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June 19, 2006 (Computerworld) -- "In some form, our IT group has been around for 50 years," says Jean Delaney Nelson, vice president and CIO at Securian Financial Group Inc. "And we've never laid off an employee."

In a fluid era marked by outsourcing and offshoring, those words are sure to grab the attention of IT professionals. And once St. Paul, Minn.-based Securian grabs, it hangs on. The financial services firm, which changed its name from Minnesota Life last year, boasts a 97.9% IT retention rate. Small wonder, then, that the 400-worker IT group ranks No. 13 on this year's list (see the full list of 100 Best Places to Work in IT employers).

13th Annual Report:
100 Best Places to Work in IT 2006

List of Best Places Winners

Interviews with Best Places IT organizations (see the complete Best Place to Work in IT 2006 special report)  uncover few secrets but much common ground where employee retention is concerned. The keys are careful hiring, a commitment to promoting from within, tireless training and -- perhaps most important -- challenging projects that offer workers the chance to handle hot technologies. Great benefits don't hurt, either.

Hiring and Promoting

It's easy to tune out when top executives talk about all the effort they put into hiring the right people. But our research indicates that Best Places companies do more than talk. For example, Securian says 95% of its present IT staff members were entry-level hires. Coupled with the company's high retention rate, this stat proves that it promotes extensively from within.

Anna Sullivan has worked at Securian for 12 years. A senior systems analyst, she says the company is tireless when it comes to staying current on technology. "I bet I've taken 50 to 75 training courses here," Sullivan says.

Once you've got a sharp worker, one way to keep him is to let him start making decisions right away. That's a tip from San Diego-based wireless vendor Qualcomm Inc., which ranks 23rd on this year's list.

"We push a lot of decision-making down in the organization, so people right out of school get involved," says Norm Fjeldheim, Qualcomm's senior vice president and CIO. As an example, he recalls how a technology team made up largely of junior staffers approached him in 2004 and suggested that virtualizing the company's servers would ease setup. In response, the CIO approved a $150,000 evaluation of VMware virtualization products.

Securian CIO Jean Delaney Nelson, pictured here with staffer Anna Sullivan.
Image Credit: Mark Luinenburg

Hiring managers must also be careful not to underestimate the urge to build an empire when the larder is full. Securian's Delaney Nelson says this has been a key to her group's ability to avoid layoffs. "Some compani

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Editors' Picks Computerworld's Salary Survey 2009 See results from our survey of more than 5,000 IT pros, and use our Smart Salary Tool to compare your pay with IT workers in similar jobs across the U.S. How to re-energize your weary workforce After weathering layoffs or pay cuts, your IT staffers may need some help getting motivated. Try these strategies for employee renewal. Top 10 free Windows tools for IT pros No Windows geek or PC support pro should be without these must-have utilities -- and they're all free. See more hot topics Get the latest news, features, opinions and more on key technology issues. hot topics Windows 7 Get the latest news, reviews and more about Microsoft's newest desktop operating system. Apple Microsoft Google iPhone Mac A to Z » See more hot topics special report topics View the top-rated IT workplaces. General Mills, Genentech, San Diego Gas & Electric, University of Pennsylvania and Monsanto top the list. More Special Reports 2008 Best Places to Work in IT 2007 Best Places to Work in IT 2008 Salary Survey 2007 Salary Survey 2006 Salary Survey 2009 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2008 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2008 IT Forecast 2007 IT Forecast 40 Years of Computerworld Top Green-IT 2009 Top Green-IT 2008 The FAQs About Going Green IT Schools to Watch iPhone: One Year Later Global Mobile Your Next Data Center Management: Reinventing IT Stop Data Leaks Web 2.0 Security Surviving Disasters Managing Storage Virtualization The Lean Storage Machine Storage on Trial Can Web 2.0 Save BI? Bypass These BI Potholes All Zones The SAS Zone Software Resource Center Mobile Security Disaster Recovery & Cost Savings Strategic Content Management Business Analytics Zone

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