Fitler Club is an innovative hospitality space located in Philadelphia, PA. The private social club features a hotel, restaurants, fitness center, co-working space, and movie theater, among other amenities. The company strives to cultivate a unique sense of place and authenticity. Launched in the spring of 2019, they rallied behind the core company values of diversity and inclusion with a focus on building strong relationships between staff and members.
When the city of Philadelphia announced the shutdown of non-essential businesses and a shelter-in-place order for residents, Fitler Club faced several challenges. Most important to them was preserving the company culture, despite having to furlough the majority of their staff. Fitler Club wanted to keep team members engaged and informed until they could resume normal operations. The organization needed to develop a communication strategy that would sustain them both during and after the pandemic.
- Communication Divide no way to connect effectively with furloughed employees
- Company Culture in Crisis struggling to preserving employee relationships during pandemic
- Relying on Paper-Based Processes employees don’t have full access to information documentation
- Connected Workforce keeping furloughed employees informed and engaged
- Maintaining Staff Relationships using Beekeeper to replicate company culture across daily operations
- Centralized Information Hub digitizing forms and training manuals to keep staff on the same page
Prioritizing the Frontline Employee Experience
Fitler Club was forced to furlough almost all of its fully-trained staff members during the pandemic. Regardless of the shutdowns, taking care of employees was Fitler Club’s first priority. They did so by covering healthcare costs and setting up a food bank for their team members. But, they also needed a way to reach and stay connected with their workers no matter where they were. They were looking for a tool to:
1. Keep all furloughed staff members informed and engaged
2. Make updates and resources easily accessible
3. Maintain and strengthen company culture
4. Find communication tools that reflected their values of diversity and inclusion
“The biggest problem was: how do we maintain this incredible staff, which is our secret weapon, and keep them engaged during a time of crisis and uncertainty.”
Jeff David President, Fitler Club
Fitler Club decided that Beekeeper’s accessibility as a mobile collaboration platform and focus on frontline workers would be the best solution to connect with their furloughed staff. Ultimately Beekeeper was easier and faster to implement than a more traditional communication approach such as phone calls and paper notices, which would have required more resources. With Beekeeper, Fitler Club was able to build a bottom-up communication strategy that allowed for a seamless transition as they ramped up operations.
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Since adopting Beekeeper, Fitler Club has seen both member and employee engagement levels at an all-time high. They achieved a 90% adoption rate, with 66% of their users contributing content on the platform. How did they get there? They made Beekeeper the hub for all training manuals and created communication streams like “Member Services Shift Reports” and “Important Employee Notifications.”
Weathering two shutdowns and staff furloughs wasn’t easy, but with Beekeeper, Fitler Club kept staff informed about their healthcare status and access to a food bank. This built trust among the staff, contributing to reduced turnover from 78% in 2019 to 10% in 2021. While the staff turnover was mostly based on rehiring in 2021, Beekeeper assisted in the retention efforts.
As business returned to normal for Fitler Club in early 2021, Beekeeper played an integral role in the ramp-up process. The company used Beekeeper for vaccination sign-ups, added checklists for more efficient housekeeping teams, and shared staff awards. While staff numbers were reduced to 28 at the start of the pandemic, Fitler Club had 138 full-time employees a year later.
Better communication with Beekeeper enabled Fitler Club to achieve 40% leaner staffing post-pandemic, all while strengthening their service culture.
Now, thanks to Beekeeper, Fitler Club has:
- Achieved 40% leaner staffing and a stronger service culture
- Reduced turnover rates 68%
- Better engaged their frontline workers in a way they had never done before
