Most workplaces in Connecticut and across the globe have been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.

Many people are still working from home and the typical employee handbook has been rewritten as companies face new rules and regulations on how they can operate.

For some businesses, it’s been a challenge to cope with the changes. Others have thrived, including the companies highlighted in this special issue of the Hartford Business Journal.

Today, we are revealing our 2021 Best Places to Work rankings, and if you read our winner profiles you’ll better understand the company cultures and perks that engender employee loyalty and appreciation, particularly during a once-in-a-century pandemic.

Our winners are vetted and chosen by the Best Companies Group, a third-party research firm based out of Harrisburg, Penn. You can read more about them below, but each year, along with the list of winners, they provide survey results that show some of the perks most commonly offered by the companies that make our Best Places to Work list. Of the 31 companies that qualified as honorees for this year’s competition, the survey found:

• 84% match employee contributions to an employee’s retirement savings plan account;
• 65% pay at least 75% of their employees’ health insurance premiums;
• 71% allow employees additional paid time off for community service activities/volunteer work;
• 87% offer telecommuting options while 84% off flexible hours or a compressed workweek:
• 81% provide fitness and/or wellness programs or benefits.

Beyond the perks, our Best Places to Work also had employees who prized their work environment. Of the employees surveyed from this year’s winning companies:

• 93% said they understand their companies’ long-term strategy and have confidence in their organizations’ leadership;
• 95% said they like the work they do;
• 89% said they look forward to going to work each day;
• 82% said they receive fair pay for the work they perform;
• 80% said there was room for advancement at their company.

This year each company profile also highlights various steps honorees have taken to cope with the pandemic while also keeping their workers productive, safe and healthy.

As much as this special section aims to celebrate this year’s group of winners, it’s also meant to be a training tool for other employers to learn new ways to create an engaged workforce.

How the ranking process works:

The Best Places to Work in Connecticut program was created by the Hartford Business Journal and Best Companies Group to identify and recognize best places to work in the state of Connecticut. The program is managed by Best Companies Group, a third-party research firm that manages similar programs all over the United States and in Canada.

The Best Places to Work in Connecticut program was open to all public or privately-held organizations, either for-profit or not-for-profit.
To be eligible for consideration, companies must have had a total of 15 or more employees working in the state of Connecticut. Companies with headquarters in another state, but a physician location in Connecticut with 15 or more employees, were also eligible.

Participation in this program required organizations to go through a workplace assessment process, which included surveying their employees, as well as taking an inventory of the company benefits, policies and offerings.

The information was processed and analyzed by Best Companies Group and then used to determine the Best Places to Work in Connecticut.

All participating companies went through a two-part workplace assessment process. Part one of the assessment (worth 25% of the evaluation) consisted of an employer questionnaire about benefits, policies, practices and other general information.

Part two of the assessment (75% of the evaluation) consisted of a 72-question, confidential employee engagement and satisfaction survey.

This comprehensive, two-part assessment allowed the workplace experts at Best Companies Group to perform an in-depth analysis of each company’s strengths and weaknesses and ultimately determine which companies deserved to make the list.

Companies received the in-depth employee feedback report, which showed the percent of positive responses for each of the 72 questions, along with the percent of positive responses within seven demographic categories (gender, age, ethnicity, duration of employment, full- or part-time status, job role, and department).

Companies received state benchmarking reports in which they could compare themselves against list-making companies and all participating companies.

More information about Best Companies Group is available at www.BestCompaniesGroup.com.

Information on the Best Places to Work in Connecticut program can be found at www.bestplacestoworkinct.com.