Relocating for your career can be a stressful time. We get it. You have to consider selling your home, finding a new one, and moving your family and belongings to a new location, maybe across the country. Not to mention all the time, energy, and money it takes to do it. That’s why in January 2015 Leggett & Platt approved new company guidelines for our domestic relocations. These guidelines help our hiring managers make informed decisions on relocation packages that work for both the new employee and the company.

Relocation is just one of the many benefits you could enjoy if you choose a job with Leggett & Platt. However, please know that relocation may not be offered for every position in every location.

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View our 2014 Annual Report

Leggett & Platt has been in business for over a century, but our logo has undergone relatively few changes in that time. The one major change came in the early 1970s, when we moved from a simple “L” to a script typeface. I sat down with Leggett’s Creative Director, Scott Clark, to discuss the history of the logo.

In the early days, this metal tag was attached to every Leggett product and eventually became the official logo. The circle in the design was actually a hole used for fastening the tag to springs and frames. “I love the simplicity of this design,” stated Clark. “It’s fascinating how well it holds up–what looked good 100 years ago still looks good today, and that’s not always the case.”

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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 →

Board Chairman & CEO David S. Haffner

For four full decades—from the 1960’s through the 1990’s—Leggett & Platt achieved growth of 15% per year (on average) in earnings, dividends, and stock price, largely by pursuing a strategy that focused intently on revenue growth. Over those 40 years revenue ballooned from $7 million to $4.3 billion, earnings grew about 1000‐fold,and our stock split approximately every 5 years. But as we entered the new millennium, our strategy seemed to lose its effectiveness. For the five years ending December 2007, Leggett & Platt’s stock priced moved sideways while the S&P 500 index achieved an 80% return. The desire for topline growth had led us to make certain acquisitions for which it’s now clear we paid too much, given their failure to meet expected performance levels.

We needed to make a change in strategy.

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Each week in “A Linking Mess” our copywriting team offers their thoughts on links and articles around the internet that have caught their attention.

10 Things Bosses Never Tell Employess — But Should – LinkedIn Pulse

Paul Johnson, Sr. Copywriter: This is an appropriate article to discuss as I am Shela “Mad Dog” Ward’s boss. I’m not comfortable with the term “boss,” by the way, but there’s not much way around it. “Supervisor” sounds too informal and “kingpin” is probably too much. “Manager,” isn’t bad, though. I’m Mad Dog’s manager.

Shela Ward, Copywriter: I’m not sure how I feel about the word “manager.” It kind of makes me sound like an actor or something. “All appearances should be scheduled through Mad Dog’s manager.” Ok, I guess I don’t mind it.

Paul: This goofy article lists 10 things that bosses should never tell employees, but should. Right out of the gate, it became ripe for ridicule: number one is “I really do care whether you like me.” Maybe the author is more insecure than me, or maybe my situation of being kingpin over just one Mad Dog lends itself to a less formal (see professional) relationship, but I don’t worry whether or not Shela likes me or not. I know she does. Continue reading →

33 Things Everyone Should Stop Doing In Their 30s – Business Insider

Paul Johnson, Senior Copywriter: I’m looking down the barrel of my 45^th birthday, and I’m still guilty of about 10 of these sins. Does that say something about me, or this list? I’m sure I’m below average when it comes to meeting the standards of full-blown adulthood, particularly when measured against my age, but what’s wrong with “seeking approval from other people”? If you spend a great deal of effort to gain that approval, I guess that could be considered immature. What would be the definition of “seek” in this context?
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