Baton Rouge’s best workplaces share at least one common trait: Their employees feel valued, empowered and heard, which, in turn, makes them feel engaged with their companies.
In a panel discussion hosted by Business Report this morning, it was one of several secrets disclosed by six executives whose companies were honored as some of this year’s Best Places to Work. After a virtual award ceremony, they offered advice on how to become an award-winning company.
Employee engagement is critical when trying to get buy-in on a new initiative or change, said Susan Furr of Phelps Dunbar, which her firm experienced during COVID-19. Phelps Dunbar won second place for large companies.
“Take into account employees’ perspectives, figure out what impact your decision will have on them and make decisions based on that,” Furr said. “Tremendous communication allowed our attorneys to see what we were grappling with, and because they were part of that knowledge, they were more willing to buy into our decision.”
To ensure everyone’s receiving the same message, management must be on the same page, which Ronnie Stevens of Wymar Federal Credit Union, which was named the Best Place Work among small-and medium-sized companies, normally ensures by having monthly strategic meetings among managers. During the pandemic, they turned into daily meetings to address staff concerns.
Communication is a two-way street, While keeping everyone in the loop is important, listening to employees helps with retention, said Tee Brown of GMFS Mortgage.
“Knowing that our employees could get up and leave any day is the basis of how we operate,” Brown said.
Employers can also foster engagement by “breaking down the vertical walls that often separate management and employees,” suggested John Bordelon of Home Bank, who aims to unite his 455 workers around one goal: doing everything for the benefit of the customer. When everyone has the same focus, Bordelon says the “success will pile on.”
The role the CEO should play in driving a positive workplace culture varies based on company size, with leaders of smaller businesses typically having more of a hands-on role and executives of larger companies granting more authority to managers and division heads. Regardless of a company’s size, however, a CEO should always facilitate empowerment among all employees so that they feel a sense of ownership over their roles, said Joey Quinlan of First National Bankers Bank.
Moran Construction Consultants lets its team members dictate the direction the company goes, said CEO John Moran.
“It’s the individuals that lead us,” Moran said. “We ask everyone what their interests and ambitions are and where they see themselves in the future.”
Their comments came shortly after Peter Burke, president and co-founder of Best Companies Group, which compiles the annual list for Business Report, shared the top three drivers of employee engagement, based on the results of an anonymous employee survey that comprised 75% of a company’s evaluation. They are, ranked in order of importance: 1) Employees feeling valued by their companies, 2) Workers having confidence in the leadership of their organization, and 3) Employees liking the type of work they do.
Check out Business Report’s 2020 Best Places to Work edition. Insiders may need to log in to see the magazine.
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