Workplace Culture: How This Company Is Moving Boxes and Moving Hearts

Customer service is only as good as your employee service. Many believe that, but Chuck Bailey is one who consistently lives it.

He's the Owner and Founder of Cornerstone Moving & Storage, where they focus on each employee, by getting to know them personally. From day one, Chuck dives into the lives of new team members and dedicates himself to their growth and development.

After you hear his interview on the Lead to Grow podcast, you may alter your mindset about the magnitude of impact a moving company can have. You can check out the highlights from that interview below:

"The First Customer Is the Employee"

Moving isn't a complicated business, but to Chuck, it's an opportunity to understand and help others grow. "What we do isn't rocket science," Chuck said. The challenge comes in nurturing each person's individual needs.

Chuck's thought: If we take care of the employees, the employees will take good care of our customers.

Workplace Culture: Started as a Family, Continues as a Family

Chuck started Cornerstone as a family business, with his kids and wife helping decide the name. Since then, Chuck focuses on the employees as if they were his own family. He asks about their siblings and their lives outside of work. If he hears of a struggle or difficulty, he pipes up and offers to help.

Another Chuckism: "If you're happy at home, then you'll be happy at work."

You Can Teach People Process; You Can't Team Them to Care

Chuck focuses on hiring the right people from the get-go. He looks for those who care about their work and the customer.

Most industries have a standard of quality customers expect them to follow. Moving and storage is no different (they adhere to the ISO). Chuck tells his employees that most good moving companies will put down floor runners, ensure they don't damage furniture, load/unload correctly, stack safely, etc.

Those activities are a general process. They aren't what creates excellent customer service. Excellent customer service is feeling you convey to customers, and it's something you can't learn at work.

Moms, dads, grandparents, and others who raised you are the ones who teach someone how to care. So Chuck seeks out those who care and then hires them.

He can teach a process as long as they come with the inherent desire to care for customers.

You Can't Teach Care, but You Can Nurture It

Chuck is a faith-based individual, and his number one belief is "love conquers all." While he believes the care for customers must be an internal trait, he says you can nurture it.

He pays attention to when employees cut their hair. He remembers birthdays. He asks if someone has spoken to their brother or sister recently.

This all goes back to the simple premise: If you care for your employees, they will provide excellent service to your customers.

The other way Chuck nurtures workplace culture? He gives back some of his profits in the slower months. Roughly two-thirds of moving business comes in the summer months, so most moving companies work their employees long hours in the summer, and lay them off or give them little work in the off-season.

Cornerstone thinks differently.

"We put people before profits."

In the off-season, Cornerstone ensures employees receive 35 to 40 hours a week, even if it costs the company. They save up in the summer months so they can pay their employees' full paychecks in the slower times.

If Someone Were Having Lunch With You, What Would You Want Them to Take Away?

Going back to his core faith, Chuck said he'd want them to know Christ if they didn't already. Second, he'd hope someone would walk away inspired by his heart to love someone else, to treat the next person just a little kinder, a little nicer.

"My goal is to shine a light."

This blog post is from a podcast interview with Chuck Bailey, Owner of Cornerstone Moving & Storage. Click here to hear this full episode. If you don't use iTunes, you can also find the full list of episodes by clicking this link.