Engagement excellence: the lonesome creek station way

What does it take to create an exceptional team in a high-stakes environment? According to Doug Hunter, Basin Electric operations and maintenance supervisor at Lonesome Creek Station (Lonesome Creek), it takes communication, collaboration, and a whole lot of heart.

The team of technicians at Lonesome Creek has set a new standard for engagement, achieving the highest score among facilities in the cooperative during the 2024 Employee Engagement Survey. In a high-stakes environment where quick decisions and teamwork are crucial, this team’s ability to work together seamlessly has led to operational efficiency and an engaging, positive workplace.

Across all facilities, 72% of employees completed Basin Electric’s second annual Employee Engagement Survey, indicating that they wanted their voices heard. The results were compiled and analyzed by analytics and advisory company Gallup, and action plans were developed by Basin Electric team leaders targeting areas to optimize employee engagement within their teams.

Gallup’s research has found engaged employees have higher wellbeing, better retention, lower absenteeism, and higher productivity. Gallup’s latest published employee engagement findings show an average of 23% globally, 33% nationally, and 70% in best-practice organizations.

The Basin Electric Human Resources team launched the Gallup Employee Engagement Survey in 2023 to gather baseline data to determine the level of engagement throughout the entire workforce. The team plans to conduct this survey annually for three years with a goal to improve employee engagement each year.

“We conduct an engagement survey because we all want to have meaning and purpose in our lives,” Todd Brickhouse, Basin Electric CEO and general manager, said at the all-employee meeting in August. “Engagement is one way to measure that in our professional lives. We all want to make Basin Electric a great place to work and come into every day.”

According to Brickhouse, engagement is important because when employees are engaged, they are more likely to tell someone when something is wrong, especially concerning safety, reliability, and affordability. “If each of us has a sense of engagement, it leads to a thriving culture where we are much better positioned to execute our mission.”

Hunter has been working at Basin Electric for almost nine years – three of which have been spent at the cooperative’s Lonesome Creek facility. His team of six members is one of the smallest facility teams across all Basin Electric facilities.

The team at Lonesome Creek is unique not only in its configuration but also in its people. “We are a small group comprised mostly of veterans who have all worked in the oil field,” Hunter says. This shared background, understanding, and sense of brotherhood make them a very effective team.

According to Hunter, his team’s high level of engagement comes from a team culture of communication and collaboration. “Everything falls into place when communication is open, honest, and inclusive,” he says. “It makes me real proud when I hear my team over the radio communicate and coordinate every step of a process and every request for help.”

One of the team’s biggest challenges is the fuel valves on the station’s natural gas units. When a valve needs a replacement, it usually entails a two-day project. Through communication and teamwork, the team has gained efficiencies and reduced that time to 10-12 hours.

Unsurprisingly, the aspect of Hunter’s job that makes it easy to go to work every day is his team. “These technicians are great people. They have a lot of pride and ownership in their site and its performance. They work hard, they work safely, and they have fun while doing it,” he says.

Hunter’s guide to engagement is simple: connect. “As I tell my team – If you don’t say anything, you won’t change anything,” he says. “That’s why I appreciate every one of my teammates – they want to continue making Basin Electric a better place to work every day.”