Make time for fun
You’re in business to do a job and make money, not entertain or be entertained by your co-workers. But fun doesn’t have to be frivolous. In fact, it’s essential to getting the most out of your employees, particularly as they get bombarded by bad economic news from every media outlet.
At Barona, Salinas has placed an emphasis on creating an enjoyable work environment — but he does it with an eye toward reinforcing his core values.
Salinas hands out star performer awards and cash bonuses at every quarterly company meeting, in much the same way a lot of leaders do. But he takes it a step further with a little something extra. It goes back to Salinas’ belief that little things can make a big difference in the attitude of your employees.
“It’s doing these little things where you can plug away and make people feel good about where they work,” he says. “We have quiz contests on our core values and things that are happening at the casino. It gets people psyched and excited, but at the end of the day, the real key is that someone from management took the time to say, ‘Thank you, and here is a token of our appreciation.’ It’s a simple act, but it’s amazing how that doesn’t happen enough in business.”
Salinas also made it a priority to avoid one of the biggest morale destroyers in business: taking away employee perks. Sometimes you have to get creative to keep employees happy, and that is exactly what Salinas and his staff did.
When Barona moved its casino into a new facility, the old facility was slated for closure, along with its dining hall, which also served support staff working in separate buildings around the Barona complex. Spurred by an employee’s suggestion, Salinas decided to keep the facility open and covert the dining hall into an employee lounge.
“We kept the old facility open, and we added some high-end vending machines, some plush sofas, and it’s now a place where people can just relax,” Salinas says.
“It can be very easy to save some money here and there by taking away or not implementing some of these feel-good programs, but that’s a huge mistake as far as your employees are concerned.”
How to reach: Barona Resort & Casino, (619) 443-2300 or www.barona.com
