Never has a topic been brought up as much as it has in the last year. The one where we talk about how to create a work culture that your team will love and thrive in. The pandemic shifted how people see their careers, and how their work impacts their lives. Countless articles about the great resignation, also dubbed the great re-evaluation has been written. People who were stuck in jobs that felt like groundhog day, began to question if this was how they wanted to spend the rest of their life.
How to create a work culture that your team will love
While we will make suggestions on how you can create a work culture that your team will love, we especially want to share what we do at DCM Inc., and how our work culture has evolved.
Being a new, yet a touch older startup, our team has seen unprecedented growth in the last year. Creating a work environment, where not only employees enjoyed their work, but also thrived, was no small feat.
Many meetings and discussions were had about how everyone could benefit from this – from our CEO, right down to our production staff. How do we balance work and family, remote staff, and on-site teams? How do we train staff to become drawing specialists and ensure we have given them the tools and skills to do their jobs successfully? What are the goals the company has, and how can encourage employees to want to be a part of them?
Work cultures have evolved over the years, and no longer are free lunches and ping pong tables going to cut it. Culture is no longer about material items. It has changed into employees wanting meaningful work, supportive bosses, and a collaborative environment where their voices and time matter.
After many inspiring conversations, we took these ideas and put them into action at our company. The ongoing feedback we get from everyone, speaks volumes about how important it is to create a work culture that your team will love. And as you’ll read, our team really loves their jobs.
Here are some of the most important ways we did it.
Hire the right people
It seems simple enough, but it’s amazing how this part is often overlooked when you’re growing and need staff asap. We take great care in our interview process to make sure that we find people who are a good fit for our team. It’s not just about qualifications and crossing a checklist of educational requirements. Making sure that they’re a good person comes first. Are they eager to learn? Supportive of their colleagues? Are they comfortable getting their hands dirty – because we work with a lot of old papers and dark basements.
We are a team through and through. We grow as a team, work as a team, and also support each other as a team. There is no room for egos here. That’s not for everyone, and that’s ok. But we want to make sure that when a new member joins us, they’ll be just as happy for their colleagues’ success as their own. We support each other through good times and learn from our mistakes. We are accountable for our actions and how they impact everyone. And it reflects in how much staff care about their peers.
I love my career for many reasons but if I was to pick one it would be my teammates!
The team – the people I work with. I don’t know the actual hours we spend with our colleagues but it’s A LOT!! In a successful work environment we need to be able to do what we love and feel empowered by our contribution to the company and truly enjoy our teammates! I am surrounded by people who I truly enjoy working with!
I see a lot of resumes – team players are always mentioned. It is recognized that is what is needed on a resume but many do not truly understand what that means. We do a lot of interviews and search for the diamonds that truly understand what a team player is. It means being humble and the attitude of knowing my contribution is no more important than my colleague, and the success of our company and our team is due to our team effort. We have a company filled with people that truly understand this and excel in working as a team!
We have built an environment where no one works in fear. Make a mistake! Announce it! Own it! Grow from it! We grow together as a team!
Being surrounded by these diamonds allows me not to wish my days away for the weekend – but enjoy my journey and the path I have chosen in my business life. I appreciate each and everyone of these diamonds that surround me daily!
Julie – Business Development
Encourage Training and Education
DCM Inc. greatly encourages staff to keep learning. In fact, we almost insist on it. We believe that staff should grow in their roles and their career paths. We start off with everyone in production, so they can understand the behind-the-scenes work that goes into the core of what we do, which is we are the leading drawing management company in the world.
Then we encourage them to see what inspires them the most. We’ve had staff switch roles down the line because they gravitated naturally to one role over another. It’s something that we really support because we want our team to be happy with what they’re doing.
We have a multitude of software programs that we use on a daily basis, especially for our Client Success and Marketing teams. Some of them, such as HubSpot for example, offer countless certification programs, and we always encourage staff to upgrade their skills. The more training and education they get, the better we all will be as the company grows.
It’s not a secret that I LOVE my job, but it may not be known why. There are so many why’s.
Passionate and supportive co-workers. Every single person is ready to help whenever needed. Their strengths become my strengths and vice-versa.
A management team that I respect, that I can learn something new from daily, and who are more concerned with the success of the team than for themselves. I love being able to tell people my ‘bosses’ are there in the trenches, supporting and serving every member of our team and are passionate about our services and our clients.
I love our clients. I love helping them solve problems, and hearing about their new nieces/nephews, the trip they are going on, etc., I get the best of all worlds, great people that I can build real connections with while providing a world-class product and experience.
Work/Life balance. No need to sacrifice my family to get ahead with my work, flexibility and understanding are just part of our DCM world.
Long weekends. This sounds trivial but 4-day long weekends are a game changer in preventing burn-out. We all need a break and DCM gives it to us on a regular basis. The same can be said about the week-long shutdown at Christmas that makes time for family.
Team connection – weekly check-ins, common goals, team events/socials (paintball, meals, the dinner theatre, campfires, skating, hikes, ice-cream runs….it’s a long list).
In a nutshell, I would have to work at NOT loving my job. There are so many great things that happen in this group!
Diane – Client Success
Trust and Work Life Balance
Perhaps one of the biggest requests from any employee anywhere is to not be micromanaged. Followed up with the expectation that work is their entire life. Is there truly anything else worse than a boss breathing over your shoulder to make sure you’re doing your job, and nit-picking every little thing you do? Not a chance. This is a sure-fire way to create a toxic work culture with high turnover.
A fair work-life balance is something we really stand by and is a key part of what we expect of our staff. Whether it’s a daycare pick-up time, a sick pet, or just needing a mental health day off, balance is everything.
As for trusting your team? This goes back to hiring and training. When you hire the right people and offer good training, you feel secure in your team member’s ability to do their job. Trusting your staff to do their job is probably one of the biggest culture and work environment must-do’s. Steve Jobs’ famous quote about hiring smart people rings true.
Stay out of your team’s way and let them excel at what they do best.
Having a work life balance is one of the most important things to keeping Moms in the workforce. I love that our company encourages and supports staff in working around a schedule that is best for their family life. Lots of companies say they offer flex work, but they don’t truly understand what that means. DCM does. To know that your employer trusts you to do your job in a way that you do it best, is invaluable. It makes you want to strive to do better all the time.
Alex – Marketing
Recognize Efforts
Maybe it’s our Canadian sides shining but we’re constantly thanking each other. That is when we’re not busy celebrating each other’s wins. We have a group chat on our work app Cliq, and we’re always sharing updates there about small successes and big successes. At our weekly staff meetings, we dive right into our weekly goals and we all truly offer our support to whoever needs it.
But it’s not just non-stop positivity. We know there are tough days and tough jobs. That support is there too. Sometimes you don’t get a win, but we all know how hard the effort was. Supporting those efforts is just as big of a deal as the wins. We ask for help, advice, and we’re comfortable saying when things are a struggle. Everyone is always happy to offer whenever they can.
I love that with DCM I am working a job that I’m passionate about, and I could not ask for a more supportive team! Whether it is viewing a draft of a video for feedback, or even just needing a quick double-check on phrasing. My Team is always there for me and I always feel like a valued member!
Sydney – Marketing
I love the team I get to work alongside; everyone puts energy, drive, and passion into the critical actions they execute daily. We’ve built a team that relies on culture and willingness to jump in and assist wherever energy needs to be at that moment. We believe in the mission to guide Facilities leaders globally that struggle to keep their engineering drawings organized, up-to-date and accessible for their teams. We meet this mission with grace and a bond I have never experienced before in the workplace.
Beyond the team, knowing that our company offers the best Drawing Management Strategy globally that ultimately boosts the overall facility’s health and safety while going paperless. Our mission feeds my soul and passion for a better world for our children. And no matter where on earth our strategy ends, it’s supporting a cause that truly is one big step in the right direction towards a positive environmental impact.
Bringing me to our recent addition to our business model, we will plant a tree for every new echo Software user, adding to the overall reforestation growth where the earth needs it the most. Another reason I love what I do daily.
Tammy – Marketing
I love knowing that the projects and people we work with contribute to the health and safety and well-being of users of all kinds of facility spaces!
Jessica – Client Success
Goals and Collaboration
At DCM, we are always trying to better our company for our staff and the future. We believe in creating a collaborative work culture where all ideas are welcome. From projects to charities, to staff events, if someone has something they think we should try, we’re all ears.
We set goals as well. Weekly ones for our departments and the company as a whole. We recently launched a partnership with One Tree Planted, and we are always brainstorming ideas on everything from creative projects, to new office space – that’s coming!
Fostering an environment where our staff feels excited and motivated to reach their own personal goals is also crucial. We celebrate promotions, first sales calls, successful marketing campaigns, and scanning 50,000 documents in a record time (true story). We also celebrate non-work life successes, such as new family additions, graduations, and anything that a team member is excited about.
I love that once I walk into the office, everything from the outside completely washes away and I am encompassed by the most beautiful souls. It makes for such a pleasant time working with the individuals I do on a daily basis, whether that be co-workers to clients, to potential clients. DCM as a whole is its own amazing world.
Hilary – Sales
I love our Team and the passion and energy everyone brings each day. We really take pride in understanding each of our client’s needs and I love that we are constantly adapting and improving in order to solve each of their unique problems. I love that we are able to make people’s lives easier and are able to give back to the community.
Tyler – Production
So how do you create a work culture your team will love? In the end, be the type of company that you would like to work at. The rest falls into place.
PS – We’re hiring! If you think you’d like to join our team, we have monthly job fairs, both in-person and virtual, that we share across our social media. Or just drop us a note and your resume at: careers@drawingspecialists.com. We can’t wait to meet you!