Top Employer: Digital Extremes Ltd.

Recognized as one of Canada's Top 100 Employers

By Richard Yerema and Kristina Leung, Mediacorp Canada Inc. staff editors (Nov 8, 2018)

Here are some of the reasons why Digital Extremes Ltd. was selected as one of Canada's Top 100 Employers (2019):

From paid internships to opportunities for formal mentoring and in-house career planning, Digital Extremes maintains a long-term focus on developing new and existing talent
Digital Extremes provides generous maternity and parental leave top-up payments for employees who are new mothers (to 80% of salary for up to 32 weeks) and offers the option to extend their leave into an unpaid leave of absence
Digital Extremes' unique head office is located inside a renovated historic building in London's downtown core and was recently expanded to accommodate the firm's impressive growth -- the office features two in-house theatres, a fully stocked employee lounge and game library, and a commercial kitchen and dining room, with five full-time kitchen staff who prepare healthy meals daily and special treats every Friday

An employee at Digital Extremes in the studio, recording for sound effects

Employer Background

Industry	Software Publishers
Established in Canada	1993
Major Canadian hiring locations	London ON
Full-time employees in Canada	275
Part-time employees in Canada	1
Full-time employees worldwide	283
Workforce engaged on a contract basis	15%
Average age of employees in Canada	32 years
Longest serving employee	25 years

Physical Workplace Rating: A+

Commuter amenities	subsidized parking, secure/sheltered bicycle parking
Workplace features	open-concept head office located in London's historic downtown core was designed with employee feedback and has recently been expanded by 26,000 square feet, workplace features 30-foot open ceilings with exposed beams as well as a number of unique amenities including 2 in-house theatres, a motion capture studio, scooters to help employees move through the office, 4 private shower rooms, telecommuter workstations, sit-stand workstations
Employee lounge amenities	comfortable seating, fireplace, music, television, video games, pool table, table tennis, classic Pac-Man pinball machine, mini putt greens, video game library (over 100 titles for work or leisure)
Onsite cafeteria	healthy menus, special diet menus, take-home meals, full commercial kitchen with 5 full-time staff, industrial coffee makers throughout the office
Snacks available	3 snack stations with free freshly baked muffins, apples, oranges, bananas, pretzels, yogurt, bagels and cream cheese, freshly popped and flavoured popcorn, Goldfish and Ritz crackers, granola bars, dried fruit and peanuts, special treat days on Fridays
Onsite fitness facility	yes
Other nearby amenities	YMCA, GoodLife Fitness, Victoria Park, Harris Park, Thames River, daycare, restaurants, shopping mall, Convent Garden Market (operates year-round), Budweiser Gardens (home of the London Knights)

Work Atmosphere & Communications Rating: A+

Recent social events	summer kick-off rooftop party (with karaoke, games, food and drinks), employee Christmas party with DJ, live music, open bar and great prize giveaways, separate kids Christmas party with face painting and gifts from Santa, monthly happy hour every last Friday of the month, Halloween pumpkin carving contest, summer family barbecue (with live band, bouncy castle and games), regular employee 'meet-and-greets' to introduce new employees (ranging from pizza and ice cream nights at the studio to attending professional sports games), company-sponsored hockey, soccer, archery, softball, basketball and beach volleyball teams
Cultural aspects	employee sports teams, casual dress (e.g. jeans) daily, music while working
Employee communications	intranet site, company newsletter, traditional/email suggestion box
Other in-house communications	the company's President takes 3 employees out for breakfast every Friday to get to know each employee on an individual level

Financial Benefits & Compensation Rating: B+

Outside salary surveys	participates in outside salary surveys every 12 months
Employee salary reviews	individual salaries are reviewed every 12 months
Long-term savings	matching RSP
Long-term planning	retirement planning assistance, life & disability insurance
Year-end bonuses	available to all employees
Referral bonuses (max)	new employee referral bonuses (up to $2,000) for some positions
Signing bonuses	available for some positions

Health & Family-Friendly Benefits Rating: B

Health plan premium	as part of the health plan, the employer pays up to 100% of the premiums
Minimum hours worked for coverage	20 hours per week
Waiting period for coverage	90 days
Dental coverage	routine, restorative, orthodontics
Traditional coverage (e.g. prescription drugs)	yes
Other health plan information	employee assistance (EAP) plan, semi-private hospital room, physiotherapy, medical travel insurance, homecare, medical equipment and supplies, massage therapy, nutrition planning, podiatrist, osteopathy, chiropractor, alternative coverage (e.g. accupuncture, naturopathy)
Fitness club subsidy	up to $300 each year
Additional health and wellness information	fitness club subsidy can be used for most health-related activities, from personal trainers to exercise equipment to recreational sports league fees, corporate memberships for nearby downtown GoodLife
Maternity top-up (mothers)	up to 80% of salary for 17 weeks
Parental top-up (mothers)	up to 80% of salary for 15 weeks
Parental top-up (fathers)	up to 100% of salary for 3 weeks
Adoption top-up	up to 100% of salary for 3 weeks
Additional family-friendly benefits	extended parental leave to unpaid leave
Alternative work options	flexible work hours, telecommuting

Vacation & Personal Time-Off Rating: A-

Vacation allowance	new employees receive 2 weeks of paid vacation after their first year on the job
Vacation jump	vacation increases after 2 years of employment
Maximum vacation allowance	employees move to a maximum of 6 weeks of vacation over their career
Previous experience	considers previous work experience when setting annual vacation for new employees
Personal paid days off	employees can schedule 8 personal days off each year, as needed
Unpaid leave of absence option	yes
Additional time-off information	vacation increases to 4 weeks after 5 years on the job

Employee Engagement & Performance Rating: B+

Employee performance reviews	employees receive individual performance reviews every 12 months
360° feedback option	as part of the review process, performance feedback is also solicited from co-workers and other managers familiar with each employee's work
Confidential employee feedback	employees can also provide confidential feedback on their manager's performance
Exit interview	exit interview option is available for departing employees
Performance recognition	individual performance bonuses, on-the-spot rewards, tailored and unique rewards (i.e. travel), employees can win additional days off and paid weekend getaways, regular draws for everything from concert and sporting tickets to Xbox consoles to iPhones and even drones
In-house survey period	in-house surveys are conducted every 12 months

Training & Skills Development Rating: A+

Career planning	in-house career planning services
In-house training initiatives	mentoring, in-house training, online training, leadership training, paid internships, subsidies for professional accreditation
Related tuition subsidies	employer covers up to 100% of tuition per year
Unrelated tuition subsidies	employer covers up to 100% of tuition per year for courses unrelated to current position
Financial bonuses for course completions	yes

Community Involvement Rating: A+

Scope of charitable involvement	local
Employee charitable involvement	employees are involved in selection of charities, employees receive paid time off to volunteer
Some of the community organizations supported	Covenant House Toronto, OneMatch, LHSC Adult Oncology, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada (Light the Night Walk), Men's Mission of London, Toronto Game Jam (TOJam), Stack-Up, Children's Health Foundation, Rays of Sunshine
Charitable giving	matches employee donations
Community highlight	Digital Extremes' primary focus is to help local families in need. The company sponsored 5 families over the past holiday season, providing donations of food and presents for family members. In addition, the company regularly asks employees for suggestions regarding which charities and initiatives to support, with suggestions welcome at any time during the year (top suggestions are sometimes determined by an employee vote).

The Career Directory

Digital Extremes Ltd. has been selected for The Career Directory, our guide to entry-level recruitment for recent college and university graduates.

Actress Lucy Lawless (center) visiting the staff at Digital Extremes

Highlights for New Grads

Industry	Software Publishers
Full-time employees in Canada	101 to 250
Major Canadian hiring locations	London ON
Student opportunities	paid internships, summer jobs, co-op opportunities
Training	subsidies for professional accreditation, orientation program, online training, in-house training, mentoring, in-house career planning services, leadership training
Tuition subsidies (related to job)	yes
Typical new grad positions	Customer Support Specialist, Community Coordinator, Programmer, Technical Game Analyst, 3D Artist, IT Support Specialist
Starting salary	$40K to $45K
Work benefits	health benefits for new employees, flexible work hours, telecommuting, employees receive paid time off to volunteer
Vacation allowance	new employees receive 2 weeks of paid vacation after their first year on the job

Academic fields recruited

Bachelor of Arts
- Graphic / Fine Arts
- Public Relations / Communications
Bachelor of Commerce / Business Administration
- Marketing
Bachelor of Engineering
- Computer Engineering
- Mechanical
Bachelor of Science
- Computer Science
- Mathematics
Community College Diploma
- Communications / Public Relations
- Computer Science
- Graphic Arts / Design
- Information Technology
- Marketing / Sales

Recruits at these schools

Fanshawe College

Sheridan College

University of Waterloo

Western University

Digital Extremes Ltd.

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