Although health care is serious business, Accolade — a health care concierge for employers, health systems and health plans — doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s not uncommon for product releases and birthdays to be celebrated with mariachi bands or magicians. And once, says Elizabeth Napolitano, Accolade’s EVP of human resources, the company’s engineers hacked into the white noise, replacing it with a livelier playlist. “It’s our fun way of working together that separates us from other companies,” she says.
Accolade’s benefits include nine weeks of full-paid maternity leave, and, for biological and adoptive parents, nine weeks of fully paid bonding time, available throughout the child’s first year. The company also allows biological mothers and adoptive parents to transition back to work part time for four weeks, and, through a partnership with Milk Stork, ships breast milk home when nursing moms are on business trips. To encourage conversation and collaboration, Accolade shuns offices. “Everyone from the CEO to summer interns has the same shape and size desk,” Napolitano notes. “… What strikes people is our most senior leaders are sitting among our team. You’re never too far away from a leader, and they’re never too far away from you.”
