Innovation, Family-Ties, & Free Lunch

Before my internship at the Estee Lauder Companies began, I read a lot about the site’s organizational culture–its mission, values, and employee engagement–however, nothing could compare to actually being immersed in the company, experiencing the corporate environment for myself. I strongly admire and am impressed by the unique organizational culture at the Estee Lauder Companies (ELC).

ELC is a company rich in values.  First and foremost, creativity is highly praised. On my first day at the company, a member of the executive team spoke to all the interns; she emphasized that Estee Lauder would never be where it is today if the company had not experimented, pushed against the norm, and took risks in the beauty industry. Because of this, employees are encouraged to speak out about their ideas, no matter how untraditional they may seem; the company sees value in being unconventional.

Similar to ELC’s emphasis on creativity, there is also a strong value placed on diversity of backgrounds, thoughts, and experiences among employees. Every employees’ ideas are considered of value, and I have already seen this corporate principle in action. As an intern at a large company, it would be easy to feel ignored or unappreciated; however, at ELC, high-level employees have already gone above and beyond to make sure that the interns’ voices are heard–they listen to our ideas and take them very seriously. This is an element of the company’s organizational culture that has made me feel empowered.

The employee interactions at ELC are rather informal, however, they are always kept professional. This is rooted in Estee Lauder’s “family culture”. The structure of the company encourages employees to bond with and genuinely care for one another. For example, both the CEO and Executive Chairman of ELC, two extremely successful businessmen, insist on all ELC employees calling them by their first names. This small gesture by company leaders makes them more approachable and lessens the power-distance between them and the rest of the employees.

I picked up on the informal nature of interactions at ELC when, during my first week working at the company, the Executive Vice President of Global Communications took me and the three other interns in the department out to lunch. Again, although she was an individual of high-power in the company, she spoke to us informally, asked about our interests and lives in general; she truly wanted to get to know us. For this undoubtedly busy individual to take time out of her day to make the new interns feel comfortable in the office, speaks volumes about the family nature of the company that breeds these informal, yet professional relationships.

Finally, the context of my internship site, in terms of its history, greatly affects the way it functions and is led. Estee Lauder, the company founder, was keen about innovation and creating a “high touch” experience for all customers. This concept of a “high touch” experience is the guiding principle for ELC leadership; their goal is to create strong, personal relationships with customers and present them with only the best products. ELC’s priority today, not only on exceptional customer service, but also, on using sustainable and ethical processes to create the best experience for customers is certainly the product of ELC’s history.