The cultural pillar that underlies our entire culture.

When setting out to define our company culture, we did the classic sticky-note exercise, moving our ideas into logical groups. Some of these groupings were easy, but other ideas didn’t fit into clear buckets. However, when we looked at them collectively, we realized that they did actually have something in common: at their core, they were (and are) about doing the right thing and treating people with decency, honesty, and respect. Thus, our “Be a Good Human” principle was born.

Be a Good Human: To our team, to each other, to our customers.

There are so many ways that we can Be Good Humans every day that are not made explicit simply by listing stakeholders. That’s why we’ve put together this overview: to expand on the myriad ways we expect each QuoteWell employee to Be a Good Human. Read on to learn more about some of our focus areas for this essential team principle.

Psychological Safety

Teams do their best work when they feel confident that they can communicate without repercussions. It also means they feel like they are getting the information and feedback they need to excel. This improves our ability to collaborate, innovate, and strive for greatness together. We do this by:

• Ensuring teammates feel comfortable talking with leadership: If something feels off, team members feel comfortable addressing concerns with leadership. We’re a high-trust environment.
• Responding in kind to our teams: It is a leader’s job to listen. Especially when there is a track record of excellence with an individual or a team, leaders should make time to listen to concerns and offer support and advice as appropriate.
• Clearly demonstrating our investment in the growth and success of our people: Feedback should be given often. If it’s constructive, it should be given in private and in the best interest of the individual (and the company) at all times. In order to give good feedback, we have to step out of our comfort zones, really get to know our teams, and have firm and empathetic discussions.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

If the best idea is to win on our team, we must operate from the broadest and most diverse possible set of ideas. Diversity can come in the form of race, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, culture, education, career experience, and countless other dimensions. If you’re talented and a Good Human, then you have a seat at our table.

That being said, we want to emphasize that it’s not just about our success and the ideas we get from a diverse team: focusing on DEI initiatives is simply the right thing to do.

Bring Fun and Positivity to Work

Life is too short not to enjoy. If you’re having fun with your coworkers while at work, the collective positive energy is contagious and creates an environment where everybody is motivated to show up and be their best selves every day.

• Pull Yourself Up: We will all have difficult days, but with a growth mindset and some grit and determination, we can pull through.
• Help each other out: It’s not always easy to pull yourself up. If somebody looks like they’re struggling, we offer to help. If someone is having a tough day, we offer to listen to what’s going on (but don’t press).

Don’t be a Jerk

You might have heard this phrase from various startups and tech companies. Being a Good Human flips this on its head. If you are Being a Good Human, then we can assume you are not being a jerk. Some of the ways we encourage our teams to avoid jerk-like behaviors include:

• Leaving your ego at the door: We have an incredible team with impressive backgrounds and invaluable experiences. Every single one of us can learn something from another person on the team, and to do that, we need to check our egos. Permanently.
• Being good listeners: Some people take up more air time and should default to being better listeners around each other so that everybody is heard. This can be on 1:1 or in meetings. Always jumping in to fill the silence does not leave space for valuable thoughts that may come from quieter signals in the room.