Don't forget company culture when evaluating next career move

Right after my initial contact with Red Shoes PR, I knew that their company culture must be a little different. As hardly any PR agencies had entry-level openings or internships posted at the time of my job search, I began emailing different places asking if there were any openings. I probably emailed about 25 agencies, and Red Shoes PR was the only place that didn’t send me a generic, “No, we have no openings at this time. Please check our Web site for postings.” Karen responded to me and said that while they didn’t have any openings, they were always up for connecting with PR students and invited me in for a meeting.  I was impressed with this response and with their openness.

After my first informational interview with Red Shoes PR, the vibe I got about their company culture was confirmed. I immediately went home and told my roommates that Red Shoes PR was exactly the type of place I wanted to work. Observing the way employees interacted with one another, dressed and even the colors of the walls made me excited about the possibility of working there.

I believe that company culture plays a major role in the attitude, productivity and motivation level. Some aspects of company culture that I think are important are:

1.  Mission and purpose of the organization. Does everyone in your company understand the overall big picture and long term goals of the organization? If employees know what the company’s goals are and feel like their role in the company is valued and contributing to the big picture, they are more likely to have a positive attitude towards their job. Red Shoes PR does an excellent job of communicating to employees what the long-term goals are and how employees contribute to the big picture.

2. Organizational structure. Is your company structured as a traditional vertical hierarchy or is it more horizontal? Are employees encouraged to be competitive with one another or take on more of a team approach? Red Shoes PR aims to lean towards a horizontal structure and definitely takes a team approach. For us, this really seems to work well. Being able to share ideas and have candid conversations has helped me to learn at a much quicker pace than if it were a strict hierarchical structure.

3.  Work environment. Do people in your office sit in their offices with their doors closed? Do you work in cubes? What color are the walls? Do you have strict office hours? These are all details that can affect your productivity and attitude towards work. Until August, all five of us at Red Shoes were packed into 400 square-feet. So, we had no choice but to work closely together. Even as our space has expanded, we try to work collaboratively and spend time working in community spaces. We also have a bit of fluidity when it comes to work hours. We do not have a strict beginning of day/end of day. Everyone works hard and is accountable to one another.

4.  Work/life balance and values. Does your company take a stance on this? Is work supposed to come first? This is one of the most important aspects to think about when seeing if you will fit in with a company, yet often times I think it is overlooked. Red Shoes PR aims to be a company where employees and their families come first. People perform better at their jobs if their lives are balanced and other areas of their life are in check. It is also important to take vacation time and personal time. If work becomes the number one priority/only priority in your life, it is only a matter of time until you are burnt out.

While it may be tempting to get caught up in simply searching for the highest salary during a job search, company culture should definitely be considered. If you are able to find a company whose culture aligns with what you want as an employee, you are going to be much happier and successful in your job.

Like social media, our company philosophy also grew organically

 

 

To work hard

To have fun

To be the best

 

A prospect stumped me the other day. They wanted to know what our philosophy is as a business. In other words what makes us tick-- every day. Hmmmmm.

 

I remember more than a year a half ago furiously writing out our business plan and including our philosophy in the plan but the list was about 10 items long. With a list that long we were bound to fulfill one of them.

 

Out of that list of 10, three things have naturally risen to the top since we launched Red Shoes PR. But it’s funny, I think we had to grow into this philosophy, not necessarily dictate it from the beginning. Which if you think about this approach it is very similar to how social media also grows as well – organically.

 

It’s kind of like when you move into a new house. I remember buying furniture for my living room before really living in it. What a mistake. That furniture was quickly relegated to the basement. After we lived in the house for a year or two, then it became apparent, based on our lifestyle and personalities, what kind of furniture would suit us best.

 

The same thing applies to our company philosophy. I had an idea of what I wanted for an internal culture but I couldn’t quite put it down on paper --succinctly. But now I can. It was so easy when it came time to answer the question. The three principles I have outlined are at the core of who we are and what we do every day.

Getting A Job During the Recession—My Story

As a senior at St. Norbert College, I began my job search at the beginning of spring semester. My story of finding a job at Red Shoes PR is unique because when I first contacted them, they did not have any open positions. In the midst of sending out cover letters and resumes to every position I heard about or saw online that in any way resembled PR, communications or writing, I heard about Red Shoes PR when I saw Lisa Cruz featured on the cover of Women magazine. It immediately stood out to me as different than any other PR agency I had heard about. I began doing research on the company, and while they had no job postings listed on their web site, I went ahead and contacted them to see if they had any internships or entry-level positions open. They didn’t have any positions open at the time, but encouraged me to still send them my resume and writing samples.

A few weeks later, they invited me in to interview for a part-time summer internship. After two interviews, I was offered the position. While a part-time internship wasn’t my ideal post-college situation, I really liked the company culture of Red Shoes PR and knew that they were growing fast, so there was potential to grow with them. By my third week, I was switched to full-time and was ecstatic to be offered an account coordinator position at the end of the summer.

At a time when many of my peers have struggled to find positions in any way resembling what they had hoped for, I feel extremely blessed to have found a position not only in my desired field, but also at a company that truly is the perfect fit for me. Being at a small, start-up company has allowed me to jump right in and quickly gain experience that would have taken me years to gain at a big company. I am happy that I pursued Red Shoes PR, even though at first it didn’t appear they had an open position.

Here are some tips for the job search:
1.    Don’t aimlessly apply to every position you hear about. Research companies and find a place that you think you would fit in well with. Customize cover letters, and resumes to a few, specific jobs that interest you, instead of sending out dozens of generic ones.
2.    If you find a company that piques your interest contact them, even if there isn’t an open position posted. Not all companies post open positions and if it’s a good fit, they might create something for you.
3.    Remember that no one owes you anything. Even if you have already done multiple internships, do not be afraid to do another one. The place that you intern for post-college will know that you are looking for a full-time position. If nothing opens up with them, most likely they will help you connect with a company that does have openings.

Working Together in Social Media

A few weeks ago, we had the opportunity to be a part of a great, energetic presentation about social media for businesses and how it can impact a company’s bottom line. We didn’t end up just presenting one point of view, all of us represented each of our different perspectives: HubSpot, the backend measurement and today’s version of marketing. Red Shoes PR and the art of strategic communication and @tommytrc about how to engage.

One thing I mentioned during my portion of the presentation is that now, more than ever, is the time to “tear down those walls” between a companies’ core competencies such as legal, information services, Human Resources and more.

Social media for an organization should not just be one department such as marketing conducting social media efforts. The beauty of social media is its organic growth and the more people who are aware of their employers’ efforts can contribute with their voice. Think how powerful that can be for your organization. Each one of your employees is now sharing your company story online, in a way that has the potential to reach thousands of others.

Moving forward, together, as an organization to tell the company’s story with the IT Department for insights and measurement as well as making sure legal services and HR are all on the same page can be a powerful internal movement. This content, in turn, can spill over or be pulled by your target audience because they feel compelled to find out more information either online or in-person.

If you feel like you are working in a silo while moving forward in social media ... well, it’s because you most likely are.

Invite others to share your momentum as you move forward. Remember, social media is about engagement and conversations. Two ingredients that need to take place in person, beginning within the walls of your organization.

Everything I need to know about running a business I learned in the recession

Many people have asked us why we chose to start a business in one of the worst economic downturns that we will know in our lifetimes. The answer is simple; we didn’t know this would happen in May of 2008.  Having said that, would we have made a different decision? Absolutely not! In fact, I would recommend more people make the move when times are tough. We have learned and will continue to learn lessons that take some businesses generations to learn. Here’s a list of my top 5 lessons tough economic times teach all of us.

1. Frugality: Separate your needs from your wants and make smart purchasing decisions. Sure, we all want the grandiose office space that gives the impression of success and prestige, but that cost can be prohibitive. All costs need to be worked into your pricing structure and your overhead may put your pricing above the industry average. In some instances this is ok, but you don’t want your hands tied. Reevaluate where you’re spending money as a business and make sure it’s in line with your goals and vision. You may want the mac-daddy signage/computers whatever, but is it necessary? Determine a set of criteria by which to judge all purchasing decisions and stick to it! As with most rules, there are exceptions and the big exception to this rule is saving money on your people. Do not undervalue or underpay your people. In the end, it’s your people that will help get you and your business though the tough times.

2. Never get complacent: I think we’ve all seen that in tough times the individuals who lose their jobs aren’t necessarily the ones that should have moved on in the first place. In tough times everyone worries about their job because decisions are being forced to be made based on the bottom line. For small businesses, this means always challenging your value proposition. Why did your clients hire you? How do you contribute to their bottom line? Everything comes back to ROI.

3. Move faster than your surroundings: The economy and the market will dictate change. This happens very quickly when things are tough. Anticipate these changes and move faster than the market and certainly faster than your competition. Is the market demanding a new product/service or a change to your current product/service? If so, determine if you can make the necessary changes in a cost-effective, timely manner.

4. Be the best, even if you’re not the only: As the saying goes, “when the tide goes out, you’ll see who’s been swimming naked.” This isn’t a lesson for tough times this is a basic for anyone starting or buying a business. Determine early on what your point of difference will be. You will never be the only, ever, but you can be the best. Always look at what makes your business stand out against your competition and make sure you offer something different and/or better. The market will determine who’s left standing when the economy turns around.

5. Think big, act small: This lesson wraps up the first four lessons. Make smart purchasing decisions always keeping your business goals in mind. Always challenge your value proposition and point of difference, and make changes in a timely manner. Many times, people assume that tough times call for lower prices. Lowering prices in tough times is very rarely the answer. This is why this lesson is extremely important. Don’t forget who you and what you’re business represents. Lowering your prices or giving away free products/services will only train your consumers to expect the same in a good economy. Figure out how to work better and more efficiently. The tough times will eventually end, but the new processes you’ll develop will help you retain employees and increase revenue in a good economy.