SendGrid’s employee kitchen is huge. You can fit in everyone who works in the Irvine office and still have space for guests.
It’s the first stop of the morning for employees, who congregate there for a cup of coffee or a quick bite and to greet colleagues.
It’s a friendly, informal setting where everyone feels comfortable. Perhaps that’s why it’s become the de-facto meeting room for anyone and everyone who has something to talk about, says Senior Engineering Manager Dana Sherrell.
“On any given morning, you’ll see groups of people clustered around, talking about what’s ahead for the day.”
The impromptu meetings have to some extent curtailed the need for formally structured gatherings in the conference room.
“We don’t need to have those as often, since we’ve talked about our projects in the morning.”
Diversity, Opportunity
Sharrell is an enthusiastic fan of the company. To her, it’s no surprise SendGrid’s Irvine office was nominated for the Business Journal’s annual Best Places to Work special report, coming in second in the large employer category.
“I’ve been in the technology industry for 20 years,” she says, “SendGrid is very unique. There’s no place like it. Everyone has input. Everyone is important.”
Denver-based SendGrid is a customer communication platform that enables marketing emails. It was founded less than a decade ago, incubated at TechStars, a Boulder, Colo.-based accelerator program that provides startup funding and a mentor network for up-and-coming tech companies. Sharrell was its 54th employee, and there are now more than 400 on the team, 57 of them in Irvine.
The company is growing quickly. Its 69,000 customers include Uber, Spotify and Yelp.
SendGrid went public in November at $16 and now trades at over $26 for a market cap of more than $1.1 billion.
Founded by engineers Isaac Saldana, Jose Lopez and Tim Jenkins, SendGrid’s philosophy is rooted in diversity and inclusion.
Executives, explains Chief People Operations Manager Pattie Money, believe that diverse workplaces are more innovative and grow faster than those that aren’t.
“Diversity means so many things,” she says. “It’s not just gender or ethnicity. SendGrid provides a workplace where people of all kinds of backgrounds thrive.”
The company has also established what the team calls a “4-H culture”—happy, honest, hungry and humble. The concept grew organically out of a desire to create guiding values that stand the test of time. “4-H is foundational to everything we do,” Money says.
SendGrid management is passionate about supporting employees’ professional goals. Leadership programs, classes, online learning, conferences and more are available to employees who are ready to take the next steps in their careers or want to enhance their skills.
Sherrell, who joined the company as a software developer and moved up to management, considers herself a lucky beneficiary of the approach. “The company leaders are proactive. They provide great opportunities for us to grow and develop in our careers. Folks see that they believe in us, and it matters.”
Passionate Culture
Senior Director of Engineering Mohammed Attar, who heads the Irvine office, came on board in August. He spent 16 years at IBM until a recruiter reached out to him on behalf of SendGrid. He was looking for a change, he says, one that would support a good work-life balance. What he didn’t expect when he arrived was a collaborative spirit among employees that he says he felt the moment he walked in the door.
“All around me, people were gathered in groups, talking, collaborating and solving problems. There was this amazing positive energy. You could feel it. I wanted to be part of it.”
Like at many tech companies, the SendGrid team puts in long hours. The company matches the commitment with benefits that include stock options, up to three weeks’ vacation, opportunities for telecommuting, and an array of wellness programs. Beyond those perks, the team often gets together for events outside of the office, such as holiday parties and volunteer days. Anyone is welcome to add an event to the company calendar.
At various times, one might find an open invitation to catch a movie after work, hit the PlayStation during lunch break, or take a day off—paid by the company—to volunteer.
Attar is nearing his one-year anniversary with the company. “Everything about this company exceeded my expectations,” he says. “It’s magic. I just wish I had started my career here sooner.”
