Workplace committees often get the bad rap of all work and no play (or no pay) but that’s not the case at Red Door, where our employee-led committees work to improve morale, increase productivity,  provide ongoing educational opportunities and a means to give back to our local communities. Currently, there are 5 committees at Red Door:  Learning and Growth, Morale, Philanthropy, Operations and Client Experience. The committees at Red Door enhance employees understanding of their own influence on the work environment while providing valuable leadership and development opportunities.

Bob Nelson, author of 1001 Ways to Reward Employees, notes that companies can boost morale by giving employees “increased authority and leeway in handling company resources.” At Red Door, non-managers are encouraged to be committee chairs, which provides the employees at all levels the opportunity to lead and tune into the needs and interests of fellow employees.

”As a small business with big ambitions, we wanted to merge our small-business entrepreneurialism, visibility and agile decision-making with the programs, incentives and social impact of some of the biggest corporations,” said Amy Carr, Red Door’s Director of Human Resources. “While we don’t have the resources of a Fortune 500 that can dedicate a person or a team to things such as maintaining company culture or philanthropy, we still wanted to offer opportunities that provide higher-purpose for the organization. The Red Door committees have done just that.”

The eighty percent participation rate in Red Door committees speaks to the value that that employees place in their individual role within the company as well as a desire to participate in defining roles and responsibilities to improve the company overall.
While most committees operate year-long, some committees pop up to address a specific need. For example, last year a group of employees recognized that there were inefficiencies in some of the processes which lowered project profitability.  In response, they established a “Project Budget Task Force” with representation from each department.  One of the more tangible outputs from the group included “meeting cubes” to place on conference tables to remind people how to efficiently run meetings.

Another output was a set of creative checklists that guided all creative reviews and feedback.  The efforts of the task force successful ly helped increase the profitability of projects, and just as importantly, get buy-in across departments for new and improved processes. The group earned a new term of endearment from fellow employees, “The Budget Police”.  Below are a few recent committee highlights to showcase what our committees have accomplished.

It’s not all work at Red Door! The Morale Committee established a “Mad Props” section on the company’s intranet to recognize the efforts of employees. Once a quarter the most nominated employee receives an extra paid day off. Another Morale Committee initiative was this past summer when the committee hosted “The RDI Summer Games ” at PETCO Park.

Of course, committees are not just about fun and games, the Learning & Growth Committee coordinates monthly brown bag lunches, where employees lead discussions on topics such as mobile marketing, the Tao of project management and SEO 101.

Committees are an important  aspect of company culture at Red Door, providing a means for each employee to contribute their time and resources to the benefit of the whole, gain leadership opportunities and make the work environment a more dynamic, fun and profitable place.

Additional Resources

• Managing the mid-size market: Tips on using employees as resources in smaller companies
• How to Boost Employee Morale on a Budget
• In Charge of a Committee? Learn how to run a meeting like Google
• Volunteering as a Benefit: Lean how some companies are offering employee volunteer programs that are motivating and retaining current employees, and attracting new ones

(Image: Red Door Feeding Frenzy, hosted by the Morale Committee)

Gone are the days of the summer intern making coffee runs, standing by the copier and filing paperwork. In October, Red Door’s student run Ground Floor agency launched the nonprofit site www.bionicgolf.org.

Ground Floor at Red Door is an innovative student internship (or as we like to call it, “a fresh talent incubator!”) that provides students more than just the typical job shadowing opportunity. As with all Red Door projects, collaboration was key to the success of this web site launch. Red Door is proud of the partnership forged between Red Door Interactive, San Diego State University (SDSU) and Goodman:Capone whose combined resources made the Ground Floor agency a success. As part of the Ground Floor program, each of the team members were assigned to one of eight unique job positions, each working directly with the client and producing deliverables such as a media plan, site maps, wire frames and ultimately an amazing new web site. Check out the before (top) and after (bottom) shots below:

As part of Red Door’s mission, we are committed toward contributing our talents to the local nonprofit community (we’ve done work for Mama’s Kitchen, San Diego Social Venture Partners, San Diego Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society & the Human Development Foundation.) This year, Red Door selected B.I.O.N.I.C. Golf (Believe It Or Not I Can) out of a pool of nonprofit applicants. The program was founded by 1990 by LGPA member Martha Sue Yearly, who developed the program after enabling a stroke victim to continue to her passion for golf by playing the game with one arm. Ever since then, B.I.O.N.I.C. Golf has been dedicated to helping those with disabilities enjoy the game of golf. The program, B.I.O.N.I.C. Golf needed help promoting their internet presence, and that’s just what the Ground Floor team did.

These highly talented interns brought a buzz and breath of fresh air to the office as they held domain in their own studio space on our 11^th floor suite overlooking Petco Park. Managing partner and university lecturer Michael Capone lead weekly classes on-site that corresponded with project milestones. Red Door employees were encouraged to attend these courses. Each student also had an opportunity to meet with their Red Door “counterpart” on a weekly basis to learn more about their position and the field.

At Red Door, we believe that experience is the best teacher, which is why we started the Ground Floor agency. It was as much a learning experience for us as it was for the Ground Floor team. We look forward to championing future efforts to support education and entry-level practitioners through working with other local nonprofit organizations.

Additional Resources:

• Make the most out of your summer internship: Tips for Interns.
• Why internships are smart for business: Tips for employers considering internships.
• Are you a nonprofit in need of resources? Check out some of these opportunities.