Ben Peterson- People Don't Care How Much You Know Until they Know How Much You Care

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Kent Batman, Contributor on  the Price of Business on Business Talk 1110 AM KTEK (on Bloomberg’s home in Houston) recently interviewed Ben Peterson.

About the interviewee

Ben Peterson is the CEO and co-founder of BambooHR, the leading provider of online human-resources software for small and medium-sized businesses that have outgrown using spreadsheets to manage their employee information.
Peterson and co-founder Ryan Sanders worked together previously at MyComputer.com (now Omniture) and MingleMatch, which began in 2001 as an online social network and sold in 2005 to Spark Networks, Inc. Ben and Ryan reconnected some years later and decided to create the greatest HR software, because that’s where they knew they could make a difference. Their main ambition was to free HR managers from all the paperwork and set them free to do meaningful work – in other words, put the “human” back in human resources.

Tell me about your firm (number of employees, location, type of companies you work with, etc.).

BambooHR is the leading Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider of online HR Software for small and medium businesses that have outgrown spreadsheets. BambooHR’s cloud-based system is an intuitive, affordable way for growing companies to track and manage essential employee information in a personalized Human Resources Information System (HRIS). Now HR managers have more time for meaningful work; executives get accurate, timely reports; and employees can self-service their time off, using a convenient mobile app. BambooHR’s clients include innovators like Snapchat, SoundCloud, Pinterest, Fab, Freshbooks, Klout, Lyft, Fitbit, and Squarespace, among hundreds of others in over 70 countries worldwide. Based in Lindon, Utah, the company currently has 90 employees.

Tell us about why it is important to offer innovative benefits and programs to your employees?

Innovative benefits contribute greatly to company culture. Everyone knows happy employees are more productive employees, and that happiness comes in part from the types of benefits offered.

At my company, BambooHR, we’ve built a rapidly growing global business on the merits of an “anti-workaholic” policy. We trade a strict adherence to a 40-hour workweek for all our employees for their commitment to making all of those hours productive and efficient. The policy results in happier, more productive team members who bring passion and creativity to their work.

Why is this important to your company?

It’s who we are as a company. Our culture revolves around the employees and ensuring that they have everything they need to do great and meaningful work. We recognize that we are accountable to one another to help BambooHR succeed, and our work is definitely impacted by the benefits that aim to provide a balanced life.

How is your company different than others in the benefits and programs it offers?

I think the main difference is that we don’t just give lip service to the fact that our employees are the most important thing to us. We mean it, and behave in such a way that proves it. We don’ t just walk the walk. As a smaller firm, there are definitely expensive perks, such as free food or the most expensive health plan available, that may not make sense. We offer benefits that employees truly care about: 40-hour workweeks, a flexible work schedule, and more.

Contact information:
www.bamboohr.com