The award-winning change agents at Kinexus of Benton Harbor may well have just scored their most prestigious honor to date. The team ensconced along Main Street in downtown Benton Harbor has been named one of the 2017 Best Nonprofits To Work For in the entire nation. That’s rare company — with only 50 organizations on the entire list nationwide.
The Nonprofit Times has partnered with Best Companies Group to identify nonprofit organizations that have excelled in creating quality workplaces for employees.
The prestigious survey and awards program is designed to identify, recognize and honor the best employers in the entire nonprofit industry, benefiting the industry’s economy, workforce and businesses. The list is made up of 50 organizations, and Kinexus is ranked 28th overall out of those 50. When broken down into their size segment, they jump up to 15th overall in the Medium Sized Organizations category with their staff of 62 employees.
Chris Randall is Chairman of the Board at Kinexus. Randall says, “The remarkable organizational culture at Kinexus pays important dividends for our community,” adding, “It’s great to see others recognize the intentional work by Todd and the Kinexus team to create this culture.”
Nonprofits from across the United States entered the two-part survey process to determine Best Nonprofits To Work For. The first part consisted of evaluating each nominated organization’s workplace policies, practices, philosophy, systems and demographics. This part of the process was worth approximately 25-percent of the total evaluation.
The second part consisted of an employee survey to measure the employee experience. This part of the process was worth approximately 75-percent of the total evaluation. The combined scores determined the top nonprofits and the final ranking. Best Companies Group managed the overall registration and survey process, analyzed the data and determined the ranking.
There was only one other nonprofit organization in Michigan to make the list, Cinnaire of Detroit, a community development financing agency, which ranked 36th overall and 20th in the Mid-Sized Organization category with 80 employees.
To be considered for this award, organizations were evaluated by the following criteria:
- Leadership and planning;
- Corporate culture and communications;
- Role satisfaction;
- Work environment;
- Relationship with supervisor;
- Training, development and resources;
- Pay and benefits;
- Overall employee engagement; and,
- Survey average.
Arnie Redsicker is Vice Chairman of the Kinexus Board. He says, “It’s an honor to serve on the Kinexus Board of Directors and to watch the culture evolve. Kinexus promotes a team atmosphere with both internal staff and external partners, which makes a difference in the work we do in Southwest Michigan.”
You can imagine the huge pride for Kinexus CEO Todd Gustafson who says, “We are extremely honored to be awarded one of the Best Nonprofits To Work For by The Nonprofit Times, the nation’s preeminent business publication for nonprofit management.” He adds, “We recognize that in order to solve the complex challenges our communities are facing, we must have a culture of attracting and retaining the best talent.”
While the first public announcement of the entire list and rankings of the annual Best Nonprofits To Work For was published by The Nonprofit Times on April 1st, it was anything but a joke to those who made the list.
Click this link for the April 2017 magazine file: 4-1-17_BestNonprofits_LR
For more information on The Nonprofit Times’ Best Nonprofits To Work For, click the link below:
www.BestNonprofitsToWorkFor.com
Kinexus is an organization that invests its time and resources into creating integrated solutions for business, workforce, and community challenges to promote economic vitality in the Southwest Michigan region. For more information, you can visit www.Kinexus.org, follow them on Twitter @KinexusGroup or “like” them on Facebook @KinexusGroup.
