In a season of high growth, every new employee has the potential to either strengthen or weaken company culture.
Dow Smith, the founder of Dow Smith Company, a design-build construction company in Tennessee, was cautious about growing too fast. He wanted to grow intentionally with the right kind of people. The goal wasn’t just to build more offices, churches, and health clinics but to do it in a way that was consistent with their values—"the Dow Smith way.” Even with this approach, the company has doubled its employee base and more than doubled revenues over the past few years.
Joey Rhyne, the CEO, talks about the values and culture they emphasize. “The Dow Smith Way involves working together in partnership with a client as we start with all the key players and guide them through the process. It includes vision collection, pre-construction services, construction, and post-construction occupancy phase. Historically designers and builders have worked in separate silos that can lead to an adversarial approach, which no one wants.”
Dow Smith shared his thoughts on the importance of values and culture in a recent episode of the Flourishing Culture Leadership Podcast: “I want to fireproof our culture. I’m so thankful for it, and I want to protect it. What is it we're really trying to protect? A key part is that we stay consistent to our values as we grow.”
In defining the values of the company, leaders at Dow Smith looked at the qualities that they most appreciate in high-performing employees and settled on four values that are key to their culture: passion, hustle, caring, and detail. Then, as they grow and add new staff, they have clarity on the values that they are looking for in the people they hire. These values also guide the way they onboard and train new employees. Being clear and intentional about values increases the likelihood that growth will not dilute culture and values but reinforce it.
Over the years, Dow Smith Company has continued to use Best Christian Workplaces Employee Engagement Survey on an annual basis to assess the health of their workplace. They are a flourishing workplace and continue to rank well above peer organizations in employee engagement.
Cary Humphries, Best Christian Workplaces consulting director, talks about the process: “The challenge for an organization that is flourishing and continues to see high scores on employee engagement is to keep looking for areas to improve. As they are committed to drilling down and understanding the data, they can see areas where they can continue to refine and equip their employees for success. It’s tempting to just be satisfied with strong scores, but the leadership at Dow Smith Company is committed to keep improving.”
In addition to the Employee Engagement Survey, Dow Smith Company has decided to invest in the development of middle managers, including superintendents and project managers, through Leadership 360 assessments. Many organizations limit the use of Leadership 360s to the senior leadership team. Extending this to more employees shows a commitment to people development and an investment in training and support. It also reflects the key role of mid-level leaders in displaying the values and culture of the company to clients and contractors. Along with excellence in project management and detail skills, they also need strong relational skills as they interact with lots of different people who may have competing demands.
Dow Smith acknowledges the role of mid-level managers in delivering results, “Our superintendents are such a key. At the superintendent level is where the bullets are flying—they are dealing with the client and the subcontractors.”
Another investment in the staff at Dow Smith Company is through the emphasis on supporting the whole person and caring about the well-being of each staff member. Holley Potts is the director of well-being and sits on the senior leadership team. She has expanded her team to include another life coach on staff and a contract coach. They are available to the whole staff for individual sessions that can range from practical coaching in getting organized to support for issues people are experiencing in their family life. The goal is to invest in the overall well-being of each person—mind, body, and spirit. One of the highest Employee Engagement indicators at Dow Smith Company is that they strive to help one another maintain life balance. Tangible support of employees as whole people contributes to that strength.
Running a successful design-build construction company involves management of many variables. Dow Smith Company employees say that their company is well-managed. This was their highest score on their engagement survey. One factor that contributes to a level of management excellence is using the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). This system keeps them focused on their goals and strategies and invites everyone to own the outcomes of their strategies. The use of the EOS helps them successfully move from visionary ideas to integrating these ideas into the day-to-day operations of the company.
Living out their values and culture with a highly engaged workplace leads to flourishing, not just for employees but for the whole company. As the workforce at Dow Smith Company has doubled in the last few years, revenue has increased even more.
Going forward, the leadership team at Dow Smith Company is assessing their capacity to take on new projects and putting creative thinking toward ways they can be more effective with their resources. Whatever their size in the future, they want to be known for their service and for serving Christ in the marketplace with passion, caring, hustle, and detail.
Best Christian Workplaces is available to come alongside you with whatever challenges you face in your organization. Our work with Dow Smith Company is an example of how we support Christian leaders in marketplace organizations. In addition, Best Christian Workplaces has expertise in helping churches, Christian nonprofits, schools, and colleges and universities flourish with highly engaged employees. Learn more about the Employee Engagement Survey and Leadership 360s and how these tools can support the goals of your organization.