Corporate culture: Vance publishing

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, Jan, 2002 by Sarah Gonser

PORTFOLIO: 29 magazines covering industries as disparate as livestock (Pork). crops (Cotton Farming) and salons (Modern Salon).

LOCATION: The corporate office is in Lincoinshire, Illinois. Satellite offices are in Kansas, Florida, Tennessee and New York.

WORD ON THE COMPANY: Generally described as a friendly, professional, noncompetitive place to work where the Vance family remains very involved in day-to-day operations. It's got a bit of a buttoned-up corporate feel. Many looking to break into the industry get their first jobs here, leave, and then return to fill higher-level positions. "Some people have left and returned multiple times, and it's never held against you," says one employee.

ATMOSPHERE: Casual, but professional--meaning jeans are a no-no. Some offices have cubicles, but there are also large, newsroom-like spaces where there can be "a lot of socializing and quite a bit of noise."

BENEFITS: Medical, dental and 401(k) packages are described as "average" and "in line with what you'd expect from a company of its size." Vacation is prorated for the first year, then two weeks after that. After five years, you get three weeks, and after 15 years, four weeks.

PERKS: The profit-sharing plan is considered generous, with a sizable tax-deferred annual contribution to each employee--depending on profits and duration of tenure. The 64-year-old company is flexible (within reason) in making adjustments to keep employees from leaving the firm-- flex-time, working from home, etc.

CHURN: The average employee stays at Vance about eight years, although turnover rates at lower-level jobs are much higher. But as the economy worsens, people are staying longer.

CHALLENGES: Individual divisions are given a fair amount of autonomy and are allowed to function like little companies where they can call their own shots--within reason. But because of its size, the company doesn't allow for much advancement, and there's not much movement from division to division, or from magazine to magazine. "We have lost some very good editors because they saw limited opportunity for growth," says one employee.