Fire
Do you know of organizations or individuals that set the innovation scene on Fire? Tell us about them by completing a nomination for Inno on Fire.
Since day one, Branch has focused on making employees' working lives better. So it makes sense that the Minneapolis tech company would provide the same care for its own workforce. Branch leadership allows employees to directly influence the company, regardless of level or department - whether it's adding a new product feature or selecting snacks.
Emphasizing transparency and accessibility, leadership is willing to listen and incorporate new ideas quickly and enthusiastically. Branch offers benefits such as unlimited PTO, flexible work from home policy, office happy hours and team outings, and opportunities to work across different teams and departments.
As ClickSWITCH continues to grow, it's keeping employee wellness front and center. The company has a group of people who ride their bikes to work every day. These individuals have branded ClickSWITCH jerseys and track each other's performance and speeds using an app called Strava. The company has several other clubs, including ones for running and hot yoga.
Coherent Solutions spans four offices and encompasses more than 1,000 employees. Founded in 1995, the company reports a retention rate of around 90 percent, with most employees holding an average tenure of four years. Coherent encourages employee bonding through extreme sports like Tough Mudder obstacle courses, bike races and more.
This summer, executives from Minneapolis and Minsk, Belarus participated in the Challenge of Monte Cristo – a three-mile-long open water swim on the French coast that mirrors the same swim from "The Count of Monte Cristo."
Float is a peer-to-peer boat rental platform that is passionate about sharing the best Minnesota has to offer. The company donates a portion of the profits from each boat rental toward lake preservation efforts. Float's founders say that they are on a mission to "enjoy and preserve what makes Minnesota special.”
Lab651’s office is in a renovated warehouse in Saint Paul, next to Lake Monster Brewing. It also has a tightknit group of creative engineers that enjoy quarterly outings together at places like Top Golf or the Saints games and going to technology meetups in the community. Employees are currently participating in an autonomous vehicle league. Lab651 also gives employees up to two days of paid time off for volunteering at a non-profit or cause they support.
Media Minefield has a Mini Miner program that allows new moms and dads to bring their new baby into the office after their paid maternity or paternity leave. They also give their employees superhero capes with the company logo and year they joined on the employees’ work anniversaries.
SportsEngine specializes in helping users find teams and groups that will help them grow as athletes. Internally, the company shows the same care for its own team. SportsEngine has plenty of perks for its sports-loving staff. The Minneapolis tech company hosts an annual golf outing for its employees. Its office in Northeast also has on-site showers and bike parking, as well as doughnuts every Thursday and free beer on tap after business hours.
SportsEngine also offers a professional development program that allows employees to build new skills, explore new roles and more.
West Monroe Partners, a business and technology consulting firm, gives back to the community through its 1+1+1 Program – where it contributes one percent of its time, one percent of its profits and one percent of its talent to local organizations. The company's "chiefs" program also allows employees to be a champion of something they're passionate about, such as Chief Fitness Officer or Chief Beer Officer.
When I Work doesn't just talk the talk when it comes to making the Twin Cities tech scene more diverse and inclusive. When I Work is serious about pushing diversity in the company and throughout the community. The company partnered with The Coven to put on a FeMNist day that was attended by the whole community. When I Work also got involved with the Blacks in Tech conference last fall and plan to do so again this year. For Pride this year, When I Work donated to Point Foundation, which funds scholarships for LGBTQ people.