Today, in our ongoing Culture Collective series, we are hearing from Rian Kirchhoff, Manager of People and Company Operations at Superfly. Rian has worked in music for eight years in different capacities. After graduating from the University of Maryland, she worked as an Executive Assistant and Office Manager at D.C.’s local CW television station, where she discovered a passion for nurturing company culture. She moved to NYC in 2015 to work for Superfly as their Office Coordinator and quickly fell in love with the company. She later transitioned to her new role, which focuses on Human Resources as well as Office Management. Read more.
What are three words you would use to describe your workplace culture and why?
The three words I would say are warm, inspiring and collaborative. We’re a really tight-knit group of people and we end up spending a lot of time together. I feel like when you walk into our office you’re able to see that in the way we run things and in the way we show that to the outside as well.
What is your office super power?
If it’s going to be an actual superpower, I have to go with mind reading. I am able to know what the offices need or want before they even ask me. I think I’ve established really good relationships with everybody at the company which helps me get a step ahead of where they’re going and what they want.
Why is company culture important?
I think, in general, we spend so much time in the office and with our coworkers. We really should feel supported and comfortable always. At superfly, positive culture helps us stay motivated and passionate about the work we’re doing, no matter how difficult or involved it gets.
What does your team normally do for lunch?
A lot of us try to bring our lunch. I think that’s always something people are trying to do, but we don’t usually do that well. We don’t usually stick with it. So, we end up ordering out pretty frequently. We all just kind of go in on a huge order together. We get it delivered to the office and then we all just eat in the kitchen together.
What are ways your company brings your team together?
We work on a ton of events, so those end up bringing us all closer for sure. In addition to that, we always have team outings. We do a lot of karaoke. We have monthly birthday parties and movie nights. We have a speaker series where we have people come in and talk about their work and what they’re doing. We also invite employees to teach courses. We have a Superfly academy where someone can teach a course on whatever they want — it doesn’t have to be work related. We’ve had an astrology one, we had an emergency preparedness one. It’s really cool to see people teaching about whatever they are passionate about on the side. I feel like all of these things bring us closer together and we’re always trying to look for new ways to do that.
If you could propose an idea to positively impact any company’s culture, what would it be and why?
The biggest thing I’ve learned at Superfly is the importance of opening up the conversation. Send out a survey and see what people are feeling and wanting. I think each company needs different things when it comes to culture. So, it’s important to involve your team and get their feedback before you can make any sort of impact.
