Universal Information Services

I was quoted in a recent Wall Street Journal article, August 19th, 2013, regarding special perks the team at Universal Information Services enjoys. This article, “Keep Employees Happy With Creative Perks”, includes fun and simple ideas companies use to enhance their business culture and environment.

Many leading companies are using their business culture as a successful tool to support their business strategy. By fostering a culture where team members enjoy the environment in which they work your company can move more effectively through the strategy. True, the tactics we use to serve our clients are unique to our news media analysis service, but the basic principle of a positive culture should be adopted by all companies. The real truth is that today’s employees are not looking for the black and white world of 1950’s office bureaucracy. Today’s workers want a mission they can believe in, a feeling of self-responsibility, and a sense of ownership in the outcomes. As a business leader, if you can’t adapt and offer a supportive culture your competition will.

If you read the article you will see that the perk highlighted from Universal was our Free Beer Fridays. This small, controlled option, for those who wish to have a beer at the end of the week, is enjoyed by some, but certainly not by all. Where the article didn’t elaborate is that we also offer free coffee every day, donuts and bagels throughout the month, and even alternative soft-drinks for free on Friday afternoons (it’s not about the beer).

In an era where employees are looking for a better quality of life, and not necessarily quantity of life, an office culture can make the big difference. At least we think so. In the end, the people you work with make the culture. We’ve found perks that our team likes, we’ve adapted our office culture to those perks, and this has helped drive our company forward.