The History Behind Rocket Start
How it all started
Rocket Start is a North Carolina based corporation that started in December 2019. After 15 years of IT and management positions in a Raleigh-based construction materials company, Founder/President Manny Tejano was tasked to help his company address a key problem in the industry – driver development and retention. As an avid gamer himself, Manny developed an interest in workplace gamification and how ratings, badges, and feedback can bring exceptional work output and work happiness. However, he realized that there are no products available to incorporate this type of motivational method to the ready mixed concrete industry. As such, Rocket Start was created in hopes to utilize proven game mechanics to engage employees, create a competitive atmosphere, and provide meaningful rewards that allows not only drivers but any blue collar laborer an opportunity be an ideal employee in his/her organization.
A Common Problem Across Tough Industries
Long, unpredeictable hours, tight deadlines, and high turnover have become the norm in industries like ready mix concrete, construction, transportation, and home and field service. Teams work hard but often feel overlooked. Good employees leave, sometimes after just a few months. Supervisors spend more time chasing numbers than recognizing the people behind them.
Low morale spreads quietly. Missed shifts. Disengagement. New hires who never show up for week two.
And here’s the tough truth: the data that could help—things like attendance, output, safety records—usually goes unused, hidden in back-end systems or spreadsheets.
Why That Problem Hits Harder Than It Should
If your best driver, operator, or technician consistently shows up and goes the extra mile, but no one notices—they start asking why it matters. And when teams don’t know what to aim for, performance drops fast. Studies show disengaged employees are 37% more likely to miss work and 18% less productive overall.
These aren’t just statistics—they’re daily frustrations.
Building Something Better: Rocket Start Launches
We started Rocket Start with one goal in mind: help hardworking teams feel seen, supported, and motivated to do their best work.
After sitting down with dozens of business owners, plant managers, and field supervisors, we heard the same thing: “We know what success looks like. We just need a way to reward it in real-time.”
So we built Rocket Start to turn existing performance data into something people actually care about: recognition. Using the metrics your company already tracks—miles traveled, shifts worked, safety milestones—we create a customized gamified system that rewards consistency and high performance.
A Smarter Way to Motivate
The results speak for themselves:
28% increase in employee retention in the first 6 months
41% improvement in shift attendance
3x higher employee satisfaction with reward programs
15% boost in individual productivity across job sites
And it’s not just about numbers. It’s about building a culture where people feel proud of their work.
Rocket Start gives your team:
Clear goals that align with real company priorities
Recognition tied directly to their efforts
A user-friendly interface—even for the tech-cautious
Incentives that actually mean something to them
Did you know 55% of US adults, and 90% of GenZers play games?
Share of adults in the United States who play games on a smartphone or tablet once a week or more as of March 2024, by age group
When it comes to keeping great people, it’s the little wins that add up.
By celebrating small milestones and making performance visible, Rocket Start turns daily tasks into motivation drivers. Employees show up more often. Supervisors track less manually. Teams work together instead of just side by side.
We believe in leading with encouragement, recognizing effort, and using smart tools to build stronger teams—because when your people are winning, so is your business.