The Team That Plays Together, Innovates Together

BY: Robin D. Schatz

4moms busted down departmental walls to boost team collaboration and create the first robotic stroller.

Rob Daley, a former VC, and Henry Thorne, a robotics expert with three startups under his belt, launched a company in 2005 to use powerful, low-cost robotics technology to revolutionize consumer products. After much research, Daley says, they "fell in love with the juvenile market" and launched 4moms the following year.

Along the way, Daley and Thorne learned that the key to creating revolutionary products that integrate complex technology (and that sell, to the tune of $30.5 million in 2013) is creating a collaborative culture. The results of this approach include Origami, a robotic stroller that folds with the push of a button, and MamaRoo, a rocking baby seat that mimics the swaying and bouncing motions of a parent soothing a baby. Coming soon: The world's first baby car seat that installs itself. "Seventy-three percent of all car seats have a critical installation error," Daley says.

These are Daley's tips for creating a collaborative culture.

1. Play musical chairs. When 4moms started, marketers, engineers, supply-chain managers, and industrial designers sat in their respective departments. But soon they began to rearrange themselves into project-focused, cross-functional teams. Rather than send them all back to their offices, Daley says, the company embraced the idea, because it brought conversations about product form and appearance into the process earlier, a "big part of making a product successful. We're tripling our lab space because this is the way people like to work."

2. Hire for humility. Daley prizes passion in his employees, but unlike many company owners, he also prizes humility. "If I'm supposed to collaborate with people, and I think I've got all the answers, it breaks down really, really fast," he says. Every job applicant meets with 4moms's culture committee, which screens for outsize egos. People who don't acknowledge the role of others in their success probably won't make the cut. One-third of otherwise-qualified applicants are rejected because they lack passion or humility, Daley says.

3. Break bread together. Each Monday, all staff members gather in the Pittsburgh office for breakfast, and twice a week, the company caters lunch in the common areas. The meals are chances for employees to interact with peers from other departments and projects. "Breaking bread together helps build those relationships that lead to collaboration and communication," says Daley. Besides the group meals, there are quarterly outings to bowling alleys, baseball games, and other activities to encourage socializing.

4. Hold standup meetings. In addition to the weekly Monday-morning meeting, where 4moms teams discuss corporate announcements and sales results, the company initiated a daily standup meeting about a year and a half ago. Everyone gathers in a circle to discuss what he or she has accomplished and what help he or she needs from others. To keep it from becoming an hourlong coffee klatch, there are rules: No sitting and no leaning. "Doing that for more than 15 minutes is very uncomfortable," Daley says. "It keeps things short and sweet."

Source: www.inc.com

5 Tips For Increasing Diversity At Your Startup

BY Donna Ruffin

The more diverse your team, the more your startup can benefit from the expertise of a whole melting pot of different backgrounds, disciplines, strengths and personalities.

 This story first appeared on Women2.0.

Startup entrepreneurs have a lot to juggle when getting their companies off the ground, not the least of which is creating an inviting workplace culture. While it can be tempting to hire people you really like, who have a similar background and education to your own, and who think like you think, this type of hiring process can lead to very narrow-minded business practices.
In order to flourish in the global economy, you need to embrace workplace diversity, striving to hire individuals from varied backgrounds and cultures. To do so, you must consciously and concertedly undertake business practices that encourage workplace diversity.

1. Set Goals and Educate Your Staff

The first way to create an inclusive work environment is to set goals and educate your staff. Schedule a meeting, outline your goals and come up with clear and measurable objectives you want your company to achieve.
For instance, you might want to define your minority hiring practices, or plan and implement diversity training for all team members. Communicate these goals to your staff, and engage them in the process, asking for input and feedback on ways in which to further encourage diversity.

2. Recruit Diverse Staff Members

It's one thing to say you want to hire a diverse staff, it's another to do it. You may find that the same types of people keep applying for your job postings, not giving you much opportunity to find diverse employees. If this is a problem you're running into, you must seek out diversity.
Reach out to the local branch of the NAACP, as well as the Diversity Working website. If you're working with a recruiter, be very clear about your objectives and ask them to post jobs on a variety of job boards, and to reach out directly to qualified candidates with diverse backgrounds through social media sites, such as Twitter and LinkedIn.

3. Train Your Team

The Franklin Covey website and the WeComply website each offer online diversity training programs that cover important subjects, such as workplace harassment and conflict resolution between employees of different generations.
Take advantage of these programs to emphasize the benefits of a multicultural staff, while also addressing common problems that arise when diversity exists. When managed appropriately, a diverse team benefits the entire company, improving problem solving and attracting better talent.

4. Partner Diverse Talents Accordingly

Once you have a diverse staff, take advantage of it. When you're organizing teams, mix people up so that you have a melting pot of individuals from different genders, ages, and ethnicities.
You may find that you can't always organize teams this way, but when it comes to creative problem solving, come up with fun ways to engage various team members. For instance, if you're looking for new ways to market your product, ask the IT and accounting departments to pitch in some ideas.
Great ideas can come from unexpected places, so never count someone out just because their background is in another field.

5. Institute a Mentoring Program

Match up your younger staff with older employees. If you receive any push back, point out the benefits to both parties--for instance, the younger staff member can learn the ropes of the industry, while the older staff member can learn about new technologies.
Add in cross-training for any employee who wants to participate. This also improves the productivity of your organization, ensuring that everyone can pitch in when resources are tight.
Once you achieve diversity at your startup, use it as a marketing tool. Feature your team on your website to show potential customers that you're an equal opportunity employer. Believe it or not, people do pay attention to these things. By making diversity a cornerstone of your startup's culture, you give yourself a leg up on the competition.

Source: www.inc.com

5 Company Culture Hacks for a Happier Workforce

BY Ilya Pozin

It's simple: A happier team means a happier workplace. Here's how to get it.

What do chocolate, puppies, and a brisk walk have in common? These things can all make us happier throughout the day, and they can all be incorporated into your company culture to inspire a happier workforce.

Company culture is suddenly a business buzzword, but it shouldn't be hard to see why. Recently, Gallup found 70 percent of American workers were disengaged on the job, costing the economy an estimated $550 billion in lost productivity. The average worker is only staying in a job for about 4.4 years before hopping to a better opportunity. Great company culture can keep people productive and help you retain your best employees.

So what do most top-notch company cultures have in common? Let's call it the happiness factor.

Research has found happy employees work harder and are more productive than their less cheerful counterparts. In fact, recent research from the University of Warwick discovered happiness increases productivity by up to 12 percent.

This probably explains why the top employers usually enjoy more-robust bottom lines. In fact, a mere 1 percent rise in employee engagement at a single Best Buy store equalled $100,000 more in the store's annual operating budget.

Happy workers are also more likely to stick around. Companies on Fortune's list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For had increased retention, even in the high turnover field of tech. Among the best tech companies, the turnover rate was 5.9 percent, while the turnover rate for the industry at large was more than double at 14.4 percent.

It's no coincidence that Pharrell Williams' song "Happy" has become this spring's anthem. The song is so remarkable to us that we at Pluto.TV dedicated a whole channel to 24/7 "Happy."

If you're also looking for some ways to bring out the smiles in your office, here are five happiness hacks to get you started:

1. Chocolate improves everything.

Is there anything chocolate can't do? If there is, we haven't encountered it yet. Researchers from the University of Warwick gave study participants a test. But before the test, they got a little something sweet. Participants who had chocolate beforehand actually did 10 to 12 percent better than their candy-free counterparts.

What does this mean for your company culture? Should you go out and buy a chocolate fountain? Maybe not, but it can't hurt to have the sweet treat around the office. Workers like to snack during the day, and your team might need a sugary pick-me-up, especially as the afternoon grows longer. Providing a little chocolate in the break room for those with a sweet tooth is a quick and easy way to improve mood and, it turns out, productivity.

2. Get moving.

It's time to think about your company's employee wellness program. Healthy employees are happier, more likely to show up, and more likely to add positive value to your company. Companies from L.L. Bean to Johnson & Johnson have invested in wellness programs because they know employees who feel their best also put their best foot forward at work, not just on their morning jog.

Plus, the endorphins released during exercise can lead to an improved mood. Your wellness program could be as complicated as a large-scale, incentivized initiative or as simple as getting the team to take a yoga class or a long walk during lunch. Whatever you decide, make sure wellness and movement become important parts of your company cultures.

3. Bring Fido to work.

Could a pooch be your company's best friend? Research has found employees are more productive, happier, and less stressed when they can bring their four-legged friends into the office. A 2010 study by Central Michigan University discovered just the presence of a dog in the office led to employees collaborating more effectively.

A pet-friendly office won't be right for every organization, but you might want to consider the policy. After all, research from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Business found having animals in the workplace buffers stress and makes the job more satisfying. Pet lovers will be happier having Mr. Whiskers or Spot in the office, and taking pets for walks throughout the day can help keep your best people moving, combat stress, and return to their work refreshed.

4. Provide feedback.

Your team craves feedback, yet much of corporate communication seems perilously broken. In a recent survey by Fierce, Inc., less than one-third of employees said their company would be willing to change practices based on employee feedback. When employees don't feel heard, they don't feel respected or happy in the workplace. When this happens, they begin to dream of greener pastures.

Improve your existing employee feedback program or implement one that actually listens to the ideas of your best people. Set up a quarterly or monthly meeting where the whole team can talk through smart suggestions, and be sure to recognize when the company has implemented an employee-suggested concept. This way, your team can see their contributions and feedback really do matter.

5. Give back.

Most employees want to work for a company they can be proud of, and this means giving back and doing good in the world. This is especially important for Millennial workers: Research by the Intelligence Group discovered 64 percent of Millennials say making the world a better place is a professional priority.

Your company needs to be more socially responsible and more in touch with your local community. You know the good feeling you get after you've done something great for another person? This is the kind of happiness with which you want to empower your team.

Get out in the local community and see how you can help, start a volunteer drive, or even offer volunteer days off. You don't have to be a charity in order to make a difference, and your do-gooder employees will likely feel good as well.

Happy employees are more productive workers, so it's time to make happiness a priority for your company culture. Using some of these outside-of-the-box methods, you can give your team a smile and give your company a productivity boost.

Source: www.inc.com

 

How to Attract the Unconventional Worker

BY Robin D. Schatz

 Not just anyone can build creative, agile software--especially from a boat.

"You really have to stretch people's minds to get them to think big," says software developer Jon Stahl. "In a corporate world, that's very hard to do."

So, in 2008, Stahl left a large insurance company and founded LeanDog on a 122-year-old boat docked at the Cleveland Lakefront. LeanDog operates on the so-called Agile Manifesto of software development, which preaches strong communication and collaboration. It has worked with a large insurance company to redesign its online account creation and with a startup that serves deaf and hard-of-hearing youth. Stahl knows he needs to attract employees who thrive in an unconventional environment. "We want to solve hard problems," he says. "We have to hire people who want to do that." Stahl shared tips for finding and keeping the right employees.

1. Make a creative space. A floating office tends to attract people who dislike corporate predictability, and that's intentional. "The boat is 22 years older than the Titanic," Stahl says. "It's just completely different than anything else." The boat has wide-open workspaces, a rock-climbing wall, a fridge full of free local beer, and free-roaming canines, including Stahl's own bulldogs. LeanDog sponsors music nights for the whole tech community. Stahl is even building a chicken coop next to the vessel, so employees can enjoy fresh eggs every morning.

2. More than the job. LeanDog participates in local conferences, hosts onboard events, and emphasizes the company's broad role in the community. That has attracted a long list of applicants. "It's not enough to write great software," says Stahl. "We look for people who are active in the tech community." Stahl tries to personally interview every job candidate, to learn about the person's family, values, and hobbies. He likes to hire coders with degrees in sociology, education, or psychology. One software engineer is also a standup comic, while another employee plays the didgeridoo.

3. Audition your candidates. Software developers who apply for jobs receive a test by email asking them to solve one of three business problems. "They have to write software to see if they can follow the Agile practices we teach," says Stahl. That screens out a lot of casual applicants. Applicants who pass the test are then paired with an employee to work on a real coding problem for several days in the office. Still, job performance is only part of the picture. The company is looking for people who are committed to continual learning and personal development, says Stahl.

4. Find your own joy. When the company was looking for an all-around assistant who could vacuum, run errands, make smoothies, and greet guests, employees wanted someone who would spread joy around the boat. LeanDog's advertisement to fill a part-time, hourly wage job brought in more than 80 applicants. The young man who won the job is a college grad, who now makes frequent runs to the farmers' market and prepares lunch on board the boat. Says Stahl: "He's only been here three months and we have people wanting to expand his duties."

Source: www.inc.com

How to Build a Culture of Candor

BY Will Yakowicz

Changing your company's culture from fearful to honest and open seems daunting--but, as this case study shows, it can be done.

What happens when you ask, during all-hands meetings, if there are any questions? If you hear crickets, see no hands, and can feel the tension of unsaid issues employees would love to blurt out, it may be time to change your culture.

Innovation--from ideas, to products, to changing a stifling culture--cannot bloom in an environment of fear and command-and-control. Innovation needs a culture of freedom and safety. Your company's culture needs to allow people to be honest, candid, and loose.

Joseph Grenny, a four-time New York Times bestselling author, keynote speaker, and leading social scientist for business performance, writes in Harvard Business Review about how to transform a culture of fear to one where employees feel safe to speak their minds and raise issues they previously wouldn't dare to broach.

Grenny writes about how the president of an unidentified (but well-known) defense company managed to successfully transform his company's culture from being suppressing and punishing to candid, open, honest--and effective.

"Employees had decades of data from their own painful experiences that told them taking a risk to raise controversial questions was quickly punished," Grenny writes.
If that sounds like how your employees feel, try these approaches.

Lionize employees publicly.

To get your employees' best ideas, you need to create a safe forum where people feel comfortable enough to ask questions and praise those employees brave enough to pose questions, Grenny writes. Phil, the president of the unnamed tactical aircraft manufacturer, added a ask-me-anything type column in the company's newsletter. "It may sound like small potatoes, but simply adding a column called 'Ask the President' to the weekly internal newsletter was a daring move," Grenny said. Phil wrote each response to the most widely asked and sensitive questions. As the employees saw that the president took the questions and concerns seriously, and found that "disagreement would no longer be treated as insubordination," the more employees started to send in questions with their names attached. Phil would commend those employees and the quiet ones started to speak up. A little praise goes a long way. "Public praise is more about influencing those who hear it than those who receive it," Grenny says.

Rev the engine.

Now once you have made your employees feel safe, it's time to bring the opinion leaders together and push them to bring tougher, more disruptive questions. Grenny says if this group doesn't feel safe enough to broach serious issues, it's time to "prime the pump" by bringing them up yourself. "When people don't feel safe speaking up, leaders can show that it is safe by saying the hard things themselves. By saying the unsayable, and doing so with a tone of voice that suggested respect for this view, Phil created a little more safety," Grenny writes. After your influencers leave such a meeting meeting, the word will spread and employees will be more comfortable asking the hard questions.

Teach openness.

Grenny says you should "go beyond encouraging openness" and teach it to your senior team. He suggests to hold hour-long sessions, what he calls "crucial conversations," where you teach the team how to diffuse emotion, speak candidly, and build rapport. "As people acquired these new skills, their confidence in speaking up increased. The fact that Phil personally taught the skills showed how invested he was in having open conversations," he says. it's an approach worth emulating.

Put your ego aside.

The last step may hurt, so make sure your skin is tough enough. If you've surrounded yourself with yes men, you haven't gotten much honest feedback about how you might be unapproachable, stubborn, and unwilling to hear criticism. Ask your employees to break down your personality with you, tell them to explain how you are perceived by your employees, and how you can improve. All you need is "one brave soul," Grenny writes. The most important hting to remember: You're asking for it, so you cannot hold anything against the courageous employee telling you how it is. Embrace the feedback and use it for positive change.

Source: www.inc.com

 

4 Ways to Stop Negative Office Gossip

BY Janine Popick

Prevent your company from becoming high school all over again with these four tips.

"Hey, did you hear ... "

Gossip--it's something that no company wants within its walls, but it's going to happen. And if you think your employees aren't spreading it, well, I hate to break it to you, but you're wrong.

A little gossip isn't harmful; in fact, a recent study at Stanford even suggests it could be a good thing (as long as it benefits the larger group as a whole). But sometimes, there are bigger rumors that have the potential to cast a sense of distrust throughout the entire organization, where employees might think that something is up and they aren't being informed for a reason.

If you're the leader of your company, you need to acknowledge the gossip and let your employees know what's really going on. The longer you choose to ignore it or wait it out, the more likely it'll spread to other parts of the company--and the more likely it'll get even more inaccurate, just like the old game of telephone.

Here are four ways stop the rumor mill from spinning out of control:

1. Get to the bottom of it.

Before you can do anything to quell the gossip, get your facts straight. This might mean asking your managers or department heads what they've heard. If you've fostered a good relationship with them, where they're comfortable telling you all the good and bad things going on with their teams, then the easier it'll be to pinpoint exactly what's being spread around the halls and to what extent.

2. Address it directly.

Your first reaction might be to just talk to the person who's spreading the rumors. But what about all the folks who heard the rumor and, although they're not actively telling others, think what they've heard is true?

You need to address the entire team, perhaps even the entire company. But instead of making the meeting about the rumors, turn it into an open forum for employees to voice their concerns about anything, related to the gossip or not. Take questions from everyone in advance so you can prepare your answers. Put out a suggestion box so people can submit their questions anonymously. Yes, that's old-fashioned, but you'd be surprised at how honest employees can be when their identity is protected and respected.

3. Be frank.

The type of rumors that can really hurt a company are the ones that make employees think that leadership is hiding something from them. So be honest. If a mistake was made, own up and promise that it won't happen again. If it was simply false information, say so. (But don't point fingers at anyone in front of a group.) If employees are unhappy or confused about certain decisions made by leadership, provide context so they can see the bigger picture and all the things happening behind the scenes that they might not have been aware of. Honesty breeds honesty.

4. Confront repeat offenders.

Inevitably, you'll have an employee who just can't keep his or her mouth shut and is always on the lookout to spread any kind of information, whether good or bad. (I call him "Gary the Gossip.") In this case, you might have to have a one-on-one with Gary and tell him that if he "hears" any rumors, to come to you directly. The idea is to make him feel that you trust him to get the facts straight first before asking or telling his co-workers.

You can't keep your people from talking. But these four tips should help prevent your company from becoming high school all over again.

 www.inc.com