Tag: Just Born

“We make life sweeter.”

This simple mantra is the all-encompassing purpose behind Just Born, the Bethlehem-based manufacturer of the famous Peeps, Hot Tamales and Mike and Ike’s candies.

Because for Ross Born, CEO of Just Born, a purpose-driven organization is more likely to be a successful organization.

In Born’s opinion, when your company has a clear mission statement, and one that is bigger than just selling the widgets you manufacture, it creates something that is larger than the product. There’s a positive energy that echoes through the entire company and out to your customers.

For Born, “We make life sweeter,” relates to how the company strives to make life better for their employees, the surrounding community, and the nonprofits that they contribute to. That motivation to make life a little sweeter for all involved with the company drives Born.

“Everything that we do supports the purpose,” he says. “I must repeat that sentence, ‘We make life sweeter,’ to myself and to others seven to eight times a day. They aren’t just words. I live by it. We live by it.”

Don’t just say that your company has a higher purpose, Born advises, act on it. Be accountable to the purpose. Advertise it. Post it to your website. Make it a living, breathing, part of the company.

When your business has a higher purpose, he says, you and your employees feel a part of something that isn’t just about commerce, but a superior way of life.

And Born may be on to something big here. According to the United States Chamber of Commerce, employees at companies with a statement of higher purpose are happier, prouder of their company and have greater trust in their leaders.

Add to that a recent report by California-based management consulting firm, Korn Ferry, that showed purpose-driven consumer-products firms grew their sales 9.9 percent from 2011 to 2015, compared to only a 2.4 percent growth rate for companies without a higher mission.

Put on your happy face.

Another factor behind Just Born’s success, according to Born, is a leadership tenet for management. “Understand that people are watching you. When you are a leader in the workplace, whether a mid-level manager or a company president, you’re on stage.”

Your facial expressions, your gait, your tone of voice matters.  You set the tone for the mood of the company, he said.

Born tells a story of how he made a frequent habit of putting on his white lab coat in the mornings and walking through the factories. He would observe, touch base with those on the floor and get a feel for how things were operating.

One day, Born’s then-small children were a bit of a handful before work. Born got to the plant that morning and quickly threw on his lab coat and made a stressed walk-through of the factory.

Later that day he received more than one phone call asking him what was wrong. Employees asked if the company was in trouble. Was there going to be layoffs? The staff had just read his tense facial expression and assumed he had bad news on his mind.

“Understand who you are and the influence you have,” he says.  “Even your body language communicates to those around you.”

Ninety percent of the reaction to any message or information is through visual communication, according to the executive coach Paul Glover. So while it can be a challenge to live in the spotlight, the positive side is that you can use that influence to encourage your team.

“Take the time to center yourself when you walk on ‘stage’ every morning,” Born says. “And put on your happy face.”