In August of this year, 4.3 million Americans quit their jobs with almost 3% of the American workforce calling it quits, according to the U.S. Labor Department. The media is calling it “The Great Resignation.”  In our own marketing industry, the average tenure is just 2.6 years. That’s just 30 months for a person to grow in a company, develop relationships, and promptly move onto somewhere different. Today, average retention is falling even more.

We launched MOCEAN two decades ago with the philosophy of putting our most important asset first, our people. And through this values-first mindset, enviable projects, and people-first culture, MOCEAN’s talent retention rates have remained more than double the industry average. Here’s how we did it.

LEADING WITH VALUES 

The “great resignation” rhetoric has been hard to miss. It’s something we think about every single day, reminding us that we need to stay focused on where we began. While we’re certainly not insulated from it, it’s made us revisit our foundational core. 

Since 2000, together with founder Craig Murray, we’ve never wanted to lose sight of the fact that our talent is our key to success. Our goal has always been to hire individuals who we believe in. No one walks through the door without showing us they’ve got potential. We look for folks with an entrepreneurial spirit, and passion above all else. Maybe a candidate is already a star editor in their own right. Maybe they’ve applied for a receptionist or a machine room position, but have an interest in eventually becoming a writer. Bottom line, a great hire is less likely to leave.

While no one’s perfect, we’ve made it our mission to always take a step back from high-level scopes and big conversations to look at the everyday work flow. We’re in the “people” business, so we’ve consistently tried to align ourselves with making sure our employees are happy and thrive at work. Everything that follows: the great creative, exceptional client leadership… that’s all a direct result of focusing on who is making it happen.

FOSTERING POTENTIAL

Around here, we believe our entry-level team is always the most important, and we aim to give everyone the opportunity to work on ever-changing, culture-defining properties. All staff are readily given tasks that allow them to rise beyond their stature. We want our employees to grow, so we give them room to do so.

Our best moments as a company is putting a challenge in front of an employee, and then just watching them run with it. It’s a little bit of letting go, but our staff sees that we believe and support them. They never fail to rise to the occasion. 

One of the most important things we’ve learned over these years is how important growth is. For everyone. In fact, one of our two Chief Creative Officers was the company’s first-ever intern. Our current CFO, Roshone Harmon, started in the billing department more than 20 years ago. We have others who have started as assistant editors or receptionists who are now creative directors. We make it our mission to establish formal and informal mentorship opportunities with our staff. Our HR team led by Sepa Sete, leads the charge in identifying opportunities for development and growth, starting with our interns all the way up to our executive staff. The objective is to pair folks up to make sure they have the tools they need to learn and be successful in their own right.

CULTIVATING COMPANY CULTURE

Entertainment itself can be  a “burn-out” business. There are always deadlines with movie and TV launches. We’re constantly working backwards, tracking towards these specific dates right up to the finish line. Unfortunately, this has only been amplified by the pandemic/work from home structure.

To combat it, there are the obvious additional perks: time off, paid lunches, competitive wages, But, we think it’s a lot more personal than that. Beyond small gestures, we prioritize bringing forth substantive efforts to let everyone know they matter. This manifests in honoring our employees’ personal milestones: from company anniversaries to engagements to new babies. At other times, it’s our Town Halls, where we’re making sure we’re having direct and continuing conversations with everyone who works with us. 

Finding time to simply have team gatherings is critical. Keeping these moments exciting for our staff has been paramount during our new WFH structure, making sure that culture can still happen from home.

LEARN TO LISTEN

Sometimes we get things wrong. Someone is overlooked. Someone leaves. It’s very easy to think something is fine, because we haven’t heard about it: but the most important thing we do is to closely examine what’s gone wrong, and what we can do better. 

Our policy is to take negative experiences incredibly seriously. We’ll incorporate the smallest nugget we’ve gotten from an exit interview and agonize over it. While this might seem burdensome to some, it’s a tactic every company should adopt. No one grows from staying put all of the time. We’ve always used exit interviews to inspire real change throughout the company. Listening ensures we’re getting our people what they individually need, from that extra few dollars an hour to some time off when someone needs it. 

LOOKING AHEAD

As we move into the new hybrid normal, listening to employees remains essential to us. The “hybrid” working model will require collaboration between employees and employers.  Conduct surveys, have conversations, try to figure out the best path forward for your individual company and the individuals in your company!

A big part of our ongoing plan is to simply listen, to hear what our hard working, dedicated teammates need to have a healthy work-life balance. There’s a reason we all continue to choose to work together, and we’re here to help provide the environment where all of us at MOCEAN can make waves together.

Speaking of wave-making employees… If you are looking for your next adventure, be sure to check out our open positions!