For Ultimate Software, business really is about the people

Jan. 28--With its relaxed culture and enviable employee benefits, Weston-based human resources and payroll software developer Ultimate Software Group could be the Google of South Florida.

Like Google, Ultimate Software was recently recognized as one of Fortune magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For." The company says it puts "people first" -- the motto is stamped on the headquarters entrance -- and that results in employee satisfaction and shows up in the bottom line.

"I wish we had more of them down in South Florida," said Deborah Vazquez, chief executive of ProTech Staffing in Boca Raton, which specializes in technology staffing. "A lot of companies tell you 'it's all about their people,' but they walk the talk."

Ultimate Software issues stock awards to each employee hired; pays 100 percent of family medical and dental insurance, provides a 35 percent match to 401k retirement contributions, and reward performance with more stock and trips to the Bahamas and Orlando. Perks added this year: two days off to work at a charity.

But founder and CEO Scott Scherr said it's the equity awards that are key.

"People not only have a sense of ownership, but they have real ownership. I think it makes a difference. When I talk with employees, I'm talking with them as partners of Ultimate Software," he said.

Employees are No. 1 to Scherr, said Vivian Maza, Ultimate's chief people officer who has been working with Scherr since the company started 23 years ago.

"You take care of us and we'll take care of you," Maza said of Scherr's philosophy.

Ultimate Software, whose 2,700 customers include JM Family Enterprises, Outback Steakhouse and Google, saw revenues climb to $332 million in 2012 from $269 million in 2011, with recurring revenues from regular software users growing by 25 percent. Profits were $14.6 million, up seven-fold since 2010.

To support that growth, the company is hiring about 400 employees a year. Average annual salary is $65,000 but compensation rises to $80,000 to $100,000 with paid benefits, he said.

The company has never had a layoff in its 23-year history and voluntary employee turnover is only 3.5 percent, Scherr said.

Recruiters and employees say Ultimate Software never stops working to do more for its employees, who include software developers, customer support and sales people.

Vazquez said she has never placed anyone at Ultimate who has wanted to leave.

"We get a lot of thank-you notes," she said.

But Alex Funkhouser of Sherlock Tech Staffing said it's not the perks that matter most to technology professionals, it's the skill level and shared knowledge.

"[Ultimate Software] is a fantastic organization. People go in and they don't come out. They hire really sharp people," Funkhouser said.

Ultimate Software employs 800 workers in eight buildings in Weston and is getting ready to add a ninth. Nearly 2,000 work for the company in locations including Southern California, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Toronto and Europe.

The company has made millionaires of several hundreds of employees who have been with Ultimate since the early days. Ultimate Software went public in 1998 at $10 a share. Ultimate Software's stock price rose to a high of $163 in Nasdaq trading over the past 52 weeks.

"I just bought my Ulti house," Maza said employees often tell her. Scherr "has changed people's lives," she said.

Asif Rahman, 29, has worked for Ultimate Software for two years after joining as an intern from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.

"I thought I would have to go to Silicon Valley for a fun culture like Facebook or Google," Rahman said. "Then I heard about Ultimate Software. The talent is unprecedented."

He likes the family atmosphere and collegiality. "Everyone is willing to help," said Rahman, who was referred to the company by a friend who worked there.

Scherr said about 50 percent of the hires are from referrals. "When you get good people, they recruit good people."

Customer support employee Gary Susswein said he's happy at Ultimate Software, after a career working for companies including IBM and Bank of America. He especially likes that he can work at home two days a week since he commutes from Pompano Beach to Weston.

"They do expect you to work," he said. But if asked to work a Saturday, Susswein said he's always given an extra day off.

Scherr, 61, who grew up in the Bronx and graduated from the University of Miami, worked summers at his father Rubin Scherr's data processing firm in New York City. That experience imprinted a lasting ideology about the best way to run a business.

"My dad always told me the purpose of a business is to take care of the people who work there," he said.

[email protected] or 561-243-6650

Ultimate Software

Business: Cloud-based HR and payroll software

Headquarters: Weston

Founded: 1990

CEO: Scott Scherr

Employees: 2,000, with 800 in Weston

Hiring: About 400 new employees a year

2012 revenues: $332 million

___

(c)2014 the Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

Visit the Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) at www.sun-sentinel.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services