Tech-savvy self-starters thrive at DIS

Philip A. Dwyer | PHILIP A. DWYER THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

• TIPS FOR APPLICANTS
  
  What helps applicants get hired at DIS:

  • People skills are highly regarded;
  • Workers who show they're self-starters and motivated;
  • "Communicate well, one of the highest priorities. And be a good listener."
  • "We're looking for people who are genuinely interested in being good in customer service."

  SOURCE: Connie Foulk, HR manager
  
  Where to find job openings:
  
  The Bellingham Herald and CareerBuilder.com
  
  ABOUT THE EMPLOYER
  
  DIS (Dealer Information Systems) Corporation
  1315 Cornwall Ave.
  Bellingham, WA 98225
  733-7610
  dis-corp.com
  

"It's kind of our culture to empower the staff," says Brim, founder and CEO. "The majority of the workers like the freedom they're afforded. Given the opportunity, they rise to the occasion."

Some of the rank and file earn more than managers, a significant difference from most companies.

"A manager's job here is to be a facilitator," Brim says, "to help the people on the front lines. As managers, we make sure they have everything they need. … Management is an administrative job, not a reward."

Connie Foulk, the human resources manager, says applicants are sometimes "shocked" to learn that they'll be managing themselves to a large degree, but they adapt well.

"We have a lot of people who are self-starters," Foulk says. "They're not micro-managed; they won't sit at their desks and do nothing."

In the last two years, DIS has hired 34 people, most in support (installation and response line). The company has had little recent turnover — 2 percent in 2007 — and 57 percent of the employees have been on board for 10 or more years.

Foulk indicates that most openings draw at least 60 applicants.

"We hire degrees or hire experience," Brim says, noting that there are about a dozen competitors for DIS' talent pool. "A degree is not a requirement."

The company, which started in 1980, also has offices in Denver, St. Louis and Kansas City, and its workers can be found in 14 states and British Columbia.

The breakdown on the largest employee groups: response line, 59 workers (35 in Bellingham); programmers, 44 (37); and installers, 19 (7). Most workers hired for the Bellingham office are local or are graduates of Western Washington University. Brim says DIS uses the Washington Software Association guidelines on salary and adjusts them for the local market. The average salary in the company is $60,000, he says, with support workers earning in the mid-30s to 70s and programmers in the 50s and up.

Employee benefits and perks include:

• 401(k);

• Medical insurance: Company pays for all claims, 100 percent for first $3,000 and 90 percent for next $15,000.

• Recognition of long service: Last May, the company sent about 30 employees and their families on a four-day trip to Orlando to honor them for 20 years of service.

• Company outings such as "Gypsy" at the Mount Baker Theatre.

• Staff Link (internal Internet) helps keep employees informed and connected.

DIS values people who are self-starters and capable, independent workers, who understand that freedom and responsibility go hand in hand.

In the end, Brim says, the whole work force knows the mission: "to make the company strong."