We had always struggled at ATCOM to create a Company Mission Statement. We were all clear that we wanted to be “The Best MSP in North Carolina,” and we were all in agreement that our top core values were respect, honesty, integrity, competency, and growth (personally and professionally). We never put our mission statement in writing. But, we felt like we were in sync and knew our plan.
Then, in 2013, two important team members were diagnosed with cancer. A few of us talked about how we could best support Chris and Tammy during the struggles they had ahead. In this conversation came the slogan “WIN THE DAY.” To us, it meant doing our best each day. And, when that failed, as it sometimes will, not to give up, but to start over. We recognized that your best would be different each day. We realized that the team could affect your mood and help you get back on track. We rallied with words of encouragement ending most emails and conversations with “WIN THE DAY.”
In this process, and as we hired new teammates, we realized that putting fundamentals to this “mission statement” would be necessary for our new teammates to understand what we meant. So we came up with these 12 fundamentals that we live and breathe. We use these fundamentals to “right the ship,” coach, train, and keep us on track. We hold ourselves accountable to these traits.
We start each week with a fundamental review. We reference the week’s theme when we gather. Then, when we stumble, we figure out which fundamental could have helped us succeed. These are our guiding principles:
- Be Nice, Be Kind, Be Thoughtful
- Be Proactive
- Lead By Example
- Ask Questions
- Take Ownership
- Celebrate Wins
- Over Communicate
- Simplify
- Seek Discomfort
- Always Put a Bow on it!
- Think: Common Sense Trumps All
- Positive Attitudes are Contagious
We have found that using these fundamentals make us better co-workers to each other, and allow us as the “A-team” to deliver the best customer support and service to our customers.
Written by Rhonda Craycraft
