Employment Hero cofounder on what the ‘EH Way’ means for startup success

Every business leader talks about values. But living them – truly embedding them into daily decisions, behaviours, and culture – is rare.

At Employment Hero, we don’t just talk about values – we operationalise them. That’s what The EH Way is all about: a living framework to keep us mission-aligned, fast-moving, and true to our DNA as we scale globally.

We built Employment Hero with a clear mission: to make employment easier and more valuable for everyone.

From day one, Dave (my cofounder) and I knew we didn’t want to mimic the usual corporate trajectory.

We’ve deliberately resisted growing into a traditional enterprise. We’re openly “anti-corporate”.

Why? Because staying lean, mission-obsessed, and ownership-driven allows us to move with velocity – and that’s our unfair advantage.

Scrappiness is a feature, not a bug

There’s a temptation in every growing business to trade speed and autonomy for process and structure. But that comes at the cost of innovation. I’ve seen it firsthand. At Employment Hero, we protect scrappiness. That means:

• Progress is a vector. We visualise every action as a vector. If it’s not pointing directly at our mission, it’s friction. Bureaucracy, unnecessary approvals, or vanity projects? We remove them.
• More headcount isn’t a strategy. Adding people doesn’t guarantee progress. Often, it’s a lazy shortcut. We’d rather build better systems or empower the people we already have.
  Async is our default. With 1,500+ Heroes across nearly 40 countries, asynchronous communication isn’t a preference – it’s survival. Meetings are the exception, not the rule. When we meet, it’s with purpose such as when we bring all our Heroes together for our Global Gathering to align, plan and celebrate our achievements.

Values that are non-negotiable

Our mission is fixed. So are our values. These aren’t fluffy slogans – they’re decision-making filters, hiring guides, and performance benchmarks. Here’s how we live them:

1. We are bold and ambitious. We don’t reward underpromising and overdelivering. We celebrate outsized impact.
2. We are one team. Politics and passive aggression get no airtime. We show up with trust, respect, and shared purpose.
3. We serve. We don’t pick sides between employers and employees. We go above and beyond for both.
4. We invent. We break things. We automate where others add headcount. Tech is our co-pilot.
5. We own it. Mistakes happen. That’s okay. What matters is what you learn and how fast you bounce back.

Culture by design, not default

I don’t outsource culture to HR. Culture is the CEO’s job. It’s the foundation on which we scale. In a remote-first world, where osmosis doesn’t happen by proximity, clarity is critical. That’s why we built The EH Way – not as a handbook, but as an operating system.

At its core, The EH Way includes four simple yet powerful principles: Mission First, Remote First, Apolitical and AI First. Until recently, it was just the first three. We added AI First because we believe it’s critically important that everyone at Employment Hero knows they are both empowered and expected to leverage AI to the maximum extent. It’s the new electricity – we’re not just using it, we’re building with it.

We hire, promote, and part ways based on values alignment. We don’t compromise. But we’re human too. Mistakes, bad days, and occasional drift are part of the journey. Our North Star brings people back on track.

Perks that matter

We don’t offer gimmicks like pizza Fridays or office ping pong tables – what we offer is far more meaningful. One of the most powerful perks at Employment Hero is the freedom to live and work from anywhere. As a remote-first company, we empower our people to optimise their lives – whether that’s reducing the cost of living, being closer to family, or working from a place that sparks creativity. It’s not just a policy, it’s a core part of how we support personal well-being and performance.

• Unmatched growth opportunities. We bet on potential, not pedigree. Heroes get access to challenges and responsibilities that fast-track careers.
• Meaningful equity. Our ESOP isn’t just a benefit – it’s a belief that everyone should win when we do.
• Support to take risks. Experimentation is encouraged, even expected. It’s how we learn, build, and evolve.

A call to founders and CEOs

If you’re serious about scaling, you need a blueprint that goes deeper than perks or policies. You need an operating system for culture. The EH Way is ours.

So here’s my challenge: stop outsourcing culture. Stop waiting for permission to build a mission-aligned company.

Set the bar, uphold it relentlessly, and remember – your culture isn’t what you say, it’s what you tolerate.

• Ben Thompson is cofounder and CEO of Employment Hero,  a global employment platform serving over 300,000 businesses.