The Top 5 Things We’re Thankful For at HON

As we gather the fallen leaves, pick the ripening apples, and overstuff the quintessential bird, we occasionally tend to forget that it’s the season to be thankful. Alas, not this year! We’ve gathered a list of all the things that we’re thankful for here at The HON Company. So, grab a smoldering hot chocolate, kick up your flocked feet, and settle in!

1. Our Amazing Customers

First and foremost, we’re thankful for our amazing customers! Your dedication to selling the HON brand and promoting our products is without parallel; we appreciate your support! From east coast to west coast, and everywhere in between, we value the fact that our customers choose the HON brand. Thank you for your continuing partnership!

2. Our Dedicated Members

What makes The HON Company tick? Our members! Everyone from Supply Chain to Marketing, Customer Support to Sales, Training to Product and beyond has a hand in the daily upkeep of this amazing company. Whether we’re working on garnering the next shipment of lock assemblies or designing a new prototype, we all work together to make this a well-oiled machine.

3. Our Commitment to Being a Great Place to Work

Chili Contests, Jeans Days, volunteer and professional opportunities … who wouldn’t want to work for HON? As a member going on her seventh year of working for this fantastic company, I can’t imagine working elsewhere. We continually improve our members through leadership programs, HON University courses, and frequent training sessions. Now that’s something to sink your teeth into!

4. Our Evolving Products

On average, we launch about 10 new product lines a year! We stay ahead of this ever-changing industry by constantly evolving our product assortment, revolutionizing our materials and textiles, and introducing innovative new product lines. Check out our newly launched seating textile In Season (aptly named for a fall blog!), view our recently expanded Flock collection, or try out our Build Tool on hon.com today!

5. Our Community

Nestled in the heart of the Midwest, Muscatine, Iowa was the Pearl Button Capital of the World in 1905, accounting for nearly 37% of the world’s buttons. Since then, Muscatine has become home to The HON Company where we take a vested interest in upholding our strong community. Whether we’re fundraising for local or national charities with the HNI Charitable Foundation or helping the community in partnering with City of Hope, we strive to make a difference!

Though we’re not serving hot apple cider and green bean casserole just yet, there’s plenty to be thankful for here at The HON Company! Anything you’d like to add to the list? Tell us below!

Gobble Up These 4 Ways to Celebrate Thanksgiving in the Office

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays because I love any excuse to spend time in my kitchen, try new recipes and make delicious food to share with others. It’s also a time of year when we’re focused on gratitude, finding new ways to show appreciation and give back to our communities.

While Thanksgiving is traditionally a holiday spent with friends and family, there’s no reason you can’t celebrate with your “office family”, or colleagues, as well. Here are a few ways you can bring a little Thanksgiving spirit into your workplace:

• Thank your customers. Showing appreciation for your most valued partners helps to cultivate important relationships. Even something as simple as a “Thank You” card can make all the difference!
• Schedule a lunch with your teammates or employees. It’s not always easy to find the time to say thanks during a busy day at work, so finding time to show your appreciation outside of normal working hours may be the best solution. It can also be a great team-building experience!
• Plan an office potluck. Invite your team to bring in their favorite Thanksgiving dishes to share, or encourage team-building by hosting an internal taste-testing or food display contest. You can even put up Thanksgiving or fall-inspired decorations for some added fun!
• Donate to a local charity. The holiday season is a time when many organizations are promoting big fundraising campaigns and raising funds in order to provide community meals. A great way to give back to your community during this time is to host a food drive and collect items for a local pantry. Another idea is to plan a casual dress day at work, encouraging members to contribute to an important cause in exchange for the opportunity to wear less formal attire. You can build excitement by giving employees the opportunity to vote for their favorite local charities!

With the Thanksgiving holiday just around the corner, what are some of the ways you celebrate Thanksgiving in your office?

5 Ways to Show Employee Appreciation This Fall

Summer is officially over and the fall season has arrived.  Fall is an exciting time here in Iowa, as the trees change colors and the weather starts to cool.  You don’t have to live in the Midwest to be able to appreciate the new season, though.  You can use the season change to regenerate energy into your workplace and finish the year strong.  Here are five fall-inspired ways you can show employee appreciation:

1. Host an office tailgate – Encourage employees to wear a shirt or jersey representing their favorite football team and cater in typical tailgating food for lunch, such as hot dogs or BBQ.
2. Plan a weekend family-friendly activity – Invite employees to a local park or farm for hay rides, corn mazes, face painting, pumpkin-picking and more!
3. Provide a fall-themed breakfast – Motivate your employees on a Monday morning by surprising them with apple cider, pumpkin bread, or pumpkin spice muffins.
4. Indulge in a Thanksgiving dinner at work – We spend a lot of time in the office, and our coworkers can become like family. What better way to celebrate with them this fall than with an office Thanksgiving dinner? Make it a pot luck and invite everyone to bring their favorite dish.
5. Get competitive with a pumpkin carving contest – Take a break during a Friday lunch hour and let employees show off their creative side with a pumpkin carving contest.

What are some ways you plan to show appreciation for your employees or coworkers this season?

From Traditional to Trending: The HON Company Then and Now

Thanksgiving is a holiday steeped in tradition – turkey, parades, and football are a few obvious choices that come to mind. Personally, I tend to recall memories of me being perpetually banished to the disdained “kiddie table”… well into my twenties. With the holiday rapidly approaching, it’s hard not to think fondly of past memories while anticipating those yet to be made. With that in mind, I thought I would turn back the clock for this blog post, taking a step back to look at just how far we’ve come throughout the years.

The winning lineup.

From hairpin to the open “O” leg.

Not all meetings are created equal.

More adaptable, lighter scale, smaller footprint.

From Cardinal, Mustard, & Grass Green to Odyssey Kiss, Millennium Voyage, & Tradition Jazz.

3 Logo changes later…HON is ready.

How to Make Healthier Choices This Holiday Season

Thanksgiving is nearly upon us, and thoughts of all things “holiday” have begun to flood our minds: the excitement of seeing family and friends, re-living our favorite traditions, and the ever-important holiday practice – eating! The easiest decision in the face of this seemingly endless buffet is to go on a 2-month hiatus from every trace of health-conscious habitude you had prior.  This is ultimately a personal choice; however, I propose you consider the road less traveled.

Why not make this year a healthier holiday? I have provided several ideas below for making healthier choices this season, applicable to both the office and the home.

1. MAKEOVER YOUR RECIPES

When preparing a dish for a work party or family gathering, consider researching a “lighter” version of the recipe to make ingredient substitutions that improve nutritional value. Many traditional full-fat, high-calorie dishes are easily made over without sacrificing flavor. For example, one Green Bean Casserole recipe from EatingWell.com skips the canned soup and all of the fat and sodium that comes with it by substituting a lighter, homemade white sauce. See the full recipe here.

Other helpful websites:

The Skinny Taste blog offers lightened up thanksgiving recipes, healthy holiday recipes and skinny fall recipes.

The Chocolate Covered Katie blog will help you find the perfect healthy dessert recipes to add to your holiday meals.

2. MAKE TIME FOR EXERCISE

Free time is limited during the holidays, which makes us more apt to put fitness on the back burner. Exercise is important in easing stress and preventing weight gain, and can foster the motivation needed to consistently make healthy choices. Consider the following ideas for fitting exercise into your routine.

• Start your day with exercise. This will free up your evenings for other holiday-related tasks.
• If you’re not a morning person, try walking or running outside, or visiting a local gym over your lunch hour.
• Walk or run a local race with your family, friends, and/or coworkers. Many communities have an annual “Turkey Trot” on Thanksgiving and a holiday-themed race in December.
• Training in preparation for the event can be instrumental in boosting motivation.
• Click here for upcoming races in the Muscatine, Iowa area, courtesy of the Cornbelt Running Club.

3. EAT SMARTER

The holidays are a notoriously celebratory, emotional, and sometimes stressful time, and with food thrown into the mix it can be more difficult than ever to maintain self-control. Try these simple methods for eating smarter this year:

• It may seem logical to skip breakfast and lunch to save calories for eating whatever looks tasty at the afternoon office party. Unfortunately, this is not the case.
• When meals are skipped, the likelihood of overeating increases as your appetite is stronger than usual once you allow yourself to eat.
• Instead, try to eat portion-controlled meals at mealtime, and allow yourself to have a special treat at the party.
• Another effective method to battle the urge to overeat is to track your intake throughout the day.
• There are numerous free apps that allow you to input what you’ve eaten and provide an outline of your daily progress. This creates accountability in providing a visual summary of your choices.

Relax. Allowing yourself a second (or third) piece of pie doesn’t mean you’ve thrown all self control out the window. Forgive yourself and move forward, always keeping your end goal in mind.

What are some other healthy tips you would add to our list?