How NYI Changed with the Times and Built a New Culture

Change management and employee engagement are forever intertwined and both leave little room for erroramp160 Any significant change in the workplace can take employees out of their comfort zone and create waves of confusion and angst throughout the hallsamp160 So organizational change can be a challenge for senior leaders who struggle to keep employees engaged as their company undergoes an identity shiftWhile having open transparent lines of communication is a must the key to a successful outcome is also knowing how to create an environment that allows employees to experience change in a fun engaging wayThis is where culture comes into playAt the NY Interconnect NYI we faced this challenge head on this past spring when we experienced a spinoff from our parent companyamp160 The quotnewquot NYI a joint venture between Altice Charter and Comcast was established marking a major turning pointamp160not just for the companyamp160but for our overall culture as wellAs the new business was moving forward at lightning speed we asked ourselves What could we do to make sure employees embraced change and were excited and willing to give maximum discretionary effortamp160 We knew the excitement and perks would carry us for a while but ultimatelyamp160people needed to know where we were going and why their work was critical in getting us thereLooming deadlines didn39t allow for longer more traditional HR strategies so we engaged our staff in short effective burstsamp160and leveraged some outofthebox ideas to help them see the bigger picture quickly and easilyIn building a new media sales business we were essentially joining legacy organizations each with its own distinct culture as well as new external talentamp160 We wanted to recognize the various histories but also carve out an identity that was uniquely ours a distinct personality inspired by the oneofakind business we were becomingamp160 Also as everyone wants to be cool fun and energizing tooThese days we see pictures of onsite aerial yoga and freeflowing beer not that there39s anything wrong with that in more and more officesamp160 But lately it seems that we are confusing quotculturequot with handing out snacksamp160 If that were the key to employee engagement and organizational performance it would be pretty simple to build a great culture rightTo get there and keep employees in the loop and convey our brand goals we followed both conventional and unconventional paths incorporating evergreen basics updates on organizational decisions leadership breakfasts and an internal communication plan that conveyed our changes with some fresh initiatives to guide employees through their own changes while ensuring they were engaged around the critical work to be doneTo consciously create our culture as opposed to letting it just happen around us we started by working with our senior leaders to define our vision and valuesamp160 This was the first conversation of its kind for the new NYI and it was at times challenging to come up with a definitive roadmapamp160 But once we had committed to words and phrases like quotvibrantquot quotcouragequot quotconstant quest to be firstquot and quotwhere employees thrivequot it was clear there was much to be done in getting the team to seamlessly absorb these messagesTo support our quotconstant quest to be firstquot for example we needed to understand where we weren39t ranked first and why which led to our first employee survey to solicit opinions and observations about where we weren39t doing as well as we39d likeamp160and how we could improveamp160 To mirror our vision of quotnimblequot we avoided any HR programs that would feel too traditionalamp160 For example we designed an informal quarterly recognition strategy that was agile and simple almost like a popup store amp160with each program incorporating different goalsamp160From there we established an approach to learning that spoke to our employees balancing today39s challenges with their opportunities for tomorrowamp160 As a small company traditional career paths are limitedamp160 So we wanted to establish a learning philosophy that was open to all designed to make anyone in any role an expert in all media and we knew that would resonate across teamsamp160 Our concern wasn39t to get them ready for the next promotion rather we wanted to make them great wherever their journey would take themCourage and vibrancy mean taking risks and trying new thingsamp160 But don39t think we don39t have our share of funamp160 Cube decorating contests ugly sweater days and snacks prevailedamp160 quotThirsty Thursdaysquot became an instant hit although no one realized it was much more than a fun seasonally themed drink cartamp160 It was actually an exercise in empowerment giving employee teams from all levels a budget and freedom to try something different put themselves out there take some risks and interact with their leaders and coworkers in a meaningful wayamp160 Was it fun crazy and a little nerveracking sometimesamp160 Yesamp160 But we unleashed a new sense of creativity and participation which translated to our discussions on process improvement and product developmentamp160 No one knew Thirsty Thursday was about building a culture but it39s helping us get there now it39s everyone39s favorite day of the monthAnd how much more courageous could we be than at our recent allhands meetingamp160 Employees were given instruments and with a twohour training session from professional musicians the NYI team became a true symphony orchestra with a full chorusamp160 We didn39t sound perfect but the experience of getting out of our comfort zones and trying something new made us realize that together we can make beautiful musicThere was a method to this madness employees didn39t realize that as they were taking part in a quotLunch and Learnquot or decorating their cube they were contributing to aamp160culture we were creatingamp160 On the surface Thirsty Thursdays seemed like a fun way to connect with a colleague and participating in an orchestra was just another teambuilding activityamp160 But these initiatives were an important piece of the puzzle creating a culture where no one was afraid to try something new where energy flourished and where doing something better than before became the new normal That39s what happened at NYIamp160andamp160in less than 12 monthsamp160we created an environment that was dynamic proactive and most of all different in all the right waysamp160amp160Today our employees are as committed and enthusiastic as they ever were as evidenced by our recent engagement survey despite the frenzy and uncertainty of the past year no easy featOrganizational change is a complex process that requires some serious thoughtamp160 Often however the extensive triedandtrue techniques for effective change management are not always the most effective for your specific workforce or the company culture you39re looking to cultivateamp160 So while communication is key so too are the channels you use to tell your storyAnd just like in other aspects of life it39s the quotlittle thingsquot that often add up to make the biggest impactClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writersamp160

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How NYI Changed with the Times and Built a New Culture

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Judy Courtney

Jon Miller | Cofounder Marketo, Engagio | The Gumball Machine is Broken - Rethinking B2B Marketing - By Mike Linton

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Judy Courtney

Jon Miller | Cofounder Marketo, Engagio | The Gumball Machine is Broken - Rethinking B2B Marketing - By Mike Linton

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