How we help lg2’s Production Team maintain great employee retention

What does it take to stay connected to your people and sustain great employee retention despite rapid growth?

Challenges

Staying connected to a growing remote team

When David Legendre became partner and VP of account services production at lg2, the firm was on its way to becoming the largest independent creative agency in Canada.

But with any growth comes challenges.

“As a manager in this new virtual world, I find it harder to get the pulse of employees and truly know what’s going on.”

As David brought on more project managers, graphic designers, and video producers, it became even more difficult for the team to stay productive and connected. His team went from 32 to 50 in the last four years.

At the time, there was minimal HR support, so responsibility for employee morale lay with team managers.

“Obviously, some leaders were more natural than others. We needed a way to level the playing field and make sure all of our employees were enjoying the work culture that we aspired to provide.”

The swelling ranks made it hard to keep up with one-on-one meetings and town hall calls garnered little open feedback. David was worried that his team’s concerns weren’t getting heard.

“I see myself as their chief happiness officer. If I don’t know that something is wrong, then I can’t do anything about it.”

“As a manager in this new virtual world, I find it harder to get the pulse of employees and truly know what’s going on.“

Needing a solution that would help managers connect with their growing distributed teams, lg2 looked for a tool that could:

• Help employees feel safe sharing their thoughts and concerns.
• Make it easier for managers to acknowledge and action issues.
• Maintain open communication without overwhelming managers with 1-1 meetings.

That’s when they discovered Officevibe, a people-first employee experience platform that makes it easy for managers to have open and productive conversations with their staff.

Solution

A safe space for productive conversations

lg2 implemented Officevibe to help managers connect with their remote teams and make people-first decisions with ease.

“Officevibe has had a big impact on our retention. It helps us work on issues that truly matter to our employees, and has really improved our relationships.”

David was excited to start using the system to gather feedback to learn more about what was on his employees’ minds.

Maintaining open communication with Pulse Surveys

“Every week or two, I use the feedback tool to send out a survey. The anonymous replies help me get a sense of what’s going on in that moment.”

Unlike other employee surveys, Officevibe’s Pulse Survey tool collects employee responses anonymously. David says it’s made a difference in his team’s willingness to be candid.

“We are creating a safe space and people are using it. Sometimes it’s not easy for people to say what they want to say in a one-on-one conversation. Now, they have this other forum to voice their concerns and opinions.”

Identifying team priorities

“Officevibe makes us better managers. It helps us work on issues that truly matter to our employees.”

So far, David has been able to monitor issues like when his staff is feeling overwhelmed with their workload, or when there’s mounting frustration with a process, like a handoff between teams.

“It’s hard when you’re not seeing these problems with your own eyes, and even more so with our teams being virtual. Officevibe helps us spot patterns and course-correct.”

A snapshot of team satisfaction

David says the dashboard gives him a quick way to see where he needs to focus his efforts.

“It shows a global perspective of the team’s level of happiness. You get a heads up if there’s been a dip in collaboration or if people feel unrecognized.”

That easy visibility drives action, and it’s what makes Officevibe so much more than just an employee satisfaction survey.

“If somebody shares a concern and you don’t answer, I think it actually makes things worse. You have to respond and implement solutions.”

Making meetings matter

Officevibe’s meetings tool makes it easy for David and his employees to set an agenda for one-on-one meetings and keep track of action items.

“The meetings tool is a centralized space where managers and employees can actually track objectives. It’s really helped structure our one-on-ones so they’re more efficient.”

Not only does the tool keep goals visible between meetings, but it lets each person flag new issues as they occur so they don’t get forgotten. 

“Our meetings have become more valuable for both me and my employees.”

Celebrating team efforts

Good Vibes, Officevibe’s recognition tool, helps team members send each other positive feedback and amplify their strengths. 

“It’s hard when you’re not seeing these problems with your own eyes. Officevibe helps us spot patterns and course-correct.”

Manager-to-employee or peer-to-peer, the upbeat messages provide an instant lift to both the sender and receiver.

“Week over week, more people are using it. They like giving each other appreciation.”

The tool offers prompts like, “Who would you like to clone?” and, “Who can magically transform a nightmare project into a piece of cake?” Team members choose a recipient and add a personal note. It’s incredibly engaging.

“It’s an easy way to brighten people’s day. I have to remind myself not to overdo it.”

Results

Exceptional retention in a tough industry

Officevibe has helped David maintain a positive employee culture on lg2’s production team, in spite of rapid growth and remote distribution.

“Over the last four years, we’ve had less than 10 employees leave from our team of 50. In our world, that is a very low turnover rate.”

His team’s average of 5% annual turnover beats the industry average by a whopping 500%. No wonder David and his colleagues are proud.

“I truly believe that Officevibe has had an impact on our retention. It’s really improved our relationships and decision-making.”

With anonymous feedback that makes employees feel safe being honest, and collaboration tools that keep the team’s priorities front and center, lg2’s managers are confident they are focusing their efforts on changes that matter.

“In the service industry, you’re nothing without your team members. Officevibe is part of making sure that you know what’s going on so that you can keep your team happy.”

David loves how the thoughtfully designed tools keep evolving, finding new ways to boost employee engagement and satisfaction. He sees a long future with Officevibe.

To other managers, he says:

“If you’re growing and your employees are important to you, you definitely need to give this tool a shot.”

“In the service industry, you’re nothing without your team members. Officevibe is part of making sure that you know what’s going on so that you can keep your team happy.“

Learn more about how you can boost employee retention on your team with Officevibe’s uncomplicated and intuitive features.