Photograph by Andrew Tolson/ Shannon Fagan/CP
At the core of the Best Employers list compiled by Aon Hewitt, a global HR consulting and outsourcing firm, is employee engagement, which is driven by leadership, rewards, workplace culture and values, productivity and the support of performance and development. The list is determined, in large part, by surveying employees. So Maclean’s asked all 50 organizations (listed alphabetically) what it is specifically that earned them such high marks from their staff.
METHODOLOGY: Two hundred and fifty-one Canadian employers took part in the 2011 Best Employers studies. Aon Hewitt identified the Best Employers and Best Small & Medium Employers based primarily on survey responses from more than 134,000 Canadian employees at these organizations that gauge employee engagement levels. Participating employers were also required to survey their executive teams and provide background information on their people policies and practices. According to Aon Hewitt’s definition, employees are engaged when they “say, stay and strive”: they speak positively about their employer to others, are committed to remaining with their current employer, and are motivated by their organizations’ leaders, managers, culture and values to go “above and beyond” to contribute to business success. On average, 78 per cent of employees were engaged at Best Employers this year. For Best Small & Medium Employers, the average was 81 per cent.
Here are some of the highlights:
A – D
Aecon Group Inc.
Amex Canada Inc./ Amex Bank of Canada
ATB Financial
BBA Inc.
BC Biomedical Laboratories Ltd.
Bennett Jones LLP
Bentall LP
Canadian Western Bank
Chubb Insurance Company of Canada
CIMA + Partner in Excellence
Cintas Canada Limited
Cisco Canada
Clark Builders
Coastal Community Credit Union
Conexus
Co-operators Life Insurance Company
Delta Hotels & Resorts
Dillon Consulting
E – H
Earl’s Restaurants Ltd.
Edward Jones
EllisDon Corporation
Farm Credit Canada
Federal Express Canada Ltd.
Flight Centre
G&K Services Canada Inc.
GlaxoSmithKline Inc.
Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP.
Graham Group Ltd.
HATCH
I – N
ING Direct
Island Savings Credit Union
Ivanhoe Cambridge Inc.
Keg Restaurants Ltd.
LoyaltyOne
Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics
Marriott Hotels of Canada Ltd.
McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada Limited
Meyers Norris Penny
National Bank Financial Group
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc.
Novotel Canada
O – Z
OMERS Administration Corporation
OpenRoad Auto Group Ltd.
PCL Constructors Inc.
Scotiabank Group
Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc.
Stikeman Elliott LLP
TD Bank Financial Group
The Co-operators
Wellington West Holdings Inc.
