Thoughts on company culture

In this, the first post of the Davinci Suites blog, I would like to echo a blog entry that resonated with me recently. Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, in his post on the Zappos blog last January entitled "Your Culture is Your Brand" (www.blogs.zappos.com/blogs/ceo-and-coo-blog), points out the challenges of building a brand in the 21st century. Building a brand was different 50 years ago, when a group of people could sit down in a room and choose how they were going to design the company's image, then spend a great deal of money to do so.


Today, branding is much more democratic. If somebody has a bad experience at a company, they can blog about it or post a negative comment on a miriad of websites. The good news is that the reverse is also true. If somebody has a positive experience, the world can know in minutes.


The problem is that there is no way to cover every base where your branding will be affected. For example, if somebody were to meet an employee of ABC company in a bar and that employee were acting inappropriately, they have hurt ABC company's image.


Therefore, advertising can only get you so far. Hsieh points out that, although the airline and US auto industries pay enormous sums of money in advertising each year, many people when asked will have a negative opinion of these industries


So if advertising can't cover all of a company's bases, how can businesses effectively build a brand?


The answer is company culture.


When I read this blog post by Hsieh, I couldn't help but think of Davinci. Like any company in 2009, we encountered new challenges that tested our metal and forced us to rethink our model. As a small business support services company, in a market where small businesses were suffering the most, we realized that we couldn't afford not to think of our image in every detail. Like most small businesses in a slow economy, we had to get smart or die.


Culture was at the forefront of our minds. It wasn't enough anymore to offer a great product. We had to think not only in terms of "what do we sell?", but also in terms of "who are we?"


More than ever, it has been critical for us to be represented by smart, capable staff. We must all be on the same page when it comes to our vision, values, and goals, and act as a unified force to create an ideal environment where small business can thrive.


Our culture is what make Divinci unique. We strive to offer a full experience by blending professionalism with personalism, and hire and train intelligent and unique staff to live by this vision.


Our professionalism shows in the way we dress, answer the phone, conduct ourselves, and much more. When we are working on a project we finish it promptly and with our best effort. When we are asked a question or request we do everything to ensure it is handled with care. Every detail is covered, and every extra mile is traveled. These are basic requirements for success as a Davinci employee, and are carried out by every one of us.


But more unique is our personalism. It is important for us to get to know each client individually. Part of the joy of working here is meeting so many different people and learning about where they come from, their personal outlook, and how we can positively contribute to them. While it is certainly not required of clients to become friends with the staff, many clients have in fact developed an excellent sense of community in our centers.


We are always open to improving our culture and the brand that it undeniably creates. I related to Mr. Hsieh's post very much, and am looking forward to brainstorming how we can effectively apply some of his ideas. I especially liked that Hsieh worked with his staff to come up with a mutually agreed-upon list of 10 company values that they can live every day! This seems like a very effective concept!


On this note, in an effort to constantly improve ourselves, we will draft such a list in our next staff meeting and use it as a guide. I will post the complete list and discuss our conversation at the meeting next week.