More Than a Transaction

Personal touch and service separate LABUR from the rest of the pack

If you were to talk with IT consultants who have worked with Boston-based LABUR, they will all tell you something similar: The company is understanding, friendly and operates with a personal touch. LABUR’s acclaim overall is that it is a company that genuinely cares about ensuring that its consultants are the right fit for the company and vice versa.

The company was founded in 2008 by Darrin Lang and Seth Burr — their last names combining to form the name of the firm, LABUR.

Mark Tango, a senior IT consultant, is coming up on a year working with LABUR and says the company is unlike any other that he’s worked with.

“What’s great about LABUR is that there is additional onboarding before you’re even brought into the company,” Tango says. “They have a really great process of vetting the candidates [which] consists of lots of resource checking, lots of background checking. They contacted my previous employers and wanted to know if I had the chops to do the work.”

He goes on to compare LABUR with other consulting firms that he’s worked with, saying that what separates LABUR from the rest of the pack is that the company wanted to make sure the fit was there. Recounting his recent experience in joining LABUR, Tango says he was contacted via LinkedIn and was told by the company that his “skill set aligns with an opportunity that we may have and you look like you may fit in here.”

“They did a good job of understanding who I was before they contacted me and analyzed my profile, and they even noted my location in New Hampshire,” Tango says. He was then invited to the company’s Boston office to meet staff. He says he felt at home during the meeting.

At the same time, he was contacted by various other firms but felt that all they wanted to do was place the candidate in order to receive their commission.

“Many of these other companies don’t really get to the crux of the matter, which is, ‘Are you going to fit well with the company?’” Tango says.

During the onboarding process, one account manager stayed with Tango every step of the way.

“At LABUR, you have an account manager who makes sure that you are the right fit. … [They are] not going to place you into an environment where you are going to fail just so they can get the commission.”

Tango adds, “I never felt handed off, which really makes you more apt to sign on. The other folks are burn and churn; they just want to throw you in and get the commission. They don’t care whether you get health insurance or if you get the small short-term benefits, and that’s all important to us.”

Aiming for Understanding

Mario Calisto is an IT consultant with 20 years’ experience in the field who has worked with LABUR for a year and a half. He says the company invested a great deal of time to understand him and what he can bring to the table. “They’re able to understand exactly what it is that I offer,” he says. “A lot of other firms would struggle with that but [LABUR is] able to actually go in and have the right relationships.”

On what makes LABUR different, Calisto says it’s the personal touch. “I talk to my recruiter every week since I’ve been on my project — and we have a pretty long working engagement at this point,” Calisto says. “It’s a small group, but they’re very effective and they genuinely care. They remember my family’s names and they genuinely care about the quality of their offering with the customer and the consultants and that goes a long way to building a relationship,” Calisto says.

LABUR’s interest in building relationships with external staff works so well because of the relationship they have built with their internal staff. Ryan Soucy, a business analyst at LABUR, says the company’s approach to recruiting is not simply transactional like many other firms. Instead, LABUR actively chases after the relationship.

Every Step of the Way

Lang, who serves as CEO, says the company takes a personal interest in those they work with.

“Our deep interest in building relationships internally as well as externally is a big reason that we have the tenure that we have,” Lang says.

He attributes the success of the company to its people and adds that it’s the reason why LABUR is such a great place to temp for.

“It really is the people who we work with internally and externally,” Lang says. “The people internally who do the good work of helping consultants find great project work and the clients we work with who hire our consultants. Surrounding ourselves with great people is really why we are where we are,” Lang says.

“Everything we do exudes relationship,” Lang says. “It’s about the people. We don’t just say the word, we exemplify it.”

When describing a common theme that embodies LABUR, the company’s staff mentioned the word integrity.

Ryan Sylvia, managing director at LABUR, says this integrity extends to all aspects of the company, including completing reference checks for clients and not taking any shortcuts in any of its other processes.

“When you do things with integrity, you can always keep your head up high regardless of how the results settle in,” Sylvia says.

Onward and Upward

“In the future, the company will continue to not only maintain its integrity as well as its boutique feel that clients have when they deal with us, but also expand upon that and to explore other regions. But most importantly just initially dominating the Boston market and having a foothold in IT consulting,” Sylvia says.

As Tango nears his one-year mark with the company, he views LABUR’s future as bright.

“Given the amount of technology companies that are moving into the Boston area, LABUR is going to be looked at as a standout and trusted partner that brings good as well as long-lasting candidates. I think they’re only going to bring more quality candidates to the table,” Tango says. “With LABUR, you don’t feel like just a temp,” Tango says.

“What I also like about LABUR is some of the consultants can go full-time. If they are offered a permanent position after the contract has been fulfilled, LABUR won’t stand in your way. They will say: ‘That’s awesome and there’s no bigger compliment than being hired by the company we placed you at. Good luck!’”