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Lamoureux Associates, Inc. Company founder seeks to to engage employees, build empowered workforce Background: Lamoureux Associates provides space planning, interior design and building documentation consulting services for commercial real estate clients. Donn Lamoureux founded the company in 1978, and built it into a successful enterprise that today employs 17 people. Challenge: As the president of the company, Lamoureux’s unique skills and experience had led to an “empowerment vacuum” in which every aspect of the company relied on his involvement. Employees were reluctant to take on new roles, tackle challenges or even bring forth ideas. To his staff, Lamoureux was “the company,” and as the client list grew, so did Lamoureux’s stress level and feelings of frustration. His goal was simple: He wanted to expand his staff’s capabilities and involvement enough to be able to take a vacation and not worry! Strategy/Solution: The Plaid Group’s first step was to spend time with Lamoureux to gain an understanding of the company’s background, his view of the current situation and his long-term vision for the company. It was agreed that the goal of this exercise was to create a more reliable, predictable, self-sufficient organization. The Plaid Group recommended an in-depth interview process that could uncover – from the employees themselves – what was needed in order to achieve “buy-in” and develop an empowered and more motivated workforce. Thus, every employee – including Donn himself and contractors who worked with the firm – were interviewed. The findings from those interviews showed that employees were uncertain about the company’s goals and management’s expectations. They wanted a more formal review process that would provide regular performance feedback. And they felt that more training and more opportunities to learn about the company would help them feel more a part of the team. In other words, they saw the company as “Donn’s company” – not their company. That’s why they were hesitant to make decisions or take initiative. Results:The Plaid Group used the input from the in-depth interviews to develop a detailed plan that Lamoureux Associates could immediately begin to implement. This plan included more than 20 concrete recommendations for improving communication, training and employee involvement. In order to make it easier for Lamoureux Associates to create priorities, The Plaid Group conducted a planning session with the company’s management team to identify activities that would have the most immediate impact. The Plaid Group’s message to company management: “The more you do, the more you’ll realize there is to do … but you can’t do it all. Do what you can, but it’s important to get started now.” To facilitate these improvements, the company put together a cross-functional steering committee that has turned ideas and suggestions into detailed processes and programs that are making a difference. For example, the steering committee used input from the interviews to create a thorough evaluation and merit raise program, complete with measurable job performance standards, pay grades and a bonus structure. In addition, the company has instituted “learning sessions,” planned and led by staff employees, in which topics of interest are communicated. These sessions have helped improve skills, knowledge and confidence among employees. And Donn Lamoureux now hosts quarterly all-employee meetings, in which he communicates goals and expectations, company activities, client service information and more. But just as importantly, Lamoureux himself believes that there is more employee ownership and empowerment at the company. Just three months after the start of The Plaid Group’s involvement, Lamoureux took his first vacation in years. Three months later, he took another! Testimonial from Donn Lamoureux - President, Lamoureux Associates, Inc. |
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