Human Resources
The people factor
How Troy Gregory shapes his culture to drive growth at System One Holdings
By Brian Horn
Smart Business Pittsburgh | January 2010
Page 1 of 4
Finding people who want to work at System One Holdings LLC is pretty easy.
In fact, Troy Gregory normally doesn’t need to go looking for employees. The employees find him.
“I don’t say this to pound my chest, but I’ve always been able to draw a crowd,” he says. “For people to hear about the work environment at System One and for people to hear about how our leadership treats their people, we naturally find people are coming to us more and more each day.”
But not all of that positive buzz fell out of the sky. It’s generated because of the culture that System One, a provider of technical outsourcing solutions, fosters. Gregory, president and CEO, wants workers who look forward to coming to work, and who genuinely want to grow with the company. That culture starts at the top with the boss.
Gregory wants his employees to know how much he values all of them and that each one is equally important.
“The trick to life is being confident but being humble,” he says. “Humble is the magic word. I’ve always taught my people to be humble. Don’t forget where you came from. I don’t care if that person, if it’s their first job and they are calling you and they want to be the receptionist or they are the most important person in the world at the bank, you treat them the same.”
Gregory learned to show his employees appreciation because of the lack of support he received at some of his previous companies.
He recalls one time when a top executive of a company he worked for came to him and asked how he was doing. Gregory was both surprised and excited that the executive was taking the time to ask him that. But, before Gregory could answer, the executive asked him how his numbers were, which put Gregory back in his place.
“It’s about taking care of people and letting them know you genuinely do care,” he says.
Gregory is finding that the caring environment he’s established is helping his company go in the right direction. The company grew from $150 million in 2007 to almost $200 million in 2008. If System One didn’t have a supportive and open culture, the bottom line wouldn’t be nearly as good.
“I think it would stink,” Gregory says. “I’ve come from companies that don’t have that culture, and I think it’s just a matter of time before their gig is up.”
