HLB Lighting: Tackling COVID-19 Employer Challenges as a Small Business Owner

HLB Lighting Small Business

Horton Lees Brogden Lighting (HLB) is a women-owned architectural lighting design firm with offices across the U.S. The firm was founded in 1968, and is internationally recognized for designing interior and exterior lighting, controls, and daylighting integration. The company prioritizes culture, ensuring that all employees in all offices feel that they are a part of one team. This dedication to employee engagement helped them to seamlessly maintain operations when the pandemic hit. As states began to shut down, HLB took several measures to ensure that their employees were feeling comfortable and were able to maintain their productivity as they shifted to work from home.

The firm doubled-down on its IT support in order to help everyone transition to the remote work environment. They also implemented twice daily check-in meetings for the first few weeks to ensure that everyone was on track to meeting their responsibilities. To help with isolation and emotional well-being, HLB implemented daily mental health check ins and coordinated water cooler discussion to enable both casual conversations and deeper discussions on racial justice and equity. The firm also provided additional support for working parents to go part-time or hourly if needed to meet their caregiving responsibilities. HLB’s commitment to employee wellness enabled them to bolster their firm culture and to maintain productivity during quarantine.