Category Archives: Culture

This is How We Do L&D at L&P

At Leggett & Platt, we value people who never stop learning. We hire character and train skill; we work diligently to maintain a culture of continuous improvement. That’s why we established the Learning & Development (L&D) team back in 2010: we’re a small group of passionate professionals who fill the learning needs of our salaried and corporate employees. Here’s an overview of how we do L&D at L&P:

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The Why

To put it simply, we live for the a-ha moment: that sudden realization, insight, or comprehension that happens as people learn. This neurological event, paired with the continual growth of our employees and a lasting impact for the company is our purpose, our cause. It’s why we get out of bed in the morning and come to work for Leggett & Platt every day. Continue reading

Company Spotlight: Hanes Geo Components

Leggett & Platt may have started as a bedding components manufacturer, but through the years, the company has added a diverse spread of capabilities to its line-up. Though some, like furniture and car parts, may be familiar, one surprising addition to L&P was geotextiles.

When Hanes Industries joined L&P in 1993, they focused mostly on the furniture, bedding, and automotive markets, making them a great fit with L&P’s existing endeavors. But in 2004, Hanes began looking into outside areas to find something that would mesh well with its established markets, while adding something new to the mix. They acquired WEBTEC, a geo-synthetics distributor based in Charlotte, NC. Continue reading

Photo Gallery: Environmental Affairs Kicks Off Eco Initiative at Corporate Office

LP-Ecoiniative-3410-300x134-colorfixedLook inside Leggett & Platt and you’ll find employees who are committed to protecting and preserving the environment. On May 16, our Corporate Office kicked off participation in the Eco Initiative, joining over 50 other Leggett & Platt branches who have registered for or implemented the program.

The Eco Initiative provides a system to improve environmental performance in our operations which adds to our track record of environmental stewardship. To date, some of our efforts include energy savings through high-efficiency fluorescent bulbs and condensing units, as well as paper, plastic, aluminum, and cardboard recycling. In 2013, on average, the Corporate Office recycled approximately 30,000 lbs. of paper, 600 lbs. of plastic, and 7,000 lbs. of cardboard each month!

For more information, contact Theresa Block, Director of Environmental Affairs.

Eco Initiative Gallery (1 of 2)

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Five Tips for Managing a Team of High Performers

Rising stars, over-achievers, go getters, true believers. You know who I’m talking about—the people who have their plates full of projects, their to-do lists packed with checkmarks, their workdays crammed with appointments. These high performers are talented individuals who share a common desire to significantly impact the success of the company. They genuinely want to make a difference and take ownership of their work, but they are only able to do so if given the means by which to do it. This falls on the shoulders of managers.

I spoke with three leaders at Leggett & Platt who have spent the majority of their careers managing high-caliber teams: Michelle Crockett, Eric Rhea, and Randall Wood. They ensure their people are continually challenged and have the necessary tools to do their jobs and do them well. Here are the top five tips they shared for managing high performers:

1. Put your team in the driver’s seat.

Randall Pull Quote Continue reading

Women in Manufacturing: Inside the 2nd Annual Conference

WIM iconRecently, Leggett & Platt sent four employees to the annual Women In Manufacturing conference. When I told my husband I was headed off to a conference for work, he said, “Where? Orlando? Vegas?” “Nope,” I said, “Detroit.” Despite my initial coolness towards spending two days in the Motor City, it was the perfect location for an enlightening and motivating trip spent with a group of impressive women from Leggett’s operations.

We became members of Women in Manufacturing in early 2013, when we discovered the organization and some of their activities online. A subgroup of the Precision Metalforming Association, Women in Manufacturing focuses on “the support, retention, and advancement of women in the manufacturing industry”. Their second annual conference was held October 22-23 in Detroit, Michigan, home of Ford, General Motors, Daimler-Chrysler, Carhartt, and Caterpillar. With the encouragement of our COO, Karl Glassman, I organized a small delegation of women from Leggett to attend the conference.

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Deconstructing Leggett’s DNA: The Way We Lead

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Families display certain common traits and behaviors, generation after generation, that have nothing to do with genetics. These non-genetic markers are passed down through shared perceptions, beliefs, and actions, as surely as hazel eyes and curly hair. The same is true for companies.

At Leggett & Platt, we recently set out to revise the competencies in our annual performance review, and accidentally found ourselves deconstructing our corporate DNA. We started the project with 15 competencies – things like strategic thinking, decision making, interpersonal skills, and communication. Instead of simply trying to whack a few that seemed less important, we started with a clean sheet of paper and our company history book. Looking back over 130 years, our leaders displayed certain common qualities, no matter what the business challenge of the era. When we distilled this “Leggett DNA,” we found eight key qualities that drive our collective success. Eureka! These characteristics, expressed as actions, reflect our culture and the way we lead.

A member of the Leggett team: Continue reading