Cablefax The Magazine - September 2010 - 40

2010 Top 10
Places to Work
in Cable
By Michael Grebb with Seth Arenstein
Lately, it seems like the best place to work is anywhere
hiring. Gallows humor, perhaps. But know one
thing: cable continues to fi ght for the best employees. Now
that the economy has stabilized (sort of), cable remains one of
the best places to park it in an offi ce chair, behind the wheel of a
service vehicle or at the edge of a utility Versalift.
Sure, belts are tight. And companies across the board have implemented cost cutting and other
measures that make us yearn for 2007. Despite the shared sacrifi ces of workers everywhere, we
found plenty of cable companies still offering impressive and innovative employee benefi ts.
As in previous years, we asked employees to complete our online nomination form if they felt their
employer was deserving and to tell us why. The CableFAX staff compiled the list, with criteria including
benefi ts, growth potential, diversity initiatives, advancement opportunities for women and community
involvement, among other things. The companies profi led below are listed in alphabetical order.
Canoe Ventures
Did you hear that no one's hiring now?
Don't tell that to Canoe Ventures, which
continues to increase its headcount and
just moved to bigger offi ces in Manhattan's Rockefeller
Center area to accommodate its growing ranks.
Add to this picture the scrappy feel of this
industry-funded upstart and it's clear why Canoe
again makes our list. It's the kind of place where the
lowest-level employee can feasibly bring an idea
to dynamic CEO David Verklin-and actually see it
incorporated into the business plan without going
through endless layers of middle management. It's a
place where smart people go to apply new concepts
in interactive advertising, using technologies and
techniques never before applied across the country's
diverse patchwork of cable systems.
And here's the best part: Employees get all the excitement
of a startup but with the stability of a company
backed by cable's biggest MSOs. It's literally the best
of both worlds. But as a savvy advertiser might say,
" Wait... there's more! " Canoe also offers benefi ts that
go beyond the usual. How about a 50% match on
401K contributions and tuition reimbursement? How
about discounts at participating retailers via the Rockefeller
Privilege program? And get this: Yoga at Work!
This ain't Don Draper's advertising business.
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Charter Communications
It's one thing when we get a
couple of nominations from
the HR or PR departments.
But when nearly 250 employees,
ranging from SVPs to
CSRs, take the time to give us
details on why their company
is among cable's best,
we listen closely. That's the
situation with Charter. Despite its rocky road over the last few years
with bankruptcy, fi nancial re-orgs and even the loss of respected
CEO Neil Smit to Comcast, employees continue to proudly sing
its praises. Said one headend tech: " I came to Charter 5 years ago
looking for a job and I found a career. " An employee who needed to
move because of a family emergency notes that " Charter practically
bent over backward trying to fi nd me the closest position I was
qualifi ed for to keep me not only closer to my family but [to] stay with
the company. " Those kind of anecdotes are typical of Charter.
We could list other benefi ts: Worker training programs, support for
charity work, retirement benefi ts, tuition reimbursement, adoption
expense reimbursement, an employee discount program (mycharterconnection.com),
survivor benefi ts, etc. But most workers who got in
touch with us focused on the supportive atmosphere and opportunities
for advancement. " Charter has been a blessing for my family, "
said an enthused employee. For a company that's been through the
ringer in recent years, that's gotta be music to management's ears.
September 2010
CableFAX: The Magazine

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