Blog Post: A New Company Path

 One thing that is going to come out of the recent crash and the obvious “executive think” and greed of corporations is some reigning in of business practices.  This post states my opinion on what company best practices for the future will look like.  I have instituted all of this possible at my company, and believe it is what virtually all companies should be doing, regardless of size.

1).  Health care for all employees.  We pay 100% of health insurance for our employees, and 70% of dependants.  Part-time workers pay a bit for health insurance, but not much.  Every employee who wishes to be is covered.  We have the very best health insurance (the Guardian through Cofinity) that we can obtain as a small business.  It includes great preventative care, and a fantastic prescription plan.

It is my opinion that companies are going to have to do something very close to this by law in the near future, anyway.  I strongly believe that companies have a moral obligation to assure their employees are fully covered with health insurance.

2).  Liberal vacation and time-off policies.  Our employees are able to take, at various times, up to six weeks away from the office per year, with paid holidays, company “closed” times, and vacation.  This is from their first day of starting.  “Do more with less” is hooey and just plain bad business.  It is leading to poor morale, burned out workers, and shoddy products.  The idiots who came up with this philosophy are now reaping what they have sown, and rightfully so.

A rested employee is a productive employee.  A rested employee is a creative employee.  The American “work ethic” of working 80 hour weeks every week of the year and denying vacations or personal time just doesn’t work.  It is a terrible way to run a company.

3).  Employee ownership.  From the time someone walks in our door, they are treated as an owner.  We then go about making sure that they get stock to make them an owner.  Owners of companies behave differently than employees of companies.  Make them owners and watch how their attitudes change.  They have “skin in the game” now

4).  No “boss.”  “Flatten” your organization.  You really don’t need “managers” and “assistant managers.”  People need to be trained and then empowered.  Until proven wrong each employee should be assumed to have the responsibility to be a self-starter and need very little, if any, supervision.  When an employer hires the right people, sets out expectations for them, and trusts them to carry out those expectations flawlessly, wonderful things happen.  Employees come up with new and creative ways of getting things done.

And don’t reserve this to the older, more experienced employees.  “Kids” that are in their teens and 20’s have not had years of thinking inside the box to corrupt them yet.  Most of them, far from being “slackers,” are very hard workers who want to please and impress.  Set out clear expectations, let them know the result you want to see, and give them the responsibility and freedom to carry it out.  I assure you that you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

5).  No rules.  Well, OK, we can’t do “NO rules,” but we should have as few company policies as possible.  The reaction of stodgy “linear thinkers” (who are, thankfully, on their way to extinction) is to make a rule whenever anything goes wrong.  The reaction of holistic, intuitive thinkers (gaining ascendency) is to solve the individual problem, not universalize it to the whole company.  Too many companies have too many “policies” and rules.  These companies are dinosaurs who cannot adapt to the rapidly changing realities of today’s business environment.  The companies that will thrive are those where almost everything is up for grabs and discussion.

An example.  Last evening three of us were at dinner.  One of our co-owners/employees (we’re all, of course, employees, as this is a corporation) let us know of something she had done in the past that we weren’t aware of before.  It is now a new service of the company, and will go on the website as a service this week.  She just, in a few minutes, invented for herself a new revenue stream, and will benefit from it generously.  Which brings me to…

6).  Generously reward employees.  We’ve all heard the story of the people who were going along doing their jobs and invented something that made the company billions, and just got a small bonus — if that.  This is, again, dinosaur thinking.  Creative, proactive employees must generously benefit from their creativity and drive.

7).  Everybody works, nobody rides.  There is nothing in our company that is “not my job.”  Every employee gets to do the “fun stuff,” and everyone has parts of their job that they don’t like well. If you’re the “boss,” lead by example to your employees.  Join them in the nastiest, most disgusting job in the company, and do it with joy and gusto.  Every time I’ve done this, I’ve gained a great deal of employee loyalty, dramatically improved morale, and stopped griping about the dirty jobs.  Want to really get employee loyalty?  Offer to do a dirty job yourself for an employee who has been busting their butt for the company, and send ‘em home for the day.  This makes a much louder statement about “people are our most important resource” than any trite “mission statement” will ever send.

8).  Company values must be “number one.”  Companies are going to be under new laws here very soon.  Go a step or three beyond what the law is going to require.  Demand that everyone (including yourself) in your company behave in absolute integrity.  Even if it costs the company money, no fudging.  Now, regarding tax strategies and so on, do everything the law allows and your CPA recommends (and absolutely nothing which even hints of illegal or unethical!).  At the same time, send a strong message that your company operates with complete integrity.

9).  Be compassionate.  Be compassionate to your customers, your employees, and your vendors.  I truly care about everyone I work with at any level.  I want to treat them like I would treat a member of my family.  As a result, many of the people we have served as clients have, over the years, become close and dear friends after we have had the privilege of serving them.

Take care of your employees like they were your brother, sister, mother, father, son or daughter. 

10).  Share the wealth.  Almost as important as integrity  — share the wealth.  Nicole and I (founders) will not make substantially more than the other folks in our organization…and that is as should be.  If employees know that we’re all in this together, and they share generously in the good times, they will stick by you in the lean times like glue, and bring you through it.  There is nothing carved in stone that says that company management should make tons more than everyone else.  How many cars can you drive at one time, and how many square feet of house per person do you need?  It is, in my opinion, a moral imperative that employees at every level of a company be paid the absolute most the company can pay them, regardless of what “comparable salary” charts have to say.  I would prefer to overpay an employee than underpay one.

Employees who feel ownership, are sharing the wealth, and are treated as family do not leave, usually do not steal (I’ve only had one over the years who did so, who we forgave for it… IRS trouble), and do not gripe about their jobs or the company.

These tips are not only good morality and ethics, they are great business strategy, as well.  Watch and see how companies who come the closest to these values grow, prosper, and get noticed.  I’ve almost always had employees who say “I completely love my job.”  So can you.

Here’s to a prosperous and healthy 2009.

John Heckers, MA, CPC , BCPC, is a career transition coach and executive coach in Cherry Creek, Colorado .  He may be reached at 720.581.4301 or jheckers@heckersdevgroup.com.  www.heckersdevgroup.com.  Read John ’s other blogs at http://ceoskillscorner.blogspot.com and http://executiveexpert.blogspot.com.