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36
BizVoice
/Indiana Chamber –
May/June 2012
SMALL/MEDIUM COMPANIES
Graphic designer Abby Alexander
(top) hopes for a strike at a
duckpin bowling event. Lavon
Temple (right, pictured with
marketing director Megan
Glover) is one of the latest
employees to earn a spot on
Delivra’s “wall of fame.”
W
alk through the halls of e-mail marketing software and services company Delivra,
and you just may run into the company’s esteemed founder, Fred Delivra. His legend
looms large at the Indianapolis-based firm, where he’s become a cultural fixture.
Did we mention he doesn’t actually exist?
“There’s an entire fake history of our company that’s taken on a whole life of its own,”
director of operations Chris Nelson explains with a smile.
It all started with an April Fools’ Day company blog post describing Delivra’s (fictional)
founding in 1903. The organization’s story, which now includes a supporting cast of characters,
continues to unfold with staff blog contributions.
The “prank” spawned the Caught Fred-Handed program, which recognizes employees who
have gone above and beyond in living up to the company’s value statements.
“We talk about wall, desk, hand,” Nelson says in describing how managers acknowledge
staff achievements. “We want to put something on the (Fred Delivra) wall so everybody can see,
‘This is what it takes to be successful at Delivra.’ We’ll hand you $250 in cash. We have a small
desk trophy that you earn.”
Director of marketing Megan Glover interjects with a laugh: “It’s not a trophy. It’s a bobblehead!”
Chris Broshears, director of product development, deadpans, “It’s a Fred
Delivra bobblehead. But it is coveted – as coveted as any trophy.”
Allyson Inglis, executive assistant to the management team, recently won a
Caught Fred-Handed award.
“It gives you a sense of pride and it gives you a sense of, ‘We are all working
together as a team to provide the best work atmosphere, but on top of that, the
best service to our customers,’ ” she shares.
Delivra’s “other” founder (besides Fred) is Neil Berman, who
started the company in 1999.
“At that time, that was the dot.com boom,” he recalls.
“The Internet thing looked kind of intriguing to me.”
As e-mail evolved, so did the company’s offerings.
“E-mail is a commodity, and what we really try to do
is sell everything around that commodity,” states director
of sales Doug Wilcox. “When we get a prospect or a
customer on the phone, that’s what we’re talking to them
about: ‘How can we help them e-market or market better
through e-mail (and) utilize those e-mails in a better, more
effective way?’ ”
Delivra serves companies in multiple industries
across the globe.
“Our market is the universe,” Wilcox declares.
Cultivating creativity, camaraderie
Team building is a huge part of Delivra’s culture.
“If you go through our value statements, what you’ll see
is that they’re all focused on people,” Nelson emphasizes. “It’s
where we put the most significant amount of our energy
and effort – whether it’s prospects, whether it’s customers,
whether it’s employees.”
Broshears adds, “That’s what differentiates us.
There are hundreds of e-mail service providers out
there, so what distinguishes us is the investment we
make in our people.”
Catered Friday lunches and regularly providing
By Symone C. Skrzycki
Delivra
‘Daring to be Different’