Bad mouthing the company you work for almost seems like a Canadian hobby. Now more than ever – with belt tightening, reduced hours, hiring freezes and cut backs all over – employers are coming across as The Bad Guy. What can you do to avoid this? How can you make the transition from evil employer to best boss?
Well take heart – some people work for companies that they love! In each of the four cases in this edition, people make the difference. People in positions of power who care about employees, about the corporate reputation, about what their life means to themselves, their families, their co-workers and staff. You CAN transcend the expected and create something more for your team too.
FAMILY FIRST – AND SECOND TOO!
“Our first rule,” says Kristy McDougall, HR Manager at Rhodes & Williams Insurance, “Is Families First. I should explain that though. We have our own ‘home family’ – which always comes first – and then we have the Rhodes Family.” The Rhodes & Williams team is so close that this great philosophy appears to have come about quite naturally. Special events at Rhodes include the home families, issues at home are taken seriously, and no one questions if someone has to take time off to deal with matters at home. Nothing illustrates this more than the day we had a huge snow storm. The President, the VP and the entire sales team pushed cars out of snow banks in the parking lot to make sure that every staff member could get out and home safely. “That’s the kind of team we have.” says Mary Raymond, Office Manager. She and Ms. McDougall work hard to maintain an exact fit when they hire – choosing candidates with great ability, but only if they are going to mesh well with the rest of the team.
This kind of atmosphere gets talked about. Ottawa is too small a community to keep an industry secret like “Where’s a great place to work?” “Rhodes & Williams competes locally, nationally and globally,” explains Ms McDougall, “without rigid borders – there’s more flexibility and entrepreneurial spirit than is typical in most insurance firms.” This capability allows them to write more business, their ethical and upfront dealings with clients gives them a stainless reputation and their stellar customer service cements Rhodes & Williams as the broker of choice for customers.
In 2007, Rhodes & Williams entered the Employee Choice Awards. The main reason was not to win the award, but because the process of entering gave them the opportunity to survey employees anonymously, initiate a formal process to examine how they work with employees and to learn how they could improve. In 2008, as a result of new initiatives, Rhodes & Williams placed in the top 10. This commitment to employees is reinforced many ways including their focus on health (part of their “family first” philosophy), manager nominated employee awards (condo time-share), and the attitude that starts with Rhodes & Williams President, Trent Young, who says, “We have the best group of employees in the city.”
PRIDE…
Delma Devoe, Human Resource Manager at CTV, took time out of a busy day juggling Employee Diversity Day planning and one thousand other things, to spend some time talking to me about what CTV does best. Her response is award-winning: “We produce a fantastic product – it makes everyone proud to be working here!” Ms. Devoe cites the history of CTV, the News and Regional Contact shows – both #1 in their time slots, and the pride in the brand of the station, nationally recognized as an industry leader. With positive energy like this, Ms. Devoe jaunts from one event to the next with boundless enthusiasm.
There are so many other things that contribute to making CTV a great place to be – Ms. Devoe actually prepared a 3-page summary to help explain the details. From extremely competitive compensation packages through to a subsidized cafeteria, CTV is an employee-focused organization. The feeling in the CTV offices is one of camaraderie and hard work, both admirable and sought after in any organization.
There is proof that CTV is getting it right, too. This year, they celebrated five 30-year veterans, six 35-year veterans and one 40-year veteran with awards. Outstanding for an organization with 100 full time employees on staff. Plus, consider this: when these veterans retire, they often come back for more. Retirees love it as this offers them the opportunity to continue to be productive as well as being able to provide mentoring for junior staff and students. Altogether, Ms. Devoe presented a picture of a balanced, well-nourished staff of employees who work hard to maintain the status of their brand. Her best advice to other managers: “You have to really listen to employees and dig much deeper sometimes for understanding.” Only by listening can you find out what employees want, what would make a difference for them, and how it can all be implemented in your environment.
TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT
Heidi Hauver, Manager, Human Resources has been with the Canadian Internet Registration Authority since August 2007. There have been many HR updates and changes at CIRA since then. Her approach to HR is highly practical and is reflected in some of the first things they implemented; a New Hire Orientation Program and Service Year Awards, to recognize employees for their years of service. “Being with an organization for five years is exceptional these days,” she explains. “We have had over ten employees receive this award. We try and focus on the time we have with each team member. We believe you have to challenge your employees and you have to engage them in the time that you have with them.”
Recognizing that what you get out of employees equals what you put in means productivity is a two way street. Employees produce for the company, but the company has to produce for employees too. “You have to diversify your HR programs to appeal to a wider, diversified audience.” says Ms. Hauver. “Having a cool working environment is important to the majority of our team, but matching that with a variety of other benefits, social activities, development opportunities and boosted internal communications efforts means you’ll reach everyone in the organization at some level.” When you engage your whole team you strengthen it so each member feels more connected – to each other and to the organization.
THREE STEPS TO SUCCESS
It’s been a difficult year in the construction industry so asking a manager about what they do really well for employees is a bit off base at this time. However, Melissa Kruyne, General Manager at Kott Lumber Ottawa, is quick to point to their successes. The first indicator, to her way of thinking, is the employee loyalty that Kott has earned over the years. “This year, we celebrated our 25-30 year veterans. When I’m here 20 years from now, I will be extremely proud if there is that same track record.”
What makes people stay with the same company for so many years? Especially these days? Part of it has to be attributed to the family-oriented company spirit that pervades the organization. Personalized gifts for employees’ children at Christmas and family-oriented events, raffles and attitude in general just being a few of the ways Kott ‘walks the talk’ in this area. And then there’s giving back to the community. “Every year we make a donation to the Christmas Exchange, and I am always astounded by the generosity of our employees.” Explains Ms. Kruyne. “Employees buy a light bulb for our 20-foot tree – made by Kott employees in our truss department – and Kott matches every donation dollar for dollar. With 200 employees, we were able to make a donation of $6500 this year. That’s the kind of people we have at Kott.”
Kott also revised their compensation structure so that productivity can be rewarded. Starting with the truss and joist plants, Kott worked a plan to give back productivity gains to employees – which had a huge impact in terms of pay for those who earned it. Ms Kruyne elaborates, “We are working with an A-Team of employees here and focusing on LEAN manufacturing principals. This method of rewarding our teams ensures fairness and gives everyone something significant to strive for as part of a team.” And really isn’t that what everyone looks for in life? Recognition; a place we can be proud to bring our families on special occasions, and an opportunity to contribute to something bigger than ourselves. No wonder Kott has 30 year veterans!
Manager’s Tip of the Month: From Urbandale’s Laurie Pepper, HR Manager: the best thing for employees is working together for a long time in a family-oriented company. “Helping each other comes more naturally when we have all worked together for such a long time,” says Ms. Pepper. A close-knit organization can mobilize a lot of action from their team – and in this economy we need everyone pulling together harder than ever.
