Monthly Archives: August 2022

Outgrowing your house is painful. There comes a point when the space you once thought you could never fill becomes cramped and uncomfortable. Many families have felt this throughout time. The twist is that SRA is not a typical growing family but a business that has outgrown the converted house it has been inhabiting.

SRA provides a mix between finance and insurance. Like how individuals set aside money in a tax-deferred 401k account for retirement, SRA utilizes a tax code called 831b that helps businesses set aside tax-deferred money for risks that fall outside traditional insurance. In essence, they help
companies to save money for a rainy day.

SRA Creates A New Meaning For Working From Home

Two years ago, SRA moved from its downtown Boise office to the heart of downtown Meridian. They were a small team needing a larger space and liked the idea of converting a house into a place for their business. What used to be the entry became a waiting room, there was an old fireplace in the conference room, and the bedrooms were converted into private and shared offices. The team could enjoy a beautiful patio with a pavilion in the backyard when the weather was nice.

A Phased Move

Unfortunately, like any growing family, it did not take long for SRA to outgrow their adorable and historic little house. With rooms filling up and more staff set to join the team, it was time to move. It took a while to find the right fit, but they finally settled on two adjacent suites in Eagle, providing them with five thousand square feet.

The next step was getting the space ready. “We were like fire drill trying to figure out who we were going to use, and with supply chain issues, we needed to decide quickly,” says Marketing Manager/Project Coordinator Bre Cohen. “The OEC team was so responsive and scheduled a meeting right away. We told them our deadlines (which were rushed), so we broke the project into two phases addressing the top priorities first. OEC immediately saw our vision; even the first drafts blew us away.”

Settling Into Their New Home

The new office is entirely different from the little house SRA is leaving behind. Light wood floors lead down a brightly lit corridor framed by a wall of glass-encased private offices. On the other side are more offices broken up by what the team calls “The Space,” a large collaborative space with a sleek
leather couch, armchair, television, and work table. Directly behind “The Space” and separated by floor-to-ceiling glass is a dazzling conference room with a modern and moody chandelier and oval conference table.

While SRA continues to function like a family, they are no longer working on top of each other. Instead, they have leg room. With room to breathe and expand, SRA is ready to do what they do best; help businesses protect themselves against risk.

Watch the video story here.

See the full photo album here.

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Covid changed the workplace forever as employees adopted work from home. Now employers want their teams back in the office. Can they compromise? In this issue, employers make their case for the office.

Sometimes the best way to move forward is with an honest conversation. Back once more to share onsemi’s return-to-work compromise is Test

Development Engineer Dave Stout. In our last edition, Dave shared how he has successfully managed remote teams from home. In this edition, he shares how empowering managers is an essential step to bringing remote teams back to the office.

Localized Control: Empowering Managers

Imagine being a leader with offices around the world implementing a return-to-work policy. Not only is it complicated, but also impossible for any one person or even team to manage. Yet, this is where onsemi’s leaders were a few months ago—trying to bring back hundreds of employees to offices all around the world who were comfortable at home. While they are still transitioning, the key to their

success has been leaning on their management teams. “There is no replacement for face-to-face interaction, and I think that is important to the executive team. At the same time, they recognize how difficult it is to go straight back to the office after working remotely for two years. So, they decided it was in everyone’s best interest to have employees work directly with their managers (at least in the U.S.) to determine what works best for their teams.” This way, managers can advocate for what is best for their team.

Connect With Employees

With control in the hands of the individual office and manager, each team can function at its best. For Dave, that means he can have honest conversations with staff about their productivity. “With Covid, you found out quickly who couldn’t efficiently work from home. I had to sit down with some of my team

members to solve those problems. I think it is crucial to make it an “us” issue rather than a “them” issue. One of my employees has terrible internet at home, so he needed to be in the office for better internet. Another lives in a small home with kids, so it is distracting. Having those conversations and understanding the root of the issue helps us have an open dialog and solve the issue. If I were to say, ‘You’re not getting anything done; therefore, you must work in the office,’ that wouldn’t go over well. Instead, we can reach a conclusion together with it being their idea. Then the employee is more open to the differences between their situation and someone else’s.

By bringing human connection into the equation, onsemi is on its way to a successful return-to-work compromise.

Read Dave’s previous article here.

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Covid changed the workplace forever as employees adopted work from home. Now employers want their teams back in the office. Can they compromise? In this issue, employers make their case for the office.

     By now, almost everyone has heard the ultimatum that Elon Musk gave Tesla employees around working from home. In short, the message was, get back in the office or get out of Tesla. This move has inspired some companies while others choose to navigate things differently. To weigh in on the return-to-work compromise from a management point of view, we invited David Berry back to share his perspective.

     In our last edition, Senior Project Manager, David Berry shared his experience working from home and some of the great ways it has helped him prevent burnout and prioritize his family. In this edition, David shares three reasons why the office still plays a vital role in the success of a business and its employees.

Realigning Employee Expectations

     POWER Engineers recognizes that things have changed over the last two years, and they must take time to realign expectations. “A challenge companies are facing is that if you told someone two years ago that they could work from home two days a week, they would have jumped at it. Now bringing people back to the office is like pulling teeth.” To help realign employee expectations, they are breaking down requirements by job role. For example, it makes sense from an accountability standpoint to have production staff in the office. Meanwhile, an engineer can be hybrid. Depending on the job role, industry, and a person’s social skills, some individuals need to be in the office.

Socialization & Personal Interactions

     Regarding productivity, David recognizes that while employees have been more productive, they lack socialization. “When you’re in the office, you might have banter that lowers your efficiency but improves your network, socialization, and maybe your self-actualization. That is a key benefit of having the office. It is great being in the office to see staff, but you also collaborate more. You also talk about what it means to be an employee in a company, and those personal interactions are so important for personal growth.”

Promoting From Within

     Perhaps the most valuable part of being in the office is growth. POWER tries to promote leadership within the company. “A lot of those decisions are based on direct interaction with employees. It is difficult to determine growth on phone interviews or email responses. A lot is based on the knowledge and expectation of how someone will interact and their leadership skills. I think it will affect their growth trajectory if people don’t go into the office to meet with key staff. In that regard, the office will always be an integral part of any company.”

Whether it is for accountability, socializing, or personal growth, the office still plays a vital role in an employee’s success.

Read David’s previous article here.

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Erin Warwick is a finance director at TELEO Capital in Boise, but recently she has been wearing many other hats. One of those hats includes bringing the new TELEO headquarters online.

TELEO Founding

TELEO Capital is a lower middle market private equity firm. They are targeting opportunities in the technology & software, healthcare IT, business services, and industrial sectors. Private equity firms like TELEO Capital are the go-betweens connecting investors to private companies looking for capital or helping investors buy into private companies to diversify their portfolios. Three coworders founded TELEO in 2018 by three coworkers who decided it was time to build something themselves. George Kase and Andy Martines specialized in deal sourcing, while Robb Warwick complemented their skills with his operational experience. Together they formed a strong team that would eventually lead to a company with two offices. One is in Los Angeles, California, and now, a beautiful headquarters is in Boise, Idaho.

TELEO Building Its Space To Support Its Culture

Over the last few months, it has been Erin’s job to bring the owners’ vision to fruition. With 27 employees split between two offices, creating and maintaining a strong culture has been top of mind. “We have a culture of integrity, honesty, hard work, and fun. The founders want to create a place where our team can work hard and go home to be fully present with their families. They know the importance of balance and believe that if you take care of yourself, the quality of your work improves.” To help both teams benefit from this culture, the new office in the 11th & Idaho building has many open workspaces to accommodate the LA team when they come to town. This encourages camaraderie between the offices and helps them feel connected although geographically apart.

“We have a culture of integrity, honesty, hard work, and fun. The founders want to
create a place where our team can work hard and go home to be fully present with their families. They know the importance of balance and believe that if you take care of yourself, the quality of your work improves.”

Erin Warwick | Finance Director

Designing Their Space For The Future

OEC designed the extra room to support the future of the company. “Robb calls [this office] the ‘Center of Excellence.’ He dreams of bringing acquired companies into this space to get them on their feet and share in our culture. Then, once they grow enough, they can start looking for an office space of their own.” By using their space as a “launching pad,” TELEO will be able to intentionally grow their business by bringing more portfolio companies into their office. The new office encompasses three-quarters of the floor. It is filled with workstations, private offices, a kitchen, and Erin’s favorite, a giant OEC conference room with a view of the foothills.

Now enjoying its new headquarters, the TELEO team has its sites set on the future. A future guided by the principles of its name. When it came time to pick a name for their new company, the founders took a while. The Greek route word “teleology,” coined by Aristotle. It has the same meaning as the famous Arabic phrase “It is finished,” as pronounced by Christ on the cross. This idea of completing, performing, and accomplishing resonated deeply with the founders and is what guided them then and what will guide TELEO Capital into the future.

See the full photo album today!

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Movement is important in nearly every aspect of your life. Regarding your work life, movement is key to having a healthy, productive, and pain-free work experience. Here are three ways I like to incorporate
movement into my work routine to add variety and give my body a break from sitting in the same position.

Change postures.

This is where furniture can really help. In my situation, I have a height adjustable desk. I move it in four different positions during the day. Regular ergonomic sitting position, standing, perching at my chair armrest, and down low so I can put my feet up. Also, my task chair is ergonomic and has some natural flex and bounce, which helps.

Get up and walk around the office.

Every couple of hours or so, I’ll take an intentional break and go to see somebody different in the office. Sometimes just a quick catch-up at their desk, or I’ll even jump in the car and do a short gas station or coffee run. This week I was feeling a bit antsy and even did a walk around the block. It was pretty hot, so just one loop sufficed.

Change the work location.

I like to work in different areas. Right now, I am sitting upstairs on a soft sofa with my feet up. Not only does this give my body a rest from the typical ergonomic office chair, but it places me in a different physical environment which helps change my mood and clear my mind.

Drop me a line sometime and let me know how you incorporate movement in your work experience.

Keep moving.

Scott Galloway

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