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Understanding The Value Of Happy Employees
Compensation And Benefits Still Matter
Improve Employee Productivity, Efficiency Through Engagement
BY Nick Bullock
Mary Saenz (third from left), assistant account manMember of the Year award by 4M鈥檚 management team of (L-R) Tim Murch, Steve Crain, Josh Hendricks and Larry Bush Photo courtesy of 4M Building Solutions
Do You Have A Great Team At Your Facility in Big Flats, NY, 14814
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The move to focusing on employees began in 1991 for 4M. Murch recalls that, like today, the labor market was tough and unemployment was low.
鈥淲e had so many open positions,鈥� he says.
At the time, the company operated with the mantra that, when it came to communicating with frontline workers, no news was good news. If a cleaner heard from management, it was usually to point out deficiencies in the employee鈥檚 work.
But to break through in a crowded employment market, Murch and his team decided to flip that old company culture on its head. Management began giving out 鈥淕ood Works Tickets鈥� whenever a customer praised a cleaner or his or her work. Each ticket earned the employee entry into a periodic raffle for cash bonuses. The company also began sending every employee and customer a newsletter, in which customer compliments were printed and specific employees were praised by name. Murch also began giving a hand-written thank you note to team members after they were praised by a customer. And he or other senior executives would present the employee with the note in front of the employee鈥檚 peers and the customer.
鈥淲ho doesn鈥檛 like to see their name in lights?鈥� says Murch. 鈥淩ecognition is a huge part of our culture, which engages team members.鈥�
These simple gestures went a long way toward making 4M a place where workers wanted to stay, all at the cost of a little time and effort.
Prospect Cleaning Service engages employees much the same way. Several years ago, Murray started thinking back to her past working experiences when she wasn鈥檛 the boss; she remembered how good it felt to know her employer cared about her. Today she tries to do the same for employees. Sometimes that鈥檚 as simple as sharing a meal.
鈥淕o sit in the lunchroom with your staff instead of Ruth鈥檚 Chris Steak House,鈥� says Murray.
But the company culture at Prospect Cleaning Service really began to change once Murray realized that communication in a business goes two ways 鈥� not just from the top down but from the bottom up.
鈥淸Employees] know we listen to them,鈥� she says. 鈥淢y staff, they can bring information to me and say, 鈥榃e tried this, but I don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 as effective as we thought it would be.鈥欌��
Murray鈥檚 workers bring new ideas to her on a daily basis, and sometimes their way works better than whatever process the company had in place.
This has several benefits. First, employees feel they don鈥檛 have just another job, but rather a livelihood, says Murray. Second, it more deeply connects workers to the success of the company. If a frontline worker came up with a new process for cleaning, that worker now has a personal stake in seeing it succeed, which typically improves the quality of work.
Employees First
Listening to employees鈥� ideas and goals in the workplace is undoubtedly useful. But when BSCs can connect with employees enough to learn about their dreams outside of work, that鈥檚 when engagement opportunities really open up.
Miller鈥檚 story is one you might have heard. She, and her husband, Tony, created the Dream Manager program, which was told in the New York Times best-selling book 鈥淭he Dream Manager.鈥�
Like Murch, Miller鈥檚 employee engagement strategy grew out of necessity. Her company, JANCOA, was churning through way too many employees and something had to give. So she began taking inventory of her best employees to see what they had in common. What she found was that they were engaged 鈥� not just in their work, but also in their lives outside of work. They were striving toward something, not just going through the motions.
Miller wondered how much JANCOA could reduce turnover 鈥� and the costs associated with hiring and screening employees 鈥� if the company could help employees achieve those personal goals. What she鈥檚 realized since then is that doing so was a major shift in the way most businesses operate.
鈥淪o much of the mind-set in the business world still for a lot of people is, 鈥業 pay you a fair wage. You should do what I tell you to do. And your problems are your problems, and I鈥檓 not going there,鈥欌�� says Miller. 鈥淏ut we don鈥檛 do that when it comes to customers. When we鈥檙e trying to compete with trying to get a job, we鈥檙e always telling them how we鈥檙e going to make their life easier and better by hiring us. Well, why not do that with our employees, too? Why not create an environment that will attract the best people to want to work for you?鈥�
In many ways, it鈥檚 about putting employees first. But in doing so, Miller decided not to 鈥渞ecreate the wheel.鈥� There were already plenty of programs available in the Cincinnati area to help her employees achieve their personal goals. All JANCOA had to do was use its community connections to steer its employees to those resources.
JANCOA has helped employees quit smoking, buy homes, adopt children, earn college degrees and even launch small businesses.
