Another in a series of posts highlighting GreatPlaceJobs’ workplaces.

By Natalie Roig, GreatPlaceJobs Research Assistant

SAS Institute is one of the largest software companies in the world. SAS has sustained excellence in product development and customer support since 1976 and has focused on their primary mission-delivering superior software and enhancing customer relationships. SAS products are used by over 45,000 customers worldwide and by 92 of the top 100 companies on the 2009 Fortune Global 500 list.

SAS Institute’s employee focused philosophy is if you treat employees as if they make a difference to the company, they will make a difference to the company. The heart of SAS is that satisfied employees create satisfied customers. The SAS president is quoted saying, “We’ve worked hard to create a corporate culture that is based on trust between our employees and the company.”.SAS employees work in an environment that fosters and encourages the integration of the company’s business objectives with their personal needs.

SAS is committed to being a contributing corporate citizen. Since 1976, SAS has been dedicated to academics and has been supporting educational causes. Education is one of SAS’s passion and mission. SAS provides many education opportunities for their employees. To look for jobs with SAS Institute, join GreatPlaceJobs.

SAS Institute in the news:

On June 15, 2009, SAS was ranked as one of the top employers in information technology by Computerworld magazine. The magazines annual “Best Places to Work in IT” featured 100 working environments for technology professionals. Categories include benefits, diversity, career development, training and retention. More than 27,000 IT workers were surveyed. SAS was ranked 19 in this year’s survey out of 100.

On May 28, 2009, SAS developed a product called SAS for Mobile Interaction which was named Communication Solutions Product of the Year by TMC Group. SAS is the leader in business analytics software and services. SAS for Mobile Interaction combines capabilities from SAS Digital Marketing and SAS Marketing Automation to improve customer intimacy via mobile devices. The Product of the Year Award exemplifies the best this industry has to offer. With hundreds of applications this year, the judging process was difficult. SAS demonstrates a commitment to quality and continued development of the communications industry.

Another in a series of posts highlighting GreatPlaceJobs’ workplaces.

By Natalie Roig, GreatPlaceJobs Research Assistant

QuikTrip is a convenience store found in nine states that offers guaranteed gasoline and a truck fleet diesel fueling program. QuikTrip has been listed on Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to work for since 2003. QuikTrip’s mission statement

The mission statement of QuikTrip exemplifies a commitment to quality: “To be the best gasoline, convenience and food retailer in the eyes of our customers, our competitors and our employees.”

QuikTrip takes great pride in their store employees by offering great career salaries, flexible job schedules and great job benefits. QuikTrip hopes to advance their employees in all aspects of their careers. QuikTrip has five core values:

1. Be the best.
2. Focus long term.
3. Do what’s right for QuikTrip.
4. Never be satisfied.
5. Do the right thing.

Applying these five core values encourages employees to not only be the best representatives of the company, but also to grow in the corporate world. QuikTrip has many opportunity for employment. There are two types of full-time assistant manager positions. Part-time employees include clerks that assist in the operation of the store during peak sales periods. There are also several hundred personnel in non-store employment positions throughout the company.

QuikTrip also offers student employment opportunities.  Students are placed as assistants working the night schedule and as part-time clerks. The students are then eligible for $4,400 a year worth of tuition in addition to their career salaries. To look for jobs with QuikTrip, join GreatPlaceJobs.

Senior Financial Analyst

Job Summary:
This position provides analysis & reporting for manufacturing production & related expenditures which includes standards development and budgeting in accordance to the Mars accounting policies and procedures.  Assists in identifying and implementing improvements related to efficiencies and controls where appropriate.  Provide support and training to manufacturing associates as required. This position also provides support & resources to all departments within the company as it relates manufacturing and plant activities to ensure financial integrity of corporate and plant assets.
 
Key Responsibilities:
Perform cost benefit analysis
Support the annual budget process provide direction for site managers
Suggest process improvements where actionable
Implement, Review & Provide training on transaction processes for accuracy and internal control guidelines
Provide transaction process training as required
Provide plant level performance evaluations and reporting
Partner with engineering and production to create, develop and finalize production standards for products produced
Maintain costing tables and standards for materials, labor and overhead for the facility
Assist in inventory reporting and valuation
Prepare plant cost information for timely closing of financial period end, including journal entries support, key account reconciliations and variance analysis
Support operation management, manufacturing and supply chain functions through cost and operational analysis
Provide analysis of key performance indicators and trend reports for manufacturing costs
Perform ad hoc cost/operations analyses in support of continuous improvement efforts
Maintain Mars Petcare compliance to accounting for production spending outlined by Mars Finance Manual.
 
Key Skills Required:
Ability to interact and communicate with all levels of employees
Ability to use PC and widely-used software packages, especially spreadsheet and word processing software
Ability to learn new software packages as necessary
Knowledge and ability to apply financial analysis principles
Strong Excel knowledge and skills
Professionalism and ability to resolve issues at the root cause
Self directed and self motivated
 
Minimum Qualifications:
2 year(s) of experience in related job particularly with manufacturing experience
The knowledge, skills, and abilities typically acquired through the completion of a bachelor’s degree program in a related field, or equivalent work experience.
Advanced Microsoft Excel capabilities
Ability to travel 20% of the time
Successful completion of a drug and background screen

Preferred Qualifications:
6+ years of experience in related job particularly with manufacturing experience
MBA degree
CPA or CMA certification
Supervisory experience

As a privately-held, family-owned company, Mars Petcare US offers benefits which reflect our commitment to attracting and retaining great people. This includes excellent pay, competitive health and dental care coverage, a retirement plan, a very competitive vacation plan and unrivalled career advancement opportunities, to name just a few of our unique and generous benefits.

If you’re looking for a place where you can take ownership for your work, where the pace is fast, the environment is built around the importance of open communication, and where employees are called “associates” and treated as such, then we want to hear from you.

We value a diverse work environment and encourage qualified individuals to apply, regardless of race, religion, disability, national origin, veteran status, gender and age. Mars Petcare US is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer.

Apply here, and tell them that you heard about the position at GreatPlaceJobs!

This is the second in a series of posts highlighting some of our great place employers.

By Natalie Roig, GreatPlaceJobs Research Assistant

Great place employer Whole Foods Market is the world’s leader in natural and organic foods, with over 270 stores worldwide. Whole Foods Market seeks the finest natural and organic foods available, maintains the strictest quality standards in the industry, and has an unshakable commitment to sustainable agriculture. Whole Foods Market obtains products locally and from all over the world, but strives to support local communities, to practice sound environmental stewardship and to fulfill our responsibilities as global citizens.

Whole Foods Market maintains a foundation called The Whole Planet Foundation. Its mission is to create economic partnerships with the poor in those developing world communities that supply their stores with products. They seek to “unleash the energy and creativity of every human being in order to create wealth and prosperity in emerging economies.”

Great employer…

Whole Foods Market is on Fortune Magazine’s list of the 100 Best Places to Work. It is a great place employer, in part, because of their mission driven company. The mission of Whole Foods Market is “Whole Food-Whole People-Whole Planet.” Whole Foods Market believes that their people are their company. They take full advantage of self-directed team culture and work to create respectful workplaces. They aim to treat all employees fairly and encourage them to be highly motivated to succeed in all aspects of life.

Whole Foods Market in the news…

Over the Christmas holidays, Whole Foods Market and Feeding America teamed up to donate $1million worth of food to the homeless. This was the largest charitable, domestic hunger-relief endeavor, with a network of more than 200 member food banks and food-rescue organizations. To read more, click HERE.

Interested in joining the Whole Foods family? They are currently offering jobs that range from entry level jobs to corporate level jobs. Find opportunities to work for Whole Foods and other great workplace organizations at www.greatplacejobs.com.

We’d love to hear from current and past Whole Foods employees about what it’s like to work there.  Please feel free to post your comments below.

GreatPlaceJobs is happy to share a ground-breaking study comparing layoff trends between top-rated and other Fortune 100 companies.  The findings clearly demonstrate that the biggest employers are not necessarily the best.

The study shows that companies recognized as great workplaces conducted layoffs at a rate of less than half that of a general sample of companies.  Only 35% of excellent employers laid off workers in 2008, as opposed to a shocking rate of 73% of regular companies.

The revenue growth rate at great workplace companies in Q3 2008 was 27.4% higher than the rest of the Fortune 100 and the average stock price of the excellent employers was close to 10% higher at the end of 2008 (compared to the beginning of 2008) than typical Fortune 100 companies.

“In this competitive marketplace, it is crucial for job seekers to target their efforts at finding positions with top-ranked employers, such as those featured on GreatPlaceJobs.com. Award winning companies are more likely to survive the current recession without suffering layoffs or a bankruptcy,” said Asher Adelman, founder and CEO of GreatPlaceJobs.  “Top-ranked employers have proven themselves to be much more recession-proof than the average company.”

The GreatPlaceJobs Great Workplace Employment Study compared the employment, financial and operating data of the Fortune 100 largest U.S. companies with the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For.  The year-over-year revenue growth in Q3 2008 was much stronger at the great workplace companies, who, despite the rapidly deteriorating economy, achieved impressive revenue growth of 29.9% from Q3 2007.  In comparison, the Fortune 100 largest companies delivered revenue growth of only a paltry 2.5% in Q3 2008 in the same time frame.

A clear sign of the great employers’ competitive advantage and resilience is evident in the fact that nine of the Fortune 100’s largest companies filed for bankruptcy or were bailed out by the U.S. government in 2008, while none of the great workplace companies failed on this magnitude.

A complete copy of the GreatPlaceJobs Great Workplace Employment Study and additional information about the methodology may be requested via email: contact@greatplacejobs.com.

Miriam Salpeter
GreatPlaceJobs Career Advice Expert
www.keppiecareers.com

Are you still waiting for things to look up in the job market? You may be waiting a while…All indications are that we are in for a bit of a bumpy road for the next patch. But, all is not lost for job seekers! Did you know that workplaces that have been recognized as “great,” such as those highlighted here on GreatPlaceJobs, historically outperformed the general market and are less likely to have to resort to layoffs during tough times?

These award-winning employers typically offer better job security, which is a terrific benefit for anyone who needs a job!

In fact, the Wall Street Journal notes that socially responsible investing has actually done well this year compared to benchmarks. Despite odds stacked against them, the article states:

As of Oct. 30, a total of 15 out of 91 faith-based and secular socially responsible funds that invest in stocks had outperformed the Dow Jones Industrial Average benchmark, some by more than 10 percentage points, according to investment researcher Morningstar.

Among the best performers is Parnassus Workplace Fund, which outperformed the Dow, was sprung from Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For.” The principle of companies treating employees well is the driving force for the fund.

Fund manager Jerome Dodson notes:

“As time goes on, I’ve become convinced that investing in a company that’s a good place to work will do very well for you over time,” Mr. Dodson says. “There’s a connection. When you get this kind of socially good management, you get overall good management.”

The fund’s screening process includes gauging corporate governance and good accounting practices — factors that also reflect better-managed companies, Mr. Dodson says. Among his non-Fortune picks are Baldor Electric, a Fort Smith, Ark.-based maker of motors and generators. The company has a literacy program for its employees, and 15% of its pretax profits go to its workers.

Fortune Magazine touts its winning companies as firms that “not only pamper employees in good times, they look out for them in bad.”

Let’s face it, when companies are laying off workers left and right, wouldn’t it be comforting to be employed by an organization that strives to define itself as one where “trust between managers and employees is the primary defining characteristic?”

The Great Place to Work® Institute, which produces FORTUNE’s 100 Best Companies to Work For® list, measures workplaces by three relationships:

• The relationship between employees and management.
• The relationship between employees and their jobs/company.
• The relationship between employees and other employees.

This is not to say that award-winning employers don’t sometimes experience financial crisis just like the rest of the competition, but when statistics show these companies outperforming the market and trust and relationships serve as philosophical underpinnings of these organizations, it makes sense to turn to designated great workplaces during difficult financial periods. GreatPlaceJobs is here to help connect you with the very best rated employers!

Miriam Salpeter
GreatPlaceJobs Career Advice Expert
www.keppiecareers.wordpress.com

Should You Be Looking for a Better Job? Take Time to Choose Your Organization

Marketing guru and author Seth Godin recently noted:

“The single most important marketing decision most people make is also the one we spend precious little time on: where you work… Think about this for a second. Your boss and your job determine not only what you do all day, but what you learn and who you interact with.”

This is an excellent point! How much time do you spend thinking about the type of organization where you’d like to work? It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to recognize that your workplace impacts your quality of life, both in and outside of work hours.

When possible, it is a good idea for professionals to evaluate their work lives and create goals for initiating change if the workplace isn’t living up to standards. ITWorld asked the question: “Is your workplace drowning in a sea of anxiety?” These are their suggested evaluation criteria:

1. Do people take sides with other people instead of taking stands on issues? Do they form coalitions and/or cliques?
2. Do people assert their territory to the detriment of the organization as a whole? Are feuding, back-stabbing, and turf wars a way of life?
3. Do work groups tend to come to rapid agreement, with very little discussion or dissent?
4. Do particular individuals or departments tend to be blamed consistently for organizational problems?
5. Is there a problem with disruptive employee turnover? Are people constantly quitting due to job stress or dissatisfaction with the organization?
6. When conflicts and problems arise, are people exhorted to show more “team spirit”?
7. Does leadership send out conflicting instructions and mixed messages? Are organizational objectives contradictory or unclear?
8. Do people tend to avoid conflict by avoiding each other altogether? Do they hide out in their offices or cubicles, neglect to return calls, etc.?
9. Is “improved communication” considered the solution to all problems and conflicts rather than making decisions that are based on solid principles?
10. Is high productivity emphasized as the key to organizational well-being? Do you get the feeling that people are overworked?

If your answer to most of these questions was an emphatic yes, you probably are dealing with a level of anxiety that’s too high to be healthy—for your employees or for the company itself.

Step back and try to objectively evaluate your workplace. It is easy, in a seemingly downward spiraling economy, to get caught up in the idea that just having a job is good enough. The fact is – jobs continue to be available. If you are a top performer and/or have great job seeking materials and skills, you may very well be able to find a more desirable workplace.

Miriam Salpeter
GreatPlaceJobs Career Advice Expert
www.keppiecareers.wordpress.com

Want to Avoid Stress At Work? Seek Job Offering Respect, Appreciation, Trust…

By Miriam Salpeter

Today, I spoke to a networking contact who is so miserable at work, she has taken a medical leave of absence because her job is, quite literally, making her physically ill. There is no question that a stressful work environment is bad for workers, both in mind and body.  The Mayo Clinic lists the following typical reasons for stress at work:
•    Conflict between co-workers
•    Conflict with your supervisor
•    Not being appropriately paid for what you do
•    Not having the necessary equipment or resources to succeed
•    Lack of opportunities for promotion
•    Having little or no say in decisions that affect you
•    Fear of losing your job through downsizing or outsourcing

If you are experiencing any of these situations, you are not alone. In an economy where employers are seeking to do more with less, many workers will be spared a pink slip, only to wonder if their laid off colleagues actually got the better deal. Stress builds upon itself, with managers expected to perform well and workers trying to get more done with fewer people.

An article in the Christian Science Monitor notes that, “Study after study has shown that it is the small things that make workers feel committed to an organization.” Barbara Glanz, an author specializing in workplace issues, says, “One study shows the top three things workers want interesting work, full appreciation for the work they do and a feeling of being in on things.”  The article quotes a professor of psychology at Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, CA, “Workplace happiness depends on two components – the individual and the institution.”

The article highlighted several intangibles workers want most, according to experts (commentary is my own):

1. Appreciation, including praise. This free, but sometimes overlooked incentive is something that tops the list of things employees seek from their managers.  Supervisors who go out of their way to let employees know what they have done right may reap rewards even beyond those able to offer financial incentives.

2. Respect. I can’t imagine an employee who does not want the respect of coworkers and management. Joan Lloyd At Work, a consulting firm, suggests that employers “Treat employees with the same respect you would show to the CEO.” They note that employers who strive for this goal will gain employees who value their organization.
 
3. Trust. This is another important element that doesn’t cost an employer money. The American Management Association cites a nation-wide survey of 500 employees by Bacon, a Durango, Colorado-based workplace consultant and coach, that found  that 90% of workers rank honesty, fairness and trust as their top three needs.

4. Individual growth. In a competitive marketplace, it is really up to the individual to be sure that professional development is part of their job. Employees whose organizations support and encourage this earn high marks from workers.

5. A good boss. Having had both difficult and fabulous bosses in my career, I can personally attest to the impact a boss has on an employee happiness factor!  Research shows that people often leave a job, not because of money or similar issues, but because they cannot stand their immediate supervisor.

6. Compatible co-workers. Having good colleagues can be an answer to many a workplace problem. If you feel good about the people around you (with whom you probably spend more time than you do with your family), you can probably forgive a lot of other issues in the workplace.

If your organization isn’t fulfilling your needs in these areas, you’ve come to the right place! GreatPlaceJobs only posts positions from specifically certified employers designated as “excellent” based on criteria such as having a culture based on trust, fairness, respect, open communications, recognition and camaraderie. When you search this database, you know that every organization represented has been scrutinized and/or has won awards as a high-quality place to work!

Miriam Salpeter
GreatPlaceJobs Career Advice Expert
www.keppiecareers.wordpress.com

Looking for a job is hard work. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a friendly and knowledgeable guide to answer the questions that inevitably come up along the way? I am delighted to have the opportunity to help you navigate your job search as GreatPlaceJobs’ exclusive career advice expert. Check back to read posts addressing the topics on your mind, including why it’s worth it to find a job with a good employer, how to optimize your search efforts, resources for your hunt, tips on best resume writing practices, interviewing advice and more! 

I have been helping clients plan and execute successful job hunts for over 10 years. I coach, write resumes and speak about job transition issues and social networking. I hope you’ll also consider joining me on my company’s blog, www.keppiecareers.wordpress.com, where I post frequently. To learn more about my background and credentials, please click here.

Miriam Salpeter
GreatPlaceJobs Career Advice Expert
www.keppiecareers.wordpress.com