CEO, Owner, and Co‑Founder
Todd is responsible for driving Four Kitchens’ vision and long-term strategy.
November 12, 2024
I couldn’t have imagined the direction Four Kitchens would take in just a few years — and all because four kids from UT–Austin wanted to publish an alt-weekly.
We launched That Other Paper in 2006. We built the website on Drupal 4.7.2 — entirely by ourselves, of course, because we were broke. The site caught the attention of the growing Drupal community, and we started getting calls from organizations that needed help with their own Drupal sites. Within two years, we were working on complex web projects with some of the world’s biggest brands. Eighteen years have passed, and it’s still mind-boggling and humbling that Four Kitchens continues to do exactly that.
Going back to our earliest days, we were driven to be collaborative, scrappy, and creative while doing cool stuff and giving back to the community. Years later, that core drive remains central to who we are, who we hire, and who we partner with in a way that stands apart in our industry.
The origin of Four Kitchens
Four Kitchens began with a simple idea: to run a company that we would want to work for.
We’ve all worked at places where you feel like a number on a spreadsheet, or where you’re subject to policies that feel arbitrary. Here, we’ve set out to create an organization where the policies don’t simply make sense — they exist to empower people.
But before getting into our Core Values and the foundation of why we work the way we do, we should revisit our roots. The name “Four Kitchens” came to us from an unconventional source: our first office. It was a three-story coworking facility in a woodsy area outside Austin — think Ewok village with a T1 internet connection. Along with multiple workspaces, the building also included four living areas equipped with their own kitchen, one for each founder.
We didn’t actually move in there — Ewok villages aren’t known for their convenience or safety — but that complex provided a metaphor for a collaborative way of working that would come to define who we are.
Breaking down the barrier between clients and development
What sets Four Kitchens apart is a somewhat unusual approach to client relationships, at least compared with the rest of our industry. A lot of agencies build a wall between the client and the team doing the work, apart from an Account Manager or a Strategist.
Here, virtually everyone on the team interfaces directly with clients. This approach provides a way to work well together and foster more effective communication. The ability to create genuine relationships is among our Core Values, and it’s a big part of what makes someone a good team member. Or, more accurately, what we call a Web Chef.
The Way of the Web Chef: Four Kitchens’ Core Values
At the heart of this digital services company lies a set of core values that add up to more than the typical corporate mission statement. Known as The Way of the Web Chef, these principles are not platitudes relegated to a forgotten corner of the company wiki. We’ve fully operationalized them into the way we collaborate.
Humility is a cornerstone quality that we look for in a Web Chef. We frame this trait as “Humbly Confident” in our Core Values: “We are confident in our expertise, yet unafraid to say we don’t have the answer.” We recognize that we’re all smart in our own way, but we don’t let our egos get in the way of finding the best outcome. This confident humility nurtures a collaborative environment where ideas flow freely and are unhindered by individual agendas.
Passion is also vital. A Web Chef needs to enjoy what they do and possess an insatiable appetite for growth and improvement. This drive to excel pushes them to stay ahead of the curve and ensure clients get the most creative solutions.
Our Core Values form the bedrock of our operation by guiding decisions and shaping our culture. It’s not just about building websites or adopting new technologies. It’s about empowering organizations to share their knowledge and make a lasting impact.
A mission-driven approach to development
Fundamentally, Four Kitchens and our Web Chefs are driven by a powerful mission: To set knowledge free. We want to work with organizations who are also mission-driven and dedicated to giving back to their communities.
This approach manifests in our understanding that we work at our best when partnering with organizations that share similar values. Universities, nonprofits, and even organizations supporting open-source software are natural fits with how we want to work.
Moreover, this mission serves as a powerful motivator. Web Chefs are drawn to projects that have the potential to educate, inform, and inspire. Whether it’s developing an open-source AI chatbot or bringing websites into alignment for higher ed institutions, each project is an opportunity to do good by setting knowledge free.
The advantage of working with Four Kitchens
Our mission-driven approach shapes how we choose our clients, but it also infuses our work with purpose. Four Kitchens attracts team members and clients who want to make a tangible difference in the world.
Whether you’re looking for an agency to help your organization serve its community or you are looking for your next role, Four Kitchens offers something unique. Even after 18 years, it’s still a company I would want to work for — or with. I think you’ll agree.
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