The success of Living Tours, a tours, activities, and experiences company that handles more than 100,000 guests per year, is due to a strong company culture and investment in our people.
We define a strong company culture as one with a set of principles and values that are recognized by the whole team as a solid basis for the common good. These values include integrity, respect, trust, fairness, transparency, and honesty.
With our culture well-defined and incorporated into our day-to-day company life, we set the stage for the success of our team.
Our people are our most precious resource
I believe that the key to building a successful tourism business, or any other business, is investing in: people, people, people.
It is people who effectively make day-to-day business happen. And this isn’t just a nice thing that we say without investment. Our business has to be done with open hearts and hands. We have to understand that the returns can benefit not only one person but a whole team of people who build and protect the purpose of the business together.
Creating an environment where employees thrive at work is one of the most important things a company can do. It is one of my greatest motivations as CEO and Founder of Living Tours. I recognize firsthand how everyone, and the company itself, benefits when you can bring out the best in each employee.
This model developed naturally at Living Tours; it’s the way I’ve always done business. I see no distinction between the way I treat family, friends, clients, and colleagues. This has created a very special workplace culture and is something we work hard to maintain as the brand grows.
How we empower our team
With over 100 people in the Living group, we are always thinking of meaningful ways to bring together and support people in the Living family.
We have discussions about workplace culture to ensure that we are empowering colleagues to be themselves at work: “To be able to be who I am, anywhere,” which is one of our core values. We celebrate diversity in the workplace and outside it and facilitate inclusion to stay true to our commitment to equity.
We share ideas freely during brainstorms across our teams and departments. We listen to our staff to help us understand what problems they encounter on a daily basis and think of ways to improve our performance for our guests- they are the reason for our existence.
How we engage our team
We encourage and reward employee contributions to overall company improvements. We also give out awards for innovation, exceptional customer service, and overall team performance measured against our annual goals.
All employees have career plans and professional development opportunities. We facilitate team building through recreational and social events such as go-kart racing and paintball. We host an annual Summer Party in July, and we end each year in December by honoring our stars with our Galos D’Ouro awards.
We offer a generous benefits package that exceeds what is required by law. In 2023, we will offer health insurance for all staff. Yes, it is a significant financial investment, but one that is more than deserved for our team.
How we live our Values
We live our values inside and outside of work. Our values of PASSION – SERVICE – EXPERIENCE – INNOVATION – EXCELLENCE help us grow stronger as a team and unite us in service to the greater good.
We develop projects to support our local communities, build meaningful relationships and strengthen human connections. Our team participates in various social and environmental volunteering projects.
On a social level, we have several Living Tours Social Causes Programs. For example, as part of the Living Tours project with Cause 1×1, we donate a hot meal to people in need for each participant on our tours. Our team volunteers with the charities we support in preparing and distributing hot meals and through clothing and food drives.
On an environmental level, we regularly organize beach cleanups to remove plastics and other beach waste. We are also currently implementing a water filtration system for the washing of our whole fleet, enabling the water to be reused for washing and reducing our use of drinkable water that can be used elsewhere.
The Living Tours style of Leadership
These are the principles and values we carry out daily at Living Tours. It is incredible to see the collective and amplified impact of these experiences and the encouragement and inspiration the experiences provide to our guests.
This is our definition of Leadership and the basis of all our Living success!
