IT Authorities
(No. 1 Small)

Jason Caras, CEO of IT Authorities in Tampa, isn’t interested in recruiting the most technically savvy people in the job market. Instead, he looks for other traits in new recruits — “outgoingness, drive, ambition, positiveness, being goal-oriented.” Once on board, employees are initiated into the IT Authorities University, where topics range from professional speaking and body language to discipline, health and financial planning. Workers are also encouraged to check out books from the company’s library. Caras says every new hire must read “Nuts! Southwest Airlines’ Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success” by Kevin Freiberg and Jackie Freiberg. Other required reading includes “The Google Story” by David Vise and Mark Malseed, and many of the works of business philosopher Jim Rohn and motivational speaker Tony Robbins. “We read books about companies we want to model ourselves after,” says Caras.

AppRiver
(No. 4 Midsized)

At AppRiver, a software services provider in Gulf Breeze, employees, known as “Appers” head to “AppRiver University” as soon as they’re hired to learn the company’s culture. The highlight of the weeklong training: A scavenger hunt that has the newcomers combing AppRiver’s offices to ask employees questions, find out where things are and learn company lore. The university also offers ongoing training courses to all employees targeted at both technical and professional skills. In addition to the new-hire orientation, course offerings include several technical certificates ranging from Microsoft to Blackberry training.

AgencyNet
(No. 18 Small)

Digital advertising and marketing agency AgencyNet in Fort Lauderdale provides employees with a career enrichment fund to use as desired on software, books, conference registration, educational courses, tuition and travel expenses. The company also relies on internal training sessions and conferences to work on technological skills, team-building and project management.

Brightway Insurance
(No. 7 Small)

In April, Jacksonville-based Brightway Insurance opened “Brightway University,” a separate training facility for new employees. Each new hire in Brightway offices from Miami to Tallahassee comes to Jacksonville for one to four weeks to attend Brightway U. Courses range from technology to an introduction to the company’s “culture of excellence.” Some of the company’s 100 or so carriers train new hires on the products they’ll be selling. “Our goal is to be the best-quality alternative in the marketplace, and that means the best-trained people,” says Brightway CEO David Miller.

LexJet
(No. 41 Midsized)

At LexJet in Sarasota, new sales team hires aren’t allowed to talk to customers until they’ve completed two months of 8-to-5 training. “It’s everything from learning about the product to general business practices,” says LexJet marketing director Camillia Mankovich. The company also offers regular training sessions and refreshers on an as-needed basis.

Shared Technologies
(No. 2 Midsized)

Shared Technologies, a data systems installer with offices in Clearwater, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale, will spend about $1 million this year on training. The company’s sales force, engineers and managers attend sales and management training at the company’s corporate office in Texas or webinars pertinent to the products they are selling/supporting. Other employees receive additional training through a combination of online training, self-study and vendor/partner technical training at various locations. While the company has had to cut back some on instructor-led classes during these tough economic times, it has partnerships with various manufacturers and vendors to allow employees to take online courses. Shared Technologies also provides up to $5,000 per year in tuition reimbursement for training/education that the company says will benefit its general business.

Finfrock Design-Manufacture-Construct
(No. 36 Midsized)

Finfrock, a design-build company based in Apopka, employs a training manager and a full-time videographer to create safety, training and instructional videos. [Photo: Finfrock Design Manufacture-Construct]

Finfrock Design-Manufacture-Construct, an Apopka-based firm that designs, manufactures and constructs parking structures, has a training manager and full-time videographer on staff who helps the company create its own videos, PowerPoints and video/PowerPoint combinations on 20 topics, including finishing concrete, product handling and fall protection. The company also offers its 185 employees optional “lunch and learn” programs with videos and outside speakers on a variety of topics. Finfrock pays 100% of the cost of outside seminars and provides tuition reimbursement for longer classes that are approved and relevant to the company.

.decimal
(No. 11 Midsized)

Sanford-based .decimal (pronounced dot decimal), which provides radiation therapy products to hospitals and cancer centers, has a full-time training manager who coordinates the company’s in-house learning initiative, called “l.d.” Each employee has a spreadsheet showing training required, completed and annual requirements. The company also provides CPR training periodically and offers outside tuition reimbursement on a case-by-case basis.

ABB Concise
(No. 21 Midsized)

ABB Concise, a Coral Springs-based distributor of contact lenses and other optical products, spends about $100,000 annually on training and is developing an “Academy of Excellence” to track and create training programs to meet the company’s “ever-changing needs.” The academy will offer both online training through the web as well as instructor-led courses for employees. Each employee at the firm receives specific training in his or her department as well as on-the-job training supplemented by outside education/seminars. ABB executive coordinator Nan Callan says the company has not cut back on training, but has actually increased it. “With fewer people, we believe training is even more important to continue.”

Fairwinds Credit Union
(No. 5 Large)

Fairwinds Credit Union in Orlando does 99% of its training in-house, with classroom, video and online courses. Entry-level employees in member services participate in a four-to-six-month self-study promotion program, with a final test that promotes them to a second-level services representative. Once at that level they get a 4% raise. The credit union also provides tuition reimbursement for undergraduate or graduate-level classes that are career-related, paying up to $4,000 for undergrad and $5,500 for graduate school. Employees unable to pay tuition upfront can also get no-interest loans from Fairwinds and then use the tuition reimbursement to pay back the loan.

Insurance Office of America
(No. 37 Midsized)

Insurance Office of America in Altamonte Springs spends about $96,000 annually on group classes and outside training for its employees, each of whom receives on average between 25 and 61 hours of training per year. The company has a team of employees who work with new hires and assist current employees who need a refresher on procedures. The company also offers training through an employee assistance program that covers subjects such as stress reduction and financial planning. Marnie Blaser, corporate recruiting manager, says that cutting their training budget is not an option. “Continued education is required for our employees to maintain current licenses. We work to train our employees as efficiently and productively as possible, but this is not something that can be eliminated; it is a priority.”