In advertising, creativity is the key to successful client programs. At the Aloft Group, Inc., everything from the company's structure to the physical environment in which the employees work is designed to help enhance creativity and generate positive energy. That, and the fact that Aloft's president and CEO Matt Bowen has one primary wish for his employees – or "Groupies" as they prefer to be called – for them to be happy.
"I've learned that being happy at your job leads to people doing better work all around because they are dedicated, proud, passionate and feeling like their work life is 'going good,'" says Bowen. "The best part is that measuring happiness is both proactive and preventive because catching a decline on the happy meter will almost guarantee a prevention of negative client feedback or an internal mistake. And having happy, dedicated Groupies has been measurable. As a result of their passion, Aloft has won more than two dozen international marketing awards. The subsequent job satisfaction this brings is priceless."
Part of his effort to ensure his employees are maximizing their potential is to make sure they work in an environment that's inspiring and innovative. In 2001, Bowen moved the Aloft offices into a restored 1917 movie theater that he designed himself to "provide constant stimulation to creativity." Employees have a tremendous amount of pride in the uniqueness of their working environment and they are very protective of it, Bowen says.
Bowen also feels that the key to generating good, creative work is to provide a "safe" environment for people to use their natural resources, which he says are intelligence and passion. He makes sure that he is always available for anyone at any time and that his employees are encouraged to take risks.
"Everyone here has equal access, regardless of their position or how long they've been with the company," Bowen says. "There's a 12-foot 'hole' on my outer office wall where there was supposed to be a large folding glass door. I didn't have it installed, so my office is open."
The shared commitment by Aloft's Groupies is something Bowen says was put to the test in 2001 when the advertising industry was hit hard by the overall economic slowdown and the company lost its largest client. Instead of scaling back, the company agreed as a whole to move forward despite their knowledge of a tough road ahead. The biggest change was to eliminate the company's sales department and make the sales function part of everyone's daily job.
Bowen admits that this move had the potential to "backfire greatly" as a lot of the staff members were being led into their "uncomfortable zone" of sales. However, everyone came on board immediately, contacting with their own circles of friends, family members, neighbors, colleagues, etc. to help generate sales leads.
"Everyone sent out letters according to their own personal style telling their circle of friends about Aloft and asking if they knew of anyone who would be a good fit for our services," says Bowen. "The results were outstanding. Aloft gained three significant clients as a result of this. I was, and still am very proud and in awe of how enthusiastically everyone participated. Most importantly, the culture switch of making sales everyone's responsibility has become just a part of who we are and everyone is still very much on the lookout for new business every day. Subsequently, our business was up 57 percent in 2003 over 2002."
Part of what makes Bowen's recipe for success notable is that the employees have as much respect for him as he does for them. So much so that one employee, Casey Jones, director of marketing, strategy, compares Bowen to the Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton, a man who is known for leading his team through what most people would consider impossible conditions.
"At the time market conditions were in a deep freeze, marketing budgets were icebound and Aloft's rations were running low," says Jones. I couldn't help but draw the parallel to Matt's leadership at the agency. In the two years that I had worked there I had never seen Matt lose his temper or provide anything but encouragement and I was awed by his unflinching optimism. If he was worried, it never showed, and the entire company fed on his resolve."
Lastly, Bowen realizes that a healthy work/life balance factors significantly into how satisfied and pleased employees are with their jobs. As a result, he makes sure that each employee is treated as an individual.
Elaine Grant, a managing director, says that when it comes to running an entrepreneurial company for the 21st century, Bowen "gets it" like no other employer she's ever had. "He's set up Aloft so that all of us Groupies can work from home when we need to without a hitch in getting things done," Grant says. "He particularly understands the needs of working parents. I'm running a brand new division of Aloft largely from my old farmhouse, an hour away from the office."
To that end, Bowen hopes that his efforts and flexibility result in a company that grows and improves year after year and that the staff is happy, proud, challenged, rewarded and that above all, employees actually enjoy Monday mornings. "Groupies spend a large part of their life here, so life is just too short for anything else," Bowen says.
Company: Aloft Group, Inc.
Web Site: www.aloftgroup.com
Industry: Marketing and Advertising
Location: Newburyport, Mass.
Number of employees: 37
Sales: $6 million to $10 million
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