Glassdoor.com®, a career and workplace community bringing greater transparency to company cultures, compensation and the interview process, today released the 2nd Annual Employees’ Choice Awards, listing the top 50 “Best Places to Work,” according to surveys collected in 2009 from U.S.-based employees at more than 37,000 companies. The top five Best Places to Work based on employee feedback include: Southwest Airlines, General Mills, Slalom Consulting, Bain & Company and McKinsey & Company. General Mills and Bain & Company have secured positions in the top five for the second year in a row, while the Southwest Airlines and Slalom Consulting are new to the list entirely.
“The Glassdoor Best Places to Work Awards recognizes those companies that have kept employees engaged and motivated in the past year despite the turbulence many endured during the historic financial storm,” said Robert Hohman, co-founder and CEO of Glassdoor.com. “We believe recognizing these leading companies provides an important layer of transparency to what is happening behind the walls of leading companies that has significant implications not only for jobseekers and employees but also investors and potential customers. In this market, information is critical and we’re delighted to recognize employers that stand out among their own employees.”
Unlike many workplace-related awards that require companies to self nominate, Glassdoor relies solely on the input from employees throughout the year. The ranking of the top 50 list was determined by each company’s overall rating on Glassdoor, which is the cumulative average rating from employees who elected to participate in a 20-question survey between December 1, 2008 and December 1, 2009. The survey addresses key workplace factors, including work/life balance, career opportunities, communication, compensation and benefits, employee morale, recognition and feedback, senior leadership as well as fairness and respect.
At the top spot, Southwest Airlines was rated 4.7 on a 5-point scale and CEO Gary Kelly holds a 94 percent approval rating. Although General Mills, winner of the 2009 Best Places to Work Award, slipped to second place, the company has a 4.5 rating and CEO Ken Powell has a 97 percent approval, the highest of any CEO on the 2010 Best Places to Work list.
Approximately two-thirds of the 2010 Best Places to Work list were also on the 2009 list, although some have moved notably up or down. For example, the most improved award goes to FedEx, which employees rated an average of 3.8 this year, up from 3.5 for the 2009 list. This pushed FedEx from 49 last year to 21 on this year’s list. The most notable to slip in the ranks is Whole Foods, which came in at 48 this year, down from sixth last year. Despite the tough economic and employment climate in the past year, approximately one-third of companies on the 2009 list had higher ratings this year than last.
Companies new to the list also include Kraft Foods (Rank: 12), Medtronic (Rank: 18), Publix (Rank: 19), Edelman (Rank: 23), Edward Jones (Rank: 24) Sherwin Williams (Rank: 32), EMC (Rank: 33) and GlaxoSmithKline (Rank: 34).
For more career advice, visit my blog at HeatherHuhman.com.
Comments
Heather,
Great article and revealing list.
I really admire Southwest Airlines....so much in fact that I recently wrote about their unique culture on my Kansas City Leadership page within the "Business - Careers & Workplace" section of the Kansas City edition of Examiner.com
Got something to say?
Examiner.com is looking for writers, photographers, and videographers to join the fastest growing group of local insiders. If you are interested in growing your online rep apply to be an Examiner today!