Best Places to Work 2022

BEST PLACES TO WORK PRESENTED BY

Last year, the data from Biz 417’s inaugural Best Places to Work (BPTW) contest told a clear story. Overwhelmingly, top-ranked organizations offered a high degree of flexibility—in the form of enviable benefits like remote work and unlimited PTO. These are great perks, but they’re particularly suited for certain types of businesses and careers, which left us wondering: What about everyone else? What about people whose skills and interests lead them toward professions that can’t be performed remotely? What about people who crave the structure and camaraderie of a healthy office and aren’t happy working from home? Aren’t there wonderful workplaces for them, too?

This year, the answer is clearly “yes.” Organizations that offer significant flexibility still performed well; if your business can offer remote work, it’s obviously a recruitment advantage. But the 2022 winners have more diverse work environments. Together, they paint a picture of a complex economy—one with many kinds of workers, services and workplace cultures.

For example, workers at the No. 1 company on our list, OMG Commerce, have significant autonomy, including the option of working fully remote, hybrid or fully in-person. At the No. 5 company, Rick’s Automotive, no one telecommutes, but employees enjoy notable perks, such as an informal childcare arrangement. They also get a whopping 10% match to their 401(k) contributions. While Rick’s and OMG take different approaches to rewarding employees, they both earned high marks.

Money Matters

As with the 2021 results, the biggest difference between the Best Places to Work and those that didn’t make the list showed up in the “Pay and Benefits” category. Survey respondents were asked whether they agreed with the following statements:

“I’m satisfied with the amount of healthcare paid for.” (92% of BPTW employees agreed with this statement. Just 64% of employees at non-list-makers agreed.)

“Overall, I’m satisfied with this organization’s benefits package.” (93% vs. 70%)

“I’m satisfied with the dental benefits.” (92% vs. 72%)

“I’m satisfied with the disability benefits.” (92% vs. 73%) one differentiator.

One Differentiator

If you’re looking for one cultural change that might set your organization apart, consider what the  contest results revealed about financial transparency.

“I have a good understanding of how this organization is doing financially.” (91% of  BPTW employees agreed vs. 68% from companies that didn’t make the list.)

Help Wanted

You’re probably feeling the labor shortage, and your employees are, too. If you’re wondering whether you should even try to fill open positions, consider the following result:

“Staffing levels are adequate to provide quality products/services.” (83% of BPTW employees agreed vs. 63% from companies that didn’t make the list.)

Keep Human Resources Human

Good workplaces are filled with workers who feel seen and valued. In three, separate sections of the employee questionnaire, respondents were asked how much they agreed with statements about their perceived value within their organizations. The results sent a clear message.

“This organization gives me enough recognition for work that is well done.” (91% of BPTW employees agreed vs. 74% from companies that didn’t make the list.)

“If I do good work, I will be rewarded.” (89% vs. 72%)

“I feel I am valued in this organization.” (94% vs. 81%)

How the Winners Were Chosen

Methodology Biz 417’s Best Places to Work is a celebration of elite employers who have proven that they know what it takes to create environments where people love to come to work. Identifying and recognizing these outstanding workplaces was a joint effort of Biz 417 Magazine and Best Companies Group.

The Best Places to Work program was open to all publicly or privately held organizations in the 417 region. To be eligible for consideration, organizations must have at least 15 employees in the region, being headquartered in the region was not a requirement.

The “Best Places to Work” survey process was managed by Best Companies Group (BCG). BCG, an independent workplace excellence research firm, managed the registration process, conducted the two-part survey process, evaluated the data and ultimately chose the employers that were good enough to make the list. To go through the assessment process, employers needed to register by February 18, 2022.

Part one of the assessment (one-quarter of each organization’s score) consisted of the BCG Employer Questionnaire (EQ), used to collect information about each employer’s benefits, policies, practices and other general information. Part two of the assessment (three-quarters of each organization’s score) involved the confidential 78-question Employee Engagement & Satisfaction Survey (EESS) which was used to evaluate the employees’ workplace experience and culture. The combined data allowed the experts at BCG to conduct an in-depth analysis of the strengths and challenges that exist in each organization. BCG’s workplace assessment experts determined who was good enough to make this year’s list.

Participation was free and each organization had the option to purchase access to the “BCG Insights Reportal” organizing the employee data collected through the employee survey process.

In addition to the employee opinion data, the “Insights Reportal” also included transcribed employee written comments, as well as benchmarking data from the winning and non-winning organizations. This data will help each company understand their workforce better and equip them with the information to make improvements.

Visit BestPlacesToWork417.com for more info or email lcohen@bestcompaniesgroup.com.