BlueCat Wins HR Awards’ Best Workplace Culture Award

On September 12, 2019, BlueCat proudly accepted the Ultimate Software Award for Best Workplace Culture. This is the second distinction we were awarded this week, following our distinction as a Best Workplace in Technology just two days prior. Earlier this year, BlueCat was also named a Best Workplace for Mental Health.

What does a culture worthy of this much praise look like? To learn the answer, keep reading. Or, take a look at our open postings and experience it for yourself.

For context, the five points below are the pillars of our company culture code. It’s a code that we crowd-sourced from all our employees two years ago, by asking them the question, “what is it you find special about working at BlueCat?” Then, a sample group of BlueCats refined the answers down to what you see today.

Our culture code guides how we act, treat one another, and think about success at work.

We have the courage to act

It’s easy to play hot potato with responsibility, and leave meaningful tasks for ‘someone else’ to do. That’s not how we roll. 

Here’s a great example: last year, our Office Manager, Elly, identified a gap. Our employees did not feel equipped to support their colleagues through struggles with mental health. This is not in her job title, however Elly took it upon herself to plant the seeds at BlueCat for a training program around just that. 

Good problem to have: our people team had to start stealing chairs from the next meeting room because the workshop on #mentalhealth first aid was a place people wanted to be at. #NotMyselfToday

— Dana Iskoldski (@danaiskoldski) July 10, 2019

Starting this initiative was not only a demonstration of ownership on Elly’s part, it also took bravery. Mental health in the workplace is not yet fully charted territory; most of us are new to discussing it, and sometimes that newness is an uncomfortable feeling. 

Elly took the plunge anyway, and there was an overwhelming amount of support and participation in it. Thanks to her bravery and drive (among other things), BlueCat was also named a Best Workplace for Mental Wellness this year, too.

We listen to and guide our customers

We aren’t just a vendor. We are our customers’ trusted advisor when it comes to Adaptive DNS and the aspects of business it touches. Part of that means respectfully challenging our customers at times, educating them, and working through challenges with them.

One trait you will find throughout our teams is a healthy penchant for asking questions. During the initial stages of a sales process, our competitors are known for simply providing a customer a quote. Our salespeople, however, are encouraged to ask their potential customers why they are looking for a particular feature, as the context often enables them to then suggest a better overall solution. We judge good work based on whether we create value, not just how much revenue we bring in.

We show vulnerability

We’re humans, not machines. So, we bring our whole selves to work and support our colleagues who do, too. Through great times, difficult times, triumphs, mistakes, and all. It’s what makes our corporate culture one where our people feel safe to tell the truth, surface issues, and feel connected. 

A good example is Mike, one of our Sales team members. Mike uses LinkedIn (among other avenues) to shine light on both the great – and difficult – aspects of his career to his network. In the embedded LinkedIn post below, he courageously recounts a not-so-shining moment in his career. If you click into the comments of the post, you will see some of BlueCat’s senior leadership responding with nothing short of support and compassion.

We are approachable and responsive

We value our colleagues’ time and effort, so we do our best to support them when we can. We’re also a pretty flat organization, and you will see every day how that impacts our way of working. 

For example, some of our entry level employees work directly with our senior leadership team on projects that are meaningful to the company. We host a monthly Ask Me Anything style forum for employees to ask senior leadership their questions, but stress that it is just one avenue for getting questions answered. The other? Walk into their office and ask.

We win as a team

Doing what we do takes a village. For example, when we recently earned the business of one of America’s largest banks, our CEO Michael Harris emphasized at BlueCat’s quarterly all-hands meeting that it wasn’t just a salesperson’s win. Was a team effort on behalf of all the company’s departments. 

Our Customer Success department helped demonstrate how dependable we are. Our Finance and Legal teams were so strong in working out the details of the incredibly large, complex contract. Our Marketing team helped keep the new customer’s team engaged and educated along the sales engagement. Our People hired all the right people for these teams.

This blog post is just a glimpse at what BlueCat’s working environment looks like. Having experienced it for the past two years, I feel proud to say I’ve seen each of these culture pillars supported through action, every day. 

What about you – do you want to take a closer look? Get closer to experiencing our great company culture by checking out to some of our open job postings.