Category: Georgia Rittenberg Archives - ComputerCare

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The tech industry has changed the world for us all, but we’ve learned over the past two years that many companies with cutting edge technology still lag behind the times when it comes to women and BIPOC in leadership positions. At ComputerCare, we want to lead by example and help set things right.

On that note, we are proud to announce that under the leadership of our very own Georgia Rittenberg, ComputerCare has been officially certified as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) through the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).

The Standards

The WBENC is a leading non-profit organization dedicated to helping women-owned businesses thrive. They provide the most relied upon certification standard for women-owned businesses, as well as the tools to help them promote innovation, open doors, and create partnerships that fuel the economy.

To become a WBE, one or more women must have unrestricted control of the business, a demonstrated management of day-to-day operations, and a proportionate investment of capital or expertise. To become certified, business owners undergo a thorough vetting process, including review of business documentation and a site visit. The certification process is designed to confirm the business is at least 51% owned, controlled, operated, and managed by a woman or women. Luckily for ComputerCare, since Georgia has been our CEO for more than five years, this requirement created no obstacles to our new status. Our WBENC certification is considered the gold standard for women-owned businesses and is accepted by more than 1,000 corporations, in addition to some states, cities, and other entities.

Why This Matters

As a Women’s Business Enterprise, ComputerCare joins the ranks of nearly 13 million women-owned businesses in the United States, accounting for 42% of all U.S. businesses. This initiative is important to us, not only because it helps us increase the representation and fair treatment of women in the workforce, but also because half of the owners of these businesses are BIPOC women (AmericanExpress). When we support and represent woman-owned businesses, we also support and represent the minority entrepreneurs who lead many of these businesses.

Despite all these positives about women-owned businesses, there is still lingering bias, especially when it comes to securing funding and investors, against women entrepreneurs. This makes them both less likely to apply for business funding and, unfortunately, less likely to receive it than men (Kaufmann Foundation). Because of this, we at ComputerCare think that it’s important to take a stand as a woman-led tech company, to show our clients and competitors that we believe in the power of leadership by women and people of color.

You can also show your commitment to increased equity and representation by working with a women-owned business like ComputerCare. Georgia and all of us at ComputerCare are grateful to all our clients for your support this far in our journey. We hope to travel far with you into a better and fairer future.

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The first mission statement I wrote for ComputerCare was forgettable. It was on the home page of our payroll and benefits platform, the very first thing an employee would see when they logged on. I doubt any of our employees remembered it, let alone used it to understand our direction. It was long, uninspired and uninspiring, but more importantly, it had nothing to do with our true purpose as a business.  

A few months back, a friend asked me, “What excites you most about the idea of growing your business from 100 to 1,000 employees?” Without pause I responded, “That I would get to have a positive impact on the lives of 1,000 people, instead of just impacting 100.” To accomplish that, ComputerCare would need to grow our customer base and find new revenue streams, but my focus wasn’t about the product we were selling, it was about the people who will get us there.  

The last 12 months brought some changes at ComputerCare, as there have been at most companies that survived the pandemic. We adapted, we evolved, and we grew as a company. It also brought me a deeper understanding of gratitude, a new perspective of what success means, and a sense of purpose that extends beyond ComputerCare’s bottom line. Of course, we need to be profitable enough to make payroll, and to cover our insurance premiums, but now, I am even more dedicated to growing a company that recognizes and values the human capital it takes to get there. And so, our new company mission, which I now realize has been there all along, came into focus. 

In many ways we were already living our mission statement, even before it became official. In April we raised our minimum wage to $23/hr, and by June adjusted our technician wages by up to 15% to properly reflect the market value of their skill sets. I knew we encouraged a unique and diverse workforce, but it wasn’t until launching our helpdesk service, that we discovered 12 languages were spoken within the company, and we could provide support to our customers in all of them.

I don’t know what ComputerCare will look like in 10 years, but I do know who we’ll be. We’ll be a company that emphasizes our humanity and individuality in the decisions and actions that drive our company forward. We’ll be a company that recognizes the positive impact we can have in people’s lives. We’ll be a company in which each one of us plays a part in how we get there.

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They say it takes a new employee 90 days to get fully settled in an organization. Up until this point they are familiarizing themselves with the company, the culture, job expectations, and what they will need to be successful in their new role. I became president of ComputerCare at the beginning of September, so my 90 days are officially up, and I wanted to share what I have learned so far…

ComputerCare has an amazing foundation. Leadership changes often happen during times of uncertainty, where the main focus turns to figuring out how to pick up the pieces of those who came before. I was fortunate to be handed a company where my only concern is forward growth, and seeing just how far we can get.

One thing I say without hesitation is that we have fabulous employees. Our workforce is diverse, skilled, and dedicated to the success of the company. I have been humbled every day by how quickly they have accepted me in my new position, and supported me as I start to make my version of our roadmap for the future.

We are good at what we do. Of course we all have those difficult days, and no one is perfect, but I get the privilege of hearing positive feedback from our customers on a regular basis. I never get tired of walking by our Apple Premium Service Provider plaque that hangs on the wall at HQ, knowing that it symbolizes both technical and customer service excellence.

I’m excited for 2017, and energized by the opportunity to take ComputerCare’s key strengths, and develop a strategy that will propel us forward into our next stages of growth. There is a lot of work ahead, but I’m very proud to be at the helm.

Happy Holidays!