The competition for talent is a long-term trend, not a short-term blip. How will your company compete for workers through the next decade?
While much has been written lately about the Great Resignation and churn in the job market, labor force growth metrics show that worker shortages aren’t a short-term phenomenon but rather the new normal for employers.
According to data from the U.S. Department of Labor, the overall U.S. labor force is projected to grow just 0.4% annually through 2030. That’s less than half the rate of growth during the 2000s, and less that a third of the rate in the 1990s.
Employers will need to implement a number of changes in order to attract the best employees. But one key factor in attracting and retaining employees is workplace culture. How can an organization make sure its workers feel valued, supported, appreciated, and listened to?
That’s the challenge one entrepreneur set out to conquer when he transitioned from consulting to providing a technology solution to organizations struggling to get a handle on feedback, coaching, and performance management.
Here’s the story of Stephen Moore and the company he founded, Culture Booster.
The Discussion
Tom: Hello, everybody. Welcome to another founder’s interview on Webbiquity. Today I’m joined by Stephen Moore, founder and CEO at Culture Booster. Hi, Stephen. Thanks for joining. How are you doing today?
Stephen: I’m doing wonderful. So grateful that you invited me onto your show. I’m excited to share.
Tom: Yeah, I’m excited for this. I ran across you folks at the BETA Minnesota Showcase event at Twin Cities Startup Week last fall, and got to meet a few of the members of your team. It looked very exciting. Glad we’re finally able to connect and do this.
Stephen: I’m glad as well. It was a really great event.
The Problem
“The problem that we’re solving is misunderstood,” according to Stephen. “A lot of people think in the employee engagement software space that the problem is turnover or absenteeism or burnout. It’s really not any of those things.
“The actual problem is a prioritization of culture, and so that’s what we help organizations do.”
The Product
Culture Booster is a human resource software platform. “We’re in business to improve people’s work lives,” says Stephen.
“We operationalize culture so that we can transform the work environments so that they’re conducive to people bringing their best selves to work each day.”
Since the company’s launch in June of 2021, it’s partnered with the largest emergency shelter in Minnesota, the state’s largest mental health services provider, and the largest school district; Culture Booster will be doing a pilot project there starting in February.
Per Stephen, “We’ve had some initial traction, and organizations are really receptive to our work. I think that’s a combination of the great resignation which you’re seeing in a lot of in the headlines, and also the sentiment out there. People are leaving organizations; they’re looking for meaning, they’re looking for belonging, and we help assist in those regards.”
The product is designed to help primarily on employee retention. It focuses on employee engagement, starting with the culture. It does that through features in our platform which capture feedback, help track goals, and capture innovative ideas brought forward by employees.
The Company
Year founded: 2021
Funding rounds: Self-funded to date.
Company size: four total staff—Stephen, co-founder and CTO Josh Greenwell, and two contractors.
The Inspiration
Tom: What inspired you to work on this particular problem?
Stephen: I was a practitioner, a consultant. I would get hired by large retail automotive groups to go in and fix their broken stores. It was tons of travel, and one of the priorities for me in my life is being a dad, and there would be days where I wouldn’t see my family. And so I decided I need to work smarter rather than harder.
I thought, how can I take the tools that I’ve learned in this role and apply them to an online platform to be able to impact more lives? That’s what Culture Booster was born out of.
The second thing is the spillover effect. And this is my why, as Simon Sinek says in his book, Start With Why. The spillover effect is when you have a toxic work environment, that environment doesn’t just stick with you, but it actually transfers over to your home life. And if you have kids, it can negatively impact them and their outcomes in school. And so this is heart work for me, it’s something near and dear to my heart.
The Launch
Tom: That is just wonderful, thank you for sharing. You mentioned that you launched last June. What have you found to be the most effective marketing channels or tactics for you to get the word out and drive interest in Culture Booster?
Stephen: Don’t laugh, but I am one of those who spam people on LinkedIn. That has been the most effective way for me to build relationships and connections. I try to be authentic, not spammy, but LinkedIn has been effective. Direct messages on Facebook to my network have been effective, too.
Tom: Any plans for getting the word out more broadly beyond one-to-one communications?
Stephen: Yes. Our initial goal is to get recommendations from our clients early on. In addition, we’re working with a firm in Canada called Spacebar Collective, shout out to them, that is helping us with our SEO strategy so we can show up for relevant keywords and get our name out there in a competitive space.
The Lessons
Tom: If you would, finish this sentence: Knowing what I know now, if I were starting over today, what I would do differently is…
Stephen: I’ve made so many mistakes. It’s like, which one should I pick? I think wasted time. Early on, I outsourced the platform. Being non-technical, you know, you go overseas. Today I would invest that time in finding someone locally to build the technical side of the platform. That would’ve saved me a lot of time, energy, and resources.
The Takeaways
Tom: Makes sense. So, based on your experience, what’s the most important advice you could offer to a would-be entrepreneur just starting out today?
Stephen: Going back to the issue of time, it’s going to take you longer than you anticipate. So be patient, but make the leap. It is one of the most rewarding things you can ever do in your life.
It’s like a rollercoaster. There will be emotional ups and downs, but just be patient. Make time for your family through this process, though I know how difficult that is. Try to really be the kind of leader who people want to work for, to do this difficult work, and you’ll do just fine.
Tom: That is wonderful. What you’re doing is so important. I work with a couple of clients who are doing interesting things around new employee onboarding and employee retention, because that is so important right now. Is there anything else you’d like to add about Culture Booster before we wrap up?
Stephen: I would just encourage your followers to check us out online. They can go to LinkedIn, we’re on Twitter, or visit us on our website at CultureBooster.com. We’d love to show you a demo of the amazing product our team is building.
Tom: Great, Stephen. Thank you for your time today, and have a great weekend. Stay warm.
Stephen: Thank you so much. It was such a pleasure to be on your show.
Enjoy this post? Check out every founder interview on Webbiquity, the B2B marketing blog, so far.