January 7, 2013 | Quebec

As an information technology student, finding the right workplace can be an exciting venture. Startup companies and small businesses are cropping up across the country, advocating new products or services for smartphones and other devices that are taking over the world. Working for a tight-knit team has become the norm, allowing professionals to share their ideas freely and collaborate. While some of these originally small companies have grown to an enormous extent, such as Facebook or Google, others have kept their businesses true to its original size, which can be a positive quality for those who are seeking available opportunities at these organizations.

Culture of the workplace
It can be hard to determine what reaches the top of the priority list when it comes to the things people value in the workplace, but the overall culture should be a main concern.

"Strong cultures are important for small businesses because prospective employees are often comparing them to their larger, more well-known competitors," Susan Lucas-Conwell, chief executive officer of Great Place to Work, told The Financial Post.

Top tech companies
Most surveys that determine which offices are the greatest places to work factor in qualities like current employees' attitudes, recognition programs, hiring practices and benefit programs. When all of these elements are valued equally by managers, workers can ultimately feel more excited to report to work every day, instead of hitting the snooze button several times before making the commute.

While small businesses might not boast every spectacular perk in the book, even possessing a few can make students in information technology (IT) more excited about working there. Here are some qualities that stand out to job candidates across the country:

SCUBA certification
Thought the monthly free lunches were a cool perk at your company? Imagine being offered free scuba diving lessons. Many offices are creating new ways to help their team live well, practice healthy habits and maintain a strong fitness level. While gym memberships are a nice perk, unique offerings like scuba diving certification or ballet lessons might show prospective workers that managers not only care about personal health, but they are willing to come up with fun ways to reach it.

Collaboration
Essentially, every business has one main goal that employees are trying to achieve together. However, many of these individuals have their own great ideas that they are eager to pitch to their supervisors, and some companies provide special conferences and opportunities to hear these creative ventures.

Students who are excited about finding careers at top tech companies can enroll in programming courses at CDI College. For more information, fill out the form on the right.