Great place to work

The best place to work is always a good read to help determine what constitutes great work environment. The first consideration usually is pay and benefits. All things being equal work environment is key factor as well.

The current study I am reviewing was written by Julia King for Computerworld. The top 100 companies have great benefits, challenging projects, training, which keeps employees engaged and happy. One of the keys for each company is they value and support their workers.  These are companies we should support with our buying power.

100 best companies to work for:

1.       U.S.A.A is a growing company to the tune of 8% annually. U.S.S.A insurance invest heavily in training by providing $10,000 per year tuition / training reimbursement.  U.S.S.A   has great pay and benefits, annual bonus of 18% of annual salary.  http://www.ussa.com provides financial services to the USA military and their families.  

2.       CareerBuilder success is based on providing opportunities for staff to continue education initiatives and rewards for strong performance.  CareerBuilder offers $10,000 a year in tuition reimbursement and an employee innovation competition where employee can earn additional $10,000.  Total bonuses for IT staff can reach 20% of annual salary. http://www.careerbuilder.com/  offers career placement and career planning advice.

6.  Verizon Wireless invests in employees by providing online training, instructor lead course and $8000 a year tuition reimbursement.  Verizon Wireless was able to release a new sales portal capable of handling increased usage due to employee’s efforts and training. http://www.verizonwireless.com/ provide mobile services to corporate and individual users.

8. Salesforce.com has high employee involvement in developing hosted CRM applications.  IT uses Force.com to create apps for team projects.  The company has a renowned internal social network called chatter. The portal allows users to share ideas, collaborate, and discuss technologies. http://www.salesforce.com

11. University of Pennsylvania one of the premiere Ivy League University offers great benefits, tuition reimbursement, 403B retirement plan, and a flexible work environment. Some of the additional perks include discount on cars, computers, and cultural events. ISC Exploration allows staff a day to explore new ideas, technologies, and processes.

13 Cedars-Sinai Health System views I.T. as a strategic partner in filling organizations goals.  I.T. staff are trained on latest medical technologies such as electric health records and implement systems to automate tasks.  The overall goals is to improve patient care.

16. Principal Financial Group Collaboration is emphasized with all departments on technology driven projects. Employees customize their careers paths and are able to work flexible hours which is great value to employees.