#3 Small/Medium Company Category: VLink

When VLink CEO Sharad Patney thinks about his Windsor information-technology company's annual goals, he starts with an unconventional priority: Employee happiness. “If our employees are happy, we are positioned to grow,” Patney said. The formula seems to be working. Since its founding in 2006, VLink, whose services include enterprise architecture, application development, cloud services and data analytics, has grown from 40 employees to more than 180, while expanding its largely New England clientele to more than 100 companies and generating revenue of more than $20 million in 2015. VLink's corporate culture, Patney said, is employee focused. That has meant creating a culture where employees share their challenges and opinions, regardless of their title.  “I take the view that everyone is on an equal platform,” Patney said.  “Even as senior leaders, we are still learning, so everyone [at all levels] needs to share to succeed.”  It's an approach that VLink employees like Patrick Pathammavong appreciate.  “It's not just company growth, but personal growth too,” said Pathammavong, a recruiting manager who joined the company a year and a half ago.  “Our company growth has also included expanding [employee] responsibilities and exploring different avenues of the business with [company leaders] cheering us on and coaching us to blossom.” One of the most valuable aspects of VLink's culture, Pathammavong said, is the workplace flexibility. “The company really respects work-life balance,” he said, noting VLink's work from home policy is an important part of his job satisfaction. “If you have something that important you need to do or somewhere you need to be,” Pathammovong explained, “VLink is very understanding; there's no disciplinary action or guilt cast on you.” Patney said VLink's home-office employees are encouraged to work from home and don't need to request permission. Meantime, despite the company's geographic diversity (it has client locations in 25 states), VLink is focused on expanding opportunities to connect remote employees with company news and provide feedback.  “We have done some employee surveys and created a VLink employee portal this year,” said Cyndy Martino-Friedrich, VLink's director of human resources and operations.  “We listen a lot to our employees and want them to share what would make their lives easier; we do our best to meet their needs.” One of those needs, Martino-Freidrich said, is better employee recognition, which she plans to address in a new quarterly newsletter. “It would be nice to share the feedback our employees receive from our clients,” she said.  Some of that recognition has already started to take place.  Martino-Friedrich said the company held its annual employee party — featuring more than 100 employees from across the country and their families — in January, at the Hartford Marriott Downtown. “We acknowledged employees who were celebrating their three-, five- and seven-year anniversaries with the company,” she said. “There's real employee loyalty.”  Pathammavong attributes that loyalty, in part, to a sense of employee closeness.  He points to his unofficial role as VLink sports coordinator as an example. He was empowered to create tournaments and commission leagues. That has included billiard tournaments, bowling leagues, a cricket team, table tennis and other recreational activities. Read about the other Best Places to Work in CT 2016 winners.