After more than 13 years, this week will be my last at SB&A. It’s hard to believe it’s coming to an end. Over these years, I’ve worked with some of the best people I know; the most hardworking and the kindest. It’s been a lifetime of experiences, growth, and learning and I didn’t want to part ways without reflecting on one of the most important things I’ve learned here.
It’s rare these days to stay at any company for that long–so what kept me here? Well, it starts with Carmen and Philip, who set out many years ago to create an agency that would be intentionally dissimilar from the agencies they had worked at before. They were two people with a vision of a dignified & empathetic workplace which placed equal importance on your personal life and your work life. Groundbreaking, right?
Actually, it is kind of groundbreaking, particularly in New York City. Those of us who have lived here can attest to the fact that it is not an easy place to survive in. This city, more than most, places an extremely high value on productivity and ladder-climbing at the expense of our mental and physical well-being. Coming from Ireland, I felt especially unprepared for the chaotic and rapid pace of life that I was confronted with; the hardened, dog-eat-dog attitudes and the abrasive, confrontational nature of the people here. My life in Dublin seemed positively quaint in comparison.
So, I consider it to be one of the greatest strokes of luck that I ended up at SB&A and, with that, I was welcomed into the family that this agency is. In more unstable times during my life in New York (have you ever been evicted because you asked your landlord to fix something?) SB&A was a grounding force. Knowing that each person at the agency cared about my well-being and was looking out for me in some way, made it a place I wanted to come into every day.
Carmen and Philip led by example. As they cared for their employees and treated clients and partners with respect and honesty, so did we. It turns out that I didn’t just learn how to work at SB&A, I learned how to be. If I could put a word to this–the greatest lesson–it’s humanity. Over the years, through the natural evolutions at SB&A, we’ve put time into articulating the thing–or things–that really set the agency apart. Yes, we are creative, nimble, resourceful, multidisciplinary, and have almost 30 years of experience under our belt, but it’s this intangible thing–humanity–that truly differentiates SB&A from other agencies (and most other workplaces). SB&A fostered, and continues to nurture, a humane environment which recognizes that a small business cannot thrive–maybe nothing can–if the people who make it up aren’t being cared for at a human level.
Now, I know that Carmen and Philip are innately kind people, but I think they also understood that this approach was a smart business decision. Research shows that kindness in the workplace can help to “retain top talent, establish a thriving culture, increase employee engagement, and enhance productivity”, while employees with empathetic leaders show higher levels of innovation and creativity than those with less empathetic leaders. I’d add to this that I’ve seen how empathy in the workplace can foster a climate of trust which helps reduce anxiety and form stronger working relationships. I’ve formed lifelong friendships with the people I’ve worked with at SB&A–people who I consider to be family, more than colleagues.
I could make a list of top tips to integrate kindness and humanity into your workplace, but why would I do that when I can point you to the experts? Granted, Carmen is enjoying her well-earned years of retirement and would likely thank us for not disturbing her, but Philip is always around for a chat and some advice. To add some welcome humanity into your workplace–or any place at all–I’d recommend that you drop him a line.