Build a Strong Workplace Culture

It’s hard to define what makes a good culture in a workplace, but most of the time it’s very easy to tell if a shop has one or not.  

For Dominic Martino, co-owner of Gold Coast Auto Body in Chicago, a good culture starts with strong communication and a clear vision from leadership is essential.  

“Culture should be rooted in what gets you out of bed every day,” Martino says. “You need to have a strong idea why are you doing what you’re doing.” 

Though it isn’t easy to start and maintain a strong culture, getting buy-in from your employees by giving them a reason to feel happy and excited to be at work on a daily basis is essential to making sure your shop runs at its best. 

There’s no one defined path to go about establishing a good culture, but Martino says that process always has to start at the top with the owner of the shop. 

“First and foremost, you have to have passion for what you do,” he says. “We’ve done a very good job of putting together a cohesive team that can work together, and that starts with a clear vision from leadership.” 

Oftentimes, Martino says, shops will confuse rewards with culture. He says he’s seen shops think that if they publicly recognize employees for doing a good job or bring in lunch for employees once a month, that counts as strong culture. It isn’t – good culture starts with understanding what services your shop provides in your market. You need a mission or some other specific stated purpose that can be the foundation of every decision you make as a shop owner. Without that, it’ll be very difficult to get employees to buy in. 

“You have to know who you are and why you’re in the industry,” he says. “If ownership and management don’t have that key element in their sight, then how are you going to promote any type of meaningful culture?” 

Culture isn’t something that can be established or changed overnight. It’s a commitment to your people – both employees and customers. Martino says a good culture is critical to a successful shop, and that starts with who you have on your team.   

“There’s no silver bullet to instantly fix your culture. You have to give people a reason to be excited to come to work every day,” he says. “If you want to attract people to your shop, you have to start caring about what you do.” 

Gold Coast is very selective with the team members they hire. Martino says their hiring, onboarding and training processes are designed to find the “impostors” whose work ethic and attitude don’t match what they tell you during a job interview.  

The skills needed to be a paint technician or a CSR are important, but Martino says equally important are the soft skills – how do they handle interacting with customers and their other teammates? How is their workstation organized? And, most importantly, how dedicated are they to serving your customers? 

A commitment to your people – both your employees and your customers – isn’t always easy to uphold. Things aren’t always going to go perfectly, and not everyone will always want to buy into your system. But remaining dedicated to making sure your employees feel valued and respected will pay off in the long run. 

Martino says, in his experience, managers who are only recognizing employees with big gestures such as an award or a picture on the wall don’t really understand the needs or wants of their employees. 

“In many instances, our team members don’t want that special recognition,” he says. “They just want to know that they’re appreciated. My team knows we care about them because we talk to them the way we talk to our family. The gratitude comes from the collaboration we have.” 

Martino says it’s crucial that you practice what you preach. Showing your team that you are dedicated to the mission you create for your shop and that you are open to their feedback and genuinely care about their well-being consistently is the best way to make sure your employees stay engaged. 

“People want to see their leaders come to work with a clear objective, but they also want to see leaders who are flexible and can respond to change well,” he says. “Our processes are always being tweaked. If we’re getting input from multiple team members on a process or something else that needs to change, we’re going to change it.” 

Martino shared an example that happened a while back where his shop had a couple unforeseen issues arise while repairing a vehicle. They had told a customer to expect it to be complete by a certain date, but they did not hit that target.  

By the time that Martino heard about it and went to gather people to talk to them, one of his blueprinters was already leading a constructive conversation about how they were going to fix the problem. By demonstrating the type of open communication and accountability he wants with his employees, Martino says many of his employees have been empowered to model that behavior and become leaders themselves. 

“This is the guy I want to be the voice of my shop. The way he approaches people, how he talks to them, that’s what it’s all about,” Martino says. “I don’t have all the answers, but I’ve surrounded myself with the type of people where I don’t have to have all the answers.” 

A strong workplace culture isn’t an elusive white whale; every shop should be able to attain a healthy, productive, enjoyable work environment. It’s not always easy, but Martino stresses it can be very simple. 

“It starts with how you talk to your people,” he says. “Sure, the lunches and training are important, but it’s more about caring about what you do and caring about who you’re doing it for.” 

Once you let your employees know you care about them and their well-being – and prove it daily – they’ll be excited to come to work. Even better, Martino says, is they’ll step up and become leaders, strengthening that culture even further. 

“Employees need to know what you expect of them and what you expect from the shop,” he says. “If you have a strong culture, the power lies in your team.”