Plants are a Banker's Best Friend

Plants make people happy. If any office is proof of that, it’s Jefferson Banks headquarters in SATX. At Jefferson, the plants are more than just desk décor. They’re an essential part of the team. Learn more about the relationship between Jefferson Bank’s employees and their plants below:

1 Guests entering the lobby will be welcomed by stunning plants.

2 Plants in a communal area can boost morale and reduce stress levels.

3 This towering Ficus Lyrata not only adds an extra touch of life to any space, but also acts as a natural air purifier.

4 Placing a tall plant in a lofty container adds vibrancy to smaller corners and spaces.

5 Creating a stunning visual focal point can be achieved by grouping a variety of different plants.

Since its inception in 1946, Jefferson Bank has gone above and beyond to give back to communities across Texas. Jefferson’s team spends hundreds of hours annually in the community volunteering, supporting charity events, and engaging in a variety of other work to support Texans. The local community is at the heart of Jefferson Bank’s decision-making. This is also true for their internal community. Leadership makes it their number one priority to support and develop their team. This includes improving the working environment of their team. 

That’s where plants come in. Plants have been scientifically proven to:

• Reduce fatigue 
  
• Decrease stress 
• Increase creativity 
• Lessen feelings of depression 
• All in all increase the mental well-being of the people around them 

This is what makes them perfect for a company, like Jefferson, looking to support their internal community.  

For over 20 years, we have been able to use our plants to support Jefferson Bank in their offices and banks throughout the Hill Country. Most recently, we were able to assist them in bringing plants into a new corporate office in the Pearl District. This design project was led by Linda Rael, from our Sales and Design Team, and Monica Gose, a Client Services Coordinator with Jefferson Bank. To maximize the positive impact of the new plant design, the team, as a whole, was heavily involved in the process. Each team member got to select their own plants and planters for their departments/offices. Not only did this make the employees’ plants more special to them, but it also allowed the team to participate in the process to a degree that they may not have been able to elsewhere.  

Thanks to the steps taken by Monica to involve the entire team, their employees were beyond excited when the plants started arriving in the office. Jefferson’s corporate office has plants integrated throughout the entire building.  Despite the massive scale of the office, there is a plant within eyesight almost everywhere in the office. Thus far, employees have been thrilled with the design choices made by Monica and Linda. Some members of the team even consider the plants to be a source of pride. Jefferson’s team has bonded so well with their plants that they have become a key part of life at Jefferson Bank.

“I pretty much worked right next to Linda as we made decisions on plants, and I think she came up with some super clever places to put plants. I’m also thrilled at how well they’ve all survived. They’ve done a really good job of picking out what plants would work well in the space.” – Monica Gose 

Rather than just being décor, Jefferson Bank’s plants have become something sort of like office pets to the employees. Not only do they bring a little extra joy to life in the office, but the employees have also become heavily invested in the care and maintenance of their plants. Both Monica and our team have reported that the employees keep track of when our technicians will be in the office so that they can verify the health of their plants with our team. Leadership has been thrilled to see how plants have positively impacted employees in the office.

“Every Friday Tommy comes to water and I know the different employees will stop him and its almost like they’re their little babies, they’re taking care of these plants and they wanna make sure that he’s in agreement that they’re okay.” – Monica Gose 

Want to sneak a peek at their office plants? Check out some photos of the plants in their space below: 

So, what makes people so excited to be around and care for plants? Great question, there’s a variety of reasons. Here’s a short list from Forest Nation:  

• They’re visually pleasing 
• The color green is psychologically associated with calmness 
• They keep things quiet 
• The natural aroma of plants can be healing 
• People have an innate desire to connect with nature 

Plants have a wide variety of therapeutic and healing properties. Those properties are what allow plants the ability to connect with people. Plants can help people in stressful environments, like offices, wind down and focus. Not only does this help with productivity, but it can also make employees significantly happier. This, alongside the involvement all of Jefferson's employees had in the process, is what fostered the bond the team has developed with their plants. 

We are overjoyed to have been able to use our expertise to support Jefferson Bank and their employees in their new office space, and a variety of their other banks and offices across Texas. Like their leadership team, we are thrilled to see how both Jefferson’s Employees and their plants are thriving. It’s always great to hear about our client’s experiences with the plants in their office. Especially when the plants have had as much of a positive impact as they have at Jefferson Bank.