By Lynne R. Zacharias
July 7, 2011
Atlanta spoke loud and clear about where they love to work and which companies offer the most innovative workplaces in the area. For the first time, companies in Atlanta that are focused on offering quality human resources initiatives were honored with a 101 Best and Brightest Award. This year’s winners were honored at a symposium and awards luncheon held in their honor on June 20th. The honorees clearly demonstrated why each of them would be an ideal place for employees to work and Corp! magazine wanted to share with readers the high standards that these winning companies employ to be considered the best and brightest by the people who know them the best—their employees.
3C Software
Atlanta
www.3csoftware.com
Founded in 1988 as Computer Concepts Corp., 3C Software supplies cost management solutions to companies with complex or process-intensive manufacturing. The company manages all aspects of software development and implementation at their headquarters in Atlanta. Their strategy for retaining top talent is simple: “Our innovation lies in sticking with the basics and doing it well. We don’t offer flashy benefits, we focus on the things that really count: making sure our employees feel valued, offering excellent compensation and profit sharing plans, and creating work-life balance that ensures our employees can have a life outside of work,” said Matthew Smith, president and CEO. He says that being a small company is why they can provide more to their workforce. “3C Software is somewhat unique because we are a small company that serves the needs of large corporations around the world. We’re able to do this because we are innovative in our approach to solving complicated problems through technology and expertise. Because we do not operate in departmental silos, all of our employees are actively engaged in guiding product and service innovations based on their experiences working with clients and prospects. Our employees are empowered to make decisions and encouraged to share their opinions. The collegial atmosphere of our workplace fosters communication and genuine respect for our colleagues. We don’t micromanage or stifle our employees. Rather, we give them the space to produce creative solutions to our customers’ problems,” he said.
Armchair
Atlanta
www.armchairmedia.com
Armchair is an Atlanta-based interactive agency that specializes in designing and developing multimedia strategies and campaigns that help businesses engage new audiences. Keeping employees happy is the recipe that drives this company forward. “We believe that keeping our employees happy, challenged and motivated comes from a mix of the work we do and how we reward them for their performance. We are very selective about the work we choose to do and we try to involve as much of our staff as possible when exploring creative options for clients. We feel that good ideas can come from anyone who takes the time to think about them, so we cast a wide net when it comes to who participates in our brainstorming sessions. All people and ideas are welcome and no one should be afraid to speak up with a creative idea, or even just a spark of one to make others think. On the compensation side, we strive to help our employees with all the costs of their benefits so they can be free of worry and concentrate on their work,” said Scott Woelfel, managing partner and CEO. “From the very beginning of their employment, people at Armchair know that we want them to have balance in their lives. Together with our small size, this lets everyone make a connection with their co-workers, making the office feel a little less like just a place of work.”