Core Values

Our Definition of Trust

Trust is the belief and confidence in the integrity, reliability and fairness of a person or organization.... an essential human value that quantifies and defines our interdependance in relationships with others. Trust is a choice we make toward someone when we are inspired that they have either earned our confidence or are by some other means worthy of it. It is difficult to acquire, and when fractured even harder to redeem, so perhaps the lessons of trust are not not how to earn it, but what it takes to keep it. And perhaps the greatest value of trust is not the accomplishments we make with it, but rather what trust accomplishes in us on our quest to become people who are worthy of receiving it.

Our Trust Directive

To be people and a company that is trusted in the marketplace - one that stands for integrity and sets a standard for it, inspiring others to be always truthful and fair with others as a principle held higher than profit and traditional business goals.

What this means to You

When you start looking for a 3rd party vendor to serve your company's needs, you often look at who is doing business with people you know and trust. Or you look at who is doing business with your competitors. You want trade referrences and referrals. You want an experienced team of professionals with a track record of success. When it comes down to engaging in a business relationship, you lay the foundation with well-formed legal documents to make sure the project is completed to spec, the transaction is conducted properly, and both parties are protected in the event of the other party's breach. But the truth is that nobody wants to get in a legal tangle to enforce their understanding of the terms of the contract. The truth is, its not really about the legal contract.

The truth is, what it is really about is TRUST.

At XI, we utilize very well-formed and traditional legal documents to contract projects, but what we really rely on to conduct business is the trust between us that we have a good understanding of eachother's expectations and promises, and the character to equtiably right what might go wrong. We still do contracts, but you probably have enough business experience to know that contract or not, it still comes down to IF you can TRUST the person you are dealing with:

• Do they say what they mean and mean what they say?
• Is their word their bond?
• When you look them in the eyes do you believe that you can trust them?
• Do they have the character to deliver?

What this means to Us

When it comes to virtues, one of the most important is integrity. It is based in a value system that places people above profits, relationship above ROI, reputation above revenues. If a person's integrity is based in good principles then that person is usually fundamentally honest. If a person's integrity is based on the circumstance (situational ethics) then you never really know when they are "shooting you straight" or manipulating you. Once a person's integrity becomes a known flaw, do you ever really trust them again? Trust just might be the foundation of our relationships. We pretty much define the quality our relationships by the level of trust we have in people� or the lack thereof.

At XI, we have personal beliefs that becoming a person of integrity requires a personal quest for truth in all areas of our life. Our belief system and our business model motivate us to build long term relationships with clients who are looking for someone they can trust.
At XI, We Believe....

• that integrity is the basis of excellence in our work.
• that if we are honest with our clients then they will trust us and be honest with us.
• that personal character is our individual responsibility to ourselves, our team members, and our clients; and personal integrity builds team integrity.
• that word-of-mouth referrals and our reputation are our most effective advertising in this very competitive industry.
• that our integrity and trustworthiness are in fact the greatest things we have to offer you.

To sum it all up, we put a lot of effort into being people of integrity. We value trust and honor more than we do the dollar, so we will do our best to conduct ourselves accordingly. In this respect, we are selectively looking for clients with the same values - ones that we can trust. If this is you then probably we will click well. We need to enjoy working together as a team and creating great things together.

Good business relationships are what makes business click and keep on clicking. Life is too short and none of us have enough time to waste doing things the hard way with people that make our life harder.

The Way We Look at Clients

When we find a client that we can build a relationship with, one that cares about his project as much as we do, one that has his skin in the game because he realizes his future reputation and success are about the work he is doing now, not the work he did in the past, we find ourselves becoming loyal to that customer... not because we have to but because it makes sense. We have values about why we do things and how we do things. Not everyone understands that. But when we find a client that does, we do what it takes to earn his or her loyalty. We are in this for the long haul. Its not about the dollar, its about the quality of our lives - the ones we live and the people we live them with. The better our business runs the less stressed we are when we go home to our families. Their needs are met and Life is good. Good clients help make that happen.

The Way You Look at Vendors

When you find a vendor you can trust to get the job done for you, one that you can count on to care about your project like you do, one that takes ownership of things like his own skin is in the game too, you find yourself becoming loyal to that vendor... not because you have to but because it makes good sense. You are the kind of person that does what it takes to get the loyalty of your customers and you want to be treated the same way when you are the customer.

We Are All in it for the Same Reasons

Over time these trusted business relationships turn into friendships and this adds alot to our quality of life. After all, thats what its really all about, isn't it?. Life is just too short to be defined by things like ROI or net worth. At the end of it all its about your family and your friends... the time you spent with them, and helping other people have a better life. At XI we aren't just looking for customers, we are looking for life-long friends. Of course we are profit driven, but there really is more to life, ... go ahead and admit it... don't you think this way too?

When you do good things for other people, things that often they cannot do for them selves, then other people do good things for you. No matter how you name it or explain it, goodness creates goodwill and it is contageous:

• Good Karma
• You reap what you sow
• What goes around comes around
• "The Force be with you Luke"
• The Golden Rule

At XI Interactive, we believe that Life affords us the opportunity to help other people along their way. No matter whether you believe in - a Creator, the Evolution of the Species, an alien subculture, or just random coincidence and dumb luck - look around you and you will realize that good things do happen to good people. Nice guys do not finish last. In the course of history, we celebrate and love nice people and we fear and hate mean people - its just that simple. Somewhere in all of us is this notion to be good to others. If we can get our eyes off of ourselves for just a moment then we see a world around us that we can help. Something in our DNA wants the good guys to win.... and we want to help them do it. So we made this a Company core value. If you have the chance to help someone... and the means to do it... its worth making the time.

We like people that use their resources to help other people. And we often find ourselves using our resources to help the helpers. It feels good when we do,

• Web Challenge - is an annual Technology Association of Georgia educational event for Georgia high schools. The event awards scholarships to the high schools in a web development contest.
• The Passport is a couple of guys that travelled around the world with a vision to capture the stories of forgotten people around the world and to give them a voice thru digital imagery.
• MAMC is an organization that enrolls high school grads in a 9 month program to teach them clean living, how to grow up, and how to reach out to the less fortunate around them.
• Supreme Task International is a faith-based organization working to improve the lifestyles and conditions in remote Northern India
• Be Someone - an Atlanta-based organization reaches at-risk youth with methods inspired by chess teaches the kids that "Every move counts" and "Heads up, pants up, grades up."
• Hearts In Action - is a faith-based eduational organization that reaches youth in Central and South America.
• It Doesnt Stop There - no its not the name of another client, its a way of thinking. We try to treat our corporate and institutional clients the same way. Its about people, not money, and if you are good to the people that you can reach in your daily living then you are making the world a better place - one day and one person at a time.