Be consistent
Employees need to know that the same rules apply to everyone
as far as the behaviors and practices that are acceptable and those
that are not.
Brightpoint has a whistle-blower procedure in which a third-party
service is used to handle calls from employees with concerns.
“Any employee can call and say, ‘I think something isn’t being
done correctly,’” Laikin says. “We investigate it, and we take everything seriously. When it’s appropriate, we take actions pretty quickly.
“We are all held to the same standards. We’ve had situations, like
with all growth companies, where you have different employee
issues, whether it’s harassment, etc. Employees know that it does-n’t matter if you are the CEO or a senior manager or an entry-level
person. When people don’t adhere to what is reasonable, typically,
they don’t last at the company.”
Through regular communication and by operating with as much
transparency as is possible, you give your employees a clear sense
of what your company’s values are. You also reinforce the idea that
everyone is on the same team working toward the same goals.
“It’s company newsletters and webcasts and getting your message
out there all the time,” Laikin says. “At the end of the day, we stick
to the message and we overcommunicate it, whether it’s on our Web
site or in e-mails or continuing education about what values and
ethics are. … The commonality is that people want to be respected,
and they want to be treated with dignity.
“Some of the easy things are branding or strategy or financial
goals. Those are easy messages to get out there and to execute on.
The cultural parts about the right way to do business, the honest
way to do business, the legal way to do business and the way to do
fair business, those are the things you educate people on over time.”
HOW TO REACH: Brightpoint Inc., (800) 952-2355 or www.brightpoint.com
