Inbox : Love to work here

When employees love going to work every day, companies find it easy to attract and retain staff, say the organisers of the JRA Best Workplaces Survey 2010.
And confectionery giant Mars proves it as this year’s top workplace, returning for its fourth time as finalist after winning the medium-large category in 2008.
This year car wholesaler, district council, stationery business and hospice were all finalists in the survey, which is New Zealand’s largest annual workplace climate-employee engagement survey. It uses confidential feedback from organisations’ employees to rate their employers.
This year 35 finalists from all over the country were contenders for the coveted title of Best Workplace.
Almost 31,000 employees from 245 organisations across the country took part in the survey this year, up from last year’s 216.
The 2010 finalists came in range of shapes and sizes from the small team of just 22 employees at Gopher business directory, to the 866-strong team at Warehouse Stationery.
Now in its 11th year, the Best Workplaces Survey has become the benchmark for best employer claims.
This year’s finalists’ employees responded to 60 questions, grouped into categories such as culture and values, learning and development, reward and recognition, communication and co-operation.
JRA managing director John Robertson says it is encouraging to see large number of organisations still entering the survey, and the high level of staff satisfaction, despite difficult economic conditions for some.
“The JRA Best Workplaces Survey gives employees the chance to have their say, and provides employers with some fantastic feedback on what is working and how happy and satisfied their people are.
“Finalists and winners rightly use their result to attract and retain the best staff and improve market perceptions of their organisation,” he says.
Mars New Zealand was also winner of the medium-large size category and other winners by size from the 35 finalists were Redvespa Consultants in the small category, The Retail Institute in the small-medium category and Warehouse Stationery in the large category.