Daniel Pink , author of Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, said that for the 21^st century, there exists an evidence based approach to motivation for complex work.   Daniel says that you can’t manage people into engagement. His recommendation is to pay them enough and then give them sufficient amounts of autonomy, mastery and purpose. So the secret to workplace happiness is not found in the carrots or external motivators to do great work.

People in complex jobs, which seem, these days, to make up the better part of the corporate workforce, require self direction. They also find a great deal of reward in the mastery of their work. The desire to get better at stuff and see real progress at work is highly satisfying. The only catch is that these people need to know the context of what they are doing and why what they do every business day really matters.

 Time Magazine recently quoted Nobel winning economist Daniel Kahneman saying that ‘when you analyze happiness, it turns out that the way you spend your time is extremely important.’

 When work is meaningful time passes quickly. The wheels of enterprise move in a kind of synchronized motion and teams are truly happier. Engagement? – check.  Great corporate culture? – check. What better place to spend half of your daily life but in a workplace where you actually feel happy and enjoy the company of others feeling the same. 

I got a unique opportunity to have dinner with their CEO Tony Hsieh & their COO Alfred Lin.  The following day which was Saturday they set up a 90 minute exclusive tour for 12 of us followed by an additional 90 minute  behind the scenes Q&A session where they really opened up to us.

To start with – I was intrigued and a little bit cynical.  Where they REALLY as good as all this press was saying ?

I’d been the Chief Operating Officer for 1-800-GOT-JUNK? during the heyday of the companies growth and cultural buzz.  During the midst of my tenure I was lucky to be there when we ranked #1 Company to Work For in BC two years in a row by BC Business Magazine and then ranked #2 in all of Canada to Work For.  I knew how the whole culture thing worked.  I saw how we cranked it up – and I saw it go up and down at various points during our growth.  We were having tours & Q&A’s of our company every Friday during those days too.  Were they really this good ? What did they do differently ?

I’d also helped build a couple other companies over the years with awesome cultures. College Pro Painters was where I cut my teeth with culture, and Ubarter.com was where I had fun trying it the dotcom way.  1-800- GOT-JUNK? was where we nailed it.

So with Zappos, I just wanted to see if they were REALLY as good as all their press said (and I’ve had lots of experience getting Free PR too)…..

Here is what I learned at Zappos.  I wouldn’t say I was blown away – I wasn’t – but it was damn good and I learned.  I was and still am in awe of HOW DEEPLY rooted their CEO & COO both live the core values that eminate throughout the company.  I have to go back on a weekday now too – to be fair – in an office that seats 700 people only about 20 were milling about.  My bet is the energy is mind blowing when they bring me back.

Key Points I saw and learned:

—First 10 hires are the most important people to ever hire.  They hire everyone else and they set the direction of the company culturally.

—Core values first…Make all your decisions based on them.  They asked employees what the core values should be and they call each other on them daily.

—They grade employees on how they are living the core values in all roles, two times a year.

—They bring job candidates from the airport in a shuttle. And after they drop off the candidate they ask the driver for his thoughts on the candidates fit culturally – the interview starts at the airport.

—To figure out your company core values they really pushed to have us ask ourselves what are our own personal core values….the company values come out of those.

—Core values should be short phrases not just single words like “passion”

—They tell the employees that they are responsible for care taking the core values.

—Culture is like what makes a flock of birds work with out leaders as they all fly and turn as a group. It’s their cultural DNA.

—As their CEO Tony said – if you don’t fire people for not following core values they become a meaningless plaque on the wall

—In 2003 they decided they wanted to be about customer service. So they cut a profitable model of drop shipping to REALLY focus on Customer Experience – and um – it’s working.

—Most important thing they’ve done is exceed expectations.

—Every year they print and give out a Culture Book (I got copies of 2008 & 2009) and it is only edited for grammar and spelling.

—Tony is obsessed with Happiness  – and suggests we all read the “Happiness Hypothesis”

—I think their quirky decorating of all workstations is a little bit too cluttered, dusty, and could use a few days of junk removal – but if that’s the only negative I found then even a guy with all my A.D.D. could turn a blind eye.

These guys GET Culture.  I only wish I could buy shares in the company.  Too bad Amazon bought the whole company for over $900 Million a few months ago

This guest post was written by:

Tony Hsieh, Cameron Herold, Alfred Lin

Cameron Herold

Founder, BackPocket COO
www.BackPocketCOO.com

Enjoy.

TheFunTheory.com is an initiative of Volkswagen.  The site is “dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or for something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better.”

~ Jessica Rozitis

Connecting with like minded people on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook can be valuable. It simply depends on how you make it work for you. Social media defines McNak’s culture.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to speak with Gillian Shaw, Digital Writer for the Vancouver Sun, and I was able to provide my take on how McNak deals with social media policies and the use of social media sites with our employees.  I originally ‘met’ Gillian on Twitter.  Gillian wrote a great article in today’s Vancouver Sun on this subject. Interesting read.

I had the opportunity to meet Gillian in person today at the SOHO SME business conference.  She was speaking on a panel with Rich Patterson and Shane Gibson – “The Business of Social Media: How to Maximize Connections Using Social Communities on the Internet”.

I had also ‘met’ Rich Patterson of NinePointTen Social Media and Patterson Brands on Twitter, and was happy to meet him in person today.  Wherever you make those social connections – whether it be on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIN etc. – there is nothing like meeting these great folks in person.

McNak embraces social media.  It keeps us connected to our community, and keeps the conversation flowing.  It also provides another avenue for new connections.  It’s just nice to make it personal once in a while.

~Jessica Rozitis

~ Jessica Rozitis

Participating in a local community endeavour not only helps your resume by showing your commitment to and support for an organization above and beyond paid employment, but can actually expand your business network. Sharing a common philanthropy or not-for-profit initiative is a great conversation starter. Most volunteering does not require that you have a specific degree or work experience. With such a variety of potential new people in your network, your horizons in the job search arena can quickly expand. People are also more willing and readily able to support people who are passionate about the same cause.

Volunteering and your brand: As you become more and more ‘fluent’ in the organization(s) you support, your knowledge and involvement add to your personal brand. The more well known you become, the more you will find yourself with a greater network to draw upon. People will start asking for you.

Community building is an excellent initiative that should not just be left up to the individual. Corporations are also deeply responsible for the success of our community. McNeill Nakamoto has been very actively involved with Big Sisters of BC Lower Mainland for over five years. We believe that without commitment to community, our success as a company is meaningless.  McNeill Nakamoto Recruitment Group was created over twelve years ago, and our focus is the same as when we began – to make a difference.  And what a tremendous surprise it was to be commended with the Big Sisters Big Heart award! This award is given annually to the company that has made the most significant difference to the Big Sisters of BC Lower Mainland. We are so very proud.

Everyone can make a difference. Every hour spent thinking about, and then actually participating in, something you believe needs your support, is time well spent. Think of it as a long-term investment in yourself and in others – every hour donated adds value to your career bank. It’s not always about the money.

~ Sarah McNeill

photo credit:  timparkinson

Thank you Chad Heidelberg for this excellent content!

~ Sarah McNeill

McNeill Nakamoto is proud of its involvement with Big Sisters and thrilled to have raised over $50,000 for Big Sisters of BC Lower Mainland.  We find ways to involve our staff, our clients, the community and especially the Little Sisters themselves.   We do this by raising funds and awareness:

• through  silver  sponsorship of the Big Sisters Divas Gala
• ‘McNak Jeans for Big Sisters’ – individual donations by McNeill Nakamoto staff members in exchange for wearing jeans to work
• Grape Juice, the fun and very successful Wine Auction created and  hosted by Team McNak
• ‘McNak Career Launcher’ for Little Sisters – a workshop on assisting teenage ‘Littles’ with resume and interview tips
• Sarah McNeill chairs the Big Sisters Gala, and with her influence and network has created a broad awareness in the community, as well as broken fund raising records for this annual event.

The Big Sisters Big Heart Award is given annually to a business for outstanding support of Big Sisters of BC Lower Mainland.

~ Jessica Rozitis

Cheryl Nakamoto and Sarah McNeill receiving Big Heart Award

Oh, and it looks so cool on my iPhone too.

~ Jessica Rozitis

We’ve been asked by so many people how we arrived at the name McNak. Interesting story.  The name of our company has, and always will be McNeill Nakamoto Recruitment Group.  Say that 10 times fast.  Years ago, we started to nickname ourselves McNak, or Team McNak, and used this term of endearment only on an internal basis.  Some of our loyal clients caught on to this, and they started to refer to us at McNak.  As our company evolved over the past 12 years, so did our name.  We’re still known by our full name, but it is nice to share the inside scoop with the rest of the world.  We love to share.  We love McNak.  We hope you love McNak too.

~ Jessica Rozitis