Great benefits and performance incentives are the keys to a happy workplace for Crystal Mountain Water. Based in Huntsville, the 24-employee company bottles and distributes water there and in Birmingham and Knoxville.
Since Terry and Nina Roberts decided to invest their savings into a water business back in 1996, the company has grown – acquiring three other water companies – and plans to break ground in August for a new 30,000-square-foot plant.
Working toward a mix of business and ecologic goals is also an incentive for employees, Roberts said. The company was named Huntsville’s Small Business of the Year in 2005, won the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting Contest this year, and is introducing bottles with the clarity and strength of plastic but which biodegrade in 280 days, as well as a tank that can generate drinking water from humidity in the air using electricity, battery or solar power.
On the benefit side, the company pays for half of insurance costs and offers an incentive program based on monthly goals. But, since everybody has a bad month from time to time, there’s a chance each quarter for employees to recoup any bonus they may have missed.
“We want people to want to work here,” said Roberts. “This company isn’t successful because of Terry and Nina but because of the people who work here.”
This dedication to its employees and the environment are part of the reason why Crystal Mountain Water was chosen as the first place winner in the Small Employer Category.
“Reprinted by permission of Business Alabama”