Winners of this year’s GovCon Awards will be unveiled at the yearly awards gala Nov. 1 and until then, WashingtonExec will continue highlight some of the nominees.
Among them are eGlobalTech, up for the Contractor of the Year Award ($75 million to $300 million). eGlobalTech Chief Strategy Officer Branko Primetica talked with WashingtonExec about his company’s achievements and the application of the “FISH! Philosophy” in the workforce.
WashingtonExec: In the last year, what achievement are you most proud of that eGlobalTech has achieved since its creation in 2004?
Branko Primetica: Although there are many achievements to be proud of at eGlobalTech, the one that we are most proud of is our consistent ability to stay on the cutting-edge of technology transformation within the federal government.
For example, we worked with the General Services Administration and the Office of Management and Budget to define and introduce federal cloud computing, developed tools that allow for rapid application migration to cloud platforms, launched a platform-as-a-service solution that is shared by multiple agencies, created a DevOps framework tailored to federal government, offer advanced cyber defense solutions such as threat hunting, and are developing a blockchain concept to secure transactions processed by the government.
This not only speaks to the caliber of projects that we work on as a firm, but also to the amazing talent that we have on staff — without whom none of this would be possible. In addition, this ability has enabled consistent year-over-year growth as well as an above industry average employee retention rate.
WashingtonExec: What inspired the creation of eGlobalTech?
Branko Primetica: Sonya Jain, the president and CEO, started the company so that she could better connect with clients to help them solve their most complex challenges, instead of being a consultant who is bogged down in large business bureaucracy.
I joined Sonya to help her build the company with this goal in mind, coupled with the desire to create a place where employees can innovate and become thought leaders. Thirteen years later, we still operate in this same capacity by acting our client’s trusted advisers, partnering closely with them to understand their business needs, and offering hands-on support to fulfill those needs and achieve measurable results.
WashingtonExec: You’ve said having fun with the job means employees do a better job for clients. How do you maintain a fun work environment/experience?
Branko Primetica: At eGlobalTech, we employ the “FISH! Philosophy” modeled after the Pike Place Fish Market, where the four guiding principles are choosing one’s attitude, playing at work, making someone’s day and being present. “Playing at work” means we:
- Work on meaningful projects that fill our employees desire to have a positive impact.
- Organize corporate outings, sports teams and regular happy hours
- Couple daily work with employee contests, team-building exercises, and celebrations
- Maintain a family feel by holding events such as our annual winter gala and summer picnic, where children and spouses are invited
- Reward employee achievements through spot bonuses, high-five awards and an annual employee awards program — all of which are accompanied by monetary prizes.
- Challenge employees to develop innovative ideas that can be turned into solutions by our R&D arm, eGT Labs.
- Embrace corporate philanthropy by supporting charities nominated by our employees through monetary, clothing, or food donations and through employee-volunteered time.
WashingtonExec: Can you expand more on the importance of community outreach to eGlobalTech?
Branko Primetica: At eGlobalTech, we strongly believe it is imperative to give back to our community and to help those in need. That is why we created, and actively support, a Corporate Philanthropy Program. This program not only allows us to make a difference in people’s lives, but it also enables our employees to come together as a team in support of a common cause.
The comradery and satisfaction that supporting local charities creates is unparalleled. Each year, we ask employees to nominate those charities that they believe we should support. We then choose 12-15 charities based upon their impact, reach and scope — although we always add more charities as year progresses.
Examples of charities that we supported in 2017 include: The Children’s Inn, Make-a-Wish Mid-Atlantic, the Maryland Food Bank, Operation Jumpstart, Operation Covert Santa and the Special Olympics Dulles Plane Pull.