Articles

When asked to name their profit centers, few businesses would put their culture on the list. While many create and espouse corporate values, few commit to their culture as a profit center, investing in its development and protecting it during tough times. This article details key insights and practices from best company Robert W. Baird & Co.'s efforts, highlights the returns the firm experienced, including recruiting better talent, stronger client relationships, resilient employees, and sustained revenue.

Increasingly, the making of a company’s brand is moving from the marketing department into the hands of its employees. Spurred by societal shifts like social media, workers are ever more capable of building up their employer’s reputation or tearing it down. How does a leader inspire brand advocacy in employees? Brian Walker, CEO of Herman Miller, shared his perspective at the 2011 Great Place to Work^® Conference.

How does a company go from low associate satisfaction to #15 on the “100 Best” list in the midst of a crippling recession? For Mercedes-Benz USA, the answer was a common sense approach done uncommonly well. This article outlines the three main components of MBUSA's plan that produce higher-than ever associate engagement, a 20% increase in internal organizational health metrics, placement on 100 Best Companies to Work for lists in 2010 and 2011, sales approaching pre-recession peak levels, and emulation by its competitors.

Accounting and innovation don’t typically associate with each other. Yet this dynamic is being redefined at PwC, a 7-time member of the 100 Best Places to Work For. With a global network of more than 160,000, PwC employees are encouraged not only to think differently, but to work differently. At the 2011 Great Place to Work^® Conference in Denver, PwC’s U.S. Innovation Leader Mitra Best shared how she and the firm have built a world-class innovation office charged with encouraging and inspiring employees to challenge the status quo and drive the firm ahead.