The Origin of How We Work

How many times have you wanted to improve your work environment?

Had an idea to tackle an opportunity you saw?

In the last two years, we have seen millions of people in this Collective Awakening (our term for the Great Resignation) who are actively seeking to create or find a better workplace experience.

We’ve been on the journey to create a Dynamic Workplace since our founding in 2005. So, let’s take a moment to head back to those earlier days…

Creating Something Better

The Origin of How We Work

You’ve heard the stories of how businesses like Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple all began in a garage. Well, add Clickstop to that list.

What started in the garage of Tim and Nicole Guenther 17 years ago has grown and evolved to a company that owns and operates six brands and employs nearly 200 people. Through that growth the central idea behind Clickstop’s existence remains the same – there is a better way. Not just a better way of making a product or satisfying a customer but creating a better workplace.

That sentiment was there from day one. As we matured, grew, and added more team members, Clickstop’s mission and values were established to put words to that feeling and attitude. We were building a workplace that would transform the lives of employees.

As the way we talked about that workplace and employee experience began to click, we put words to what makes us who we are. What differentiated us became very simple:

At Clickstop, how we work is just as important as the work we do.

When we focus on how we work:

  • We see our values and code behaviors come to life.
  • Things become clearer.
  • People become more engaged.
  • We allow a dynamic workplace to exist.

What does it really look like?

Recall that a Dynamic Workplace is a partnership between a business and its people. When that relationship is prioritized, conversations occur that once seemed taboo or foreign. Ideas, strategies, goals, policies, and values are acted upon and can begin to transform the company and the lives of employees. We’ve said it before, but it bears repeating…

By transforming the lives of our people, we allow them to transform the business.

This can all seem really philosophical and idealistic, so what are the results of this mindset? What proof do we have that this really makes a difference?

Here are a handful of everyday business processes and decisions that are different because of our focus on how we work:
  • Employee Surveys
    • Instead of anonymous employee engagement or satisfaction surveys, we use Employee Check-in Surveys. We don’t look to this survey to give us all the answers, but to spark a conversation. Clickstoppers are encouraged to communicate openly with confidence and respect (one of our core values). Whether things are good, bad, or otherwise, we want people to act on it. Employees share their perspectives on how the team is doing and how they rate their individual engagement, growth, and performance. The transformation comes when team leaders receive the results and take action to create alignment between the employee, supervisor, team, and organization.

  • Paid Time Off
    • PTO: What is the focus of the time off that you spend? When we focus on How We Work, we empower our people to speak up when they are starting to feel overwhelmed or aren’t able to perform their best. Time off is often the Band-Aid fix for burn out. We feel differently. Your time off shouldn’t be spent mentally recovering from the work you do. Instead, we want our people to use that time to make memories with their loved ones or pursue their passions.
    • Wellness: Another way our founder sought to transform lives is through a focus on employee wellness. In addition to a generous $0 premium health insurance option and on-site chiropractic and massage services, employees also receive wellness hours. When people don’t have to take PTO for medical, dental, vision, therapy, or chiropractic appointments, they can take better care of themselves. Our employees’ wellness allows them to come to work healthy and know their loved one’s health is taken care of.
    • Volunteer: Each person has causes they are passionate about. Whether it’s a child’s girl or boy scout troop, a local food pantry, or a nonprofit board, giving back to the communities that support our company and our people is important to us. One way we invest in our communities is by giving employees the autonomy to take time to support their causes. We also run a non-profit called Clickstop Cares dedicated to helping local children, families, and individuals in Eastern Iowa and the surrounding areas that have fallen on hard times.

  • Professional Development
    • There is a strange phenomenon that happens when you hold a door open for someone. They tend to hurry up to go through it. You do not have to cheer them on or motivate them. They simply respond to an open door. How We Work has led to a unique approach to learning and development: We want to provide as many open doors as possible for our Clickstoppers and see who starts running through them. As a part of this partnership between business and employees, Clickstop is dedicated to providing opportunities for those who seek them. It’s literally in our mission statement. Our layered approach to learning provides tailored opportunities for employees to explore, question, and challenge to grow themselves both personally and professionally. We seek to help people achieve what they want to achieve and become who they want to become.

  • Measuring Performance
    • When it comes to performance at Clickstop, an annual review just doesn’t cut it for us. Because we focus on How We Work, we focus on impact and we focus on it constantly. That is why we created Impact Conversations. We take the annual review process and turn it into an ongoing conversation of alignment.
    • Impact conversations are just one way that measures performance throughout the year. What makes it unique is how we view performance: Performance = Behaviors + Results. When we focus on How We Work, we spend time understanding how we are achieving the results we are seeing. That is how we make our success and growth sustainable.

  • Recruiting & Hiring
    • We’ve heard it before so let’s address it. People who hear about our culture and dedication to this mindset have used words like, “cultish.” When we recruit and hire people to our teams, we are seeking top talent. To us, top talent isn’t solely based on someone’s education and skills. We place extremely high importance on hiring people who understand the importance of how we work and will challenge us to become better than before we met them. We want people who are a Culture Add, not just a Culture Fit! That mindset can feel alien when you haven’t experienced it before. Because How We Work is part of our competitive advantage, we tend it continuously. We are committed to hiring and firing by our Core Values.

At the end of the day How We Work makes our mission possible. Not just for one person or one team, but for every single employee at Clickstop. And when we achieve our mission, we transform the lives of our people and our business.

Take a moment to think about…
  • What values matter to you and how do they show up at work?
  • What behaviors make you and your team successful?
  • What values are your company rooted in and how can employees live them out?
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