Employer Profile

This investment firm, based in Valley Forge, Pa., recognizes and rewards each employee's contributions through an incentive program called the Vanguard Partnership Plan. Similar to a profit-sharing arrangement, the Partnership Plan enables employees to earn a share allocation based on length of service and job level. The company takes on its own large custom development projects (Web 2.0 and data warehouse applications, for example), accounting for about 80% of the development budget, rather than offshoring projects or buying off-the-shelf technologies. The company also offers formal job-rotation programs, mentoring and training. Training includes specialized learning maps tailored for every IT position, nearly 960 IT-specific classroom and computer-based courses, and a development tool called the Vanguard eCareerNavigator, a suite of online self-assessment exercises aimed at long-term career planning. Vanguard University, the companywide training program, will spend $29 million on training programs in 2009. The Academic Assistance Program provides reimbursement (up to $9,000 per year) for tuition and books to all eligible employees enrolled in most undergraduate or technical-school programs. Assistance is also provided for graduate-level courses directly related to an employee's specific job.