Methodology: In January 2007, companies nominated for Computerworld's Best Places to Work for IT list received a 100-question survey asking about their organizations' average salary and bonus increases, percentage of IT staffers promoted, IT staff turnover rates, training and development programs, and the percentages of women and minorities in IT staff and management positions. In addition, information was collected on each organization's method of rewarding outstanding performance, its retention programs and its benefits, ranging from child and elder care to flextime and reimbursement for college tuition and technology certifications. Here's a look at the aggregate data from those 100 winning companies.
The top 10 lists below show the very best of the best - the companies that excel in five areas of employment: diversity, career development, retention, benefits and training. To determine the top 10 lists, we considered the following factors:
Diversity: Percentage of women and minorities in staff and managerial positions.
Training: Average number of training days and average cost of training per IT worker per year.
Career development: Mentoring programs and tuition reimbursement for college classes and technical certifications.
Retention: Frequency of employee satisfaction surveys, turnover rate, promotions and corporate communication initiatives.
Benefits: A range of benefits, including sabbaticals, health and vision benefits (percentage paid for by the company) and long-term care.
The Tops
Best Places for Diversity
1. University of Miami
2. The Capital Group Cos.
3. Booz Allen Hamilton Inc.
4. Miami Dade College
5. Fairfax County Public Schools
6. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
7. Memorial Health Services
8. Harrah's Entertainment Inc.
9. Temple University
10. Southern California Edison Co.
Best Places for Career Development
1. Comerica Bank
2. Paychex Inc.
3. Apollo Group Inc.
4. Corning Inc.
5. The Schwan Food Co.
6. Commonwealth Financial Network
7. National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
8. The Reader's Digest Association Inc.
9. University of Miami
10. General Mills Inc.
Best Places for Retention
1. National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
2. Commonwealth Financial Network
3. Quicken Loans Inc.
4. Creighton University
5. Englewood Hospital and Medical Center
6. University of Miami
7. H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
8. The Reader's Digest Association Inc.
9. Informatica Corp.
10. Sharp HealthCare
Best Places for Benefits
1. H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
2. SAS Institute Inc.
3. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
4. University of Pennsylvania
5. Comerica Bank
6. Quicken Loans Inc.
7. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp.
8. Sharp HealthCare
9. General Mills Inc.
10. Aflac Inc.
Best Places for Training
1. Commonwealth Financial Network
2. National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
3. The Mitre Corp.
4. The Capital Group Cos.
5. Informatica Corp.
6. Verizon Wireless
7. Creighton University
8. University of Miami
9. BAE Systems Information Technology
10. Securian Financial Group Inc.
The Typical Best Place . . .
By the Numbers
$8.1 billion in revenue
74 years in business
29,993 total number of employees
904 total number of IT employees
33 percentage of IT staff members who are women
33 percentage of IT managers who are women
25 percentage of IT staff members who are minorities
16 percentage of IT managers who are minorities
$240.6 million IT budget
$2,143 spent per IT employee on training
7 training days offered annual for IT staff
42 hours is the average workweek
More Statistics of Note
32% have merged with or acquired companies or divested business units since Jan. 1, 2006
14% of companies have an acquisition, merger or divestiture now pending
97% have budgeted for salary increases for IT employees in 2007, on average by 4%
81% have budgeted for bonuses for IT employees in 2007
9% IT staff turnover rate for the latest fiscal year, on average
12% IT staff promoted in the latest fiscal year, on average
49% said their training budgets per IT employee will increase in 2007 compared with 2006
81% were profitable in their latest fiscal year
71% have a formal mentoring program for IT employees
Hiring Forecast
Percent of companies that expect the number of U.S.-based IT staffers
64% to increase in 2007, on average by 7%
3% to decrease in 2007, on average by 6%
33% to remain the same in 2007
Where Are They?
Mid-Atlantic: 20 - Pacific: 9 - Mountain: 2
North Central: 34 - New England: 6 - South Atlantic: 23
South Central: 6
What They Do
Finance 13%
Insurance 11%
IT Consulting 10%
Education 9%
Health/medical services 9%
Energy/utilities 5%
All other industries 43%
Top 5 Benefits Offered
Highest percentage of companies that offer
Health insurance 100%
Paid vacations 100%
401(k)/403(b) plan 100%
Flexible hours 99%
Pretax programs for uncovered medical expenses 99%
Bottom 5 Benefits Offered
On-site child care 31%
Backup child care 30%
On-site concierge 25%
Company-subsidized child care 24%
Paid sabbaticals 11%
Formalized Feedback
How often does your company survey IT staffers about job satisfaction?
More than once a year 24%
Once a year 42%
Once every two years 31%
Never 3%
Top 5 Retention Methods
Competitive benefits 100%
Competitive salaries 99%
Work/life balance 99%
Flexible work hours 98%
Tuition reimbursement 98%
Top 5 Company-sponsored Activities
Company gatherings (company picnics, holiday parties) 100%
Personal/wellness development opportunities 99%
Open forums with company management 98%
Support for community service 96%
Community/team building 95%