Three St. Louis-based companies made Fortune Magazine’s inaugural list of “50 Best Workplaces for Diversity,” and two placed in the top 10. World Wide Technology was ranked No. 7, Build-a-Bear Workshop No. 9 and Monsanto No. 30.
Fortune partnered with Great Place to Work, Essence and People en Español to survey companies that make inclusiveness a top priority. Rankings were compiled using employee feedback and representation of minorities and women. More than 128,000 women and 69,000 minorities contributed to the survey.
“There are perks-a-plenty at this global systems integrator based in St. Louis that says 21 percent of its employees are minorities,” Fortune reported of World Wide Technology. “It offers $20,000 for college reimbursement, massage sessions, and telecommuting, which is utilized by 70 percent of employees. But the best perk may be its onsite health centers, which can be used by employees and their families.”
World Wide Technology also was ranked one of the 10 best workplaces for Asians in the same report.
“All employees at Build-a-Bear start training in the same spot: working at one of the company’s 244 stores across the U.S.,” Fortune reported of the No. 9-ranked company. “Everyone ‘experiences serving our guests,’ says Arvetta Powell, the company’s director of ‘dibearsity.’ To help move careers forward, there’s a formal mentor program that enables junior employees to pick an area of the company where they want to work. A mentor provides formal guidance for one year.”
“While the seed producer has plenty of ways to build a career with professional groups and leadership exchanges via offline relationships, it has also built an online mentoring tool,” Fortune reported of Monsanto. “Employees can ask questions, seek specific people for advice, or even set up coaching. It’s a way to ‘network and build relationship with folks,’ said Dipal Chaudhari, a brand manager. Just don’t expect a response on weekends, as there’s an informal rule of no emails when you’re off the clock.”
Fortune also ranked the nation’s 10 Best Workplaces for African Americans. They were: Quicken Loans, Credit Acceptance, Ultimate Software, Alliance Data, Navy Federal Credit Union, CarMax, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, QuikTrip, JM Family Enterprises and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
