BCBusiness Magazine and MindField Group have teamed up to conduct the Best Companies to Work For in BC survey process. Data collection, data analysis, and generating of reports will be conducted by MindField Group, while selected company interviews and publication of the ranking will be conducted by BCBusiness magazine.
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The overall purpose of the survey is to uncover the Best Companies to Work for in BC based, primarily, on employees’ perceptions.
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In each organization, the Best Companies to Work for in BC survey:

• Provides employees with an opportunity to give feedback on company practices.
• Compares how leaders’ perceptions and employees’ perceptions are aligned, enabling identification on congruence and potential disconnects.
• Identifies company strength and opportunities to celebrate successes.
• Identifies gaps between where the company is and where the company needs to be and grow as a BC Best Company.
• Sets benchmarks for the comparison and measurement of progress and change from year to year.
• Provides the opportunity to purchase and receive action-oriented recommendations for improvements and supports the creation of strategies to overcome obstacles and build powerful companies.

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• In today’s tight talent market, distinguishing yourself as a Best Company is a winning strategy for attracting and retaining top talent. Take this opportunity for the possibility of being ranked as one of The Best Companies to Work For in BC!
• Interested in increasing your employer profile? Participation provides your organization with the opportunity to be selected for an interview by BCBusiness magazine about your best practices and profiled in the cover story: The Best Companies to Work For in BC.
• Employee Surveys are an important way for companies to benchmark their practices, celebrate their successes, and identify their greatest opportunities for improvement. This is your annual opportunity to take advantage of a complimentary Employee Survey process. Each participating company will receive 2 reports free of charge; one summarizing your organization’s overall results, and a second ranking report showing how your organization’s results compare to other participating organizations.
• In addition, you have the opportunity to purchase more detailed reporting to really get at the heart of the issues affecting your company.

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In the past there has been a lot of interest in participating from small and medium sized companies – and now you can! Any organization that has 25 or more employees* in BC can participate.

* Employees refers to all individuals employed by the company and receiving a regular paycheque and /or regular payment for ongoing services from the company. This includes all individuals, partners, and associates that contribute to the operation of the company through the work they do and the services they provide. If you are not sure about the inclusion of a specific group of individuals, please contact bestcompanies@mindfieldgroup.com for clarification.

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All employees in BC are eligible to participate. Employees outside of the province are not eligible. However, out of province surveys can be arranged, please contact bestcompanies@mindfieldgroup.com for more information.
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The intake dates for this year’s awards are as follows:

• Intake Date #1: TBA
• Intake Date #2: TBA
• Intake Date #3: TBA

3-4 weeks following your survey time frame – Delivery of complimentary rating report
3-4 weeks following your survey time frame – Delivery of optional / customized reports – as per your organization’s specific requirements (optional, for fee)

September 2012 – BCBusiness magazine interviews selected companies
November 2012 – Annual Best Company to Work For in BC Awards Gala
December 2012 – BCBusiness magazine special issue: Ranking of the Best Companies to Work for in BC
December 2012 – Delivery of complimentary ranking reports
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In 2011 there are 12 categories and new opportunities to win!

• Hospitality
• Retail
• Other Consumer Services
• Financial Services
• Energy and Resources
• Manufacturing, Construction and Distribution
• Professional Services and Communications
• Public Sector, Non-Profit and Crown
• Life Sciences and Health Services
• Digital Technology and Technological Services
• 25-50 Employees (Small Business Category)
• Overall Winner

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The Best Companies to Work for in BC survey focuses on four key areas of talent management. These include: talent systems, employee engagement, leadership dynamics, and organization culture.
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Are you hesitant to participate because you think you may not be a Best Company? Even if you don’t rank, your organization will get the information it needs to support future success.Participation will provide you with baseline data that you need to identify where your practices are supporting your success and where they are falling short. This will arm you with the information you need to make meaningful changes and improvements that will move your organization forward on the journey to becoming a Best Company.

There is no perfect time to begin participating in the process; however, the key factor to ensuring successful participation in the Best Companies to Work for in BC process, is the commitment of the senior leadership team to act on the results. If your leaders are ready to act, your company is ready to participate and reap the rewards.

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The Employee Survey process is completely confidential. At no time are participants asked to provide their name on the survey. All completed surveys will be sent directly to MindField Group, who will conduct the data collection and analysis. Only MindField Group will see the raw data. Reports will provide data in summary / aggregate form only. At no time will anyone outside of MindField Group see a completed survey.
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Data from the Company Survey and Employee Survey will be transmitted using an industry-standard protocol for secure, web-based communications.
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Participating organizations not selected as winners will NOT be identified, and the names will not be published or released in any manner. Only the top companies in each category will be identified.
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The Best Companies to Work For in BC survey measures employee satisfaction in four key areas of talent management systems, including:

Talent Systems- An integrated set of Human Resources processes practices and tools that align the recruitment, retention and development of an organization’s talent with current and future business requirements.

Employee Engagement – The degree to which employees commit to the organization at both a rational and emotional level. Engagement levels are directly related to business performance as committed employees are more likely to stay with the organization and put in extra effort over and above what is expected.

Leadership Dynamics – Considers the behaviours (conscious and unconscious, productive and unproductive) of the leadership group and the nature of the relationships within the leadership of the organization.

Organization Culture- The set of beliefs, values and behaviour patterns which characterize an organization. An organization’s culture is reflected in practices such as:

• Habits of thinking
• Communication patterns
• Decision making styles
• Operating styles
• Organizational structure
• Symbols, rituals

MindField Group will gather all the data collected from each company and rank the information from both the Company Survey and the Employee Survey. A minimum number of employees, determined by your company size, must complete the Employee Survey in order for your organization to be included in the ranking. Participation rates will also be part of the ranking weight.

Rigorous data reviews will be conducted to ensure validity of responses. The overall ranking process is weighed by employee participation rate (10%), Company Survey (20%) and Employee Survey (70%). The highest ranked organizations in each category will be declared ‘The Best Companies to Work for in BC’.

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There is no charge to your company for participation! Your company will be responsible for completing the Company Survey and for distributing instructions to employees during the Employee Survey. Following the survey process you will receive 2 complimentary reports – one summarizing your organization’s results and another outlining how you rank in comparison to other participating organizations. If you wish to receive more detailed reporting or add additional demographic questions to your survey, they may be purchased from MindField Group. To see a full list of additional reporting options please click here to visit our ‘Reports’ page.
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Please click here to be included in the 2011 Best Companies survey. If you have any questions, please email us directly at bestcompanies@mindfieldgroup.com.
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The Company Survey is an online questionnaire designed to collect information about your organization’s approach to managing talent including talent systems, employee engagement, leadership dynamics, and organization culture. It provides a picture of the way that your organization’s leadership views the company’s practices and their intent.
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The Company Survey portion of the process will be a questionnaire consisting of approximately 60 closed-ended questions (on a five-point scale) and one open-ended question. The questionnaire will be completed by a senior representative of the organization (preferably top HR).
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It will take the respondent approximately 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the detail and length of your open-ended response.
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The Company Survey will cover the following topics:

• Talent Systems: Human Resources processes, practices, and tools that align the recruitment, retention and development of an organization’s talent with current and future business requirements.
• Employee Engagement: The degree to which employees commit to the organization at both a rational and emotional level.
• Leadership Dynamics: Considers the behaviours of the leadership group and the nature of the relationships within the leadership of the organization.
• Organization Culture: The set of beliefs, values, and behaviour patterns which characterize an organization.

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Send us an email at bestcompanies@mindfieldgroup.com and let us know. We will re-send your company URL to your company’s designated contact.
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The Employee Survey portion of the process gathers input directly from participating organizations’ employees. It is not what you do, but what employees think about your practices that truly defines the best companies to work for in this province. The data gathered from employees provides information about employees’ perceptions of your practices and is a way to measure the relationship between the intent and the reality of your organizational processes and practices.
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The survey will give each employee:

• A chance to share their unique perspectives and experiences of the company in a safe and confidential way.
• A way to provide open, honest feedback that can be used to positively change the company.
• An opportunity to affect the future of the company.

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The Survey Administrator will coordinate the survey completion plan developed by the organization. The Employee Survey process will primarily be conducted online. Paper administration is only an option for organizations with employees who do not have access to computers and hard copy submissions will be subject to processing fees. Employees will submit their completed surveys (either electronic or hard copy) directly, in confidence, to MindField Group. Please contact bestcompanies@mindfieldgroup.com to discuss paper administration options and cost.
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No. The survey is completely confidential. Employees will not be asked to identify their name anywhere on the survey. No one at the company will see the individual surveys. All completed surveys will be sent directly to MindField Group.
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The Employee Survey consists of 52 scaled questions, 4 open-ended question and 3 standard demographic categories. In addition, the option to customize demographic categories, additional customized questions and reporting is available for a fee.
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Approximately 15 minutes.
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The Employee Survey will cover the following topics:

• Talent Systems: Human Resources processes, practices, and tools that align the recruitment, retention and development of an organization’s talent with current and future business requirements.
• Employee Engagement: The degree to which employees commit to the organization at both a rational and emotional level.
• Leadership Dynamics: Considers the behaviours of the leadership group and the nature of the relationships within the leadership of the organization.
• Organization Culture: The set of beliefs, values, and behaviour patterns which characterize an organization.

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In the past, only a sample of employees were invited to participate in the survey. Starting in 2007, the ability to invite all employees to provide feedback was implemented. This provides more reliable information for participating organizations and increases the validity of the ranking.

In order to be included in the ranking the following minimum participation rates were established based on organization size:

• 25 – 50 employees → 80%
• 51 – 100 employees → 65%
• 101 – 500 employees → 50%
• 501 – 3000 employees → 40%
• 3000 + employees → 35%

The higher the participation, the better, as the participation rate counts for 10% of the overall ranking (Company Survey = 20% and Employee Survey = 70%).
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The exact method on how to distribute the survey URL to employees is the company’s decision. The method will depend on internal resources, geographical makeup, and the number of employees in the organization. Possibilities include; internal email / mail, posters or notices in a central location (for example: a lunch room), etc.
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Yes. The Employee Survey is located on the worldwide web and can be completed from any computer that has access to the internet, including from home.
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To maximize your benefits from the process, please invite all employees* to participate – union and non-union, full-time, part-time, and hourly employees to participate…everyone…including you!

* Employees refers to all individuals employed by the company and receiving a regular paycheque and / or regular payment for ongoing services from the company. This includes all individuals, partners, and associates who contribute to the operation of the company through the work they do and the services they provide. If you are not sure about the inclusion of a specific group of individuals, please contact bestcompanies@mindfieldgroup.com for clarification.

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