Redesigned Rackspace Jobs Site Focuses on Racker Values, Expertise

Are you a Racker?

That’s the overarching question job seekers will find on the newly redesigned Rackspace careers site.

For those not familiar, “Racker” is the term we use to refer to Rackspace employees. More than just a nickname, being a Racker means some very specific things, says Henry Sauer, vice president of global talent acquisition for Rackspace. On the new careers site, Racker characteristics take center stage: “a cloud enthusiast with a heart for service,” “work hard, play hard,” “always ready, always accountable, always helpful.”

“There are Rackers all over the world,” he explains. “Many work here already, but there are others who share our values and possess the expertise we provide to our customers, and we’d like to find them.”

Rackspace is staking its claim on our expertise with the world’s leading cloud platforms, Sauer continued, “so we’re saying, if you’ve got what it takes, with the right skills and the right values, we want you to come be a part of our team.”

The new site highlights “high impact opportunities” that include working with OpenStack, Fanatical Support for Amazon Web Services and cybersecurity. Job seekers can also search by job and location.

“We worked hard to make it very intuitive to search,” Sauer says.

And if job seekers don’t immediately find the exact job they’re looking for, they’re invited to join the Rackspace “talent community” and get notified when those roles become available.

The talent acquisition team used stories of real Rackers to illustrate the qualities Rackspace looks for. They even included former Rackers who’ve taken the leap of starting their own company — because Rackspace embraces the concept of “once a Racker, always a Racker.”

The stories page features Rackers like Aaron Sullivan, distinguished engineer and lead architect, who works on new hardware like the Barreleye high performance Open Compute/OpenPOWER server, and the Zaius server platform, a collaboration between Rackspace and Google.

In this short video, Sullivan describes coming to understand that “your opportunities here (at Rackspace) are generally gated only by your ambition.” He’s also learned that “it’s not just about the tech, it’s about getting people to work together.”

https://youtu.be/usmPTzelnyw

Tony Campbell, director of global talent development, is another “Racker to the core.” He travels the world training Rackers and others on OpenStack, the open source platform Rackspace developed with NASA. Campbell is known throughout Rackspace for his welcome, encouraging style. He too notes the freedom Rackers have to seek out opportunity.

“My boss trusts me to do my job, and I’m free to innovate. If I see an area I want to get involved in, I’m told to go get it,” he says.

https://youtu.be/z87rQ6EhPQw

Courtney Skarda, vice president of Racker Experience, affirms that the company taps into the unique strengths and expertise each employee brings to the role they’re in.

Rackspace is a place, says this mother of two boys, “where Rackers can bring their true authentic selves to work every day. If they can come here and bring who they truly are, they can bring their best to our customers.”

https://youtu.be/tfdVXttlrSA

Rackspace is also keenly aware of the role benefits play in luring top-notch talent, and the emphasis today’s employees place on having a healthy work/life balance. “Flexibility” was one of the top perks Rackers identified in our most recent company-wide survey.

Of course Rackspace covers the basics — medical, dental, 401(k). Benefits also include generous time off, including paid time to volunteer. We support families with flexible work schedules, domestic partner benefits and even adoption assistance. A focus on wellness includes, depending on your location, access to an onsite gym or gym membership discounts, plus challenges and incentives to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

Sauer says today’s employees are focused on their career development. Rackspace offers a full slate of training programs, both technical and leadership training, plus international career opportunities, given Rackspace’s global reach, with locations across the U.S., the United Kingdom, Australia, Hong Kong, Mexico and Europe.

Sauer encourages job seekers interested in opportunities in innovative cloud technologies to explore the question: are you a Racker?