An employee at Republic Title of Texas was grappling recently with an especially troublesome situation. When she brought it to the attention of the company’s leaders, they quickly scheduled a meeting to discuss the issue and decide on a solution.
An open door and fast action are business as usual — and keys to employee satisfaction — at Republic, according to Bo Feagin, the title company’s president. “How we react to the bad is how we win,” Feagin said. “It’s just one employee, but it’s something that’s really bothering her. So, we’re going to fix it. We don’t just listen to what somebody says and then kind of throw it to the side.”
“Keeping your people happy” by listening to workers is even more important at Republic these days, Feagin said, with the market for residential title insurance having slowed considerably since the post-pandemic boom.
“We love to listen because the workforce is tough these days,” he said. “The younger generation is out there looking for what’s next, and if they don’t feel like they’re heard, they’re going to move on. I think this company has been doing that — not only during my tenure, but from the beginning, back in 1991.”
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Comments by employees support that. “Questions are encouraged and answered with patience and respect,” one told us. Said another: “My supervisors motivate and encourage me.”
Besides inspiring communication with new programs like Coffee With a Co-worker — where employees meet with colleagues from other offices and departments — the company recently launched something called Spark an Idea.
It’s an intranet portal where workers can make suggestions, such as ideas for new cost-cutting measures.
Republic’s already doing some of that, given the more challenging market. It has redone leases on its copying machines — there were too many copiers — and down-sized its office space by tens of thousands of square feet.
“You don’t need filing cabinets anymore, because there’s not that much paper,” Feagin said. “So, you can get pretty skinny and still have a big office.”