The Cost of a Great Workplace: 2005 Benchmark Research Findings
Benedictine University, Kindlon Hall, Room 164 (Get Directions)
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The research of Robert Levering of the Great Place to Work Institute began in 1980 on the practices that lead to a great workplace. This has been the inspiration for numerous international, national, state, city, and industry recognition programs. The most familiar is Fortune Magazine's annual list of 100 Best Companies to Work For. Each of these recognition programs has the same intent: to benchmark companies who have deployed workplace practices that lead to higher levels of employee engagement, customer satisfaction, and profits. OD professionals have always known what practices lead to these organizational results. But, the question that has yet to be answered is:
What is the optimum investment of Time, Money, and People required to create a great workplace?
Brian Lowenthal, Managing Partner, The Benchmark Partners, will present breakthrough research, gathered from Great Place to Work Companies, that finally answers this question. Also, the research will answer these additional questions that OD professionals have been asking:
- Have companies recognized as "Great Places to Work" reached a stage of diminishing returns?
- Is there a statistically significant difference in the HR processes "Great Places to Work" companies invest in vs. the investments of other companies?
- Can "Great Place to Work" companies spend less than their peers and achieve the same or better results?
- To what extent is the Value Discipline of a company a differentiating factor in HR investment?
Please join us for the answers to these questions and a lively discussion examining the latest benchmark research on "Creating a Great Workplace for Your Employees."
Presenter:
Brian Lowenthal
Brian D. Lowenthal is a co-founder and Managing Partner of The Benchmark Partners. In twenty-five years as a business professional, he has been a corporate executive, organizational consultant, and business owner.
As a Vice President of Human Resources, (first with Dots, Inc., a retail apparel company, and later with Bonne Bell, a consumer products company), he designed, developed, and implemented HR Strategic Plans aligned to the organization's business strategy. He has expertise in the deployment of HR technology, has implemented HR practices that have significantly increased the level of employee engagement, and built HR scorecards. Brian was the first Director, Organizational Development, at Express, Inc., the largest division of The Limited, where he facilitated the creation of their Balanced Scorecard.
As a consultant, he has worked with Fortune 100 companies, as well as start-up organizations. He was Regional Vice President for Development Dimensions International, and led the global HR Benchmarking practice for The Hackett Group, a division of Answerthink, Inc. His expertise includes organizational and HR strategy development, executive coaching, benchmarking, culture change, individual and organizational assessment, and leadership development.
Brian's clients have included: Synovus Financial, Motorola, Starbucks Coffee Company, Carlson Companies, Mattel, Kohler Company, Freddie Mac, Textron, Lockheed-Martin, Hard Rock Café, Bose Corporation, and Ariel Capital Management.
An internationally recognized speaker on benchmarking, HR Strategy, Measurement, and Organization and Leadership Development, Brian is an active member of SHRM and the HR Planning Society. He earned Bachelor of Science degrees in Business Education and Business Administration from Illinois State University, an MBA from Roosevelt University, and is currently teaching Human Resources at Cleveland State University.