As a dealer in our industry, what would you say is your company’s greatest asset? Is it your annual earnings? The inventory you have on the floor or in your warehouse? Or your recurring revenue contracts?
All are important to your company’s success and well-being, but I submit that there’s an even greater asset—your employees.
With happy employees, a company is likely to have happy customers. Unfortunately, the reverse is all too often true as well. Treating employees well is the right thing to do for many reasons, and going hand-in-hand with it is the need to develop and foster a culture that values and empowers employees.
The forward-thinking company owner seeks to create an environment that keeps employees engaged, encourages professional growth and motivates them to do their best work.
A company culture like this goes a long way in terms of having satisfied employees and happy customers, and it can be a powerful tool when you’re recruiting new talent.
A Pew Research Center report from 2023 reveals that about half of America’s workers view their jobs favorably and are satisfied with their relationships with their co-workers and managers. However, they’re less satisfied with the opportunity to develop new skills through training (44%), how much they’re paid (34 %) and opportunities for promotion at work (33%).
Addressing the issues of compensation and opportunities for promotion and skills may be a good start in building a strong company culture with engaged employees. Another key step—and one that worked for us—is establishing a culture committee within the company.
As our company grew and we expanded into neighboring states, we knew how important it would be to help foster camaraderie among our team members who work in the same location as well as those who don’t. The culture committee was one way to help achieve that goal; its objective was and is to build and maintain a strong, positive company culture.
That can mean having uncomfortable conversations at times, because the committee should encourage both positive and negative feedback (hopefully most is positive, but you can learn from negative feedback as well). Overall, it’s an excellent vehicle for helping build an engaged, cohesive team.
Our culture committee is employee-led. We do have one senior management staff person there to address questions or suggestions that come up, but the employees drive the committee. Suggestions for improvement, issues that may arise in the workplace and finding ways to build camaraderie among the team are some of the topics at the monthly meetings. And if the group suggests an out-of-the-office activity, our management is empowered to respond immediately, and often times the response is “yes.”
Our committee’s suggestions have led to afternoon cookouts, bowling, trivia nights, trips to see our hometown baseball team and becoming involved in community charitable work. We’re heavily invested in the “Adopt a Family” program. We’ve organized other teambuilding activities, including supporting a nonprofit client by helping them prepare clothing and food for the needy.
Our culture and how we operate is based on the FISH! Philosophy. Every new and current employee has a FISH! book that describes how their company developed a strong culture. FISH! came from a Seattle fish market, the Pike Place Fish Market.
Watching fishmongers work in a busy market might not seem like the ideal place to witness a thriving, positive company culture. But that’s precisely what filmmaker John Christensen came across when he happened on the Pike Place Fish Market. The FISH! Philosophy website says that Christensen saw this world-famous market draw large crowds who watched the fishmongers work and bought lots of fish.
The FISH! principles are:
- Be there: Be emotionally present for people. Bring your “best self” to the workplace and care about others.
- Play: Be creative, enthusiastic and having fun.
- Make their day: Find ways to serve or delight people in a meaningful and memorable way. Contribute to someone else’s life—not because you want anything but because that’s the person you want to be.
- Choose your attitude: Take responsibility for how you respond to what life throws at you. Your attitude choice affects others. Ask “Is my attitude helping my team or my customers? Is it helping me to be the person I want to be?”
We’re big believers in the FISH! Philosophy and in building a strong culture. And our work has paid off. We’ve been privileged to be chosen as one of the “Best Places to Work in Illinois” the last four years (fingers crossed for a fifth win in 2025!). This particular competition surveys employees to obtain their feedback on the work environment. We’ve found it instructive to review their (anonymous) comments as part of our ongoing effort to have the strongest, most positive workplace we can offer.
If you’re thinking about ways to improve your company culture, here are a few suggestions.
Create a culture committee if you don’t have one. Find a half dozen people from your organization who will guide and direct this effort. An active, vibrant culture committee can bolster company morale by planning out-of-the-office activities and team building exercises, and it can act as a conduit for any concerns or suggestions between the employees and management. Encourage all feedback, and respond appropriately.
Encourage employees to be invested in the company through a plan in which commissions and/or financial rewards for performance are part of the culture.
Acknowledging employee achievements (such as work anniversaries) can go a long way toward building morale. Doing so through a newsletter, email blast, PR/press release or social media post makes an employee feel valued and appreciated.
Seek input from employees. Encourage them to offer ideas on how to make things even better. The best suggestions can come from within your ranks, from people who have a stake in the company’s future. For example, in 2018 our company re-branded from Des Plaines Office Equipment to Pulse Technology. We didn’t seek the services of a re-branding agency but instead underwent the exercise internally. We asked employees to meet and come up with suggestions for what our company’s new name should be and explain why. It gave our team a voice and showed we have confidence in their abilities.
Plan an active schedule of fun activities such as bowling, trivia nights, cookouts, going to a baseball game, rock climbing or other events designed to get people together outside the office.
Partner with a charitable organization (e.g., Habitat for Humanity) or other community-based groups and organize volunteer work from your company. This is a great bonding experience for all. You can also encourage employees to volunteer within the community, and perhaps pay them for several hours of volunteer work.
Find and promote opportunities for employees to train for upgraded certifications and industry education. They value these opportunities, and your company will be well served.
We’re big believers in “Best Places to Work” competitions. If you win, it will be a powerful tool in recruiting new talent, and your current employees will feel proud to work at a place with that designation. These competitions are sponsored by Chambers of Commerce or regional/business newspapers.
Seek feedback. If an employee leaves, an exit interview can provide useful information. We also conduct “stay” interviews during which we speak individually with employees at least once a year, asking what they like and what the company can do better.
Look at the FISH! Philosophy or something similar that provides a plan and direction for improving your dealership’s culture.
Culture is important in the workplace. Successful dealers create environments where employees feel appreciated, valued and empowered. It requires a strong, continuous commitment to the principles that support a positive company culture. Think of it as an investment in your dealership’s future. You’ll be glad you did.
