The Desire2Learn Advantage
Physical Workplace
The head office features an employee lounge/cafeteria with free healthy snacks every day, free meat & cheese and veggie platters every Monday and Wednesday, free coffee and tea, self-serve kitchen areas on each floor and subsidized vending machines where the money goes to fund Social Committee Events. The office is located in a convenient downtown area where it's a short walk to cafés, shops and restaurants. You will receive free parking, although the office is easily accessible by the public transit system.
The office space also has areas where employees can enjoy comfy couches, a foosball table, table tennis, and a library of business, software, fiction and non-fiction books.
Work Atmosphere & Communications
Desire2Learn employees enjoy casual dress daily, they can listen to music while working and participate in many organized social events. The company-subsidized Social Committee sponsors a variety of social events for employees every year including an annual canoe trip, golf tournament, potluck lunches in the park, company BBQ's, Waffle Wednesday's, birthday cakes each month, family picnic (with free company merchandise and prizes), bus trips to sporting events, casino trips, discounted theme park tickets, skating parties, Fight the Freeze Fridays (hot cider and treats) in the winter, poker tournaments, and subsidized employee sports teams (soccer, hockey, baseball, indoor & beach volleyball, etc).
The company also has an annual "Winterfest" party at the end of the year including a dinner and dance for the employees and their guests. In addition to this, we have a Kids Holiday Party where families can attend with their children to take part in crafts and games, as well as a visit from Santa!
Employees stay up-to-date about current company developments and can provide direct feedback through quarterly town-halls, postings on the company intranet, blogs, wikis, ePortfolios, free eLearning, and a monthly company newsletter.
Financial Benefits & Compensation
The company participates in outside salary surveys and individual salaries are reviewed every 12 months, or more frequently as needed. We are committed to ensuring our salaries are competitive in today's market. Desire2Learn provides a profit-sharing program in the form of year-end bonuses for all employees (approximately 25% of profit). Help with retirement planning is provided through dollar-for-dollar RRSP matching program (up to 4% of salary). In addition, we offer life & disability insurance, discounts on home computers, the use of a BlackBerry with service and usage fees included for many employees, patent incentive program (inventor's bonus) and sales incentive program.
Desire2Learn pays for every employee's home internet, providing up to $600/year (tax free) to ensure all employees have good home connectivity.
And for the eco-friendly staff that does not drive to work, we will pay you $500/year not to park! That's right; we pay you for not driving to work and helping us reduce our carbon footprint. This amount can be prorated if you only want to walk or ride your bike in the summer.
Desire2Learn pays employees a generous referral bonuses (up to $2000) when they refer a friend who is hired.
Health & Family-Friendly Benefits
Desire2Learn's health benefits plan is managed by Great-West Life. As part of the health plan, the employer pays 100% of the premiums. The waiting period for new employees is 3 months. The plan includes routine dental services, basic and major coverage for a variety of dental items, eye care, traditional medicine coverage, alternative medicine coverage, massage therapy, medical equipment and supplies, homecare, employee assistance (EAP) plan and travel insurance.
Family-friendly benefits include flexible working hours and shortened work weeks (fewer hours with less pay) after returning from parental leave. The ability to work from home is also an option for some employees allowing reduced commuting times.
Desire2Learn has a "Live Well" program which is an umbrella program for our health-related programs. In addition to the other health perks mentioned, it also includes discounted memberships at a number of local gyms, annual flu clinic, on-site massage clinics, health related lunch n' learns, the employee assistance program (EAP), office plans - each employee can request a plan for their desk, bring your mug to work, First Aid and CPR training annually for interested employees, a Joint Health and Safety Committee and the Desire2Learn Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) which assists with making sound environmental decisions in the ongoing growth of computer and office hardware and to promote conservation and green attitudes among employees.
Vacation & Personal Time-off
New employees receive 3 weeks of vacation allowance. Vacation increases after 4 years, and 7 years with the company. Employees can also ask for unpaid leaves of absence. Recently, one employee took an extended leave of absence to travel abroad.
In addition to vacation, employees are provided with 7 paid emergency days per year, which can be used for sickness, personal days, or any other reason employees need to be out of the office (e.g. repair-man coming) with manager approval.
Desire2Learn gives employees 10 paid public holidays including Family Day and the Civic Holiday (holidays may vary outside of Ontario, but the same number of days are available to all employees)
Employee Engagement
Employees receive individual competency and performance reviews every 6 months. Managers receive training in how to conduct effective performance reviews on an annual basis. Performance feedback is also solicited from co-workers and other managers familiar with each employee's work through a 360 review process. As part of the review process employees can provide confidential feedback on their manager's/peer's performance. Desire2Learn recognizes exceptional performance through a performance component for the annual salary review and year-end bonus. Desire2Learn does an annual employee survey which provides a confidential evaluation of employee satisfaction and engagement.
Employees have the opportunity to voice their feedback on their individual evaluations helping to promote honest feedback between employees and their managers.
To recognize exceptional employee performance, Desire2Learn has a number of in-house programs. To recognize long-serving employees, there is the award program called the "Desire2Learn Service Recognition Program", which provides great gifts at 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, and 20 years of service (ranging from a BBQ set to gaming systems, to skydiving or whitewater rafting weekends, to 7 day cruises and all-inclusive vacations). There is also a peer-nominated reward program for employees exhibiting outstanding behavior called "Desire2Learn Superstars." Two employee "Superstars" are selected each quarter, and each receives a $500 cash reward. All nominated superstars are put into a draw at the year-end to win a large prize; in 2008 the prize was a 52" high-definition flat-panel LCD TV. All winners are posted on the company intranet so their peers can see the great work they are doing.
To celebrate the company's birthday each year, all employees are invited to the annual Canoe Rally, where dozens of employees in canoes and kayaks paddle down the Grand River together on a guided adventure.
Training & Skills Development
Employees receive tuition subsidies of up to 100% for courses/training related to their position. The company also assists employees' career development with subsidies for professional accreditations, in-house training programs, peer-to-peer groups, association memberships, and industry conferences.
Desire2Learn offers free eLearning courses on a variety of topics through the Desire2Learn Academy. These courses are created by employees for employees, providing a great opportunity for employees to share knowledge throughout the company.
Community Involvement
Desire2Learn is a major supporter of a variety of local charitable initiatives. There is an employee-run charitable committee called ACTION (Active Care Team In Our Neighbourhood) which takes part in the selection of charitable groups assisted each year. A number of charitable and community organizations are supported each year through company sponsorship, fundraising activities and employee time and commitment. As part of ACTION, a group of employees meet regularly to review new proposals and plan upcoming charitable events. The committee primarily focuses on initiatives that enhance science, math, and technology skills in students, enhance the well-being of families and children in the local area and organizations that are of personal significance to our employees.
