Parachute Media puts employees first with Uber for Business

Businesses around the world use Uber for Business to reward employees, engage customers, and more. We’re talking to companies of all sizes to learn how they use Uber for Business. Meet Parachute Media, a creative agency based in Nashville, TN.

Like many new graduates, Ryan Carter came out of college unsure about how he wanted to use his degree. After dabbling in accounting, Carter volunteered in Uganda. When he returned home to Nashville, he helped a Ugandan trauma therapy organization start a Facebook campaign to help them raise funds.

Carter began to approach local small businesses offering his help with their social media presence. Turns out, businesses needed that assistance, and he quickly began to gain clients. Around 2015, it became too much to do alone, so Carter got his first office space and began to build a team.

Today that one-man show has become Parachute Media, a 15-person creative agency with an emphasis on social media that works with companies of all sizes. As the founder and CEO, Carter uses Uber for Business to engage employees and let them know he cares.

Carter wanted to offer benefits that went beyond the norm. “Pay and basic benefits aren’t the endgame—that’s just the beginning. You just need to be actively listening to what employees need and want,” he says. “One of our first added benefits was providing Uber credit for rides, so people could safely get a ride for work or for fun. We wanted employees to spend the credits however they wanted to use them.”

Pre-pandemic, Parachute used Uber to schedule rides for clients traveling to the airport, and employees regularly used Uber credits for rides. “It’s definitely a selling point that we talk about in interviews,” Carter says. “When we onboard employees, it’s really easy to set up and give them access, and they’re always excited about it.”

At Parachute Media, great culture means engaging and caring about employees beyond their 9 to 5. “Whether they’re going out for dinner during the week or traveling, I want to be a part of that,” Carter says. When COVID-19 struck in 2020, he realized that many of the best benefits, like a lot of PTO, hockey season tickets, and rides with Uber, weren’t being used at all.

To remedy this, Carter got his team together to discuss new ways to maintain their company culture and benefits while they worked from home. They decided to give employees Uber Eats credits each month. “It’s a gesture to show them we’re always focused on their well-being, and show how we adjusted to this strange new world,” Carter says.

While the team usually keeps a well-stocked beer fridge for happy hours at the office, Carter has instead been sending team members a bottle of wine or beer. “It’s a small way to say thank you for your hard work and being nimble,” he says. “It’s another small part of our culture and benefits that brings people joy.”

As the world begins to open up, the Parachute Media team is looking forward to collaborating together in the office once again. “I really enjoy seeing the people inside of our company have wins and successes. Not just client work, but watching people grow up, get married, and purchase a home. I love knowing that I’m able to provide some security in their future,” Carter says.

“What keeps a person there is having someone who genuinely cares about them,” he adds. “You’re hiring a person that will have good and bad days. Caring about them and their growth—that’s what’s important. You’ll get a way better ROI by genuinely caring about employees as people.”