In this engaging Q&A session, founder, Ian Foster delves into the origins of Center Cam, sparked by his personal experiences during the transition to remote work at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. His journey from prototyping to launching Center Cam is a testament to the power of innovation driven by genuine need. As we explore the company’s mission, “A Better Connection,” we uncover the depth of Mr. Foster’s vision, which transcends technological advancement to touch on the essence of human interaction.
We also get an insider’s view of Center Cam’s distinct position in the tech industry, particularly in the camera technology sector, where it sets itself apart with its unique middle-screen webcam design. Mr. Foster shares insights into the company’s approach to technological trends, emphasizing practicality and genuine user benefits over mere specs.
Join us as Mr. Foster shares his insights, experiences, and vision for Center Cam, offering valuable lessons on leadership, innovation, and the power of human connection in the digital age.
Mr. Foster, can you share with us the inspiration behind Center Cam’s founding and the core mission that drives the company?
I was finishing an internship as a therapist when Covid hit in March of 2020. I switched to remote with the kids I was working with, and the natural rapport we take for granted during in-person meetings was gone. I searched Google for a middle-screen webcam and couldn’t find one. I began prototyping within the week, and at the beginning of 2021 we launched Center Cam.
Our tagline is, “A Better Connection.” I’m a bit of a conflicted hippie; I love trees, but I don’t hug them very often because I think that’s weird. But I talk to nature when I’m in the forest, which somehow doesn’t seem weird to me. The first tagline was “a better HUMAN connection.” We simplified it for marketing purposes because it felt a little TOO hippie for me, but THAT truly is what drives what we do. How can we create a product that brings people together and helps facilitate human connections in the digital space?
How does Center Cam differentiate itself from other competitors in the tech industry, particularly in the field of cameras?
Our webcam is the only one that’s in the right place. We coined the phrase “middle-screen webcam” to differentiate ourselves from the rest of the market- which is still selling “screen-edge webcams.” We’re the only camera that can move up/down and side-to-side with minimal fuss and get to the middle of large monitors with our assembly, which includes 16 inches of flexible conduit. Our design/utility patented clips are the best method to deliver the camera to the middle of the screen.
What are the key trends in camera technology that Center Cam is currently focusing on, and how are these trends shaping the company’s strategy?
Camera companies are in a race to 4k and beyond, even though almost no one has the data capability to use 4k in a video conference. We recently launched Version 2 (V2), which, according to specs, looks like the same camera as our V1. However, V2 directly competes/exceeds the performance of other full-size webcams, and it’s the size of the top knuckle on your pinky. It’s tiny and much smaller than V1. More importantly, it’s in the right place. The specs are still 1080p, 30fps, and 2MP, which some people are unimpressed with. But the dirty little secret is that 1080p/2MP is what 98% of people are transmitting in videoconferences. So unless someone is creating content, the only reason for 2k or 4k is for marketing purposes of the webcam company. Our next version will be a 4k camera, but this will be appropriately marketed to content creators/educators with a healthy disclaimer for the average video-conference user.
What are Center Cam’s core values, and how do they influence the company’s decision-making and culture?
Center Cam’s mission is to increase the quality of human connection online. It’s not just a tagline for us. Connection is what makes life meaningful. Humans are group animals. In order to feel okay, we need/want to know we belong and have connections with other people. In a fundamental way, screen-edge webcams don’t allow us to connect with others the same way that in-person conversations do. To present ourselves well, we have to look away from the person we’re talking to and into the webcam lens. This ironically decreases actual connection in remote environments- since we’re more concerned with our own appearance than the substance/meaning of the communication. We can only get the totality of meaning out of communication by combining words PLUS non-verbal cues as we do in person.
So, the connection is our main value. We look at how we treat each other within the company first, and that moves outward to how we treat our partners and customers. This gets tricky in a startup where resources are limited. We can’t just say yes to everything. We’ve hired people we like working with. They’re considerate professionals. We all work remotely, so we require people to be self-starters with ownership mentalities- meaning, independent thinkers who can make their own decisions within their scope of responsibility. We’re a lean startup.
How does Center Cam prioritize customer feedback in the product development process, and can you provide an example of how user input has influenced a product update or new release?
Great question. When we first started, I was handling everything. I was handling customer support, product development, marketing, and everything. Obviously not sustainable, but this was vital to understanding every little process within the company. That feedback led us to understand that there were many customers who needed more support, and so we developed YouTube tutorials to deal with things like clicking the right settings in your videoconference app or maximizing the lighting in your home office. Regarding products, V1 is a great product, but it has some limitations in its processing of lighting and auto-adjustment capabilities. That was our primary motivation behind re-designing our V1 to make it a great webcam, not just a good webcam that is small.
What’s Center Cam’s next big thing? Are there any groundbreaking projects or products in the pipeline?
V2 is the product we’ll be launching worldwide. It’s a big deal to us, and we’re optimistic it will be a big deal to other folks as well.
As the CEO, how do you foster a culture of innovation and creativity at Center Cam, and why is this important for the company’s success?
I’ve always been an extremely creative person, and I’m ultimately accountable for Center Cam. These are a classic recipe for micro-management and “my-way-or-the-highway” kind of management styles. We built everything from scratch, and within about a month of our initial crowdfund launch, we were doing things and building things every single day that were new for all of us. It was important that we use everyone’s whole brain and make the best decisions based on a bunch of different brains looking at the problem differently. Also, I remember all the jobs I had where only a portion of my talents were used, and so most people want to be challenged and utilized fully and not have to compartmentalize their efforts in their professional lives fully. We have proper job descriptions and everything, but I frequently ask our contractors and employees to step outside of their roles and think about different issues in the company, which leads to a more dynamic decision-making process plus more buy-in to what we’re doing.
Can you share a leadership principle that you abide by and how it has influenced your approach to guiding Center Cam?
I abide by the golden rule: “he who has the gold makes the rules.” Just kidding. Treat others how you’d like to be treated. Pretty simple- but it gets tricky when you disagree with a supplier or partner that isn’t treating YOU fairly. But I’m continually surprised at how many businesses get in their own way by forgetting to do the little things. If you have to deliver bad news, acknowledge it’s bad. If you have to disagree, you can do it respectfully. If you have to let someone go, you don’t have to punish them- they have to live with the circumstances that led them being more liability than asset. Communicate in a timely manner. The little stuff adds up.
I spent a lot of my adult life trying to be a leader instead of just being a leader. I read leadership books and biographies about leaders for years. I love reading about Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. They resonate with me because they were so clearly unique in their own ways- Theodore loved adventures but balanced public service; Abraham was an incredibly kind soul who led the bloodiest period in our history. But they charted their own path. Joseph Campbell said, “If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it’s not your path. You make your own path with every step you take. That’s why it’s your path.” I know that quote isn’t popular with the “begin with the end in mind” leadership crowd, but for me, it was remarkable when I finally understood that I didn’t have to duplicate what other leaders did, I had to make the values they exemplified my own and just get good at being me.
