Sankofa is a Ghanian word from the Akan tribe meaning:
to learn from the past I must return and get it
This does not mean to dwell in the past. Rather the word and the mythical bird of the same name with its head turned backward whilst its feet face forwards, can also be paraphrased to mean to bring from the past that which can positively impact the future.
In 2023 Object Matrix turns 20 years old and throughout those years we have learned to constantly innovate. But is that enough to move us forward? Deeper introspection of our values and the soul of the company will allow us to do that. Sankofa. Let us learn from our past.
In short, Object Matrix has smashed the odds. 9 out of 10 start-ups fail. And this despite making it hard for ourselves… entering a highly competitive storage industry full of blue chip gorillas and start-ups funded to the tune of 100s of millions. But we believed in what we were building and determinedly kept at it to the point where now we have over 100 customers and we safely store 100s of PB of data the world over.
We had no right to survive let alone to thrive.
But innovation and determinedness are not enough… we had other secret ingredients…
The Object Matrix Family
Object Matrix has always been built on the Object Matrix family. Few businesses will grow without the strength of many individuals and we have some of the best. The first rule of management I learned was that my job was to enable others to do their jobs. And although there are times when tough calls need to be made and when the alignment of purpose needs to be agreed upon, ultimately it is the individuals acting as a family that has led to success.
Colleagues having the time of day to help one another forwards in their roles and as friends giving support when outside factors play an influence. Object Matrix is family. And this is reflected in the length of time that employees have stayed in the business.
The Object Matrix family isn’t just internal: it also runs through to our customers, suppliers, and partners. cOMmunity – our customer and reseller groups / WIG – the workflow innovation group and other successful outreaches have come from our family-first approach and long may that continue.
Family is at the heart of Object Matrix.
Get the Technology Foundations Right
Technology wise our concept of object storage was always that you are building scale-out solutions using a very simple construct – the “object”. That object has no structure, simply an ID. Unlike a filesystem with its complexities that allows flexibility to build out complex data flows.
This for me is akin to the humble brick.
Whereas boulders can only make single storey huts with the humble brick, standard in size and easy to handle, great cities can be built into the skies.
Take away complexity and far greater solutions can be built.
Extend this thought. Our technology aims to take away complexity from our user’s lives. We are managing their data so that they don’t have to. And I say: “their data” but we care for it like it is our data, we manage it as we would our data and we don’t lock-in the data or build proprietary metadata solutions.
We are “Connecting People to Their Media”.
Not just safely and securely storing data but enabling increased reuse of that media within workflows.
Fairness
Object Matrix has always tried to hold the highest moral and governance standards and will continue to do so: it comes back to family, we are there to support one another.
Whilst ESG (environmental, social and governance) reporting has become a buzzword in Fortune 500 and larger companies over the past years I believe that Object Matrix has had this since its foundation. Back in the days of Al Gore we signed up to make Green carbon credits and 2023 will see the launch of our latest sustainability policies.
Supporting charities, welfare concern of staff, DEI (diversity, equality and inclusion)… we are by no means perfect but we will always have this in our core.
Now forwards… 2023…
Sankofa: the founding ideals and the lessons learnt in our formative years are the best basis on which to take the company forward.
Constant innovation, determination, family, technological principles of openness and using great building blocks, and solid moral governance.
We look forward to building new product based on these principles and… connecting people with their media… watch this space in 2023!
About Object Matrix
Object Matrix is the award-winning software company that pioneered object storage and the modernisation of media archives. It exists to enable global collaboration, increase operational efficiencies and empower creativity through deployment of MatrixStore, the on-prem, hybrid and cloud storage platform. Their unified deployment approach ensures content spans on-prem and cloud storage whilst their focus on the media industry gives them a deep understanding of the challenges organisations face when protecting, processing and sharing video content. Customers include: NBC Universal, TV Globo, Warner Bros. Discovery, MSG, ATP and the BBC, to name but a few!
