Free snacks help. They are not the answer. Five investments, values, goals, learning, transparency, and fun, that earned us a Best Places to Work nod.
Loftwall named one of the Best Places to Work in Fort Worth — and what it took to get there.
Loftwall was just named one of the Best Places to Work in Fort Worth. What earns a company that title? Many would answer with a host of great benefits: free snacks in the breakroom, affordable healthcare, flexibility to work from home. Those perks are awesome and play a part. But in my experience, the title takes more than free snacks.
Loftwall is a commercial furniture manufacturer focused on bringing creative privacy solutions to the workplace. We were named one of 2020's fastest growing companies by Inc. Magazine — number two for fastest growing manufacturer in Texas. We have north of 70 team members located in the heart of the DFW metroplex, and we proudly manufacture all of our products right here.
So how did we do it? In October 2020, the leadership team came together and asked a simple question: what do we want to be known for? Below are the five investments that helped Loftwall earn an award we have had penciled on our goals list for quite a while.
We changed as a company. New leadership, new headcount, tons of growth — so what we stand for needed a refresh. Our prior seven core values were noble goals and buzzwords, but they were not part of what drove us to make business or people decisions. We selected four values that laid the foundation of who we are now.
Have you ever worked at a company that continually changes the goal? Not the number, but the vision. This year Loftwall rallied behind the thematic goal of PROVE IT — prove we are in control operationally, prove we can diversify our revenue, and prove that our growth was not a fluke.
As a small business, it is easy to put internal employee needs on the back burner for budgetary reasons. Of our four core values, one is dedicated to learning — so we needed to invest. We hired a full-time Learning and Development employee. Very few organizations under 100 employees have one.
When you are growing fast, change comes often. The key to great change management is communication. Our internal meeting cadence allows everyone the chance to learn, ask questions, and process the changes coming. Our leadership team meets weekly, and we waterfall messaging down to teams and one-on-ones.
At the end of 2020, we surveyed people on how they wanted to spend the Loftwall budget for events and gifts. Too often, leaders think they know what people want rather than asking. The survey shared valuable insights around smaller perks like snacks and drinks, more time for teams to enjoy each other in person, and individual gifts.
We are a manufacturing company that has a hot-and-cold plant, occasionally works too many hours, and wears multiple hats. But we also invest in our employees through values, goals, education, transparency, and many excuses to have fun together. This year, we earned the number 30 spot. Next year, we are pushing for top 20.
Made in Fort Worth
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