DRT Strategies, Inc.
Company: DRT Strategies, Inc., Arlington, VA
Company Description: Founded and incorporated on December 19, 2003 by Susan Kidd, President, DRT Strategies, Inc. is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia and received its 8(a) designation in December 2006. We are a woman-owned, minority-owned, small disadvantaged business specializing in IT consulting, project management, enterprise system requirements and design, and business strategy development/transformation.
Nomination Category: Company/Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Employer of the Year
Nomination Title: DRT Strategies, Inc. - Driving Resolution Together
Describe for the judges the activities and accomplishments of the nominated company during the eligibility period (up to 500 words):
At DRT Strategies, ‘Driving Resolution Together’ is our highest priority, both
in our work with our clients and in our employee culture which is based on teamwork,
information sharing and collaboration. As a small business, we are mindful of
what's important to our employees and have put the majority of our resources
toward providing a meaningful and comprehensive benefits package. Our key
priority is to provide a positive, rewarding, and flexible work environment that
encourages our employees to lead well-balanced lives with benefits such as:
- Semi-annual incentive reviews and performance bonuses
- 401K matching funds, vested immediately
- Health, dental, life, disability coverage (100% of employee coverage is paid by
DRT)
- 20 days personal leave/ 10 holidays annually
- Dedicated Career Development and Training budgets for each employee
- Encouraging ‘Green’ initiatives with Public Transportation reimbursements for
daily commuting and telecommuting options
- Social events, teambuilding and holiday parties
DRT employees know they are more than just a number; they are our most
important asset. We value and appreciate each person as an individual and
promote an open-door policy where their opinions matter. In the spirit of this,
DRT management actively supports open communication with monthly All-Hands
Conference Calls, Quarterly Meetings/Dinners, and Semi-Annual Teambuilding
events.
DRT’s motto is, ‘Think Hard, Work Smart,’ valuing honesty, leadership,
collaboration and innovation while we continually challenge our employees to be
resourceful and always follow through on commitments. This filters into our
corporate mission focused on employee professional growth, satisfaction, and
work-life balance. ‘DRT University’ is a program that was implemented with the
understanding that our true product is the intellectual capital of our employees.
By investing in their careers, providing them with work they enjoy, and showing
appreciation for their contributions, then they would be happier, more fulfilled,
motivated, and contribute their best to the clients and projects.
At DRT, we feel it’s important for us to continually recognize and reward
employees who exhibit our values and high standards. DRT’s semi-annual
incentive plan allows us to reward employees throughout the year rather than just
year-end. This plan aligns individual performance with organizational performance,
promotes teamwork through a balanced scorecard, and provides employees an
opportunity to share in the risk and reward of organizational success. In
addition, DRT’s ‘Acts of Excellence’ program provides an opportunity for fellow team
members and clients to nominate an individual to recognize actions, attitudes and
results that exemplify exceptional accomplishments in four key areas- teamwork,
performance, mission support, and growth.
DRT’s culture thrives on a pay-it-forward philosophy; this includes our
relationship with our community and causes that are special and important to the DRT staff.
DRT designated the ‘Youth Leadership Foundation’ (YLF) in Washington, DC as
our primary philanthropic organization as its mission closely aligns with DRT’s
values and is part of our effort to ‘give where we live’ to support children -
our future leaders. In addition, DRT sponsors philanthropic causes important to DRT staff
members including Greater DC Cares, Washington Women’s Foundation,
UNICEF, Toys for Tots, Alzheimer’s Association National Capital Area Chapter,
and the Washington Humane Society. We also encourage employees to support
their fellow DRT team members in these causes through participation in charity
activities and volunteer programs.
DRT employees make up the core and are the heart of the company and we
believe that Happy Employees = Ecstatic Clients. They are not just words on our
website and company collateral, they are truly embedded in our culture and lives.
List the URLs (web addresses) of any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that you would like the judges to see that support your entry. IMPORTANT: List each URL on a separate line, begin each URL with http://, and enclose each URL in square brackets. For example, [http://www.yourcompany.com/pressrelease.html]:
DRT Strategies Website
http://www.drtstrategies.com
2010 ‘Inc. 500|5000 List of the Fastest-Growing, Private Companies in America’
Ranked #821 overall with a 3-year growth rate of 367%, #105 in the Government
Services Industry, and #76 for the Top Companies in Washington, DC
http://www.inc.com/inc5000/profile/drt-strategies
2010 ‘8th Annual Greater Washington Government Contractor Awards’, DRT
Strategies President, Susan Kidd honored as a semi-finalist for ‘Executive of the
Year’ for 2010 (finalist and winner announcements pending and will not be
announced before this submission)
http://www.fairfaxchamber.org/index.php?src=gendocs&ref=GovCon%20Awards%
20Main%20Page&category=council_govcon
‘Washington Technology's FAST 50: Top 50 Fastest Growing Government IT
Companies in 2009’ (Ranked #21 with 112.1% compound annual growth rate from
2004-2008) (2010 List pending and will not be announced before this submission)
http://washingtontechnology.com/fast50lists/fast-50-lists/2009
http://washingtontechnology.com/fast50lists/fast-50-lists/2009/21-drt.aspx
Stevie Awards for Women in Business (links of winners and finalists in 2007,
2008, and 2009)
/women/2007-honorees-part-2
/women/2008-honorees
/women/2009-honorees
Youth Leadership Foundation YLF (About the organization link and the Spirit of
Service Award Dinner page- DRT Strategies served as a mentor and sponsor and
designated YLF as our corporate charity)
http://www.ylf.helpingkids.org/site.php?s=about&c=about
http://www.ylf.helpingkids.org/site.php?s=news_and_events&c=event_2009_sos
Dun & Bradstreet Certified Top Performer
https://prod.openratings.com/certified/index.pl?page=pr&orderid=1270945
https://prod.openratings.com/certified/index.pl?page=pr&orderid=1184951
2008 Top 100 MBE Award
http://top100mbe.com/Announcement.htm
http://www.top100mbe.com/pdf/2008winners.pdf
Fifty Influential Entrepreneurs in Business National Awards Gala 2007 presented
by the Minority Enterprise Executive Council (link to criteria to choose award
winners)
http://www.meecouncil.com/html/9th_annual_criteria.HTM
Top 500 Asian American Owned Businesses in the U.S. by DiversityBusiness.com
http://www.diversitybusiness.com/Resources/DivLists/2008
Washington Women’s Foundation Donors
http://thewomensfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/wawf-2004-annual-report.pdf
Greater DC Cares annual ‘Servathon’ Event (one of DRT’s annual philanthropic
events)
http://servathon2009.kintera.org/faf/help/helpEventInfo.asp?ievent=301774&lis=1&kntae30
1774=E36A6D7431444098A2CDB21709A4CD6C
Washington Humane Society Fashion for Paws (one of DRT’s philanthropic events)
https://secure.e2rm.com/registrant/LoginRegister.aspx?EventID=24950&LangPref=en-CA
Provide a brief biography of the person or persons who lead the nominated organization (up to 100 words):
Susan M. Kidd is the founder and President of DRT Strategies, Inc. – a certified 8
(a) management consulting firm headquartered in Arlington, VA, specializing in IT
consulting, project management, enterprise system requirements/design, and
business strategy development/transformation.
Ms. Kidd possesses 19 years of professional consulting experience which spans
over a diverse set of industries including Federal and State government agencies,
as well as commercial clients within the Transportation, Health Care,
Manufacturing, and Financial industries. She holds a Master’s degree in Business
with a Management concentration from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor
of Science degree in Computer Science with a minor in Mathematics from the
University of Maryland.
DRT Strategies, Inc. - 8(a) Certified, Certified Woman’s Business Enterprise
(WBE), Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB), Minority Business Enterprise
(MBE), Local Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (LDBE)
Choose one (even if both apply):
The CEO (or other principal manager) of this company is a woman, and at least 40% of the management team is comprised of women.