Working Simply: Bringing Productivity with Passion Back to the American Workplace

Coca-Cola Bottling Company Consolidated and Wells Fargo know: Emotionally engaged employees are most productive

CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Volatile economy. Mobile communication at unprecedented levels, leading to 24 hour workdays and vacations that are more work than play. Doing more with less, for jobs that are increasingly complex. No wonder the majority of American workers report being “disengaged” from their workplaces – and as a result, less productive (Gallup 2011 Employee Engagement Index). The solution? Working Simply, Inc.

“We immediately saw fundamental changes in the behavior of team members who participated in the Working Simply program. They became more productive in the areas that matter most to our business: engaging with customers and employees”

“Working our way up the ladder in corporate America, we saw chaos in the workplace. There are many smart, talented, passionate people experiencing work burn-out and subsequently, lowering workplace productivity,” said Working Simply Managing Partner Carson Tate. “Working Simply was born from the idea of helping people find meaning in their jobs. We reframe how businesses and individuals work and interact, structuring their work so that it aligns with the strategic goals of the organization, while at the same time leveraging their individual strengths and enabling better work-life balance.”

The need for workers to find a path to balanced productivity is urgent, for themselves and for their companies. In a July 2012 survey conducted online by Harris Interactive on behalf of Working Simply, only 30 percent of employed U.S. adults strongly agree that their work gives them a strong sense of purpose and meaning. If they’re not finding meaning in their work, they’re not fully engaged and disengaged workers are less productive workers.

In fact, the more productive an employee’s time at work, the less that work will bleed over into their personal time. According to the Working Simply survey, 84.5 million American workers¹ report they are constantly checking work emails outside of the office, and this is encroaching on their personal relationships by preventing them from engaging with people or activities. These workers are unable to engage completely in life – with their families, their friends, their communities – due to an inefficient work pattern.

Working Simply’s “BLISS” model (Behavioral Learning Integration Support System) helps its clients ignite change in their workforce to achieve optimum productivity and work-life balance. Support is provided for each step of the way with a variety of options including individual coaching, peer coaching, email coaching and online communities to reinforce the application of learned concepts.

While Working Simply’s services are highly tailored to the specific needs of each client, its program offerings are divided into two thematic solutions. The “Working Smarter, Not Harder” curriculum is designed to provide comprehensive skill and knowledge development along with coaching support to maximize behavior change among program participants. “Simply Leadership” leads high performers through a curriculum designed to create the agility and sustainability to thrive in today’s complex work environment. Participants learn to maximize productivity, leverage strengths to drive results, build teams to support organizational agility, and synthesize their leadership vision.

“We immediately saw fundamental changes in the behavior of team members who participated in the Working Simply program. They became more productive in the areas that matter most to our business: engaging with customers and employees,” said Chris Pope, Senior Director of Distribution and Process, Coca-Cola Consolidated Bottling Company. “The built-in reinforcement that follows the initial training has resulted in our continuing to reap the benefits of our investment. And because our team members are working less but doing more, the impact on their work-life balance has been terrific. From a management perspective, I couldn’t be happier: our total sales calls per week are up over 20% from the prior year. These additional calls per week should easily translate into $2 million in additional revenue per year.”

To learn more about Working Simply, including program offerings for businesses and individuals, tips on how to incorporate the “work smarter, not harder” principal into your life, the background of Managing Partners Carson Tate, MS O.D. and Jeannie Sullivan, SPHR, PCC and more, please visit www.workingsimply.com.

Survey Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Working Simply from July 31^st- August 2^nd, 2012 among 2,262 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Erin Vadala, Warner Communications at [e-mail].

About Working Simply, Inc.

Working Simply is a management consultancy whose mission is to bring productivity with passion back to the workplace. We do this by providing tailored solutions that help people to work smarter, not harder.

Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, Working Simply improves corporate agility, employee engagement, productivity and effectiveness by providing clients with behavioral learning and integration support systems (BLISS). The company provides a comprehensive suite of programs that reframe how businesses and individuals work and interact, leveraging their strengths and structuring their work so that it aligns with the strategic goals of the organization.

Created to address an underserved need, Working Simply has partnered successfully with numerous clients to improve efficiency and organization. Our clients range widely and include Amerisource-Bergen, Coca-Cola Consolidated Bottling Company, Duke Energy, Lend Lease, John Deere, VF Imagewear, (multiple divisions of) Wells Fargo. Join Working Simply on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Flickr and Vimeo, and at www.workingsimply.com.

¹ Calculation based on U.S. Census Bureau data, which estimates that there are 234.6 million U.S. adults age 18 and older residing in the United States: 234.6M x 0.36 (percentage of employed adults who are constantly checking work emails during personal time)= 84.5M employed Americans.