We need your help! NGC’s farm doesn’t have a name, and we want your help naming it.
(That’s right, a farm. Read on.)
If you’ve been following our team for any amount of time, you know that we think a little differently about work:
- We built a nap room in our office
- We play Rock Band together
- This week, we had our team meeting on a boat on Lake Mendota
I believe that if we take care of our people, our people will take care of our clients, fans, and members. We’re trying to build the kind of company we always wanted to work for, but never really found. (And believe us, we tried. Between Rebecca and I, we’ve had over 22 employers in our careers.)
This year, we’re taking our commitment to our team’s health and well-being to a whole new level. I’m growing organic vegetables, and giving every employee a share each week. Here’s the story.
Last fall, Rebecca and I rode Bike the Barns in Madison. We biked and toured farms, ate organic food, and thought, “Why not?” I’m always happiest when I have dirt under my nails, and this would be a great way to have delicious, local food throughout the summer.
Then, our business hit the skids, and we had an economic reason to consider a farm. We asked all of our staff to take sizable pay cuts, and we wanted to find ways to make up the difference. We shrank the workweek to four days; everyone gets Fridays off. And with the garden, they’ll get a share of vegetables. It’s not a direct, monetary benefit, but our team values fresh, organic produce, and it saves them about $500, what they’d invest for a weekly share from a local CSA.
(Note: the “OTR” sticker on our wheelbarrow is a nod to another of our inspirations: Over The Rhine People's Garden, the first community garden in Cincinnati.]
Rebecca is there for the big projects, like putting up 220 feet of chicken wire fence to protect it from animal grazing and rodents. I’m responsible for the planning, planting, watering, weeding. Part of my salary at NGC goes to pay for my gardening time, and we've purposefully shaped my responsibilities to coincide with the growing season. You’ll see me at the garden most of the summer, and in the office less.
It's a win for me, a win for our team, and a win for their health and the health of the planet.
Help us name the farm!
NGC's farm is approximately 3,000 square feet and will provide 25 varieties of organic vegetables to our staff and a few friends. There’s only one problem: the farm still doesn’t have a name! Email your ideas to me, mm@nextgenerationconsulting.com, and we’ll send the winner a farm-inspired gift, made by the whole team!
P.S. Rebecca and I periodically tweet farm updates. Follow me and Rebecca.
More:
- Rebecca’s post on her personal blog about the Company Farmer.
