Category: Company Updates

Hi! My name is Molly and I’m the newest Rock & Bloom team member. I joined the team late last year as an Account Manager. The title of this post may sound like I’m trying to suck up to my team being new and all, but let me tell you why I really am lucky to work at Rock & Bloom.

Once Upon a Time…

I used to own Lux Events, an event company in Saskatoon, before moving to Toronto over two years ago. I loved owning and running my own business. I loved having a team, collaborating with them, helping clients, and designing beautiful events. Before starting at Rock & Bloom, I felt lost. Trying to find work that excites me, is meaningful, and that fits my lifestyle with two amazing (and busy) kids, is no easy task. Add global pandemic to the list, and, well, it’s no easy feat.

I have known Rock & Bloom for years. They created my website, and helped me at every turn in my business, from HR to strategy, saying no to screaming yes. Most of the things I did right in my business was from their advice, leadership, and mentorship.

After moving to Toronto, I worked at an organization where I learned so much about myself, how to make a killer spreadsheet, my value as a professional, and… the type of company culture I will never be part of again.

I worked in an extremely toxic work environment with poor company culture. After I quit, I spent an entire month processing what happened, and then homeschooling my kids who were neglected (okay, plopped in front of netflix) for two months at the start of the pandemic. While this was a difficult experience, it helped me reflect on the things that are really important to me. It wasn’t easy, but I’m so grateful for the lessons I learned from that job.

Company culture is everything. We are all human beings, with feelings, relationships, family, friends, hobbies, and things outside of work that make us who we are. To think that when you hire someone, they are to fit within your box is insane to me. Having created a company culture and attempted to fit into a culture that wasn’t good for me, I became increasingly aware of the significance of this. I am really lucky to work in a company that values culture so much. Rock & Bloom actually walks the walk when it comes to a positive environment. Check out what I’ve experienced so far:

Building Great Company Culture

Flexible working hours + work / life balance

I was told at my old job that I had flexibility in my day, but was required to be at my computer for 15+ hours a day, even when the pandemic hit and my kids were at home 24/7. So although the value of balance was preached, it definitely wasn’t practiced. It is one thing to say something, and another to follow through.

At Rock & Bloom, we have core hours. During these hours, we should be available to colleagues and clients. Aside from that, you can work whatever hours you want, as long as the work gets done. This has been huge to me — one of my favourite parts of my day is walking my kids to and from school.

Unlimited vacation

Yes, Rock & Bloom actually has this. And they actually enforce it. They believe in resting hard. As long as we give enough notice, they are fine with you taking time off. And the team is there to support you while you’re off, so you can actually have a holiday, knowing you won’t come back to a build up of work. Many of our team members have family across the country, love to travel, and have hobbies that they love to pursue. The perk of unlimited vacation helps all my teammates seek out satisfaction and connection outside of the promised three weeks other companies guarantee.

Growth and understanding

Founders Heather and David care about their team and want us to succeed. I’m not afraid to tell them that I miss being an entrepreneur. I believe they will help bring me into the business part of Rock & Bloom (once I get the hang of my role), and leverage my skills in that area. Many team members have side hustles and it just makes us a more well-rounded, happier team.

Trust

Trusting your team to make decisions because they are smart. At my old job, even my emails to the team had to be proofread! That level of control and micromanaging really hurts over time, and can erode confidence. On my first day at Rock & Bloom, Heather asked me to send a contract out to a client — the trust was obvious from day one. That spoke volumes.

Rock & Bloom is the real deal. When I interviewed with them, I told them I was excited to potentially be “part of the club.” They laughed humbly… but I was serious. It is a club, they are tight but inclusive, they care deeply about their work and their clients, and know when to have fun (their #random chat on Slack is off the hook). I am honoured to join this team and excited to jump in even more.

Our job is making you look good, and making it look easy!

We always start from the top.

We approach every enterprise from the top, starting with the high level strategy and goals, working our way down to the delicate details. With clearly defined objectives, each piece of your collateral becomes a step toward conquering your goals, chock full of your brand identity. Our approach is empowering, giving our clients the tools they need to be successful and marketing goods that wow their customers. We like to be involved in projects from the spark of an idea through to fruition and reporting, so we can define your expectations and then cover them in dust.

We deliver value, not hours.

We charge by the project, never the hour. Don’t sweat it if you want some changes, an update, a phone call, a conversation—we’re on your team now.

Design is built in.

Design isn’t separate from what we do—it’s everything we do. Heck, it may just be who we are. Good design isn’t the lemon wedge in the drink or the hero image on your homepage. Good design is so fully integrated with your brand and your objectives that it becomes each project.

We are a team of the best.

We’re greater than the sum of our parts, but our parts are pretty wonderful, too. We’ve carefully curated a team that’s full of unique and incredible talent. Each person is a subject matter expert in an area that is essential to creating remarkable brand strategy, whether that’s design, web projects, video, development, marketing, content or project management. There are no middle wo/men at Rock & Bloom—every team member working on your project brings momentous value.

Data driven work.

Usually we deliver what you want, and always we deliver what you need. Through our trusted processes of intense research, creative facilitation and digging deep into objectives, we uncover the problem that needs to be solved and tackle it with tenacity and ferocity.

Your success = our success.

We like to play in the mud, get our hands dirty. We want to learn about your business, your goals and your strategies and then build something that drives the results you need. You’re the expert in your business, we’re the expert in ours—collaboration is crucial to the success of your project. When we see your product flying off the shelves, your door swinging, your phone ringing and your bottom line growing, we’re truly happy. There is no greater joy and no metric better to measure than seeing our work manifest itself as your success.

We’re fun.

When we left a meeting at Palliser, Scott Byers said “This is why I love working with Rock & Bloom, every meeting makes me happy and leaves me with more energy!” That made us shine. It’s what we strive for and something we hear all the time, and we never tire of the repetition. Our energy, optimism and grit make working with us fun, exciting and productive.

Why I Am Lucky To Work at Rock & Bloom