A lot of consulting firms pay lip service to work/life balance, but Jabian, a 65-person, Atlanta-based IT firm, backs it up. "At Jabian, we don't just talk about work/life balance; it's one of the cornerstones on which our firm is built," says Nigel Zelcer, co-founder of Jabian Consulting. "We place a high priority on achieving a more complete, healthy, and satisfying work life that supports each of our consultants personally."
But it doesn't just stop there. Zelcer believes work/life balance extends out of office get-togethers, such as the firm's outing to Atlanta Braves games, Steeple Chase day or volunteering in the community through Jabian Cares. It's that type of commitment to work/life balance that landed the firm on the Best Small Firms to Work For list for the third year in a row, and tops among all small firms in the survey's Work/Life Balance category.
Then there is the outstanding career development scores the firm notched on the survey aided, in part by every consultant having both an internal career developer and an external mentor in the Atlanta professional community to provide guidance.
Of course, there's more that makes locally-based Jabian a special place to work. Zelcer calls it "The Jabian Way," the firm's seven principles—business before technology; people before everything; brilliance matters; failure is not an option; love what you do; give back locally; and, develop loyal advocates.
One of the more unusual Jabian offerings are bi-monthly "Innovations Lunches" held at client sites. At no charge, Jabian consultants discuss new and innovative ideas to help the client achieve a business goal. "We step out of the typical consultant role," he says. "Not only is this fun, but it challenges us to step up to the role of innovative thought-leaders."
—J.K.
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