Inc. magazine’s latest list of
Top Small Company Workplaces reaffirms a well-known truth in business – a well-established company culture is what takes a business from a good place to work to a
great place to work. It creates unity among team members, improves morale and cultivates employee productivity and satisfaction. More importantly, it’s what makes the difference between employees that love their work…and those that love
where they work.
I’m proud to say that Pierpont has a
great company culture, and as a result, we have been named one of the
2011 Best Places to Work by the
Houston Business Journal.
Here are just of a few facets of Pierpont’s culture that we believe make our company the best place to work:
1. This is Pierpont. A consistent effort is made to make sure every Pierponter knows what “this” is. Pierpont has clearly defined core values that ensure that we always know what our company stands for and the unified goal we’re working towards.
2. Work hard, play hard! Pierponters are expected to go the extra distance to satisfy client expectations, but we take time to have fun, too. Company-wide events like our annual Spring Fling outings , happy hours or our Red/Blue Days (where employees have the opportunity to take every other Friday afternoon off in the summer) ensure employees feel rewarded for their work.
3. Two-way communication: Every year, Pierpont has at least one company-wide, two-day retreat in which all employees sit down to openly discuss opportunities and provide suggestions for improving the company. By working together to solve problems and define best practices, we feel that we have a hand in shaping our company’s future.
4. Ding! Employee satisfaction studies consistently rank “feeling appreciated” in the top five qualities employees seek in a company. Whenever an employee or team has wonderful news, a company-wide “ding” goes out via email to share it. Managers are also encouraged to tell their team “thank you,” for their work on a regular basis – those two little words can go a long way.
Also, Pierpont encourages and pays for employees to attend professional development luncheons and conferences, provides a well-stocked kitchen filled with favorite snacks at each office and awards the most outstanding employees each year with gift cards and paid time off.
While these qualities define Pierpont’s culture, know that every company is different. The key is finding and cultivating the company culture that brings out the best in your employees. Do you think your company culture makes it one of the “best places to work?” Tell us below!