NATICK — Despite tenfold growth in the past seven years, The MathWorks Inc. still gives free fruit and juice to workers, donates to a range of charities and pays for an annual vacation weekend for employees and their families.

That reputation for friendliness to workers and the community brought 12 members of Business for Social Responsibility to the Natick software company yesterday morning. The visitors spent close to three hours at MathWorks’ Prime Parkway headquarters, studying the firm’s approaches to everything from sick days to software packaging.

"It’s inspiring," said Jan Nickerson, who runs a Wayland consulting firm called The Prosperity Collaborative Inc.

Business for Social Responsibility, a national organization, provides services to help companies succeed while showing respect for workers, ethics, communities and the environment. The group holds monthly meetings and occasional business tours, according to regional Manager Bill Bradley Jr.

Yesterday, the group heard communications specialist Liz Callanan discuss MathWorks’ social mission statement, which pledges the company will "be active members of our community, promote social awareness and encourage environmental awareness."

Callanan said MathWorks polls workers each year, asking them where the firm should donate money. She declined to state the amount donated, but said charitable causes range from the American Indian College Fund to the Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition.

The only rule, Callanan said, is employees must be personally involved with charities they nominate. The company also donates to disaster relief funds, supports eight annual scholarships at four Boston-area high schools and sponsors charity events like blood drives.

"It’s a nice melding of what you personally believe in and your work life that you don’t always get," added Leslie Drohan, manager of corporate communications.

Human Resources Director Naomi Covino said MathWorks offers liberal benefits, including physical training classes, competitive health and dental plans and $1,000 bonuses for workers who stop smoking for more than six months.

"For $1,000, there’s nothing greater we can do than give someone years on their life," said Covino, who estimate MathWorks has give 10 of the one-time bonuses in the past five years.

Covino said the privately held company supplies free fruit and beverages for workers, and plows 10 percent of its pre-tax profits into a pool for quarterly bonuses.

Finally, once a year, MathWorks pays for its employees and their families to spend a weekend on Martha’s Vineyard, in the New Hampshire mountains or at a similar vacation spot. On one recent trip, company co-founder Cleve Moler joined in a sand castle-building contest, raising a replica of MathWorks’ trademark L-shaped membrane.

"It’s got to be a fun place to work, and it’s got to be a valuable place to work," Moler said. "One of the reasons we don’t want to go public is we don’t want to screw this up."

The visitors even heard a history of MathWorks’ packaging from ken Delaporta, logistics director. Delaporta detailed MathWorks’ search for a box that would be inexpensive, easy to fold and environmentally friendly.

Covino admitted the worker-friendly culture has been difficult to maintain during rapid growth. In the past seven years, MathWorks swelled from 45 employees to 425, and is about to open a satellite office on Rte. 9.

She said the business is always looking at ways to stay in touch with its workers, though. Employees with comments and complaints can now air them on company-wide electronic newsgroups, for example.

Visitors said they were impressed by MathWorks’ corporate policy. "It’s not just a feel-good philosophy," Bradley said. "There are tangible practices and programs that are measurable to them."


Harvy Simkovits, CMC, President of Business Wisdom, works with owner managed companies to help them grow, prosper and continue on by offering innovative approaches to business development, company management, organization leadership and learning, and management education. He can be reached at 781-862-3983 or .