Great Article on Best Workplace Winner Squaremouth

‘Burg Biz Wins Best WorkplaceTampa Bay Business Journal’s Best Place to Work in 2013 has a 12th floor view of downtown St. Pete, encourages nap times, and has bottles of booze perched atop the fridge in the kitchen. They’re in the business of selling promises, according to CEO Chris Harvey. But they do it in a way that makes them stand out. Squaremouth, a travel insurance comparison website, allows buyers to compare travel insurance plans and helps them along the way by providing outstanding customer service. Their Zero Complaint Guarantee is the hallmark of the company and is one of the things that makes them different from other businesses. Squaremouth stands behind every insurance company they list on their site. If a customer has a problem with their insurance policy, they are encouraged to call Squaremouth to resolve the issue. If Squaremouth employees cannot resolve the issue with the insurance company, they remove the company from their website. Though there have been issues, Harveys says they have never had to remove anyone. “If not for customer service, the industry would be dead. We’ve always worked it out,” Harvey said. He says most places have their work procedures set in stone. At Squaremouth, “nothing is sacred. We question everything.” According to a list of Squaremouth’s core values, “everything we have done up until today is shit.” This means that they are open to changing something if it will make operations smoother or the customer happier, even areas in which they were previously successful. Harvey said that his company provides the best customer service by making sure his employees are happy. One rule dictates that each employee sit somewhere different than the previous day. There are no assigned desks. Harvey laughs and says the fluffy white rug in the corner has been dubbed, “the hangover rug” and that employees actually sleep on it. Employees at Squaremouth are autonomous. “We’re more of a collaboration. We don’t behave like most businesses,” Harvey said. Employees can invent their own job titles and duties if they’ve outgrown the one they were hired for. Jenna Gravino, Content Marketer, says she has reinvented her job title numerous times. There are 14 employees behind this $10 million company. Harvey says Squaremouth truly values their employees, noting that although a lot of businesses say that, he really means it. “We’ve bailed people out of jail before.” Every employee has a vote in the company and almost every decision (except for the firing process) is put to a group vote. The interview process for new employees is done as a group and if someone wants a raise, they have to make their case to their co-workers. All employees get unlimited paid vacations and receive annual bonuses as well. Harvey says that these perks are designed to get the best out of an employee, and that no one at Squaremouth abuses these privileges. “We’re all very conscious of each other here,” said Jenna Gravino, Content Marketer. She explains that no one bickers over days off and everyone is respectful of each other’s needs.