TINYpulse has announced the winners of the third annual TINYawards. TINyawards are given to organizations which have exceptional scores for their industry within TINYpulse’s employee engagement platform.
Renewal by Andersen | Esler Companies won Happiest Organization and Most Recognition 2017 within the competitive Telecommunications category. This means that they had the highest average employee happiness score within Telecommunications. It also means that their employees sent out the highest volume of Cheers for Peers per capita within their category in 2017 .
I connected with Christina Schmit, Director of Talent Acquisition for Renewal by Andersen. Here’s what she has to share:
Can you tell me a bit more about Renewal by Andersen and the RbA Sales & Marketing Hub?
Renewal by Andersen has a very unique Inside Sales Center called our Sales & Marketing Hub, which is located in Northborough, Massachusetts. Our Sales & Marketing Hub is an internal department and serves as a marketing and call center ‘engine’ in that drives business leads for Renewal by Andersen.
Renewal by Andersen (RbA) is the full-service window-replacement division of 115-year-old Andersen Corporation, the owner of the most trusted family of window brands in America. RbA is in the home improvement industry, yet we really believe we are in the people industry. We focus on people. Our Teammates. Our Communities. Our Customers.
Congratulations on winning the Happiest Company Award! What does this recognition mean to you?
TINYPulse is the way we create FUN and HAPPINESS in the organization. We use the pulse weekly and we bring fun and excitement to the questions we ask. Each week in a live Sales meeting, we review the question, suggestions and share a few Cheers. This tool has helped shape our culture and implement fun changes in the office for our teammates. We are so excited to be recognized and receive the Happiest Company Award! We do believe we have a culture that is surrounded by happy people!
Why is it important to have happy employees?
Our goal is to provide homeowners with a delightful customer experience. We understand that it starts with our teammates. We want our teammates to LOVE themselves and find personal happiness, so they can, in turn, live their best lives and do their best work for us. Happiness drives retention and dedication to work.
Is the Happiness Score in TINYpulse something that you pay attention to? What other ways do you measure employee happiness?
We run the happiness pulse every month or so and we absolutely look at this benchmark internally and in the marketplace.
What makes Renewal by Andersen such a happy workplace? What do you do to maintain that culture of happiness throughout the year?
We focus on the people. We put the people first in the decisions that we make. We offer a weekly reward to 3 people who have demonstrated Random Acts of Kindness. We offer a monthly Ambassador award for a teammate who “lives” the core value of the company. We want to make each day feel great – our break room has TV, xbox gaming system, laundry and a comfortable at home feel. We also provide food days, dress down days, sales incentives, and events for our teammates.
Was there a particular moment of happiness that stands out from 2017?
We had an event in February 2018 called “Sharing the Love”. We wanted to recognize our employees by providing them a delightful unique customer experience. We want to show our staff that we LOVE them. We want to help them focus on health and wellness to take care of and LOVE themselves. We invited New Balance to come and share the love of delight with each teammate. They conducted a foot analysis and digital screening review. Each teammate left with a brand-new pair of New Balance shoes. What a HAPPY day it was!
How does happiness relate to your work values and culture at Renewal by Andersen | Sales & Marketing Hub?
Happiness is directly tied to our values and culture – one of the core values of our company is to “make work fun!”
Can you tell us about a major challenge within Renewal by Andersen that has affected employee happiness?
We have a unique Sales Center. We are open 8:30am-11pm Monday through Friday AND 9am-10pm on the weekend. It is fair to say that the business is shutdown for a very little time. We close for 5 holidays each year. Each teammate is required to work one weekend shift in their regular schedule.
To reward and take care of our staff, we pay competitive rates and offer a pay differential to our Inside Sales Rep for the evening shifts. We just implemented a Floating Holiday program. All teammates receive 9 floating Holidays – they will use the time if we are closed. If they are required to work on a holiday, a floater is given to be used at another time.
Do you have any plans or initiatives (upcoming or in-progress) that you hope will improve happiness in the future?
We always have plans in the works for our teammates. Our next program planned for the springtime and will be a Wellness Session. The topics in the wellness program will include:
- Mindfulness of the breath
- Mindful communication
- Dealing with difficult emotions & gratitude & compassion
- Mindful eating
- 3 Good Things
- Random Acts of Kindness
Who are the biggest champions of employee happiness within the Sales & Marketing Hub? What are some of the ideas they’ve put forward that have increased happiness?
Everyone has a role in the culture, but it starts with our Leadership Team providing the framework. We empower our team members at every level to make suggestions and cheer each other on.
In one sentence, can you give us your best advice for other companies looking to improve their employee happiness?
If you are looking to improve happiness we recommend transparency – listen to the staff, review suggestions, and implement changes.
A full list of Employee Recognition Award winners and Happiest Company Award winners can be seen at TINYpulse’s awards page.
