Clearwater company soars in rankings on influential job site

PostcardMania’s efforts to recruit, hire and retain ideal job candidates have paid off with national accolades. 

According to a news release, the Clearwater-based marketing firm ranks 13th out of 50 — in the small and medium company category — in Glassdoor.com’s Best Places to Work in 2021. It also earned an Employees’ Choice Award, an honor determined solely by anonymous feedback solicited from workers, who rate and review their employers. 

PostcardMania, with 292 employees, specializes in online and direct-mail marketing campaigns for the purpose of lead generation. 

Joy Gendusa is the founder and CEO of PostcardMania in Clearwater.

“We are old school but also cutting edge,” founder and CEO Joy Gendusa said in an interview with the St. Pete Catalyst. Despite the Covid-19 crisis, she added, the company managed to hire 40 people in 2020 and thanks to the federal Paycheck Protection Program, she didn’t have to furlough or layoff any workers, and despite a 40% dip in revenue for about six weeks, there was no need for pay cuts. 

“I was like, ‘If I have to spend all my reserves to keep people employed, I’ll just do it,’” Gendusa said.

According to its website, PostcardMania has served more than 96,000 clients across a wide range of industries. The company’s success has landed it on the Inc. 500 and 5,000 lists and won coverage from Forbes, MSNBC, AdWeek and other prominent publications and media outlets.

Gendusa credits the company’s HR team for its development of a hiring strategy that prioritizes finding job seekers who truly connect with the company’s mission and values. She said the firm’s vetting process is “intensive” and weeds out candidates who are looking only for a paycheck. She also said that sometimes the company will hire someone who shows extraordinary potential even if the most suitable job for them isn’t open at the time. 

“Our HR team has done an excellent job of finding candidates who have a personal connection with our company purpose,” Gendusa states in the release. “Not only do you have to be exceptional to work here, but you have to care about the work.” 

Postcard Mania, according to the release, received an average rating of 4.8 out of 5 from employees who submitted feedback at Glassdoor.com. Employees are asked to rate their overall satisfaction with the company, as well as key factors such as career opportunities, compensation and benefits, culture and values, senior management and work/life balance. In addition, they’re asked to describe the best reasons to work at their companies as well as any downsides.

According to Gendusa, PostcardMania offers a litany of benefits and perks, including a gym, showers, a cafe and yoga classes. She said one of the most-appreciated policies is what can be best described as a ban on “office politics.” The company has zero tolerance for “negative chatter” in the workplace, and employees who violate the policy can be fired on the spot. The policy might sound harsh, but Gendusa said it creates an extremely positive, upbeat, supportive environment that can be a breath of fresh air for many newcomers to the firm. 

“I mean, a shitty work environment is the norm, right?” she said. 

For PostcardMania, the Glassdoor.com achievement marks the first time it has broken into the influential website’s Best Places to Work rankings. 

“This is a huge honor and a true validation of the amazing team we have here at PostcardMania,” Gendusa stated in the release. “I am truly blessed I get to share this exciting ride with such an amazing group of incredibly hard-working and talented individuals.”

Gendusa added that PostcardMania is still in hiring mode; job seekers can view and apply for open positions at its website. 

Another Clearwater-based company, cybersecurity firm KnowBe4, was also named to Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work list. It secured the No. 16 spot in the large business category.