(Work From Heart)
Anniversaries are meant for celebrating. But they’re also convenient milestones for encouraging us to stop, look and listen to insights into where we’ve come, to learn how to be even better as we go forward.
Ten years into Bospar’s life, we’re pretty well recognized for being the first national scale all-virtual work-from-home agency. We’ve done that. We’ve written the book on it. We’ve succeeded at it so fully that it’s now something we take for granted.
WFH – or work-from-home – is now one of the hottest topics in the technology world. It’s a battle that likely will rage for the years to come.
But we Bospartans also believe in an even more powerful WFH – work from heart.
Our “work from heart” spirit transcends physical location or rules of engagement. Rather, it starts with the premise that everyone deserves to have the ability to be passionate about what they do and proud of how they do it. As with anything, nothing can be perfect in all aspects. But if the core foundation at the heart of the matter is properly in place, then the thrill of the chase far outweighs any downsides.
In an early TV show called “Lou Grant,” one of his staff complained about his job and Grant replied, “that’s why they call it work.”
But “work from heart” turns that idea upside down. It’s a vision backed by shared values where everyone aligns around the pleasure of taking part in a job well done. We work toward the results, but the journey also is the reward.
Yes, we suffer the same ups and downs of any work team, but the joy and special pride of accomplishment is what shines above all. It’s one of the reasons Bospar has one of the lowest staff – and client – turnover rates in the industry.
The #1 premise on which we build our work from heart platform is that we’re here to become one with our clients and gain our happiness from theirs. This intense client service attitude is not for everyone and our recruiting staff has become skilled at finding the right matchups.
And once you bring a good match into our already WFH-driven culture, things quickly take on a life of their own. While work from heart is more a state of mind than a set of rules, we’ve loosely defined what that behavior looks like for purposes of communicating it to clients and prospects.
Here are a few of our core concepts. They share the common denominator of coming from a place of much pride and joy.
We get outrageous results for our clients
Someone once said that we do PR like a puppy with a sock in its mouth. We love that.
When we set the bar for results, we don’t mean solid. We don’t mean excellent. We don’t even mean outstanding. Although all of those definitions apply as well.
When you truly enjoy and throw your heart into what you do then the more outrageous the results, the sounder you sleep each night. And because we WFH – it’s not only allowed but expected that people will take some calculated risks to get that breakthrough ending – so excitement is high.
We’re strategic thinkers
Q: How many Bospartans does it take to change a lightbulb?
A: First of all, are you sure the answer to your problem really IS a lightbulb?
We love that we work in technology – the fastest-moving, most prolific and globally competitive industry on the planet. And one of the best parts of that is working with some of the greatest minds of our lifetime.
Those client minds are often a mix of data-driven engineers, analytics driven CMOs and high-flying CEOs who don’t suffer fools. Every day we’re like athletes at the Olympics – always preparing to live up to the rarified standards of our environment.
That keeps us sharp and teaches us as we go. We do our homework. We stretch our minds. Like any quality exercise – it keeps us agile and feels terrific.
We’re creative with a purpose
True creativity comes directly from the heart. Being a WFH environment, we’re awash in creative ideas every day of our lives – even in the shower. It’s energizing. It’s meaningful. It’s great fun.
But strategy is our boss and humility is our mentor. So we enjoy the rush of our idea flow, pat each other on the back and then willingly discard the 99 of the 100 that aren’t quite right in full support of the one that really is.
We’re committed
One of my favorite quotes is, “The difference between involvement and commitment is like a ham and eggs breakfast. The chicken was involved. The pig was committed.”
Technology organizations require a complex interweaving of communications among key audiences – corporate, employee, user, channel, customer, analyst, influencer, reviewer, government – to build understanding, brand and demand. We need to throw our hearts into covering all bases and never letting down our guard.
We’re genuinely nice people
We believe with our whole hearts that nice guys and gals finish first.
We really like our colleagues and our clients. We have each other’s backs. We have lots of challenges every day of our lives, but trusting each other is never one of them. No matter what we might face in the crazy world of tech – we all face it together as one.
As we go forward into our next ten years at Bospar, we’re committed to remaining a WFH firm at all levels.
The work from home part is a very secure foundation to build on. The work from heart part is a platform for continued growth, pride and joy.
And in the end, it all ties together perfectly, for as the proverb says, “home is where the heart is.”
We look forward to sharing our hearts with all of our many colleagues, clients and friends for a great many years to come.
