Boston-based riskmethods makes its corporate values clear: think big, get stuff done, act respectfully and hate waste. The big idea is that, by supporting one another, the team is able to push out new ideas as they streamline processes and maximize effectiveness.
Creating a great push for these values is the fact that the Boston office regularly works with two other riskmethods outposts in Munich, Germany, and Wroclaw, Poland — but they view the extra distance only as something that makes their team work better together.
We spoke with a few members of the team to learn how the company builds its culture around these values, all while ensuring fluid communication between its global offices.
FOUNDED: 2013
EMPLOYEES: 153; 26 local
WHERE THEY DO IT: Boston
WHAT THEY DO: riskmethods helps companies proactively monitor and mitigate risk in their supply chain to protect revenue and reputation in the marketplace.
NOTABLE CLIENTS: McGraw Hill Education, T-Mobile and Moen
UNIQUE PERKS: Health and wellness reimbursements and employee-recommended community service events are just the tip of the iceberg for riskmethods' perks.
Peter Dudek, Global Director, Customer Success
Peter leads the customer success team, ensuring the team proactively collaborates with other departments and that the customer's voice is represented throughout the company.
BEYOND WORK: A lover of the outdoors, Peter finds that hiking, biking and fishing help him rejuvenate his mind and refresh his energy.
Your team is spread out across several global offices. How do you create a sense of unity across different locations?
My team of 17 customer success managers is distributed across three different offices in Boston, Munich and Wroclaw and, to create connectedness, we hold two video conferences per week geared towards collaboration and team enablement. Also, aside from making my quarterly cross-office visits — I spend at least a week in the Munich and Wroclaw offices — we do employee exchange program where we bring customer success managers to another office to promote collaboration and cultural diversity.
Company culture is more than just employee perks — it’s company vision, goals and how our clients perceive us, our product and services.”
Employees perform better when they get feedback. How do a team member’s values and culture come up during performance reviews?
Our performance review is not an annual review or appraisal. We believe that an effective performance management system should be employee-oriented, meaning its primary purpose is to set employees up for success so that, in return, they contribute to making our organization successful. The resulting review is geared towards providing support and guidance to employees on how to achieve the expectations set by the company.
When it comes to building culture, what is your philosophy?
Company culture is more than just employee perks — it’s company vision, goals and how our clients perceive us, our product and services. So, my philosophy is to make sure that the talent we are hiring into customer success not only fits riskmethods but will also have long-lasting relationships with our customers.
Coleen Shaughnessy, Marketing Specialist
Coleen supports the marketing team to plan events, host webinars and coordinate email campaigns.
BEYOND WORK: In the summer, Coleen enjoys hiking and horseback riding. If it’s the wintertime, you’ll find her skiing and snowshoeing.
You’ve been with riskmethods for a year and a half. How has your role changed since you first joined the company?
When I first joined riskmethods, I was on the sales development team and transitioned to marketing earlier this year. Being part of sales development, I was able to learn at the ground level what prospects need from our solution and how to speak to people in our customer space. I have been able to take this knowledge to my new role and bring additional perspectives on what our prospects’ value.
It has also been really cool to see the company growth that has happened in just 18 months — some teams have doubled in size and other teams have been created from scratch.
Camaraderie is key to building collaboration at a company. What are some activities you’ve done with your colleagues at riskmethods to build camaraderie?
Every time we get a new hire we have a company lunch. This gives everyone the opportunity to get to know the new person and for them to feel welcome. We also try to do company gatherings and outings at least once a quarter, often more.
Just last week, we got a new lounge in the office so, naturally, we threw a lounge party. We also recently got a dart board for the office, and while my darts don’t even make it on the board usually, it is fun to watch the competitions heat up and see people from different teams take a couple of minutes on their way to the kitchen to throw some darts and chat.
It has also been really cool to see the company growth that has happened in just 18 months — some teams have doubled in size and other teams have been created from scratch.”
Company culture brings together members from all teams. How do employees at riskmethods shape the office culture?
We are very lucky to have people from different countries and cultures all throughout the office. So, learning about different traditions and holidays in other countries is always fun and definitely makes us a little more unique in how we celebrate. Last year we had an Oktoberfest challenge, and part of it was learning about the roots of Oktoberfest and the meaning it has in German culture.
Jae Sul, Customer Success Manager
Jae assists customers in integrating and utilizing riskmethods’ software solutions in their internal processes.
BEYOND WORK: Jae has a number of hobbies, include snowboarding, playing soccer, attending wine tastings, watching movies and drawing.
How has riskmethods evolved since you joined the company?
I joined when there were only four people in the office and three working remotely. Since then, we have grown significantly and had to move offices four times before we arrived at our new home in the Seaport area. Getting to this point, things were changing constantly, but now things are really coming into place. Our solution has gone through significant improvements as well but stayed true to its goal: to empower companies of any size to master supply risk and create a reliable supply network.
Having an office that fits your team's workflow is important. What's your office like?
We only moved into our new office in June last year, so we got to mold the office to look the way we wanted. My boss and his boss painted the walls with one of the riskmethods colors, we put up a huge logo on the wall, we have conference rooms named after local beers and have a new lounge with all the fun lounge stuff. The office is still being molded to fit our needs and culture.
Our solution has gone through significant improvements as well but stayed true to its goal: to empower companies of any size to master supply risk and create a reliable supply network.”
How is riskmethods’ open culture different than previous companies where you've worked?
The office is as open as it gets, and I love the collaborative nature of the environment at riskmethods. If I have a question for the marketing team, for example, I just walk over and ask, and others do the same for me. This is a significant difference from my first job at a big tech company where I didn't even know where the marketing team was.
