Inclusive Company Culture Makes a Difference

RCS Influencer Trent Cotney says if company leaders inspire, motivate, and encourage their employees, success inevitably follows. 

Editor’s note: The following consists of a conversation between RCS COO Karen Edwards and Trent Cotney of Adams and Reese. You can listen to the full podcast or read the transcript below.

Karen Edwards: Hello everyone. This is Karen Edwards with Roofer's Coffee Shop, and I am here with Trent Cotney, one of our RCS influencers to talk about our topic for November, which is how culture helps with recruitment and retention. So Trent, welcome. 

Trent Cotney: Hey, it's great to be here. That's a good topic, too. 

Karen Edwards: Yeah. Now you work with a lot of companies across the industry. You've also had your own company and still do. So what have your experiences been in the type of culture that different companies have that are successful in helping them not only recruit, but keep the employees that they have? 

Trent Cotney: Yeah, so one of the things that I noticed when I had my law firm recently, we merged with Adams and Reese, we still have the consulting company. But when I had the law firm, at one point we had about a hundred or so employees. And motivation was incredibly important, and the way that you motivate your employees is through company culture. You have to lay out what the plan looks like, you have to inspire, you have to motivate. And that's part of what leadership in any company should do is figure out what makes you unique and different, and how can you inspire the people that are working for you to buy into your vision. That buy-in is incredibly important. Retention is very difficult in any construction company, and it's not just about money and it's not just about benefits, it's about the dream. Are you providing a vision that gives a roadmap to an employee, especially an entry level employee, that kind of shows him or her what one year, three year, five years looks like and why they should stay with you as opposed to move to a competitor? 

Karen Edwards: And that starts, like you said, at the top, with the leadership team. 

Trent Cotney: Absolutely. Just to give my own example, when I'd worked at big firms for the first 12, 13 years of my career and then started my own company. And when I started, it was just myself and a legal assistant, and we grew from there. And the vision that I had at that start is the same vision that I had all the way up for 10 years. It was making sure that everyone knew that I was out front. 

I think it's important for every leadership team in any company, when your employees are looking at you to know that you're charging up that hill, flag in hand, you're the first one up that hill, and you want everybody to follow. Everyone watches what the C level people do. So if you're playing golf three days a week, if you're on vacation, if you're not into the company, if it's just a paycheck for you, then that's going to trickle down to your employees. 

It's important that you're always providing that inspiration. That's, a lot of times, what especially newer employees are looking for. They want to be inspired, they want to be motivated, they want to be passionate, and you have to figure that out. It's your role in leadership to do that. 

Karen Edwards: I think we've seen that over the last few years with the younger generation coming in. It's not so much about a paycheck and a job, it's about making a difference and being passionate. 

Trent Cotney: Yeah, absolutely. So along those lines, supporting philanthropic and charitable activities and groups, that's important. Reaching out to your employees to figure out what charities they support, and to me, I receive more value in the handful of charitable things and events that I do each year than I... 

Karen Edwards: Trent, are you still with me? Oh, Trent, I lost you for a minute. 

Trent Cotney: [inaudible 00:04:47]. 

Karen Edwards: That's okay. I love that you brought up the charitable and the philanthropy because you truly are a leader in the industry. And I'm going to give a plug because we've got a Coffee Conversations coming up on December 1st about a season of giving, and you are supporting industry associations by matching donations that day and educating people about the importance of what these foundations do for our industry. And I think that you are truly a leader in setting the example. So anybody wanting to learn more about that and wanting to maybe make a change in your company and in the direction and in what you're involved in should tune into that, because that's going to be a great conversation. 

Trent Cotney: Yeah, absolutely. Thank you for the kind words. I don't really view myself as that way, I think there's a lot more people like Charles Anderson and others that are a lot more philanthropic and charitable than I am. But to me, I really like supporting the groups and associations that help our industry, and that's one of the things that I routinely look to assist and think any news or acknowledgement or spotlight that we can shine on the foundations and charitable associations that are out there, I think is a good thing. 

Karen Edwards: Excellent. Well, thank you for sharing your wisdom, sharing your thoughts, and thank you for supporting the industry. We certainly appreciate it. 

Trent Cotney: Well, thank you, Karen. It's always a pleasure. 

Karen Edwards: Yeah, thanks Trent. Bye. 

Trent Cotney: See you. 

Trent Cotney is a partner at Adams & Reese. See his full bio here.