Page 147 - How America's Best Places to Work Inspire Extra Effort in Extraordinary Times

134B RE-ENGAGE

time he had been questioned for misrepresenting the facts of a situ-
ation. We have also had other kinds of bad leader behavior, such as
yelling incidents. Our usual approach in these instances is to address
the behavior directly, coach the individual, or get them into anger
management classes, which has worked for us. Some have needed help
with stress management, which is sometimes connected to getting bet-
ter at planning and time management. Some of our people have had
substance abuse issues, and for them we provide rehabilitation and
counseling through our Employee Assistance Program.

Q: What steps have you taken to ensure that all your leaders are
in alignment with key business objectives?
Gallineau: We constantly communicate. We have a once-a-month
“leader’s loop” meeting where managers and senior leaders discuss
objectives and key issues. It’s always two-way. We hold stand-up
meetings of all managers in the ballroom when needed. We have 187
nonexempts who are responsible for hiring and firing, so that’s a big
meeting.
Ellis: We try to keep everyone in alignment. We also hold Star rallies
where we have giveaways and fun, and provide important infor-
mation on what customers are saying, and twice a year we report
the results of our employee surveys. People actually come in for these
rallies on their days off.

Aligning and Re-Engaging Employees in Turbulent Times

A survey by Accenture in November 2008 revealed that
almost two-thirds of U.S. middle managers believed the
economy was having a negative impact on their work envi-
4
ronments. The survey of more than 300 middle managers
across the United States found that 6 in 10 felt that employ-