Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For
Finding a best company to work for seems an elusive task for disillusioned young and older employees alike. Any employer worth its salt has recognized and responded to the shifting demands of the workforce in order to hold on to top talent. Like any youthful type, Gen Z is reckoning with working for “the man,” but our 27th edition of the Best Companies to Work For list, published with our partners at Great Place to Work, shows an emerging corporate equivalent of “the man in therapy.” Helping employees find meaning in their jobs, many of these best companies offer wellness benefits and a commitment to their workforce looking as diverse as the nation’s population. In practice, creating a more empathetic workplace looks like staying loyal to workers, emphasizing the needs of individuals with diversity and inclusion initiatives, and, naturally, paying employees well.
The Top Ten
Hilton Worldwide Holdings
+1 spotHospitality
Hotel giant Hilton, which rises to the top spot after coming in second in 2023, aspires to reach gender parity in global leadership roles and 25% ethnic diversity in U.S. leadership positions by 2027. Equitable learning and employee training are key internal goals, too: Hilton says it’s committed to creating 5 million learning and career growth opportunities for team members and communities, with a focus on underrepresented groups, by 2030. For Hilton staff, both corporate and franchised, the company’s network of resorts and hotels is a big benefit; employees and their loved ones can enjoy deeply discounted stays at almost any of Hilton’s worldwide properties. The company also chooses a small number of workers each year for its Thrive Sabbatical and Thrive Reset programs, which offer up to $5,000 and a month of PTO to recharge and pursue passions outside the office.
Cisco Systems
-1 spotInformation Technology
Cisco is slimming down: Although its headcount has barely budged over the past several years, the digital communications giant announced it would be letting go over 4,000 staff in February of 2024. But it hasn’t let that get in the way of its lofty ESG goals, which employees cite as one of the things they like best about Cisco. The San Jose–based company launched the Cisco Aspire Fund in 2020, through which it’s investing $50 million in startups led by diverse leaders and helping them grow by bringing them into the Cisco ecosystem. The company has committed to hybrid work as part of its long-term workplace model, drafting a set of ground rules on issues such as shared office space and sustainability, and engaging employees in conversations around workplace policies. To attract and retain workers outside traditional urban centers, Cisco is looking at shifting some facilities to smaller, more dispersed locations that are nevertheless easy to access through multiple means of transport, thus enabling customers and partners to visit and teams to collaborate in a hybrid way.
Nvidia
Information Technology
Even as the broader tech sector has shed tens of thousands of jobs, Nvidia continued its remarkable streak of nearly 15 years without any layoffs. As revenue almost doubled in 2023, the computing company, based in Santa Clara, Calif., also cut travel and trimmed expenses across the board and managed to guarantee annual pay raises. Nvidia prides itself on its “flat structure,” where employees are encouraged to solve problems quickly and collaboratively through projects, thus dispensing with the unnecessary strictures of job descriptions, reporting lines, or specific roles; there are never more than seven layers of management between junior employees and CEO Jensen Huang. Staff are also given a voice through triannual “pulse” surveys to gauge employee sentiment on topics ranging from diversity and inclusion policies to pursuing meaningful work. And as Nvidia has emerged as a key player in the AI boom, it’s committed to advancing trustworthy AI that reflects responsible and ethical social values.
American Express
Financial Services & Insurance
American Express has built its success as a globally integrated payments company through its connected workplace, the core of which consists of informal “coffee chats” that bolster employee collaboration, increase their visibility, and provide feedback to supervisors. This transparency and consistent employee input has proved vital in sustaining the Amex Flex hybrid and remote work system. Doubling its amount of free annual counseling sessions, Amex continues to expand its mental health services and also provides employee dependent care, eldercare, and support for parents of children with disabilities. Amex has maintained 100% pay equity for four years running and has exceeded its initial goal of providing, by 2024, capital and financial education to over 250,000 businesses run by underrepresented owners. Beyond sustaining connection and support within the company, Amex has pledged more than $30 million through 2024 as part of its Backing Small initiative to support economically vulnerable small business owners through grant programs, mentoring support, and technical assistance.
Synchrony
Financial Services & Insurance
Rising up from No. 20 on the list this year, Synchrony, one of the largest U.S. issuers of store-branded credit cards, has continued to spur efforts in building workplace belonging and making tangible moves forward in diversity, equity, and inclusion. Focusing on changes in leadership, Synchrony upped its Black and Hispanic employee representation at the vice president level and above; the company offers 30 leadership courses to all workers as well. The Synchrony Women’s Leadership Experience program, in particular, has helped female staff at the VP level break the glass ceiling: Almost half of the program’s participants have been promoted since its 2018 inception. The company has partnerships with Moms First, the Executive Leadership Council, and the Latinx Executive Alliance, among others. The company plans to invest $50 million in a five-year Education as an Equalizer initiative, with $20 million of the sum to be invested in grants for educational and skills-building opportunities for low-income and underrepresented students and individuals.
