Lynn Hicks of the Des Moines Register wrote an excellent piece on Palisade Systems‘ CEO, Christian Renaud. The article, Bringing Silicon Valley style to Des Moines, tells the story of Renaud, a San Jose transplant, failing at his first attempt to instigate a Valley-like work culture at Palisade but then adapting it and successfully implementing it.

The article goes on to discuss the new direction of Palisade, their use of social media for marketing, their company culture shift and Renaud’s hope for a statup culture in Des Moines.

Whether or not you live in Des Moines, if you’re interested in startups and ecosystems that support them, I highly recommend you read Hicks’ article:

Hicks: Bringing Silicon Valley style to Des Moines

By Lynn Hicks

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May 30, 2010

It’s 8:30 a.m., and the creative process has started popping at Palisade Systems. The brainstorming sounds a lot like the crack of billiard balls.

Christian Renaud, clad in jeans, watches two employees play 8-ball. The conversation caroms from monthly goals to his advice on addressing the cue.

Around the corner sits a refrigerator stocked with microbrews and a file drawer full of scotch, awaiting a more appropriate hour. If this collision of work and play sounds more like Google […]

Read the full article

To learn more about Christian, check out Geoff Wood’s video interview with him this past February: Christian Renaud of Palisade Systems talks technology, raising capital.