The Need to Disrupt the Financial Sector to Support Equity and Inclusion
INSIDE CDC: OUR CULTURE AND EMPLOYEES ARE THE FOUNDATION OF OUR SUCCESS
Welcome to a new blog series, Inside CDC. Each story will share details about one of the many facets that drive CDC’s success along with an interview with a CDCer who is integral in helping us advance our mission.
Culture is a priority at CDC and it is a powerful way we shape our workplace atmosphere to be positive, enjoyable and productive. We put a lot of effort into creating a culture where employees look forward to coming to work, feel connected to their co-workers, have fun and are part of a team that has shared values and goals.
From team building events to healthy living activities, we’re always busy planning something meaningful for the company. And we think they like it! Our employee tenure is twice the national rate.
The CDC team is, of course, the root of our success. The team is filled with self-starters with a passion for helping others who are committed to our core values; Integrity, Commitment, Teamwork and Making a Difference. CDC employees weave each value into their efforts which contributes to creating a meaningful work environment.
Of course, all of this is by design and one of CDC’s employees, Natalie Moreno, spends her days helping to shape our culture and team through her work as our Human Resources and Benefits Specialist.
Take a few minutes to learn more about Natalie and the great work she does:
Meet Natalie Moreno
CDC clients might never meet Natalie Moreno, but they’re well served by her hard work and professional know-how. Natalie’s an expert in recruiting, wellness initiatives and benefit management, among other strengths.
Perhaps Natalie’s greatest pride at CDC is the company culture that she helps shape. Together with great benefits, company culture is a big part of CDC’s excellent employee-retention rate. Natalie leads Culture In Action (CIA), a group of employees that come together to brainstorm and plan events that bring CDC employees together for anything from a pizza lunch on National Pizza Day to activities that reinforce the company’s core values.
“I can speak on the culture at CDC all day long,” she says. “Everybody is a believer, supports it, which has made the culture unlike any other”
Read on to learn more about Natalie:
Q: TELL US ABOUT YOUR PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND?
A: I’ve been in human resources for more than 12 years. Before joining CDC, I worked with the San Diego Workforce Partnership, General Atomics, National University and Frazee Industries. In each role, I’ve seen over and over the tremendous value human resources brings to an organization. I have been able to grow and learn allowing me to continually evolve how I can create a positive impact for the both the company and individual employees.
Q: WHAT’S THE BEST PART OF YOUR JOB?
A: There are so many to name but for me, I love the opportunity to bring new employees to CDC. It is exciting to take someone through our interview process, offering them a new position within CDC, getting them oriented and then watching them succeed and grow with the company. I work with Erin Hebert, our EVP of Administration; we do all the human resources from beginning to end and everything in between. We’ve had significant growth, so there has been quite a bit of recruiting and onboarding.
Another aspect of my job that I really enjoy is overseeing our employee benefits. CDC offers an extremely high quality and robust benefits package which is another example of how CDC prioritizes their employees.
Q: WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON CORPORATE CULTURE AND HOW IT SERVES CDC?
A: There are so many things to be said about the culture here. One aspect that I love is that it is a supported environment. Employees have the opportunity to connect with everybody. Everybody is so willing to help out, because it does take a team. Everybody’s door is always open to ask questions, which is nice.
Teamwork is one of our company’s core values. We have several employees who have been at CDC for over 25 years. It’s everybody playing a part. It’s not just one particular person or team leading it. It really does take everyone working together to make the company so successful.
Related: Company Culture and how CDC Small Business Finance stands out
Q: WHAT IS CDC’s CULTURE IN ACTION?
A: Culture in Action is a group that consists of employees from different departments as well as different locations. The group continues to grow! We typically meet at least once a month to coordinate our company events. A few events that we coordinate are the famous Bring Your Dog to Work Day, our Year-End Event and Ditch Day, which are our larger events. We also plan the baby showers, marriage celebrations, chair massages and more…
Q: HOW DOES YOUR JOB HELP SMALL-BUSINESS OWNERS?
A: Since I’m not in the forefront working with our borrowers, my role really is to support the employees. They can come to me with any questions that they have. In return, I can give them the answers and they’re not waiting. They have a trusted source. That gives them the opportunity to turn back around and do their job quickly and more efficiently.
Q: IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE?
A: CDC values work-life balance, which is just another wonderful aspect of the company. It has been important to me as I have two teenage daughters. They actually both go to school right around the corner from here, so everybody in the office knows who they are. It’s really nice. Life with teenagers can get pretty busy especially when my husband is traveling for work.
And of course, our whole family is part of CDC, as our dogs Louie and Leonard, look forward to Bring Your Dog to Work Day every summer.
CDC Small Business Finance offers several loan options for business owners who want to grow their operations and are planning for their long-term needs. Contact our loan experts about your business needs, and they’ll work to match you with a financing plan that best suits you. Reach us at loaninfo@cdcloans.com or (619) 243-8667.
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