Sharing the Love: Legends, Romance and the Strategic’s Employee Match-Up Event
At Strategic Sports we believe our employees are our most important assets. And while compensation and growth opportunities are often the focus there are many ways to support the happiness and satisfaction of our devoted team.
Recently, we had our annual Chinese Valentine’s Match Up Event, which usually takes place near the Seventh Day of the Seventh Month of the Lunar Calendar. Chinese legend has it that this is the one day of the year when lovers separated by the Gods are reunited when a bridge forms in the Heavens, allowing the lovers to cross and reunite. That bridge is the Milky Way.
Many years ago, when Strategic Sports first implemented our lean initiatives due to a slowing global economy, Managing Director Norman Cheng went to each department and asked the team what the company can do to help them be more efficient.
“Help me find a wife!” one young man exclaimed. He worked in a department with only men and after work, he went home, took a shower and slept, so there was no opportunity to meet anyone.
“At first, I thought he was joking,” Cheng said, “I reminded him that I was looking for ways to improve productivity, and that his lack of a girlfriend wasn’t something I think the company should get involved with.”
Cheng later relayed this tale to Director of Sales Sherry Tai. “We should consider the emotional well-being and mindset of our team,” Tai said, “If they are happy, wouldn’t this improve productivity and efficiency?”
It was a good point, and it was near the Seventh Day of the Seventh Month. Cheng suggested we have an event where the single men and women could meet, mingle and connect through a series of games.
This year, our Strategic Vietnam Team planned a similar event at their facility. Cheng’s first reaction was that this had been based on Chinese traditions, and that the Vietnam factory should cancel their event and come up with something else later, based on their own local traditions. The Vietnam team was devastated to hear this, as more than 20 people had already signed up and would be sad to see the event canceled or delayed.
“Well then, the show must go on!” Cheng proclaimed. Events in both China and Vietnam resulted in couples matching, and their first date is on the house.
Great work is the result of helping people be their best. At Strategic Sports we believe there is no separation between genuinely and authenticaly caring for the happiness and well-being of our own employees and prioritizing on the quality of our products, efficiency of our processes and how we treat our partners and customers.
