Our tone at the top promotes a culture of transparency, accountability,
and ethical behavior. As a firm with just 59 employees, Ladder’s flat
management structure and open-door policy provide all employees with
daily access to our Executive Team. We strive to create an environment
where employees are comfortable asking questions and raising concerns.
With our casual attire policy, we also believe that when employees are
physically comfortable, they may be more relaxed in interactions with
one another, leading to better teamwork, increased productivity,
improved morale, and less stress.
The Board maintains oversight of human capital management and corporate
culture and gains insight at regular Board and committee meetings about
specific HR initiatives, including talent engagement, attraction, and
retention.
Diversity
A diverse workplace benefits from a variety of experiences and points of
view. We are committed to creating a workspace that incorporates
diversity and strive to ensure that all individuals are treated with
mutual respect and dignity. All levels of personnel are held accountable
for contributing to a professional atmosphere that promotes equal
opportunity and nondiscriminatory practices. Our diversity efforts are
overseen by HR, which reports to our CAO.
We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate against any
candidate or employee on the basis of race, national origin, marital
status, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation,
age, disability, religion, veteran status, or other status protected by
law. We do not tolerate harassment, discriminatory behavior, or any kind
of retaliation for reporting suspected misconduct.
Ladder provides two all-gender restrooms at its NYC headquarters. We
also provide reasonable accommodations for qualified persons based on
disabilities, religious beliefs and conditions related to pregnancy and
childbirth. Employees may openly communicate and share ideas and
concerns with management regarding working conditions, health and
safety, and management practices without fear of discrimination,
retaliation, intimidation or harassment. We respect employees’ right to
freedom of association and fully respect their lawful rights to either
engage in or refrain from collective bargaining. We prohibit the use of
all forms of corporal punishment and modern slavery, including, but not
limited to, forced labor, child labor and any form of human trafficking
in our operations. We support and respect human rights.
We maintain an anti-discrimination, anti-harassment, and
anti-retaliation policy that we endeavor to review and update at least
annually and we conduct annual anti-discrimination and anti-harassment
employee training. 100% of our employees completed our 2023 training. In
our March 2024 anonymous employee survey, 100% of respondents agreed
that discrimination is not tolerated at Ladder. The survey had a 93%
participation rate.
Workforce Diversity
We assess diversity information as part of a broader effort to identify
areas of continuous improvement to help build and retain a diverse
workforce. We analyze this data to determine how best to attract and
develop a pipeline of diverse and qualified candidates and promote an
inclusive, anti-discriminatory environment of belonging that supports
equal access to opportunities.
With two female co-founders, gender diversity and equality have always
been important to Ladder. 40% of our Executive Team is comprised of
females. Over 20% of employees identify as females, and 56% of female
employees are currently at the Director+ level, including our President,
CAO, CCO, Controller, and Tax Director. One of our employees at the
Director+ level identifies as LGBTQIA+.
63% of Ladder’s employees identify as white, 5% indicate they are
non-white, and 32% have declined to disclose their race.
Ladder seeks employees who want to grow and learn with us. Over the last
few years, the diversity of our workforce has gradually increased,
welcoming newer talent while maintaining a seasoned bench. 25% of our
employees are under age 30, 33% are ages 30–39, and 42% are age 40 and
over.
Talent Recruitment, Development, and Advancement
Attracting Talent
Our broad recruitment strategy is not limited to a pre-defined set of
educational or work experiences. As stated above, we seek employees who
want to grow and learn with us. We develop our employees and seek
internal candidates for promotions prior to hiring from the outside.
Our comprehensive paid summer internship program is a firm-wide endeavor
that is structured to provide interns with both a strong foundation for
a successful career in commercial real estate and transferrable skills
that can applied to other fields. Interns engage with Origination,
Credit/Underwriting, Transaction Management, and Asset Management,
participate in a weekly lunch & learn speaker series, present midsummer
& final summer projects, attend site visits, participate in a volunteer
event, and benefit from both junior and senior mentors. The speaker
series covers topics from business etiquette and real estate
fundamentals to Microsoft Excel, securitizations and asset management.
The midsummer and final presentations help interns develop public
speaking skills and quick thinking. The midsummer project involves
analysis of a relevant/trending CRE topic and the final project requires
presenting key credit metrics to a mock credit committee. The junior
mentor serves as a point person for the summer, while the senior mentor
provides valuable career guidance for a successful transition from
college to a professional environment. We are confident that this
program provides interns with a competitive advantage in their
commercial real estate job search, and we actively seek their direct
feedback through our intern exit survey. Previous interns had very
positive feedback about the program, and several, including our two new
2023 hires, are now full-time employees.
Since 2019, we continue to partner with St. John’s University School of
Law, providing chosen externs with the opportunity to earn school credit
via training experiences with our Legal and Compliance and Transaction
Management Teams. They gain valuable experience in topics such as
corporate governance, compliance, contract analysis and management,
financing, privacy, cybersecurity and real estate.
Contemporaneous Feedback
Ladder believes that our most important asset is our employees. We
encourage an open dialogue between managers and other employees to allow
for continued success. Our corporate culture encourages contemporaneous
feedback to enable employees to refine their skills and expertise with
each project. We believe that this practice is in the best interest of
our employees for their professional development. Managers are trained
on how to deliver effective and candid guidance to employees and we
encourage employees to communicate with their managers about their
workload, prioritization of projects, hours, and goals for advancement.
Talent Training, Development, and Advancement
Ladder is a dynamic company distinguished by the talent and dedication
of our team. We hire for the long-term and invest in professional and
personal development, with an organizational structure that drives
employee engagement. We reimburse employees for professional licenses,
memberships, and subscriptions as well as training programs,
conferences, and classes. In 2023, we introduced a Company-wide intranet
and training library to facilitate information sharing and
organizational cohesion. Employees are also encouraged to participate in
cross-functional team projects to develop comprehensive business
knowledge. We incorporate professional development into our ongoing
performance discussions and goal-setting for each employee.
All employees receive at hire, and annually thereafter, training on
Ladder’s ESG initiatives, anti-harassment and anti-discrimination,
cybersecurity, and legal and compliance. At hire, employees also receive
workplace success training, and we hold regular informational sessions,
from market trends to department overviews, to educate employees and
keep abreast of current topics.
We seek to promote from within, developing a deep bench of experienced
professionals ready to grow into more senior roles. Our department heads
average nearly 12 years of tenure at Ladder, with the majority having
been promoted to additional roles with increasing responsibilities over
the years. In 2023, we hosted leadership development sessions for all of
our non-management employees, led by a leading management consultant,
following our Managing Directors and Executive sessions in 2022.
Our employee promotion process seeks to provide opportunities for
internal advancement and mobility and a mechanism whereby employees can
be recognized and rewarded for successful performance and professional
development. Ladder promoted 25% of employees in 2023.
Collaborative Culture
At Ladder, we like to collaborate. We work in both formal and ad hoc
teams and, to encourage the free flow of thoughts and information, use
an open-floor seating plan in the office. We have a flat management
structure and an open-door policy and take pride in helping train the
Company’s future generations of leaders. When people join the Ladder
family, we seek to take steps to help new hires understand and feel
comfortable in our workforce environment, which is based upon our Four
Rs:
In 2023, Ladder celebrated our 15th anniversary since inception and
entered our tenth year as a public company. To commemorate this occasion
and thank Ladder’s employees for our continuing success, we extended an
invitation for all employees to participate in a NYSE Bell Ringing
ceremony on the stock exchange floor, followed by a special celebratory
reception.
This year, we also launched the "Onward & Upward" slideshow in our
headquarters’ communal space and on the home page of our intranet. The
rotating presentation is designed to recognize employee milestones,
contributions, and accomplishments to foster positive momentum. The
slideshow also features important reminders and photos from employee
events to help nurture our corporate culture.
Employee Teambuilding
At Ladder, we believe we are better together. At our NYC headquarters,
we have multiple collaborative areas, height-adjustable desks and a
range of fixed and movable seating to facilitate continuous
communication and collaboration. Our communal kitchen and lounge space
provides employees with the opportunity to eat, meet and enjoy a
(healthy) treat throughout the day.
Ladder’s CEO and President host town hall meetings to provide a forum
for direct engagement with our employees and senior leaders. Ladder also
sponsors both formal and informal after-work teambuilding events,
including days of service and cocktail hours. At least annually, we
distribute corporate gifts such as reusable tumblers, tote bags, and
fleeces.
We offer various programs to develop and build field expertise and
leadership skills. Our mentoring program pairs junior employees with
senior employees in other departments to foster cross-departmental
connections and allow junior employees to expand their industry
knowledge beyond their respective teams. In addition to being available
to answer any questions and provide guidance in the office, mentors are
asked to take their mentees to lunch or dinner periodically. HR actively
monitors the program and encourages feedback to help create a valuable
experience for all participants.
Unique to the Company is our “Ladder Climbers” program that enables our
junior staff to bond together and develop leadership skills. Managed by
the junior employees, participating Climbers engage in after-work
activities, on-site learning, and informational sessions.
In 2023, we also formalized our women’s affinity group, with events and
an email group to provide platforms to discuss topics important to women
and provide mentorship to junior women employees.
Retaining Talent
Through our strong corporate culture, opportunities for advancement, and
competitive compensation and benefits, we seek to make Ladder a
desirable place to work. The average tenure for all employees is over
seven years, and that includes our three new hires during 2023. In fact,
42% of employees have been with Ladder for more than seven years, and
34% have been with Ladder for more than 10 years. We generally provide
severance pay for involuntary terminations and conduct exit interviews
for employee departures to understand the reasons and to determine ways
we can improve employee retention, our working environment and culture
going forward.
We use anonymous employee experience surveys to solicit real-time
feedback on topics such as job satisfaction and employee activities. Our
March 2024 employee survey had a 93% participation rate. 93% of
respondents were enthusiastic about working at Ladder and agreed that
Ladder provides opportunities for learning and development. 93% of
respondents felt comfortable raising issues with their managers. We use
the information from these surveys to guide management engagement,
decision-making, and strategy.
Staff morale and corporate culture are discussed at quarterly Board
meetings.
Competitive Compensation and Benefits
Our compensation program attracts and rewards talented individuals with
the skills to support our business objectives and create long-term value
for our shareholders. Ladder is committed to a living wage for all
employees and we offer competitive pay at all levels — including base
salaries, annual incentive awards, and stock awards — and frequently
evaluate industry pay practices, including by the Board’s compensation
consultant. The Company does not inquire about applicants’ prior wages,
benefits, bonuses, or other compensation (together, the salary history)
when determining whether to hire or what amount of compensation to
offer.
We “pay for performance.” All employees are compensated based on
Ladder’s profitability, and we grant stock awards with both time- and
performance-based vesting components to promote employee retention and
alignment. We believe that the stock awards that vest based on Company
performance further align employee interests with long-term shareholder
value creation.
We offer a comprehensive benefits package, including corporate payment
of up to 90% of the premiums for our standard medical plan and 100% of
the premiums for dental, vision, disability and life insurance for
full-time employees and their families.
Our benefits program provides the following:
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Both in-network and out-of-network medical and prescription coverage
- Mental health, gender transition, and fertility services
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Critical illness, supplemental long-term disability, and term life
insurance
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Flexible spending accounts, dependent care accounts, commuter benefits
plan, healthcare spending accounts, and 401(k) retirement savings plan
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Daily employee lunches as well as late-night meals and transportation
Ladder also provides the following paid leave:
- Holidays and generous paid time off
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Leave for the service of others, including blood, organ, and bone
marrow donation leave and military leave
- Bereavement leave
- Parental leave for all employees and a private lactation room
- Sick days and time off to care for family members
Employee Health and Safety
Health and Wellness Programs
We support our employees’ mental health and well-being and aim to create
an environment that provides for work-life balance. Our NYC headquarters
includes a dedicated employee fitness center, which employees are
encouraged to use throughout the day to re-charge.
We are also continuing to provide employees flexibility through a hybrid
work structure. Our March 2024 anonymous employee survey showed that
100% of participants appreciated Ladder’s hybrid work model. And for
in-office days, our NYC office is also conveniently located near major
transportation hubs.
Through our healthcare provider, we offer discounted gym memberships and
programs designed to help improve employee health and well-being, such
as reducing stress and quitting smoking. We also encourage healthy
eating during in-office days by stocking our communal kitchen with a
range of healthy snacks and beverages, and by paying for employee
lunches (up to a reasonable cap) at our NYC headquarters’ cafeteria or
through an online provider, both offering a multitude of healthy food
options. In addition, we further employee health and wellness through
in-office flu shots.
In 2023, like in 2022, Ladder fielded an employee team in the J.P.
Morgan Corporate Challenge, the world’s largest corporate running event,
that seeks to serve as a catalyst between work and wellness. Over 20% of
Ladder employees again participated.
Work-Related Hazards and Responses
We maintain internal emergency procedures for circumstances that require
medical attention and/or building evacuation. Any employee with
emergency training is encouraged to inform the CCO or HR and to
participate in assisting in an emergency. We have a dedicated fire
warden and searchers in our headquarters. Employees are also required to
participate in any fire or other emergency drills conducted by the
buildings in which their offices are located and to know where all
emergency exits are located.
In 2023, we also organized in-office adult CPR and infant/child CPR
classes for all employees, aiming to empower them with potentially
life-saving skills both within the office and at home for the well-being
of themselves and their families.
No workplace accidents were reported in 2023.