NEW YORK – Inc. magazine and Winning Workplaces announced the winners of the 2010 Top Small Company Workplaces competition – the best small and mid-sized places to work in the country – in Inc.’s June issue. A Yard & A Half Landscaping, based in Waltham, is the only business selected from Massachusetts. The 20 winners range from the New York Jets professional football team to Patagonia, the outdoor clothing designer and retailer.
A Yard & A Half Landscaping is an 18-person company that designs, builds and maintains sustainable landscapes and provides organic land and tree care throughout Greater Boston. Judges made special mention of the company’s peer-led bilingual training program for employees, flexible hours for parents, and accommodations for female workers who are breastfeeding.
“We are a family. Our employees take pride in their work and know they can grow here. Everyone in the company sees our financials and has a say in company decisions. I believe this is why we have so little turnover. With a well-trained and stable group of workers, we are able to provide our customers with a high level of service and consistent quality,” says Eileen Michaels, president and founder of A Yard & A Half.
This is the eighth consecutive year that Winning Workplaces, the Evanston, Ill.-based nonprofit organization, has recognized those firms that attribute much of their business success to their commitment to exemplary people practices and outstanding workplace cultures.
The common characteristics of the Top Small Company Workplaces include a commitment to aligning their workforce with a clear vision, mission, and values; communicating with openness and trust; and investing in employees’ continuous learning and development. These practices were maintained or strengthened as a means to weather the recession. Further, many winners chose to share the pain rather than lay off colleagues. Salary reductions were taken across the organization, starting with the CEO.
Winning Workplaces and Inc. received nearly 500 completed applications for the contest. A national panel of experts in leadership and small to mid-sized business judged the finalists based on specific metrics and qualitative assessments of their success in creating the kind of workplaces that engage employees and deliver successful results.
"This year’s winners show that the quality of the workplace can be a competitive advantage. I’m amazed at how well they have come through the recession. Clearly, their commitment to their values and people practices are an important part of this success," says Gaye van den Hombergh, president of Winning Workplaces.
"People want employers who care for and challenge them. And they want those employers to be financially healthy so they can keep caring for and challenging them far into the future. The 2010 Top Small Company Workplaces do just that. Their stories, in the June issue of Inc. magazine, are models of smart management and enlightened leadership," says Jane Berentson, Editor-in-Chief of Inc. magazine.
To read the 2010 Top Small Company Workplaces report, please visit Inc.