Smartpress’ 2024 HR Scorecard: How We Set the Bar High in Our Industry
For a client-focused online printer like us, a positive HR scorecard means our business is running smoothly and successfully. Our employee-focused metrics prove we are leagues above other manufacturers – a fact that should make you proud for choosing us as your printer. (We’re pleased as punch!)
But what does that HR scorecard measure exactly? And what is our HR team doing to achieve that result? Along with our parent company, The Bernard Group, we track our performance in many ways. We’re excited to share some of our employee-focused metrics that shine a light on the conscientious company culture that’s baked into everything we do.
HR Scorecard Wins from 2024
At Smartpress and The Bernard Group, we believe in working for something bigger than ourselves. We print marketing collateral and build retail fixtures, yes, but we’re also working to make positive change while we do it. For us, that means integrating eco-friendly practices into our business operations, benefiting our local community and supporting our nearly 950 employee co-owners (we’re 100% employee-owned, after all).
Check out some of the supporting stats we’re particularly proud of:
- The amount of co-owners who are women is 26% higher than the overall American manufacturing workforce. Women work in all areas of our company, from production to executive leadership!
- Our turnover rate is just 11% (compared to 40% for the American manufacturing workforce).
- 68% of co-owners participate in our 401K plan (compared to 64% in the print and manufacturing industry).
Employee Engagement at Smartpress & The Bernard Group
Every year, we conduct a Gallup employee engagement survey, and in 2024, the results spoke for themselves:
- Our overall score was 4.21 out of a possible 5.0.
- 89% of employees participated in the survey.
And while both of those numbers are high, there’s another part of this engagement puzzle we’re happy to report: Gallup considers our engagement rate to be double that of average U.S. companies. We’re thrilled our efforts and strategies have paid off for our employee co-owners – It’s pretty incredible, if we do say so ourselves!
Strategies that Lead to Employee Satisfaction
So what else contributes to HR scorecard numbers? Part of it is all the ways we make social responsibility a priority. From skills development and recognition for our employees to charitable partnerships in our community, we put the human in human resources. Here’s how:
- Training and development: Our TBG Academy offers classes that benefit our employees’ lives in and out of the workplace, including areas like leadership and business skills, financial literacy and mental wellness. The result? More education equals more engagement.
- Recognition: In 2024, our employees sent thousands of shoutouts and cards to fellow employees thanking them for their hard work, noticing a job well done or highlighting a time when they went above and beyond. While this recognition is simply a nice thing to receive, it also helps us track growth and discover new opportunities within the company.
- Employee experience: We seek to provide purposeful moments for employees to have fun and be together. We found that small things like providing popcorn twice a week goes a long way, while our little free resource libraries and gratitude walls make an even bigger impact.
- Inclusive sourcing: We provide students from transitional work programs, like SAIL and STAR, the opportunity to build skills and gain work experience – several have since become employee co-owners!
- Charitable giving: We partner with local charities and national organizations like Feed My Starving Children, Samaritan’s Purse and Dress for Success. In 2024, our annual golf tournament raised $261K for three other charities: PROP, Open Hands Foundation and People Serving People.
We’re a manufacturer with a reputation for setting the bar high, and when we strive to be better, we all benefit – including our clients.
Corporate Social Responsibility
For us, social responsibility also means limiting our impact on the environment (and that of our clients). Of course, we offer eco-friendly print materials and recycled paper stocks, but when it comes to sustainability, we take it a step further with things like:
- We’ve retained EcoVadis Platinum status for three years in a row.
- We partner with the Carbon Disclosure Project for environmental reporting (transparency and accountability are our middle names).
- We were named a Green Power Partner of the Environmental Protection Agency in 2021.
- We achieved 14001 environmental certification from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which ensures our policies and procedures align with standards set internationally.
- We’re a signatory of the UN Global Compact to uphold the 10 Principles and Sustainable Development Goals on the environment.
- We adhere to strict business ethics and labor and human rights policies.
These and other HR business strategies led to Smartpress and The Bernard Group being named the 2024 ESOP of the Year. Awarded by the ESOP Association Minnesota/Dakotas Chapter, it truly validated our mission to be a force for good.
Q&A with Our VP of HR
We could go on and on about our accomplishments, but why not hear from an actual HR expert? We spoke with Jody O’Neil, our vice president of human resources, about our strategy for employee engagement, why it’s important for our clients and what’s on deck for 2025.
How does The Bernard Group approach employee satisfaction and engagement?
Jody O’Neil: “I’m proud of our participation rate as well as our engagement score as I firmly believe we’re an amazing place to work. We conduct our survey because we want to know what employees like about working here and where there are areas of opportunity. Once it’s completed, we ask every leader to sit down with their team, review the results and talk through what actions can be taken. From there, the work begins.
“About six months after the annual survey, we conduct a quick pulse survey to understand if employees saw the results, had an action planning session with their team and progress is being made. I’m pleased to report that we continue to receive positive results. We’re doing what we said we would. My goal is that every single employee understands that their voice matters.”
What actions have been taken over the years based on results of our engagement surveys?
“We’ve taken many actions based on the feedback that we received from our annual surveys. To highlight just a few: We heard from our employees that they want to continue to learn and grow in their career, so we implemented our TBG Academy.
“We also heard that employees wanted more conversations with their manager regarding their performance, so we implemented a variety of tools and resources for our leaders to use for formal conversations.
“Employees also want to know they’ve done a good job and be recognized for their efforts. As a result, we have a strong recognition program and encourage all employees to recognize one another.”
“We’re all co-owners, so if our company does well, we all do well.”
Our HR scorecard shows we have more women, a lower turnover rate and a higher engagement score than the national manufacturing averages. What do you think contributes to that?
“There are several things that contribute to this. First, we have a culture of teamwork and collaboration, and it truly seems that people like coming to work. Through our employee engagement survey, there are many, many positive comments from our employees about why we are truly a great place to be.
“Another is the fact that we are 100% employee-owned. We’re all co-owners, so if our company does well, we all do well. Each employee has a stake in the success of the company, and as a result, people are not only working for a great company, but also themselves.
“We also take our employees’ feedback seriously. This is not a one-and-done process. Instead, it starts with the results of the survey and continues throughout the year. We gather feedback, take appropriate action and have the results to show it.
“Lastly, we’re a strengths-based organization and encourage employees to understand their natural strengths and talents. From there, it’s all about leveraging those strengths.”
Why is it important for our clients to be informed of these successful metrics?
“It’s important for our customers to understand the actions we take to be an amazing employer. I believe that customers want to do business with organizations that have a strong reputation in the market, act with integrity, deliver high-quality products and services and truly value their employees. We strive to wow our customers on a daily basis and do the same for our employees. They’re the heart of our organization.”
What engagement and HR initiatives are you excited about for 2025?
“2025 will be exciting for us. We’ll be deploying our eighth annual employee engagement survey, and I’m excited to look back and see the progress we’ve made. Once we get the results, we’ll start working on action items to make The Bernard Group and Smartpress even better.
“We’ll also continue to build our TBG Academy. We have a strong desire to take care of our employees – the whole employee – so we’ll continue to provide well-rounded offerings employees can use inside our walls and in their personal lives.
“Lastly, we’ll focus on the transition to our new campus just a few miles down the road. It will be an opportunity for more of our employees to be together, which will drive further collaboration and teamwork. We have some exciting times ahead!”
“We strive to wow our customers on a daily basis and do the same for our employees.”
Print Your Next Project with Smartpress
We’ve done enough HR research to know that engaged employees are motivated and productive employees. And for our clients and customers, that means we’re creating brilliant print at a high level and with high quality – a win for everyone!
As we continue to find ways to grow and improve our HR scorecard, we’ll also continue to do what we do best: work for something bigger than ourselves. It’s a mission that’s served Smartpress well since 2009 and one that empowers us to fulfill our roles with pride (and maybe a little ink on our fingers). Print your next project now.
