Inside the Top Five Best Places to Work: No. 3: The Capital Group

Jennifer McAdams   Today’s Top Stories   or  Other Careers Stories  

Usability Is Everything The Value of Real SaaS at Workday SaaS at Flextronics, Inc. Chiquita selects Workday's fresh approach to Human Capital Management Supporting Employees Anytime, Anywhere Natural User Interface for Enterprise Applications 8 Questions To Ask About Your Intrusion-Security Solution Computerworld Technology Briefings IT Service Management Computerworld Briefing - Analytics: The Art and Science of Better Sign up to receive Careers Resource Alerts

June 19, 2006 (Computerworld) -- It's late afternoon, and IT workers are poised on the trading room floor of The Capital Group Cos., ready to assist brokers scrambling to close deals. This scenario highlights the company's determination to keep technology workers energized and tightly aligned with key business units.

Of the many IT staffers working the trading floor, some are junior associates. Top IT executives at this Los Angeles-based investment management company often place newly plucked university recruits alongside seasoned brokers.

13th Annual Report:
100 Best Places to Work in IT 2006

List of Best Places Winners

Following its philosophy, Capital Group shuns top-down management and grooms technical staffers for a variety of positions throughout the organization and around the world. These and other strategies have landed this newcomer in the coveted third spot on Computerworld 's Best Places to Work in IT list.

"We've developed an approach that lets our employees work in collaboration, rather than adhering to rigid hierarchies," says Capital Group President Larry Clemmensen. "This has resulted in strong relationships between IT and our business users." A snapshot of a typical day here backs him up.

6:30 a.m.: IT executives arrive early and jump on conference calls with their counterparts across the Atlantic. "The early-morning hours are for operational, project and strategic meetings that involve Europe," explains Debra Lubeski, director of U.S. investment technology and support.

Infrastructure architecture groups also get in early to brainstorm with European end users on products and services available from the company's scattered technology labs and application offices. Capital Group's labs have spawned tools such as customized BlackBerry devices and laptops outfitted to meet coverage and application needs unique to Europe.

"We spend a lot of time on mobile devices," says Dan Rourke, senior IT manager responsible for Capital Group's technology infrastructure.

8:30 a.m.: Throughout the morning, it's "meetings, meetings, meetings" for Vicki Lederman, an IT group vice president. "We interact with business users, with peers and others in IT," she says.

WHY THEY'RE TOPS

Ranked No. 4 for diversity Ranked No. 4 for training Offer 12 days of training per year for each IT worker 52% of the IT staffers are minorities

11 a.m. to 2 p.m.: Now that the business day in Europe is over, IT managers set their sights inward. "Midday is usually focused on the U.S. team and one-on-one meetings," says Lubeski.

Continued...
1 | 2 | NEXT  

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

Hands-on: Google's Chrome OS is a work in progress Microsoft debuts 'streaming' Office 2010 beta Opinion: In depth with Apple's Snow Leopard Server More top stories...

The ghost in the machine: 3 disk imaging apps New iPhone ads stick up for AT&T Microsoft issues security advisory on IE vulnerability

See your link here

Editors' Picks Computerworld's Salary Survey 2009 See results from our survey of more than 5,000 IT pros, and use our Smart Salary Tool to compare your pay with IT workers in similar jobs across the U.S. How to re-energize your weary workforce After weathering layoffs or pay cuts, your IT staffers may need some help getting motivated. Try these strategies for employee renewal. Top 10 free Windows tools for IT pros No Windows geek or PC support pro should be without these must-have utilities -- and they're all free. See more hot topics Get the latest news, features, opinions and more on key technology issues. hot topics Windows 7 Get the latest news, reviews and more about Microsoft's newest desktop operating system. Apple Microsoft Google iPhone Mac A to Z » See more hot topics special report topics View the top-rated IT workplaces. General Mills, Genentech, San Diego Gas & Electric, University of Pennsylvania and Monsanto top the list. More Special Reports 2008 Best Places to Work in IT 2007 Best Places to Work in IT 2008 Salary Survey 2007 Salary Survey 2006 Salary Survey 2009 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2008 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2008 IT Forecast 2007 IT Forecast 40 Years of Computerworld Top Green-IT 2009 Top Green-IT 2008 The FAQs About Going Green IT Schools to Watch iPhone: One Year Later Global Mobile Your Next Data Center Management: Reinventing IT Stop Data Leaks Web 2.0 Security Surviving Disasters Managing Storage Virtualization The Lean Storage Machine Storage on Trial Can Web 2.0 Save BI? Bypass These BI Potholes All Zones The SAS Zone Software Resource Center Mobile Security Disaster Recovery & Cost Savings Strategic Content Management Business Analytics Zone

• Hands-on: Google's Chrome OS is a work in progress
• The ghost in the machine: 3 disk imaging apps
• Microsoft debuts 'streaming' Office 2010 beta
• More top stories 

• Top 5 Chrome OS myths debunked

• New iPhone ads stick up for AT&T

• IT Blogwatch: Apple voids Applecare warranty for smokers!

Read more news