In prior posts I have alluded to the benefits of working for Erickson Health, Retirement Communities, and the company as a whole. Well, we made it in Fortune 100 Top Places To Work! YAHOO!

Here is our press piece on this:
Erickson Retirement Communities is Named by Fortune Magazine
As Being one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” in the United States

Maryland-Based Company is the Only Retirement Developer/Provider on the List
      CATONSVILLE, MD (JANUARY 22, 2008) —FORTUNE announced today that Erickson Retirement Communities, which is headquartered in Catonsville, Maryland,   has been ranked 93rd  on the 11th annual “100 Best Companies to Work For” list.  The full list and related stories appear in the February 4th issue of FORTUNE, available on newsstands January 28th and at www.fortune.com on January 22nd.  Erickson is the only retirement developer/provider in the United States on this year’s prestigious list.
     
      “Our selection to this prestigious list signifies national recognition of your success in making Erickson a great place to work,” said John Erickson, founder, chairman and CEO of Erickson. “It affirms the success of our efforts to make employees feel valued through our quality programs and benefits, and of the power of our mission to serve.”

      A driving factor for the FORTUNE “100 Best Companies to Work For” list this year is that these companies excel in creating jobs.  The 100 companies on the 2008 list added 67,000 employees to their payrolls in the past year and employ a total of nearly 1.6 million employees; up 16% from the number employed by companies comprising last year’s list.

      The selection of Erickson to the FORTUNE’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list comes as the company prepares to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Charlestown in Catonsville, Maryland, its first community.  Erickson has grown from a tiny team of employees working in a small house on a seminary campus, to over 12,000 employees and 20,000 residents in 18 communities across 11 states. 
     
      This growth – which reached 14 percent  last year — contributed to Erickson’s selection as one of FORTUNE’s “100 Best Companies to Work For.”  Erickson’s future is brighter than ever, according to Steve Dollase, senior vice president for human resources. “We are positioned to continue our growth, nearly doubling our workforce and the number of residents that we serve by 2012.  We know that what distinguishes Erickson is our company mission, vision and values, and our focus on caring and serving our residents and fellow employees….and it’s exciting to see that acknowledged nationally.”

            Erickson, according to Dollase, has set the standard for excellence in the nation’s senior housing industry.  Comprehensive services available to people who live in Erickson retirement communities include transportation, grounds maintenance, housekeeping, etc. On-site amenities include restaurants; stores; fitness center with full-time trainers; and a medical center staffed by board-certified primary physicians who specialize in geriatrics and practice only in Erickson campuses.  Erickson campuses are uniquely self-sufficient, providing their own security and emergency response service. They also provide their own road repair, snow removal, and other services typically funded by the local government.  Erickson campuses have a positive economic impact on the greater communities where they’re located through real estate taxes, capital investment, community expenses, and the creation of about 1,000 new jobs per campus.

      Erickson campuses have earned a reputation for being good neighbors, giving back to the greater communities in which they operate through charitable donations, corporate sponsorships, employee volunteer programs, resident volunteerism, and scholarship programs for local college-bound students, and team participation in fundraising events to support local chapters of national organizations such as the Alzheimer’s Association. Erickson is committed to being a benchmark company for public responsibility and corporate citizenship; in 2006, Erickson gave more than $1 million in charitable contributions.

      Erickson’s insistence on quality, value, and integrity has attracted investment from some of the world’s leading financial institutions. The outstanding lenders that help bring the Erickson lifestyle to an ever-expanding population includes, among others, Bank of America, Citigroup Asset Management, CNL Retirement Corp., Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Morgan Stanley, Wachovia, and Ziegler Capital Markets Group.
     
            The Erickson enterprise includes Retirement Living TV, the Erickson Health System, the Erickson Advantage Health Plan, Renaissance Gardens assisted living/skilled nursing, the Erickson School, the Erickson Tribune newspaper, the Erickson Foundation, and NorthBay.
       
      To pick the “100 Best Companies to Work for”, FORTUNE works with Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz of the Great Place to Work Institute to conduct the most extensive employee survey in corporate America. Of some 1,500 firms that were contacted, 406 companies participated in this year’s survey. Nearly 100,000 employees at those companies responded to a 57-question survey created by the Great Place to Work Institute, a global research and consulting firm with offices in 30 countries. Most of the company’s score (two-thirds) is based on the results of the survey, which is sent to a minimum of 400 randomly selected employees from each company. The survey asks questions related to their attitudes about the management’s credibility, job satisfaction and camaraderie. The other third of the scoring is based on the company’s responses to the Institute’s Culture Audit, which includes detailed questions about pay and benefit programs and a series of open-ended questions about hiring practices, methods of internal communications, training, recognition programs and diversity efforts, etc. After evaluations are completed, if news about a company comes to light that may significantly damage employees’ faith in management, that company may be excluded from the list.

      Any company that is at least seven years old with more the 1,000 U.S. employees is eligible. The deadline for applying for next year’s list is March 31, 2008. For an online nomination form, go to www.greatplacetowork.com.

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