Last week a group of Nina Hale Inc. employees had the honor of attending the Best Places to Work luncheon hosted by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. This was the second year in a row that NHI placed in the top 30 of the small company category (10-100 employees). The results were culled from independent employee surveys through Quantum Workplace, and awards went to the top-ranked companies. The surveys asked employees to answer 37 questions on topics including how things work on a day to day basis, people practice, work environment, and overall employee satisfaction.
Ryan Estis gave a great keynote where he talked about how growing a successful business is dependent on finding the best talent and harnessing it by setting up expectations, building trust, giving employees opportunities and experiences to grow, and then recognizing their contribution to the company. There are so many ways to recognize employees – and the bar is set high with some of the best places to work in Minnesota!
I’d say we are lucky to have some of the most talented and remarkable people on staff and we are rewarded with all sorts of fun perks like our annual outings to the Twins Game, the State Fair, an annual holiday party at Bryant Lake Bowl, our Tres de Mayo celebration, a boat trip on Lake Minnetonka, the Segway tour, a hotel/vacation lottery, each member of the staff being able to attend a conference, etc. Some of our favorites from the event included walking treadmills and bicycle desks, trips to Mexico and Switzerland, tax services, company cabins, and work hours allotted for volunteering.
Ultimately, it’s about creating an environment where people feel they belong, harnessing their potential, and building loyalty which in turn means success, even in the hardest of economic times. We were definitely in a room full of stiff competition (especially when it comes to company perks!) – but glad to be in such good company.
