Leaders at three small businesses who have received accoladesfor their workplaces believe they have the secret sauce: providingnot only excellent benefit packages and enticing perks, but a workculture that fosters engagement, camaraderie, and genuinelysupports employees’ well-being.

Related: How to keep employees happy

Founded in 2006 by Chris Taylor, Square Root is an Austin-basedenterprise SaaS provider in the operations performance managementspace. Taylor says that culture and benefits are topics “near anddear to my heart.”

“I consider culture to be a reflection of me — I want to come towork every day and my hope is that our employees do, too” hesays.

In addition to providing “table-stake benefits” like healthcare, dental, vision, and (for the tech world) stock options,Square Root also provides benefits and perks that “revolve aroundownership and impact,” Taylor says. New employees get a $4,000budget to choose the type of desk, chair, monitors, and computerthey prefer, which “sets a tone around accountability and trust indecision-making throughout the organization.”

One of the firm's highest-rated benefits is a $3,000 trainingbudget per employee, which can be used broadly across personaldevelopment, conferences, classes, or other professionaldevelopment investments.

“We had one team who pooled their money together to rent a placeoffsite for a week so they could experiment with new codingtechniques and to study new course work to hone their skills,”Taylor says. “Of course, more important than simply giving $3,000for their development is giving employees the ownership over howthey want to spend it, and having them know that we care abouttheir career trajectory.”

Related: Enhance benefits, make happy employeesecstatic

Courtney Branson started at Square Root in 2014 as the officemanager, but was later promoted to head of HR and recruiting. Sheis also known as the firm's “happiness captain and culturechampion.”

“From day one, I’ve felt supported to try new things — and evenfail,” Branson says. “I’ve taken advantage of every benefit weoffer to help me grow. Square Root has accelerated my career in away that would not be possible in another organization — at leastnot in my opinion.”

One of her favorite perks is the firm's kudos program, Bonus.ly,a public platform for giving peer-to-peer micro bonuses. Anyone cangive a bonus to another member of the team, which is “a great wayto recognize and celebrate the many achievements happening eachday.”

Square Root also supports Girlstart, an Austin nonprofit thatempowers young girls in science, technology, engineering, and math.In addition to financial donations, the firm organizes volunteeropportunities each quarter. “I find a lot of purpose in being partof a company that puts emphasis on giving back,” Branson says.“It's an example of what makes this a great place — how we treateach other, our clients, and the people in our community.”

Jessica Bouthillier, technical program manager at Square Root,says that she never has “the Sunday night blues.”

“I love coming to work,” she says. “Everyone from the top downis smart, fun and supportive. Every quarter, the CEO checks in withme to see how I’m doing, how my family is doing, whether I’m happywith my role, and whether I have any questions or concerns. If I dohave strategic questions for him, he is incrediblytransparent.”

Related: Happy employees make a happycompany

One of her favorite perks is flexibility in her work schedule,something particularly important for her as a new mother. Moreover,Square Root offers a stocked kitchen of nutritious foods thatemployees have the liberty to request. Bouthillier has a dairyallergy and appreciates that the firm provides almond milk for hermorning coffee. The company also encourages employees to stayactive by providing in-office group workouts or allowing them totake a workout class during lunch.

“I am also very grateful for the friends I have made here—ourculture truly fosters friendships,” she says.

Ben Bohonowicz, director of client services at Employee BenefitServices of Maryland Inc. in Baltimore, says that a goodorganizational culture is built on trust.

“When employers expect their workers to actively participate inthe growth of the company, they need to provide an open line ofcommunication and then actually act on constructive feedback,” hesays. “Employees are going to feel burned if they openly discusstheir concerns but the organization doesn't own up on it.”

One rule of thumb when it comes to perks is to first try to findthings that don't cost money, such as allowing employees to haveflexible work schedules, or enabling a dry cleaning service to comeinto the workplace and pick up clothes, he says. But employers canalso choose to pay for benefits and perks outside of theirtraditional benefits package to try and differentiatethemselves.

“Some employers offer unique benefits like a credit towards thepurchase of a house that's closer to the workplace,” Bohonowiczsays. “Other employers offer a wardrobe credit towards workplaceattire such as suits, shoes, and other items to ensure they projectan image of professionalism in front of clients.”

Limeade

Limeade is a corporate wellness technology company based inBellevue, Washington that offers an online platform to boostemployee engagement — and the principles it advocates are practicedwithin, says Lia Marley, business process manager.

Related: What makes a worker happy?

“The most unique thing about working at Limeade is that ourvalues and culture norms overlap,” Marley says. “At most companies,values are aspirational in nature, but at Limeade we actually livethem.”

The company's LimeMates program offers fun challenges andinitiatives to foster “healthy competition,” and company events andmeetings that are meaningful for employees and “a really good spendof our time,” she says. “We have a lot of alignment within theorganization — everyone points in the same direction.”

Marley particularly loves the onsite fitness center, whileremote employees can be reimbursed for working out at fitnesscenters closer to them.

“Because of our culture of improvement, I feel more enabled togo out and find that balance,” she says. “For me, it's working out.I really love fitness, and continuing to improve in that area. Andthat is supported in everything we do and say.”

Limeade's chief people officer, Laura Hamill, says that thefirm's leaders think about benefits somewhat differently than mostcompanies, in that management considers culture as a benefit,emphasized through the firm's Intentional Culture Circle.

The approach has nine components, from just talking aboutculture — having a very clear vision for the kind of cultureleadership wants to foster — to behavioralizing that culture —naming specific behaviors that employees are encouraged todemonstrate and ensuring they really understand what it means todemonstrate that.

In job interviews, Hamill and her team ask candidates questionsto determine if they would fit into the culture. For example, oneof the firm's values is to speak plainly — “having the courage tospeak the truth and to be evidenced-based.”

Sample interview questions include, “Tell me about a time whenyou had to deliver bad news to a customer? How did it go? Whatactions did you take, and how did you follow up?”

“Then we can start to uncover how comfortable they are speakingplainly, especially to power—to levels of leadership,” Hamillsays.

During onboarding, new hires learn that the firm assessesperformance half around what goals they need to achieve, and halfon how they do that.

“Do they act in alignment with our cultural values, and are theysupportive of those values on a day-to-day basis?”

Managers are also encouraged to help employees exhibit behaviorsthat support the culture, and often work with facilitators onrole-playing exercises.

Employee feedback and involvement is strongly encouraged throughall-employee meetings and “solution sessions.” A weekly surveyincludes questions such as, ‘Does your manager support yourwell-being? Do you feel engaged in your work? Do you thinkmanagement and employees collaborate well?”

Related: 5 ways to keep your employees happy andloyal

Limeade also offers peer-to-peer recognition as part of a weeklysurvey called Cheers for Peers, where employees can give kudos torecognize great work.

“I also think it's very important that we offer a flexible workenvironment, in which people can take time off when they need to,or work from home,” Hamill says. “As an employer, if you giveflexibility, you get so much more back. People will be excited tocome to work; their energy will be higher if they feel supported asa human being.”

Limeade's offices are “high energy, with lots of colors and lotsof open space for people to collaborate,” she says. The firm offershappy hours with alcohol, other drinks and snacks, and outsidespeakers on a variety of topics to boost culture and engagement.Employees also design social events to boost camaraderie, such as arecent office Olympics, complete with medals.

The firm is currently considering offering an online benefitsplatform which would provide employees with a set amount of moneyto spend on benefits of their choice, Hamill says.

“We think that choice is really important for employees, andit's vital that the organization provides benefits that works forthem,” she says. “We have employees at many different stages oflife, so lots of different things matter to them. It's hard to finda one-size-fits-all approach, so it makes sense to consider movingtoward a much more consumer-based model.”

Tom Wagoner, president of Accelerated Benefits in Columbus,Ohio, says that employers can increase employee engagement byproviding a benefits platform that has as many offerings aspossible, including options like legal plans, pet insurance,homeowners insurance and auto insurance. Many employers go furtherwith defined contribution plans, giving employees a set amount ofmoney to spend on the employer's marketplace for ancillary benefitslike pharmaceutical and non-medical benefits.

“When employers offer more choices to solve workers’ financialneeds and concerns, they become stickier employees,” Wagoner says.“It's all about how to get good people from other employers and howto prevent other employers from getting your good people.”

More companies are also offering enhanced benefit deliverysystems and benefit administration programs, in which third partieshelp communicate benefits and cost savings strategies throughonline content, videos and PowerPoint presentations, he says. Theyalso help employees enroll in benefits and automate the onboardingof employees into the eligibility rolls.

DayBlink Consulting

DayBlink Consulting, a McLean, Virginia-based boutiquemanagement consultant firm, “only wants to recruit and attract thebest of the best. And that means offering exceptional benefits —plus, it's the right thing to do,” says Kim Horner, human resourcesmanager.

The firm, which was founded in 2013, not only pays 100 percentof health, dental, vision, short-term disability, long-termdisability, and life insurance premiums for its employees, but alsofor all of their dependents. They also provide paid parentalleave.

Moreover, DayBlink reimburses for gym memberships; for cellphone costs, including $200 every two years to upgrade devices;provides all new hires with a new laptop of their choice; andprovides all employees equity in the company through profitinterest unit shares.

Patrick Crowley, a DayBlink consultant, says his favorite of the14 benefits the firm offers to help promote healthy andwell-balanced employees is the 50 percent gym reimbursement.

“DayBlink helps offset some of the costs, but still makes sureeach employee has some skin in the game,” Crowley says.

The firm recently had a three-day, all-expense-paid trainingsession in Las Vegas, which included gambling chips in theemployees’ welcome gift bags, Horner says.

“We have clients and sites all over the U.S. and Canada, so noteverybody in our firm is based out of the McLean headquarters. Thismeans we don't get to see each other that often,” she says. “Thistraining session was about learning and strategy, but just asimportant was spending time together to grow our culture, connectwith teammates and build camaraderie.”

Other perks include Summer Fridays, where the office closes at 3p.m. on Fridays between Memorial Day and Labor Day; catered lunchesat the McLean headquarters; free food, snacks and drinks throughoutthe day; $100 for annual medical checkups; free estate planning,and happy hours. The firm also pays entrance fees for its employeesto participate in team events locally, such as the Spartan Race andPhilalympics.

DayBlink also own a real estate company, and if employees use itto buy a house, they get a quarter of the commission percentageback. If employees rent through the company, they get a $500 giftcard of their choice.

Horner says the firm's culture, including its benefits offeringsand perks, was just too good to pass up.

“I joined the firm at the end of April and the deciding factorwas that I could not walk away from an opportunity to work for anorganization that truly values their employees,” she says. “That'san HR manager's dream come true right there. I couldn't ask foranything more.”