Comments on: Beer, Bikes, and Better Business

By: New Belgium's La Folie: La Awesome | Thank Heaven for Beer

New Belgium's La Folie: La Awesome | Thank Heaven for Beer — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 00:45:47 +0000

[...] would have never sought this beer out. Despite the fact that I am a big fan of New Belgium’s way of doing business, I am not a big fan of New Belgium’s beer. From their 1554 to their Ranger IPA, it all tastes [...]

By: Nate

Nate — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:52:19 +0000

Me too!!

By: Byrd Reinhardt

Byrd Reinhardt — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:45:00 +0000

Just catching up on some THFB reading (obviously). I can’t wait for you guys to do this kind of stuff with your brewery! : )

By: Nate

Nate — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:08:57 +0000

I agree…where I work now, I am one of four employees (including the owner) and there is a “family” feel that was only mimicked (team meetings, byob christmas parties, etc) at the last corporation I worked for.

I actually hope to be a small business owner someday. I wouldn’t want the headache and time restraints that would come with more money and employees.

By: Scott@TheBrewClub

Scott@TheBrewClub — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:57:37 +0000

Until you read what people who left the google had to say….

Some big companies do ‘get it’. There’s always the list of ‘Top 100′ companies to work for that are no small operations. I just think the smaller companies have a better feel for their people and are better able to maintain the spirit and culture that propelled them into business in the first place. Zappos is a great example too.

By: Nate

Nate — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 17:21:51 +0000

Scott and Howard…agree completely. I’ve worked for big (corporate) and small operations, and without a doubt prefer the smaller company. I know not all companies can afford bikes and Belgium, but like Scott said…TREAT THEM WELL!

Howard, couldn’t agree more about publicly held companies. I think that once a company goes public, as you said, money is the primary focus…even more so than a quality product, at times.

I’ve read several stories about google, a large company, going the extra mile to appreciate and reward their employees, but that is the only conglomerate I can think of.

By: howardf

howardf — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:08:23 +0000

I agree with Scott that the size of the company has a lot to do with it. Once you’re publicly held, shareholders only care about making money, analysts only care about hitting artificial benchmarks, and CEOs only care about their bonuses. The employee is always last, just ask my employer. (I had a wink after that last sentence, but I deleted it because I didn’t want anyone to get the impression that I was kidding.)

By: Scott @TheBrewClub

Scott @TheBrewClub — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:01:52 +0000

I think smaller companies can do this more easily than larger ones – I think smaller companies often, (but not always) understand that their people are their #1 resource. Treat them well, go the extra mile beyond the canned Christmas party and summer picnic, and they will reward you many times over.

A custom bike? How cool is that! A trip to Belgium? It’s work-related, but still, how cool is that! Part-ownership in the company? Now they have REAL interest in seeing the company do well and succeed.

I’m not sure why other companies don’t pick up on this type of mentality.

As usual, good post.

By: Nate

Nate — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:42:38 +0000

Thanks for sharing that story Rob!
I can applaud Upland’s efforts too. I am no scientists, but perhaps the cost of solar was cheaper. Either way, you are…it is a step in the right direction!

By: beer_scientist

beer_scientist — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:13:20 +0000

I like that about Upland, too. I’ve had their Helios pretty recently and tasted the fruit of those labors. Somewhat sadly, I am moving across the country away from Indiana right now…but I’ve got some Hoosier State brews to bring me back home.