TWP 12.7.25 - Flipbook - Page 28
SMALL COMPANIES
NO.1
RED DRUM
Staying
competitive
Retention is high at the software development
company, offering employees the ‘best we can’
BY MIKE KLINGAMAN
For James Rainey, a 10-word maxim fuels his
company’s success:
Value your employees and the finances will
drop into place.
The words ring true at Red Drum, Rainey’s software development firm that handles
sensitive government contracts for the Department of Defense, among others. Founded three
years ago, Red Drum boasts 37 senior software
engineers who are highly sought in an aggressive industry, but who stick with the Finksburg-based agency for both its benefits and
personal touch.
“In our business, people move often,” said
Rainey, 53. “On average, the life of a [cyber intelligence] engineer, with one company, is less than
a year and a half. But we do not lose people —
and that’s a really, really big deal for us.”
At Red Drum, engineers receive six-figure
salaries and full coverage of medical, dental and
vision benefits, plus free disability insurance.
The company also offers as much as a 6% match
on workers’ 401(k) plans, and annual allowances
of $5,000 and $2,000 for education/training
and technology (laptops), respectively. There’s
parental leave for births and adoptions, bereavement leave and business development bonuses.
“We check all of the boxes,” said Bethany
Brown, Red Drum’s chief administration officer.
“For sure, it’s expensive, but we have to offer
employees the best we can — and be flexible.
Build relationships and keep them engaged, and
they’ll stay.”
The company was named for a game fish
28 | 2025 | TOP WORKPLACES
found in the Chesapeake Bay. Its workforce of
37 includes Chris Gross, a senior engineer who
signed on with the firm almost from the start.
“The benefits are pretty phenomenal; the
company works to make sure everyone is well
taken care of,” said Gross, 44, of Ellicott City.
“I’m constantly being ‘hit up’ on LinkedIn with
offers to go elsewhere, but I’m happy where I
am.”
With the staff spread over nearly a dozen
contractual sites in the Fort Meade area,
management has worked to knit the group
together, after hours.
“Keeping employees connected, when they
don’t work in a corporate office, is the greatest
challenge we have,” Rainey said. “For them to
know they are part of something special is big.”
To that end, Red Drum holds regular happy
hours, an annual family picnic and an Employee
Appreciation Day.
There are also one-off outings geared to
employees’ personal interests.
“If someone is a trivia [buff ], we’ll hold a
Trivia Pursuit night. If someone else likes to
bowl, we’ll get together and do that,” Brown
said. Nothing is off the table — except, perhaps,
paragliding.
“Diversity is everything,” Rainey said. “The
external activities go far to show we really care.”
The festive events are a hit, Gross said,
adding: “The picnics are great, the food is solid
and there are games for the kids. This summer,
there was even an ice cream truck.”
Company swag is another perk.
“I have five Red Drum polo shirts, one for
every workday,” Gross said. “I have a Red Drum
notebook that I take to meetings, and a Red
James Rainey, Red Drum’s CEO, talks with
employees, including wife Lisa Rainey,
during the company’s quarterly employee
happy hour held at Sapwood Cellars
Brewery in Columbia. HALDAN KIRSCH/
FREELANCE
Drum water bottle that I drink from every day.
Once, in a restaurant, I saw red drum on the
menu and had it for dinner; it was delicious.”
Routinely, he said, Rainey visits each worksite,
takes employees to lunch and seeks feedback.
“If I were to reach out and ask to do something new,” Gross said, “they’d be real happy to
work to give me something I’d want.”
That culture of flexibility helps sell the firm,
Rainey said, adding: “So many people in this
business feel like they’re nothing more than a
