“If you are a person who needs structure and rules,” the diminutive employee handbook advises, “Darex may not be a good place for you.” Indeed, in an era when most companies have legally scripted, encyclopedic policies and procedures describing in minute detail everything from the frequency and duration of breaks to retirement benefits, Darex has only one work rule: Live our values.

Darex’s values are both explicit and visible, deliberately designed not to be filed away and forgotten. In fact, they appear rather startlingly on the wall, filling a 10-by-25- foot space—a daily reminder of what the company believes is important:

• Love and Respect
• Honesty and Integrity
• Continuous Improvement
• Simplify
• Enjoy What We Do
• Live Our Values “Why those values?” I wanted to know. “I want them in my life, why not in my workplace?” owner Dave Bernard shrugged.

It would be one thing, I suppose, to have such expectations of a ballet company, or a nonprofit social services agency, or any venture that attracts people with a common purpose or shared passion. But Darex is a manufacturer. The company makes equipment that sharpens drill bits; not exactly a beacon for like-minded drill bit sharpeners. So it would be easy to dismiss Bernard as delusional, except for one extraordinary fact: He succeeded.

Bernard is a tall, quiet, thoughtful man, passionate about his employees and determined to create an environment where they can bring their full, authentic selves to the workplace.

“What’s wrong with the old model,” I wanted to know, “where people come in, do a day’s work and collect a day’s pay?”

“It’s very limiting,” Bernard said. “People are physical, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual beings. Most businesses hire people for some part of their brain, or maybe their brawn, and either discourage or outright punish them for bringing those other parts to work. For years, they pay people to be less than they are, then wonder why they are not fully accountable. It’s as if they put flow restrictors on their employees before they even come through the door. But what they end up restricting is their creativity, their passion, and their contribution. Well, I don’t want to hire a fourth of a person.”

Creating an environment that nurtures a fully engaged workforce is more process than project, reflected Bernard. “People have been told for so long not to be who they really are that it takes a little time to convince them it’s OK.”

At Darex, they began by investing in employee development. “We are interested in their technical skills, of course, but we also want to develop them as individuals, to provide them with the personal skills necessary to succeed in this environment.” Within their first year of employment, all employees are sent to a four-day seminar that teaches them how to incorporate the company’s values into their daily lives. “It gives us all an equal base and a common language,” said Bernard.

“Then, we began breaking down barriers.” They tore down walls in the office and the manufacturing facility, except where noise abatement was an issue, to make everyone accessible. They did away with traditional management structures and titles. They stopped doing performance evaluations. Employees were organized into teams with team leaders and a steering committee to provide oversight. Teams whose work overlaps evaluate each other, and the steering committee supplies the necessary feedback for never-ending improvement. To facilitate this transition, the company first hired a consultant, then a full- time team development coordinator.

The position was filled by a dynamic and direct woman, decidedly committed to fine-tuning Bernard’s vision. Genna Southworth was a pivotal hire because the teams needed someone to guide and accelerate their evolution. Given the diversity of employees (from accounting to sales and marketing, from engineering to manufacturing, from data processing to assembly), team development required the skills of a teacher, the discretion of a confidant, the enthusiasm of a coach, and the firm hand of a conductor—a demanding combination. To say, then, that Ms. Southworth is a powerful woman would be redundant. If she teaches empowerment, there is no doubt she teaches it from experience.

I asked her what exactly she does. “Three things, really,” she replied. “I’m a facilitator, a counselor, and an advocate for the teams.” The teams, she explained, are self-directed. They set their own production and team development goals and report each month on their progress. They identify barriers to simplification or goal attainment and ascertain the resources required to achieve their targets. “Where they get stuck, either on personal, interpersonal, or interteam issues, I mediate solutions.”

“So, how are you doing?” I asked. “In my first three months, team productivity increased 38 percent,” said Southworth. She says this with a teacher’s pride and, indeed, there are signs everywhere that Darex is a learning community where “students” eagerly share their latest achievements and acknowledge the achievements of others. I pass a bulletin board on the manufacturing floor where one team has posted a modification that it devised to a fabrication process, noting that it is saving the company $37,100 annually. A large bulletin board dubbed the Kudos board is filled with thanks and acknowledgements from one employee or team to another. “Thanks for on-time component delivery.” “Thanks for a month of perfect orders.” “Thanks for working late to help us get the orders out.” And this, a most atypical public acknowledgement that speaks to the level of honesty and safety that has been created in this facility: “Thank you for telling me what other people were saying about me.” All 73 employees are encouraged to post kudos at any time, and drawings are held to award prizes to the receivers and the givers of praise.

And how has the nontraditional culture at Darex affected the bottom line?

According to Industrial Division President Gary Varney, exceedingly well. The company enjoyed $15 million in sales last year, up from $9 million the year before, and estimates doing $20 million this year. Its profit margins are among the highest in the industry. Over the last five years, the company has averaged 20 percent growth annually without incurring any debt. Darex is now represented in 32 countries and is the largest company of its kind in the industry.

The culture has an impact beyond the bottom line as well, said Southworth. The company, for example, is enjoying a five-and-a-half-year span without a single lost-time injury—an enviable rarity in manufacturing. To acknowledge and encourage safety, the company rewards employees by closing one half hour early for every three weeks that goes by without an accident, and one full day for every six months.

By focusing on people first, Darex has vanquished the two great enemies of employee morale: ignorance and exclusion. “We keep our employees informed and involved,” said Southworth. Each morning, the entire company gathers for a 10-minute “scuttlebutt” meeting. These sessions are led by teams, which share their accomplishments and raise any issues requiring amplification. The sessions are taped for the night shift.

Financial reports are shared with employees on a monthly basis. Although the company is privately held, it is not secretly held, and employees have good reason to be interested. Thirty percent of the profits come back to them in the form of profit sharing.

Ever-supportive of employee development, the company sponsors the “Lunch and Learn” program. Guest speakers are invited to share their expertise on assorted subjects. A committee selects topics of interest to the employees, ranging from Y2K to bodybuilding. If employees choose to attend, the company buys their lunch.

“We’re very pleased,” said Southworth, “that our values are beginning to benefit the community as well.” After 500 people lost their jobs in a local timber mill closure, Darex employees elected to bring bag lunches to Lunch and Learn, donating the money the company would have spent on their lunches to a food fund for the unemployed.

Not coincidentally, in the employee handbook under “Hints for Getting Ahead at Darex,” is the following: “Be an asset to the community.” And this: “Challenge the status quo.” And this: “Be a teacher; share what you know.” And this: “When making decisions, don’t give up your conscience or character.”

Bernard, it is clear, is proud that his company is built on the character of its employees. All companies are, of course, whether they are aware of it or not. The difference is that Darex uniquely brings a higher level of consciousness and intention to the process.

Nestled in the foothills along the Interstate 5 corridor in southern Oregon is a groundbreaking enterprise. It is a place where employees—even those who do dull, repetitive work—have not been reduced to restless drones having a near-life experience but are fully alive and fully engaged. An accountable company that uses the complete intellectual and emotional resources of its employees. A team with shared vision and shared values invested in each other’s success. It is an organization without management, but not without leadership; without performance evaluations, but not without feedback. An organization where values and profit do not clash but fuel each other. A place of honesty and integrity, love and respect. A very special workplace.

In the introduction to the employee handbook, Dave Bernard writes: “I am committed to do everything I can to make your employment here a valuable and rewarding part of your life.”

It would appear that he has.

Also Read

IBM i Shops Pivot to Battle COVID-19

Energy, Vibe, and Atmosphere

Murphy’s Security Law