Building a culture that lasts 20 years

A strong culture isn’t built once – it’s nurtured daily through shared values, genuine investment in people, and lasting community impact.

Culture is more than just a mission statement. It’s the foundation of your company and how the world perceives you. Back in 2005, when Croy began with just 17 employees, we knew we wanted to build a culture where people could grow and make a real impact in their communities. Now 20 years later, we’ve grown to more than 100 team members across three Southeastern states. While much has changed, our culture remains the same – putting people at the center of everything we do.

When I reflect on Croy’s success, what truly defines us is our people and the culture we’ve built together. Of course, it didn’t happen overnight. Below are some lessons I’ve learned along the way, not only in shaping but also maintaining a strong culture:

• Build your team around shared values. Your values are the heart of your culture, but to keep that heart beating, you need the right people. If someone doesn’t align with your values, it can weaken your culture over time. Prioritize hiring people who not only have the skills but whose mindset reflects your values. At Croy, we’ve established five core values that help us focus on what’s important:
  • Our clients are our top priority. We’re not transactional – we’re relational. We think long-term, becoming trusted advisors and not just project partners. Whether it’s a roadway, a park, or an airport, we help clients get the most from their investment. Our partnerships never end when the project does.
  • We are the ultimate problem solvers. We’re the first phone call our clients make. They trust us to find the answer no matter the issue. An example of this is when floods impacted Paulding County, I got a call from the Paulding County administrator. Roads had been washed out, emergency vehicles couldn’t reach residents, and the community was in crisis. I turned my truck around and met the team onsite that night. No contract. No proposal. We just got to work. When it mattered most, our team showed up.
  • We are accessible and responsive. Our team is composed of genuine and approachable people who are there for each other as well as our clients.
  • We adapt to clients’ needs. We’re here to help them solve their community’s problems. Our people are empowered to make decisions, eliminating hurdles that slow down the process.
  • We invest in our community and our people. As a company and as individuals, we are committed to improving our community. We engage fully and earnestly with the communities we serve through supporting nonprofits, mentorship of young talent, and projects that improve quality of life.

To reinforce our values, we also created an internal culture book to communicate and highlight our culture with recruits and new team members.

• Invest in your people, and they’ll invest in you. One of the most important things I’ve learned is when you invest in your people, they invest in your company. A strong culture starts with an environment where employees feel supported, challenged, and valued.
  • Offer growth opportunities. We’re intentional about professional development, providing continuous learning through internal monthly Lunch and Learns, site visits to active projects, and a path for career advancement. We also support employee participation in leadership and mentorship programs provided through industry organizations like ACEC Georgia and Tennessee, ASHE Georgia, and many others.
  • Provide benefits that reflect your values. We’re committed to providing support for our team members and their families – whether at work or away. That includes at least four weeks of paid time off for every employee, 100 percent employer-paid health, dental, and vision, and a PTO buy-back policy that puts extra cash in team members’ pockets.
  • Foster honest communication. Every year, all three owners host company-wide Q&A sessions. We also participate in annual third-party employee surveys, like Zweig Group’s Best Firms To Work For award program, to garner honest feedback and identify areas for improvement. At Croy, we’re proud to have employees who have been with us for 20 years. The bottom line: When people feel heard and supported, they stay.

• Show, don’t tell. Culture isn’t built by what you say, it’s built by what you do. The strongest cultures result from consistent actions, shared traditions, and how you treat people:
  • Celebrate wins – big or small. Recognition of our team members’ accomplishments is a central part of our culture. For example, we hold themed celebrations quarterly at each office location to recognize our team’s hard work and milestones. A good example is when we encourage everyone to bring their canine coworkers to the office in honor of National Take Your Dog to Work Day.
  • Support employee-driven ideas. Culture doesn’t always have to be employer-driven. A sign of a great culture is when employees take the lead to do things with coworkers. For example, Croy’s Fantasy Football League, Masters Golf Tournament Pool, and annual Soup Potluck all started with employees who wanted to create comradery across offices.
  • Extend your culture into the community. What makes Croy unique is the high value we place on investing in the communities where we live, work, and play. An example of this is Croy Cares Week – an annual week-long initiative for all team members to participate in several volunteer opportunities based on their location. Participation is optional, but every year, more than half our employees volunteer. The other owners and I are right alongside them, rolling up our sleeves to lend a helping hand. Additionally, our people regularly volunteer with more than two dozen different organizations or schools – serving on boards, mentoring, or making donations.
    Community involvement also gives us a deeper insight into the needs of the communities we serve. For example, while our team worked on the award-winning Windy Hill Boulevard project in Smyrna, Georgia, our involvement with Campbell High School helped us understand a significant portion of students lived along that corridor and needed safer pedestrian access. We incorporated solutions to this challenge into our design and now that the new roadway has been built, they have safer routes to school and a stronger reconnection of the neighborhood.
• Embrace the change. As a leader, I believe if I’m not learning something new every single day, I’m not doing my job. Our people, clients, and communities are constantly evolving. If we do the same thing for the next 20 years that we did for the first 20, we’ll become stagnant. For example, over the past two decades, we’ve served the City of Smyrna through two mayors, five city administrators, three public works directors, and multiple council members. Each one had different priorities. Through all that change, we’ve been fortunate to continue to be their trusted engineering partner. Why? Because we’ve adapted to what’s different for each one while staying true to our core culture. You can’t be afraid to embrace change. It happens whether you like it or not. You can either resist it, or you can lean into it and keep moving forward.

The work is never done. Culture isn’t something you build once – it’s something you protect, adapt, and cultivate every day. After 20 years, our team is still learning, but we know that a strong culture is the reason we’re still here and continuing to grow. 

Gregory D. Teague, PE serves as the CEO at Croy, a more than 100-person full-service firm with offices in Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee. He can be reached at gteague@croyeng.com.