Culture for Breakfast, Employees for Lunch
Culture eats strategy for breakfast. Strategy eats marketing for breakfast. Marketing eats sales for breakfast. What are your serving your sales people for breakfast?
Culture.
If you followed my flashy analogy this far, thanks! I’ve read a lot on culture and its importance, and I am sure you have too. I have often been frustrated with how hard it is to quantify and difficult (but not impossible) to replicate. But wow do we feel culture – good or bad.
As the director of the Southeast Idaho Small Business Development center, I have the unique privilege of understanding the business models of dozens of our local business. I usually focus helping them solve problems with marketing, financing, strategies, and employees. But lately, I started asking a few of my most insightful clients what they are doing right. Especially around culture.
Employee retention is a big issue for a lot of small businesses, so when one of my clients, Emma Theander, one of the co-owners of Glean Coffee Roasters, came in for her regular check in, I asked about any problems she was working to solve. We talked about expansion strategy, marketing, accounting, and community engagement. I then asked how it was going with employee retention, assuming this would be an issue with a retail food establishment.
“We have a great staff,” she said. “No big problems.” “Really?” I said. “Yes, we have some people going back to school, but we have a plan.” Wow. I almost never hear that. Especially not regarding retail food staff with part time shifts. After a pause, I picked up my pen and asked, “What are you doing right?”
Here is what Theander described:
Flexibility around how they spend their work hours. An employee can choose to focus on different jobs for different shifts. For example, an employee could take a four-hour shift dedicated to serving food and drinks to customers at the counter. This would be during business hours. The next day, the employee might choose to work behind the scenes, preparing inventory, putting stickers on cups, or cleaning equipment. Employees enjoy autonomy and build trust with management. While this requires cross training, it benefits the Glean and their employees, since people can rotate in and out of different types of work.
Positive public feedback. Theander and her team regularly meeting for short team check-ins. During this time, Theander always find someone to praise in front of the team. This extends to working on the floor. Catching people doing something right and praising them publicly is powerful.
Power to give it away. Employees are allowed to give away, without question, one free drink each shift. This can be done to correct a drink order, thank a regular, or make a random customer’s day better.
Power to say "yes" to requests. Most small businesses get asked to sponsor events or give away items. At Glean, employees can be the first yes. Although they cannot commit to specific amounts or items, they always can always say, “Yes, I am sure we can find a way to support your event / organization.” This request goes on to Theander and the owner team, and she follows through with a way Glean can help.
Small gifts. As Theander was talking about a particular employee who had done an excellent job with sales, I asked if she had a way of rewarding that. “Of course, we give away of small gifts.” Simple, low cost, meaningful, and I would add, random. There is more power in random, unexpected feedback.
Shared, explicit values. The Glean management team have put thought into the values they want to express in their business. None of the above is implied or secret. Employees learn directly what is expected of them and the treatment they can expect from the owners.
I benefit from my own culture at the ISU College of Business. I can tell you what is going right there as well. Good communication. Dean Shane Hunt (my local boss), communicates openly with us. We get an email every week, and I feel welcome and unafraid to share my concerns about my job or ISU policies. I am greeted warmly when I arrive. Dean Hunt praises me in front of others. I set my own schedule.
That is culture.
So, returning to my opening analogy…. Forget breakfast, take your employees to lunch.
Visit Glean Coffee at 240 S. Main in Pocatello to see their culture in action. You can learn more about creating great culture at your small business with a visit to your local Small Business Development Center. Contact the Idaho Small Business Development Center today to begin working with a consultant. We are taxpayer funded to provide no-cost consulting and low-cost training to any small business. This help includes business plans, financing options, marketing tactics, bookkeeping assistance, managing employees, referrals to state and local resources, and YES, retaining employees.
About Ann Swanson
Ann Swanson is the regional director of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at the ISU
College of Business. Reach out at 208-282-4402 or swanann@isu.edu for an appointment. Services are no cost.
