Dive Brief:
- Ride-hailing company Lyft is requiring all employees to put in some time behind the wheel to understand drivers' daily experience, CNET reports. So far, the CEO, president and marketing VP have driven for the company.
- Eventually, all 2,000 corporate employees must spend four hours every three months experiencing what drivers undergo daily. Employees can meet this requirement by filling in for drivers on support calls, working in one of Lyft's support hubs or picking up passengers. New employees also take part in the program as they're onboarded, says CNET.
- Lyft benefited from a ridership surge between January and October. According to CNET, the company might have gained market share from its embattled competitor, Uber.
Dive Insight:
While company culture is generally not developed top-down, company leaders do have a responsibility to lead by example, especially when company values are concerned. C-suite members who know first-hand what workers experience are better able to make decisions that should serve them well, and employees who have taken on each other's tasks often develop a better understanding of and appreciation for each other's work.
But such sharing can't be a substitute for transparency from the C-suite down through an organization. A Kimble's Application study shows that although 75% of employees polled are interested in their company's performance, only 23% have insight into the company's financial performance. BetterWorks’ Employee Sentiment survey found that 92% of employees said they would be more productive if they knew what their company’s goals were.
Turns out that stepping into other employees' shoes could help employers understand the wider employee perception of the company. Employers often believe that negative online ratings, usually based on current and former employees' opinions, are unfair and inaccurate. Yet a Weber Shandwick survey reveals that only 19% of employees worldwide see a strong alignment between their company's reputation and their own work experience.
