Pinch Hitter Case Study: RPI

Background

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) is a private research university in Troy, New York. Established in 1824, it is the oldest technological university in the Western Hemisphere, and currently has more than 7,000 students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs. They also employ around 1,700 faculty and staff members.

In 2006, A New England Nanny was contacted by RPI about their Pinch Hitter backup dependent care service. They were aware that General Electric was using this service for their employees and RPI was interested in offering it to their own staff.

Finding a Solution

RPI needed a service, like Pinch Hitter, that could help their employees find last-minute, reliable child care so they could maintain their work commitments with peace of mind that their loved ones were safe.

“We wanted to help our employees that were struggling with finding babysitters when they had to be at work,” said Lou Padula, Acting Vice President of Human Resources. “We saw lack of child care becoming a trending problem, and we needed a solution.”

Pinch Hitter Backup Dependent Care

RPI began using the Pinch Hitter program in 2007, and has had great success with it.

“It’s one of the best programs we’ve ever implemented,” Padula said. “It makes our employees feel better about working here, they are more productive, and they have peace of mind that their children or senior loved ones are being cared for.”

RPI has consistently exceeded their contract hours each year due to the popularity of the benefit with their staff.

“We like to say ‘mission first, people always,’ and that’s what this benefit is all about,” said Padula. “Our staff looks to us for help and we feel lucky to be able to offer this benefit as a viable option.”

The A New England Nanny staff visit RPI each year to discuss the Pinch Hitter program at the university’s annual Benefits Fair and Wellness Summit, and RPI has renewed their contract every year since its inception.

“I refer this program all the time to other organizations,” said Padula. “It’s been helpful for retaining our employees because they don’t have to worry  about missing work due to child or senior care issues, so I know it would benefit other businesses and insitutions.”