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Twentysomething Earthlink founder Sky Dayton claims to be a "Generation X techie who absolutely defies that stereotype." Whatever that means. What is clear is that when Dayton says, "It's your Internet," he means it. Unlike other Internet service providers, Earthlink's only focus is on serving the customer. It doesn't create content or develop software, nor does it own or maintain its network. Founded in 1994, it is now the second-largest ISP, behind America Online. In addition to its e-mail and home page options, the company offers online shopping, multiplayer games, and a bi-monthly Internet magazine called bLink. The keys to Earthlink's great success lie in its affordability, ease-of-use, and exceptional customer service. It was the first company to offer unlimited access for a monthly fee, and the company's "Total Access" software package walks the customer through a painless 10-minute connection process. More than half of Earthlink's employees are tech support and customer service representatives, so its support lines are always manned with human beings and the average wait is less than five minutes. Another customer favorite: an 88 percent call success rate. And Earthlink has also been recognized for instituting some of the toughest anti-spam strategies out there - cutting off and fining customers who violate their user contract by sending out mass junk e-mail messages. It also makes the Internet more user-friendly with a broad collection of web tutorials and advice. EarthLink has a wise (and increasingly common) marketing strategy - piggyback on someone with more experience and money. Its most recent partnership is with Sprint. The long-distance and wireless service provider handed over its lackluster dial-up business to Earthlink in June 1998 as part of an $180 million deal. In addition to Sprint's 130,000 customers, the ISP benefits from Sprint's marketing muscle and brand name. It has made other marketing partnerships, including membership deals with Discover Card and discount wholesaler Sam's Club, as well as promotions for films like The Net and Contact. One of Earthlink's most successful independent ad campaigns was its "Get out of AOL Free" promotion, which waived the start-up fee for customers who switched over to its service. It ran a similar campaign on the West Coast to lure overcharged netizens from the clutches of Pacific Bell. Most recently, EarthLink addressed consumer privacy concerns (and underline AOL's recent issues) by offering dissatisfied AOL customers the opportunity to "Opt Out" by offering them a free month of service, and then donating $50 to EPIC (the Electronic Privacy Information Center) if they decide to sign up. The company also promises not to sell member information to third parties. Consolidation The company went public in 1997, and filed a secondary offering in May 1998. Earthlink continued to secure its position in the market through acquisitions. In September 1999, Earthlink merged with fellow ISP Mindspring. The resulting company, which retained the Earthlink name, has 3.5 million subscribers, second only to AOL's whopping 22 million. The move is an effort to consolidate power in the face of fierce competition from both above and below - especially ISPs such as NetZero, which attract subscribers by providing free access to the Internet, and generate revenue via targeted advertising. As an added benefit to the MindSpring merger, Sprint has decided up its investment in the company, buying 26 million shares to the tune of $431 million in June, 2000. In the same month, Earthlink scooped up ISP OneMain.com for $308 million, expanding its coverage from major cities into smaller towns and rural communities. OneMain reaches about 1,2000 small towns in rural areas across the United States, and its subscriber base has about 730,000 narrowband accounts, 27,000 Web hosting customers and 5,000 broadband customers. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter 2000. The merger with Mindspring led to the departure of several executives who see the company becoming a more traditional corporation, abandoning its freewheeling roots. The transformation is good news to subscribers, however, as the company is now in a position to offer more services, including adding e-commerce, and market itself more efficiently.
Call Earthlink's job line at (626) 296-JOBS or check out the "Career Opportunities" section of its web page for a list of open positions. You can send cover letters and resumes via e-mail, fax, or post them (include salary requirements) to Michael Ihde at the address above.
"We're a very fast-growing company in a very quickly changing industry," explains one employee, "so there's not much room for people who want to coast along." "As Microtimes put it, "Earthlink is on the bleeding edge of technology." The work environment is "very fast paced" and "demanding," but at the same time, "very energetic and positive." The employee population is "very progressive" and "very diverse." In fact, some often joke that "we have one of every kind of person on the planet." "All in all it's just a very friendly, intelligent, enthusiastic group of people who are committed to doing a great job every day." "People that produce the results have good prospects for promotion," and insiders note that "management strongly encourages all employees to further their education and their careers." "There is the expectation that everyone will want to go on to bigger and better positions," said one source. The company even sends out e-mails to the staff announcing job openings. "Everyone I know that has left EL has gone on to bigger and better things," said one former employee, "but what's unusual is the fact that so have the people that have stayed there." Typical work hours are 9 to 6, "but if you want to be on the fast track, then expect to do overtime when needed." "There are the occasional late nights," one source said, "but nothing different from any growing company." As far as dress codes, "Earthlink feels everyone works best when they are most comfortable, so nearly anything goes." "The only time anybody wears a suit is when they absolutely have to for a special meeting or such." Employees enjoy an extensive list of perks: there are "between 25 to 30 company-sponsored events each year, "including discounted plays, sporting events, and a company picnic at Disneyland." There is also on-site computer training, yoga classes, and massage therapy every other week. The benefits program was recently upgraded, and now includes "better health coverage," paid holidays, vacation and sick time, a stock option plan, plus life and disability insurance. Pay is "competitive for the marketplace," and every employee receives "a year-end bonus based on company performance for that year."
Michael Ihde Director of HR/LAT 3100 New York Drive1 Pasadena CA 91107 (626) 296-JOBS
America Online;AT&T;Cox Communications;IBM;MCI;Microsoft;MindSpring;NETCOM; Prodigy;WorldCom More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
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