At Hughes Marino, we are often asked how do we find people that all have that “Hughes Marino quality?” What’s our secret sauce? Why are our employees so happy? How do we manage to represent so many clients, yet still have time to host events for non-profits, to give back to the community, and to nurture an amazing company culture?

I can tell you first hand that our “secret sauce” is unequivocally our people. We invest a lot of time recruiting the best teammates we can possibly find, developing lasting relationships with one another based on trust, and working hard to live up to our own high expectations and core values.

To give a little more insight into what makes up our “secret sauce,” here’s a sneak peek at how we run our team meetings, one of the many ways by which we build and maintain our extraordinary team.

Despite being in the office space business, at Hughes Marino we aren’t big believers in holding meetings in conference rooms. We are much more comfortable in the kitchen at our giant farm table, or in our living room where we can feel at home. So for every team meeting, we start by having breakfast brought in, fresh-roasted coffee brewing, and music playing as we gather around on our comfy living room couches like any happy family would. The music invigorates everyone, and the comfortable setting allows us to let our guards down.

Once we’re energized and ready to go, we start every meeting by asking a thought-provoking question, like “What are you most excited about today?” or “What is your favorite place you’ve traveled to or want to travel to, and why?” Giving each person a voice at the meeting is an opportunity for personal growth, and it is always fun to hear new perspectives from people we think we already know so well.

As Jason, our CEO, says often, one thing we are always going to talk about at every team meeting is what’s most important to us, beginning with our core values we developed as a team. Sometimes people will take one core value and talk about why it is so important to them, and other items our teammates actually put them to music, as one of our resident musicians (AKA Travis Carter) did recently when he sung our core values while playing the guitar! Sharing our core values with one another is a great reminder of what we are collectively working towards, and sets a unifying tone for the meeting. Travis putting it to music was the icing on the cake!

We also welcome teammates to share articles and experiences that they think will benefit the entire team. For example, Brendan Foote, SVP of Tax Credit Services, recently shared a fascinating article he read in Inc. Magazine. The article, 19 Things Remarkable People Think Every Day struck a chord with Brendan and subsequently sparked a great discussion about ways that our team can implement positive thinking in our everyday lives.

Along the same lines, Kathy Raya, one of our in-house attorneys and client relations managers, presented a synopsis of The Rich Life by Beau Henderson, which she highly recommended for its valuable tips on managing finances and having a full life of meaning at the same time. I especially loved this quote by Einstein that stayed with me throughout the day: “The most important decision anyone ever makes is whether or not to view the universe as a friendly place.” It’s amazing how much more value is found in reading a good book when you are able to share the lessons you learn from it with 35 other people.

Next up for our team is always a recap/planning session for how we’re going to give back to our community. Hughes Marino is incredibly passionate about service and lending support to organizations and associations near to our heart. Together we select events that Hughes Marino will host or support as a team, such as the upcoming Lawyers Club Annual Dinner featuring keynote speaker, Sandra Day O-Connor, of which Hughes Marino is the title sponsor. Individual team members know that they will have the support of our entire team for various fundraising events and activities. Plus non-profit events are always a great excuse to get together and have fun outside of the office while doing something good for others!

We also make time to acknowledge achievements, personal milestones, and other significant happenings in the lives of our individual team members. We were proud to congratulate Marketing Director Ashley Lewis on her Reader’s Choice Award for her previous work as a graphic designer, and Jeff Shepard for his SPIRE Award nomination from the Commercial Real Estate Women-Orange County (CREW-OC) for his generous charitable giving over the years. And of course, we all delighted in celebrating the arrival of Vice President J.P. Roach and his wife Courtney’s new baby, Ellery. (We’ve already added her adorable photo to our growing digital family album, which streams on our 80″ television in the living rooms of our offices).

Of course, specific projects and other business items are discussed as well, but they are not the focus of our team meetings at Hughes Marino. Our meetings are first and foremost designed to strengthen the bonds of our team. They are scheduled to make sure that we are recognizing the achievements and accomplishments of our colleagues. They ensure that we are making time to give back to our community. They serve to inspire and motivate us to be the best people we can be.

Our meetings always close with the same quote from Howard Schultz, (who happens to be Jason’s business idol): “Success is not an entitlement. It has to be earned every day.” Together we pause for a minute to reflect on that message, before getting on to making it another great day!

At Hughes Marino, we are grateful and proud of many things, but we are most proud of our team of amazing people – indeed, they are our “secret sauce.”