Great Place to Work^® Institute, Inc.
John Helding, Senior Advisor
Robert Levering, Co-founder
Dr. Amy Lyman, President & Co-founder

Any company, any size, anywhere can become a great place to work^®. This pre-conference workshop will focus on "how" organizations can transform their companies into great workplaces. This workshop includes both individual and group learning experiences designed to develop a deep understanding of how to build and sustain organizational trust, pride and camaraderie - essential components of any great workplace. Specifically, this session will focus on organizational assessment, strategy development and action planning. Attendees will complete an organizational readiness inventory and develop an action plan that utilizes a distinct four-phase change process.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the essential components of a Great Place to Work^®.
• Examine the process of workplace transformation in the best workplaces
• Complete an organizational readiness inventory.
• Develop a results-driven action plan for initiating a workplace culture change.
  

Great Place to Work^® Institute, Inc.
Robert Levering, Co-founder

Robert Levering has been studying great workplaces for more than 20 years. Through his many research projects, he has had an inside look at hundreds of the world's best companies. In the US, one of his most high-profile projects is as the co-author of the Fortune list of "100 Best Companies to Work for in America." Robert is also a bestselling author (with Milton Moskowitz) of several books, including A Great Place to Work: What makes some employers so good -- and most so bad.

The J M Smucker Company
Richard Smucker, President, Co-CEO and CFO

This year, JM Smucker Company tops Fortune's list of "100 Best Companies to Work for in America." Richard Smucker is the great-grandson of J M Smucker, who founded the company in 1897. Before being named President in 1987, he held various financial and operational positions with the company, including Treasurer, Executive Vice President, and Chief Administrative Officer. In addition to serving on the Board of Smucker's, Richard is a director of the Wm. Wrigley, Jr. Company and The Sherwin-Williams Company, and a trustee of the Cleveland Orchestra and Miami University of Ohio.

Timberland
Jeff Swartz, President and CEO

Jeffrey B. Swartz is the third generation of the Swartz family to lead Timberland. Under his direction, the company has grown to become an example for socially-responsible corpora­tions around the world. Timberland has con­sistently been ranked one of the "100 Best Companies to Work for in America" since Fortune magazine first published the list, and in 2002 Timberland received the Ron Brown Award, a Presidential award recognizing outstanding corporate leadership in social responsibility.

Stew Leonard's
Stew Leonard, Jr., President and CEO

Stew Leonard, Jr.'s management style is built around an acronym for STEW: Satisfy the customer; work together as a Team; strive for Excellence at everything you do; and get the customer to say WOW. In addition to the headquarters store in Norwalk, CT, Stew Leonard's manages stores in Danbury, CT, Yonkers, NY, and Farmingdale, NY. The company has taken the fresh dairy concept and expanded into meats, fish, pro­duce, bakery, cheese and wine; has annual sales of nearly $300 million; and employs close to 2,000 people.

SC Johnson
Kelly Semrau, Director - Global Affairs and Communication

How to Engage Employees and Drive Results

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(1704Ko)

No lay-offs, no unions and a Chairman who flies with a jet-pack. SC Johnson may be 118 years old, but its culture and people practices are truly cutting edge. Learn how this maker of leading brands like Windex^® and Ziploc^® uses its unique family culture to engage employees and drive results.

Synovus
Rob Ward, SVP Communications and Development, and Marty Grueber, SVP Team Enhancements

Maintaining a Great Place to Work

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(1533Ko)

Marty and Rob will share information on the programs, ini­tiatives and philosophies that have helped Synovus not only to be named one of the "100 Best Companies to Work for in America," but to face the challenge of maintaining this status for each of the last seven years, including a listing as number one in 1999.

Vision Service Plan
Walter Grubs, VP Human Resources

Building Trust through Constructive Communications

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(1173Ko)

Following a general overview of what makes VSP a great place to work, this session will concentrate on specific employee communication practices that have built credibility, coopera­tion, respect and organizational improvement over time. VSP's expertise in this area was honored during the 2003 Great Place to Work® Conference when the company was recognized with the conference's Credibility Award.

AstraZeneca
Lynn Tetrault Esq., VP Human Resources

Developing a Great Workplace Culture after a Merger

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(1313Ko)

AstraZeneca is the fifth largest pharmaceutical company in the world -- not bad for a company that's only five years old. Learn how AstraZeneca managed the challenge of a mega-merger and developed a new culture that has made it a great place to work. Specific emphasis will be placed on the role HR can play in helping to shape a company's culture and man­agement practices.

Starbucks Coffee Company
Dave Pace, EVP , Partner Resources

Coffee and Culture

Dave will share how Starbucks has created a culture built upon strong values and trusting relationships and how these are fundamental to the company's success. Learn about the Starbucks Experience, where even part-timers get health insurance, stock options and soon, tuition reimbursement.

SAS Institute Inc.
Jeff Chambers, VP Human Resources

Human Capital and the Bottom Line

Jeff Chambers will demonstrate how an Employee Value Proposition helps companies attract, recruit and retain human capital. SAS' unique story shows how a company can create a corporate culture that mirrors the firm's business model, values technological innovation and work/life balance, and at the same time directly benefits its customers and employees.

Continental Airlines Inc.
Gordon Bethune, Chairman of the Board and CEO

Bethune joined Continental in February 1994. Under his leadership, the once-failing company has won more awards for customer satisfaction than any other airline. In 2003, Continental was the only US carrier to rank on Fortune's Global All-Stars list. For the past four years, Fortune has ranked Continental as the No. 2 "Most Admired US Airline" and No. 2 "Most Admired Global Airline"; and for six consecutive years Continental has been named among the "100 Best Companies to Work for in America."

Fannie Mae
Kathy G. Gallo, SVP Human Resources

Diversity in Workplace Culture

Fannie Mae offers employees diversity training, forums, networking groups, special emphasis programs, and profes­sional development opportunities. Learn how these internal initiatives enhance individuals' job performance, have a direct impact on Fannie Mae's financial bottom-line and enrich the culture of its workforce.

Paychex
Will Kuchta, VP Organizational Development

Being Top 100 in a Dull Company

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(347Ko)

It seems easy to be a great place to work in a jazzy, high-flying company with a big marketing budget, but what do you do in a low glamour industry, or a smaller company that doesn't have a lot of resources? Learn from this leader in the financial services outsourcing industry to match employee best prac­tices to your environment and resources. Simple things, with little or no costs, often work best.

First Tennessee National Corporation
Sarah Meyerrose, EVP Corporate and Employee Services

Developing a Nationally Recognized Culture

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(574Ko)

FTN's employees serve as its primary competitive advantage. In this session, learn how a national financial services compa­ny built the business case for an "employees first" culture which allows employees to embrace both their work and fam­ily commitments while empowering people to come to work everyday with the attitude of ownership and teamwork.

Barton Protective Services
Tom Ward, CEO

Tom Ward joined Barton in 1992 and has an extensive background in the security industry. Earlier in his career, Ward coordinated con­tract security for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, an event that attracted over 100 million people without a single breach of security. Ward has also held the posi­tions of President of Office Force and Executive Vice President of Snelling & Snelling. Before joining Barton, he was a partner in Management 2000, a consulting firm specializing in strategic planning and management services to Fortune 500 companies nationwide.

Griffin Hospital
Patrick Charmel, President and CEO

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(2154Ko)

During his tenure, Patrick has positioned Griffin Hospital as an award-winning, inno­vative organization, recognized as an indus­try leader in providing personalized, humanistic, consumer-driven health care in a healing environment. Charmel is President of Planetree, Inc., a not-for-profit organiza­tion that supports an alliance of 65 premier hospitals locat­ed across the United States that are committed to patient empowerment and the delivery of patient centered care. Under his leadership, Griffin has appeared on the Fortune list of the "100 Best Companies to Work for in America" in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003.

Microsoft
Claudette Whiting, Senior Director of Diversity

Realizing Potential

The people who work at Microsoft are inspired by the potential they see in their customers and the potential in themselves. Across the company employees are inspired to do their greatest work due in part to the value Microsoft provides in employee benefits, corporate culture and through other employee interactions. At Microsoft we have a global approach to human capital and see the potential in all our employees and how that translates to the potential of our customers.

QuikTrip Corporation
Kim Owen, Director of Human Resources

Unglamorous and Still Happy

How does QuikTrip, a 24-hour convenience store keep thou­sands of part-time and full-time employees happy? Hear how they build loyalty and fun into a not-so-glamorous job. In an industry where turnover averages 300%, learn how QuickTrip enjoys 55% turnover using innovative time off systems, pay structures, and culture.

Mayo Clinic
Eric Erickson, Manager of Human Resource Systems and Business Analysis and Tripp Welch, Section Head, Human Resources

Earning Trust through Listening: Using Traditional Market Research Techniques Internally

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(6907Ko)

Based on the implications of the Service Profit Chain, learn how Mayo Clinic has used a variety of traditional market research techniques to gather input and more fully under­stand staff opinions to ensure staff satisfaction and ultimately create outstanding patient and customer service.

Baptist Health
Celeste Norris, Human Resources Director

Developing Employee Trust in Health Care Today

Baptist Health Care's culture is so unique that during the past four years over 1,100 health care groups and 5,000 health care professionals have visited the hospital to benchmark and learn about the strategies and guiding philosophies that have yielded its best practice results. Norris will talk about how employees are empowered through their involvement on teams, through peer recognition and through a program of bright ideas.

Alston & Bird LLP
Cathy Benton, Director of Human Resources

How This Law Firm Takes Its Work Seriously...but not Themselves

Law firms are known for high stress and long work hours. This forward thinking law firm has set a new standard in the legal industry for workplace culture. Cathy Benton will pro­vide the keys to this 110-year-old law firm's success in creating a great place to work. Learn how they continue to improve profitability while keeping morale high and turnover low.

Infosys Technologies Ltd.
Hema Ravichandar, SVP and Group Head

Building a Competency-Driven, High-Performance Workplace

This session will explain the role-based transformation process that Infosys initiated in 2001 and how the organization bene­fits from a competency-driven high-performance mantra. Learn how Infosys has addressed some of the challenges of their fast pace of growth, including how they integrate large numbers of new hires into their culture, inspire employees to deliver at their highest performance level, and create a strong leadership base to continue to lead the company to success

Great Place to Work^® Institute, Inc.
Amy Lyman, President and Co-founder

Prior to founding the Great Place to Work^® Institute, Amy Lyman, PhD, taught organi­zation development, systems theory and qualitative research methods. She began her consulting work while a research fellow at the Wharton Center for Applied Research. She authors many articles about business management issues and is a featured speaker at numerous management development workshops and conferences. Amy oversees the Institute's research and analysis, and has advised leaders in every stage of transforming their organi­zations into great workplaces.