Employee Benefits: Fair or Poor?
Across a number of venture capital firms and the start-ups in which they invest , employee benefits vary tremendously. Several companies out there, whether or not they are an expansion stage start-up, have really remarkable employee benefits. However, you should take what you see at face value with a grain of salt. Several months ago, I saw an expansion stage tech start-up called Tagged and noticed they supplied unlimited vacation days for their entire company – wow! Or is it really that wow?
I just realized recently that Netflix presents the same ostensibly unbeatable vacation policy. I also just noticed that Netflix employees are allowed to roam free wherever and whenever … as long as they’re responsive to phone calls, emails and they are ultimately “plugged in” as if they were at the office. Doesn’t sound so fantastic now does it? There are places, though, where no catch is involved when you’re told you can take off as many days as you want. Before the acquisition by Korn/Ferry, The Newman Group permitted their staff to take off as many days as they deemed essential. If batteries had to be recharged, they were done properly. Management really discouraged workers to check voice messages, their email inboxes, and so on.
It’s refreshing to see when your company genuinely looks out for your well-being and there’s no stipulation involved. Sometimes it’s obvious and sometimes it’s not. I remember right after I graduated from college, a lot of my friends took jobs at juggernaut accounting firms and were so pleased to announce that the firms paid for all of their meals! I was not into bursting anyone’s bubble, but the cynic in me instantly questioned “does that mean you’re going be in the office for breakfast, lunch and dinner… at least?” That was definitely the case (and more during busy season). At OpenView, on the other hand, all of our health, dental and vision benefits are paid for, along with our lunches everyday. And there’s no catch.
Victor Mahillon recruits top talent to OpenView and our Portfolio.
