Employee Relations With Paul Spiegelman

We were recently afforded the opportunity to sit in on Paul Spiegelman’s presentation, “People-Centric Culture,” a tutorial for developing better employee relations in the workplace. Paul is Chief Culture Officer of Stericycle, a NASDAQ-listed global services organization with 13,000 employees, and is also the co-founder of the Inc. Small Giants Community, an organization that brings together leaders focused on values-based business principles. As the former CEO of BerylHealth, Paul led a unique, people-centric culture for a company that won nine “best place to work” awards, including the #2 Best Medium Sized Company To Work For In America. Paul was also honored with the Ernst & Young 2010 Entrepreneur of the Year award.

Paul began his presentation by stressing the importance of taking the time to talk to your employees. Doing so can lessen tensions dramatically, especially if there are already preexisting conflicts that might be contributing to stress. Paul mentioned that people often build up perceived differences of opinions in their minds, and how these problems can frequently be diffused by simply having a conversation about them. Allowing employees to have a forum where open communication is encouraged can only create better working conditions for all involved.

Coordinating an environment that workers will find enjoyable and stimulating is something Paul recommends for improved employee relations. Some of his workers like participating in a bowling league, while others prefer to play video games together; regardless of the activity, Paul takes the lead in organizing events that incorporate the interests of his employees in order to keep them happy and engaged.

Paul ended his presentation by detailing how the physical environment that employees work in can affect their productivity. He encouraged employers to consider how their workspaces can be organized and modified to better suit the needs and culture of their workers. Creating space that workers feel more comfortable in leads to better working conditions, which in turn leads to better results overall.