Transparency

by Mark McClanahan

In December of 2013, we at Mosby Building Arts performed an internal company culture survey to measure our employee engagement. Though it’s typically a best practice to use an outside service for employee surveys, we knew it was better than nothing at all when our resources allowed for only an internal audit.

One of the things we uncovered from the results of our survey was the desire of our associates to have more transparency from our management team. They wanted to understand not only what was going on but also why decisions were made.  

In 2014, we implemented a handful of new methods for employees to receive more transparency.  The first was to open up our leadership meetings to any associate who wanted to attend. These meetings occur once per month, last about two hours and include a full disclosure of financials.  The guest attendees, typically four or five employees, are encouraged to participate and ask questions.

In addition, managers provide reports to their respective teams after management meetings. The managers can use any report or PowerPoint from the meeting to help communicate the topic and tenor of the meetings. They can deliver the information in their team meetings or via email.

Another method of adding transparency was through the use of morning breakfast meetings with the president. Any employee can sign up to join me for breakfast. Typically, anywhere from one to five employees at a time will go. These meetings last an hour and a half. There is no agenda, as it’s simply a time for the associates to ask anything they would like regarding the company.

There’s no doubt in my mind: Transparent leadership is a key ingredient for a healthy company culture.

Mark McClanahan (mmcclanahan@callmosby.com or 314.909.1800) is the president at Mosby Building Arts.