More than 2,500 companies were nominated or asked to participate in the 2017 Top Workplaces awards by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and its partner Workplace Dynamics. Employees across the metro area responded to print and online solicitations that began appearing in September.
To determine the top workplaces of the year, Workplace Dynamics, a human resources consulting company, surveyed 275 Atlanta-area companies that agreed to participate — a total of 60,000 metro workers.
Employees were asked to respond to a set of statements using a seven-point Likert scale. Each statement was tested to ensure a high correlation with how local employees rate their workplaces. This was calculated by correlating the statement responses to a control question that asked each employee to rate his or her workplace on a scale of zero to 99.
The one common theme across the winning companies was that they earned the loyalty and affection of their employees by investing in their well-being.
Using survey results, a list of 150 workplaces was compiled, consisting of 25 large companies (500 or more employees), 50 midsize companies (150-499 employees) and 75 small companies (149 or fewer employees).
The winners were honored at the 2017 AJC Top Workplaces event on March 21 at the Georgia Aquarium.
Woodward Academy, which serves 2,703 children in grades Pre-K to 12, is the 2017 Top Workplaces large employers winner.
Industrial automation company AutomationDirect.com was the top medium workplace. The Cumming business also earned the top midsize spot in 2012 and 2014.
Beloved by employees for its perks, flexibility and support from leadership, Alpharetta residential mortgage broker Supreme Lending is a repeat winner (it also won in 2014) for best small workplace in metro Atlanta.
