the top leadership lessons you've learned? Maybe from some of the mistakes you might have made. We've all been there before, and the person that learns from their mistakes really, I think, truly understands the problem a lot more than people that just might read about something but they don't understand it in practice.

Lee Rubin: I think for me, wow, there are so many different leadership moments or things that really stand out, but the one that I've really taken into my pocket is just authentic vulnerability, right? So, admitting to mistakes. I'm very big on asking for input, and I would like to say I'm big on showing empathy, but I wasn't always this way. It was really a matter of adjusting and learning from the people around me and seeing how my behavior impacts that. But once you do figure out authentic vulnerability, I do think that accelerates culture fast and it builds trust. It signals that everyone can show up as their full selves, which is a big component at Confetti: we want people to show up authentically, share their voice authentically, and debate authentically. And I think just repeating that on a regular basis so people understand it's not just a one-time talk track. It's really something that needs to be reminded to people regularly, "Hey, I know we're having a heated debate. That's good. This is good that we're bringing differing opinions. I want to hear more of them. We don't all just want to have the same thought." So, repeating that on a weekly basis. Yep.

Host: Yeah, a real leader pulls people along. A boss kind of pushes people, I guess, so to speak. But yeah, the leadership traits that you're describing definitely are more of a pull. You encourage people to kind of follow you and want to be a part of the organization. And a lot of that comes down to authenticity. Like you said, if people feel comfortable in their own skin and their role and their community, as in the co-workers that they work with, they're going to feel a lot more comfortable speaking up or sharing their ideas or just feeling like they're a part of the company mission and their work actually has purpose and it matters.

Lee Rubin: Yeah, exactly. And that's the most motivating thing you could ever get. Totally.

Host: Nice. So, in terms of the experiences you guys do, which ones do you see move the needle the most? Have you seen anything that really hits home with your customers more than others?

Lee Rubin: Yeah, and this is a question that we get quite a lot. People, you go to a restaurant, you want to know what's the most popular items on the menu. I think for us, the big thing is every company is different, every team is different, and so finding the experience that's right for them. But I think at the core of all the experiences that we try to build and put out there, we're really trying to humanize the colleagues, right? We're trying to break down silos. We're trying to build empathy. And we do that through the form of, in many cases, shared laughter. So the most impactful ones to me are the ones where the purpose is really just laughing and allowing people to celebrate in a new light, where they're not actually talking about work, where they're just seeing each other for the humans that they are, that have been put on this random rock spinning around, and that we're here under a joint mission and vision for that organization. And we're all coming from different backgrounds and perspectives, and we can just put it aside and just remember that we're all humans at the end of the day. And I think laughter really helps bring that to life.

Host: Yeah, it definitely does. So, how do you balance fun and serious work culture at the same time? How do you convince maybe a more data-driven CEO or leader that team building is not just a nice-to-have but an integral part of business performance?

Lee Rubin: Yeah. And look, it's kind of sad because I think that in many ways, a lot of leaders still aren't sure about how to do this. But I think, for me, the way that I view it and what the data has proven is that fun is really a vehicle for connection. It's not a distraction from performance. And the key is really designing experiences that align with business goals. And similarly, like collaboration or innovation or resilience, we also can be data-driven and see the correlation with events and team engagement, which can help further prove that ROI. For example, we have certain companies that are part of a company plan that get access to all the satisfaction insights that these events result in. And you can work with your customer success manager to map out engagement improvements per team, per cohort, based off of the events that they're doing. And we have an amazing case study. I can't share the name, but it is of a large company that many of us are familiar with. What they've been able to prove through a program with Qualtrics is that what has the single highest impact on their engagement scores is just having experiences that are pure fun, that aren't about work, that get to see each other as the humans that we are. That's what's really making the impact.

Host: Yeah, sometimes it is hard to manage, but it's something that must be done, right, because you do know that company culture is very important. Same with any sort of community-building effort—bringing people together is great for bringing cohesion around the brand, if you will. What other tips would you offer companies to be able to measure cultural efforts—whether they're working or not—beyond usual turnover or survey engagement metrics like you mentioned?

Lee Rubin: And again, this is where you don't need metrics to know how you're doing and showing up with your significant other or with your kids or with that; you can often feel that. So, beyond surveys, I really like to look for qualitative signals, right? Employee storytelling, the energy that people are showing up with in meetings, internal referrals—are the team members recommending to their friends, "Hey, this is a good place to work at?" How teams handle conflict is a really amazing signal for culture efforts working. Culture shows up in how people act when challenges arise. It's not just a number on a dashboard. Yep.

Host: Yeah, I totally agree with you there. So, what do you recommend for companies that are moving into new geographies, for instance? Say maybe they're doing that remote work thing again, or maybe they're opening a new office. How do you balance keeping your company culture the way it is—say, maybe a US-based company moving into Europe or some other local area—where you want to be able to respect that local culture and the nuances of it and be able to incorporate that into your larger team as you go global, of course, and take over the world?

Lee Rubin: Yeah, and I think that's a really great question because, first of all, as companies are expanding internationally, globally, I think that's an amazing opportunity for us to exercise true diversity and inclusiveness. On top of that, cultural consistency doesn't necessarily mean uniformity. It's really more about alignment with flexibility and really figuring out how to let each team express themselves authentically. I always recommend just starting with a shared value system so everybody understands what that looks like and making sure everybody's on the same page. It's talking about it, repeating it, reinforcing it on a day-to-week basis, but it's also okay that certain teams from different parts of the world operate a little bit differently or have different cultural norms. And it's good to talk about what those differences are, so people can prepare for it. We have parts of the team here at Confetti that have a much more direct communication style, and we have others that are a bit softer and less direct in their communication styles. And I like to just point it out: "Hey, this is true diversity. This is true inclusiveness—hiring globally and having those differences." We can't just say that and then not deal with the challenges that come with diversity and inclusion, which is our differences. We have to figure out how to make it all work when we're all using very different operating systems internally.

Host: Yeah. Like the Seattle office might be a little bit more passive and less outspoken, but the New York people are going to tell you exactly what they think.

Lee Rubin: There you go. There you go.

Host: So, if you're a founder of a 10-person startup today, what would be the first thing that they should do to lay their cultural groundwork?

Lee Rubin: I remember the days of being a founder and CEO at a 10-person startup. What's really powerful there at that time, and the magic that comes out of that time period, is that often the CEO and the leaders are so much hands-on with the rest of the team, right? Because it is small, and so that groundwork often happens pretty naturally. But one of the groundworks I think is really defining your company's why and how you want to work together before you hire the next person and really creating that early clarity. I think that prevents cultural drift as you grow. One thing that the team really got to experience with me during those early days that I think has built Confetti to what it is today is the team knows how much I personally care about every event going as amazing as possible. They've seen me pour my heart into staying up late, double-checking, making fixes when things happen, always having a Plan B. And I think a lot of that energy, because they got to see it and I modeled it onto them, they are now doing it. And I'll be the first to say some of them are doing even better than I am. They're amazing. They're rock stars. So, yeah.

Host: Show, don't tell, people.

Lee Rubin: 100%. Exactly. You have to do, not say, all the phrases. There you go.

Host: So, looking ahead five to ten years from now, how do you believe company cultures will evolve, especially given generational shifts, remote work, and a lot of AI tools, of course?

Lee Rubin: So much culture is going to continue to need to figure this out, but it's going to become more decentralized, it's going to become more flexible, it's going to become more values-driven. With global and hybrid teams specifically, I think belonging and purpose is really going to outweigh perks and the beauty of physical offices. Another big thing that I'm very passionate about is empowering managers, empowering leaders—leaders that are new, leaders that are young, that are figuring things out for the first time. We're just not doing enough of giving people managers the tools that they need to succeed when it comes to building cultures. So, this is something that's been very top of mind. We've released a new product offering called the Engagement Suite that is all about empowering managers and leaders to build a very highly engaged and high-performing team. And all of those things: belonging, recognition, fun, and productivity. Those are the four key pillars that we believe need to be infused on a day-to-day basis in the meetings that we're having. Managers need help really bringing that to life and crafting that.

Host: I would love to learn more about this feature. What other things does it do?

Lee Rubin: The Engagement Suite is really a very diverse tool set—manager-friendly resources really designed to ensure that every leader, no matter their experience level, can run effective, engaging, and consistent interactions with their team. It's one of those things that you kind of have to see it in order to understand, but there are four key components to the toolkits that we provide. There are Games that are largely optimized for 15-minute connectivity points or less. We have Workshops for more structured, manager-led group conversations, like thinking about giving and receiving feedback or how to even tackle harsh feedback, or things that require a little bit more of that conversation piece. The workshops are amazing for that. We have Workflows which are really great for day-to-day, week-to-week meetings. So, think about your daily standups, your weekly check-ins, your performance reviews—the things that happen like those cadence-driven routines. And then the last one is our Practice Labs, which is our take on L&D. I have a good amount of beef with how L&D is being approached today. A lot of L&D programs are just kind of pretty boring pre-recorded videos. We really wanted to take something and make it very engaging, interactive. So, most of our Practice Labs are hands-on worksheets and exercises, but with an embedded AI coach to really give you feedback. And it's using scenarios that you might be dealing with, like your manager gave you harsh feedback. How do you process that as an employee? How do you give feedback back to your manager so they know what they said bothers you, and you guys can work towards evolving your relationship? So, Engagement Suite has a lot of different facets to it, and I highly encourage anybody who's interested or heard a little bit about what I said to just take a demo, and we'll show you around.

Host: Yeah, that sounds really interesting, actually. It sounds like artificial intelligence being used in the right way, not just another me-too product. That feature sounds very valuable, actually, for people.

Lee Rubin: Yeah. Absolutely. And it's a good application of that AI, too.

Host: So, I guess where can people learn more about your company?

Lee Rubin: People can learn about our company by going to https://www.google.com/url?sa=E&source=gmail&q=withconfetti.com. We have a very interactive platform. I highly recommend reaching out to me on LinkedIn. I believe the LinkedIn profile page is Rubin L, or just reach out to me at Lee Rubin. Either way, we're here: email, call, all the things. Pretty much except for pigeon carriers, we're here to chat with you.

Host: Very nice. What about bat signals?

Lee Rubin: Yeah, bats. We're definitely into bat signals.

Host: So, what's next for Confetti? You mentioned a couple of other features, but anything else coming down the pipeline that you could give us a sneak peek for?

Lee Rubin: You know, I started to allude to it with the Engagement Suite, but really, Confetti is redefining how teams connect. And it's not just through these once-a-year or once-in-a-while events, but it's really through the everyday moments that matter. And that's what we believe really helps build culture. So, over the next five years, we're really expanding our platform to transform these ordinary meetings into more meaningful, connection-driven experiences that really drive those four pillars that I talked about earlier: belonging, recognition, fun, and productivity. And our goal is to really make every interaction at work an opportunity to strengthen culture and engagement. Our meeting and our time matters. We should come into it, and we should get something valuable out of it.

Host: Well, I certainly think we've walked away with some valuable tips today. I think company culture is the cornerstone of any successful company. So, anybody that's watching this webinar today is kind of halfway there already. Really appreciate you coming on today, Lee. I love what your company is doing.