WHAT IS A GPTW – “GREAT PLACE TO WORK”

“Great Place to Work™” (GPTW) is a well-recognized certification, created by a global people analytics and consulting firm with the identical name. They work with companies all over the world, getting access to their reports, employees assessments, and surveys, with the Trust Index™, which they use for over 30 years on the research market.

Its mission is to build a better world by helping organizations become a great place to work for all. Up to this date, there are over 5 million people working on certified companies only in the USA, and this number is growing larger each day and worldwide.

Within thousands of certified companies, we can mention a few: Cisco, DHL Express, Hilton Hotels, Salesforce, Stryker, Mars Inc, The Adecco Group, Mercado Libre, EY (UK), SAP (SE), AT&T, American Express, Adobe, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, Farmers Insurance, Regeneron and so many others. The world yearly top 100 rank is highly competitive.

Nevertheless, besides the possibility of getting or renewing a certification, what’s most important is that companies have the opportunity to learn from their principles. Interest in improving the work environment and leading people to work happier is the first step to a journey of positive results.

WHY BECOME A GREAT PLACE TO WORK

Companies wish to grow, scale their operations, and growth involves new people joining your business. For this reason, it’s important to invest in creating a strong corporate culture, creating a healthy environment and preserving an agreeable organizational climate.

According to GPTW, here are some numbers why business owners must consider human resources as one of the main strategic areas in their businesses:

67% Fast growth companies that fail within 10 years
Source: Fortune

$600 Million Lost in mergers with cultural mismatches
Source: HBR

6-9 months Salary cost to replace a qualified employee
Source: Huffpost

It’s a fair reflection to verify if the employees’ experience is being measured in your company, just like all other areas. If it isn’t yet, it’s always a good time to start. Searching for counseling from experienced companies might be a good idea to save time, since you may obtain information on the best ways to implement and adapt your own processes.

WHO SHOULD BE ENGAGED TO MAKE YOUR COMPANY A GREAT PLACE TO WORK?

Improving the work conditions and organizational climate should be a common mission, shared by everyone in the company, as well as in your community and society. Business owners can help each other at learning what works better and what doesn’t, mainly when there are regional/local issues like legal and cultural aspects that impact the way workers feel about how they are treated as collaborators, and how they must commit.

As we’ve said, companies can save a lot of time and energy on turnovers and low performer workers if they invest in attracting and retaining the right people, improving the working environment as a whole. The advantages are not only financial, of course. The employer company will see a productivity rise, among many other positive results.

The society also benefits from that, with happier collaborators tending to stay healthier in the long-term, which reduces the rates of social problems like illnesses, unemployment, financial debts, safety, and others. From this point of view, everyone should help spread the idea, and governmental institutions should also aim to hit these high standards.

Human resource managers and consultants obviously head the adaptative process in the companies they work for. It’s important to make it clear that transforming habits and culture are not a job for only one person. It can only happen if the top management (directors) and employees are truly interested in it, not only as a branding action but as a win-win evolution process, with benefits for all parties.

Technology companies and software industries have several representatives already well ranked worldwide as excellent places to work. Remote working brought new challenges to them, who are trying to elaborate new policies that integrate people virtually with quality. So, remote team leaders and remote workers are also interested in guidelines to improve their work relations.

CHALLENGES AND KEY POINTS TO START THE CHANGE

Values are key points to guide clear communication and try to evolve, accepting employees from a variety of cultures. Defining and exposing your company’s values to all workers and newcomers is something essential, as well as explaining all their implications. It’s an illusion to believe everyone can fit in a company. At least, theoretically, people must be taught quite explicitly about how these values are put into practice, and check if they agree or accept to be part of your environment.

Practicing leadership with coherence, according to the company’s values is also a motivation trigger. Employees notice whether companies apply values daily on their routine, or they leave them aside, as theory. It’s easier to say than to do, but that’s something important. Talking openly, admitting the points that you need to improve is a way to demonstrate the will to evolve. You must guide collaborators on how to improve themselves, and many times they can also contribute with ideas to keep the company’s values alive.

The market is constantly changing, and so are contracting modalities. Therefore, human resource and company owners can’t assume employees master legal subjects, besides considering they have very diverse expectations and personal values. It’s important to publish regulatory rules to all newcomers, to help them understand how things work.

RESULTS FOR GREAT COMPANIES TO WORK

• A happier environment is more conducive to creativity and innovation when collaborators feel valued;
• Savings on turnover reduction/employees loyalty and commitment to long-term projects;
• Teams’ alignment according to the company’s values;
• Greater safety and protection for the company’s data, with loyal collaborators;
• Employees give their best when they feel recognized;
• Better organizational climate.

HOW CAN SCRUM AND AGILE HELP COMPANIES BECOME A GPTW?

See how to start the change to make your company a great place to work with the Scrum framework and the Agile methodology, no matter what your business area is:

CLEAR COMMUNICATION:

Demonstrate exactly to all your workforce and stakeholders your company’s mission, values and vision. Display your company’s chart and all collaborator’s roles, so they learn the importance of their contribution,  the steps for their career growth and the common objectives, to drive engagement. Convey your internal guidelines, regulatory rules, helpful manuals. You can do all this with an Agile project management tool. Leave information handy. People commit to what they can comprehend.
Publish internal company guides with GitScrum Documents and GitScrum Wiki.

DYNAMIC COLLABORATION:

Offer an appropriate project management tool, where your multi-talented teams can organize their tasks and be responsive to you. This way, you can optimize time and facilitate leadership. Moreover, you create projects and teams that move their tasks forward in a collaborative way and get feedback from clients.
Organize self-driven teams and collaboration with Gitscrum Board

POSITIVE CHALLENGES:

Unlike many managers believe, people enjoy challenges, provided that they have strong purposes and attainable goals. Associating tasks to deadlines does not always have to be painful if you manage them reasonably. Create weekly challenges called “sprints” for all your working teams, with clear rules.
Challenge your team with GitScrum Sprints

MEASURE EFFORTS:

Use your Scrum project management tool to facilitate workload management by assessing the size and complexity of your job’s tasks. This way, you balance workload according to your team’s work capacity and the company’s quality standards. Besides, you avoid the effects of overloading. If you do a task once, you can rate it to a difficulty level. Attribute point values to it every time someone has to repeat it. It will help you distribute tasks fairly and equally.
Manage workload with GitScrum Task Effort

RECOGNIZE AND REWARD:

Allow your collaborators to shine in the work environment: turn them into a superstars team. Recognition is making people feel valued for their individual contribution to global results. Gamification is a growing trend worldwide, and you can add it to your routine with an agile project management tool. It lets you reward gradual achievements, drive team motivation and add fun to work.
Meet GitScrum RockStar Team, the ultimate Gamification feature!