NEW YORK – Nixon Peabody LLP, whose Providence office opened in 1993 at One Citizens Plaza, has been ranked by Fortune magazine among its 100 Best Companies to Work For, the law firm announced today.
“We are thrilled to be a Best Place to Work for the third year in a row,” Harry P. Trueheart III, chairman of Nixon Peabody, said in a statement today. “We are pleased to be in the same company with the nation’s most respected companies and intend to continue our focus on being the best firm to work for and the best firm to work with.”
The firm – one of four law firms on the 2008 list – was ranked as No. 66 this year. Nixon Peabody was chosen partly for its policies for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees, Fortune said, and partly because it targets 3 percent of billable hours for pro bono work.
Last year, its GLBT policies won the firm places on two other lists: the Human Rights Campaign’s Best Places to Work for GLBT Equality, for the second year in a row; and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s sixth annual Corporate Equality Index (READ MORE). Nixon Peabody’s Providence office was ranked by Providence Business News as one of the Best Places to Work in Rhode Island in 2007 (READ MORE).
“Our firm is a Best Place to Work because of our people,” said William Simpson, director of human resources Nixon Peabody. “We believe our deep commitment to diversity is important to our success. We have been creating an employee culture of success and teamwork for many years, and it’s a journey that continues.”
Any company that is at least seven years old and has more than 1,000 U.S. employees is eligible to be considered for the list. Rankings are based on results from a survey that must be filled out by at least 400 randomly selected employees at each company.
This year, Fortune magazine contacted 1,500 firms, 406 of which participated in the survey. Two-thirds of the score is based on employee responses to queries about management credibility, job satisfaction and camaraderie. The other third is based on management responses to questions on topics including work force demographics, pay and benefits, compensation practices, management philosophy, internal communications policies and diversity efforts.
About 100,000 employees participated in this year’s 57-question survey, put together by the Great Place to Work Institute, a research and consulting firm, said Fortune magazine.
Nine other companies with local operations also were ranked by Fortune magazine among its 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2008. They were:
• No. 7: Starbucks (www.Starbucks.com), the inescapable Seattle-based coffehouse chain, chosen despite “rapid expansion [that] led to a difficult year,” Fortune said.
• No. 16: Whole Foods Market (www.wholefoodsmarket.com), the Austin-based vendor of natural and organics foods, which “opened a record 21 new stores in 2007,” including one in Garden City, Cranston, “and also acquired Wild Oats in a $565 million deal.”
• No. 36: Nordstrom (www.nordstrom.com), the Seattle-based retailer, which Fortune said “has an excellent record in advancement of women.”
• No. 51: Paychex Inc. (www.paychex.com), a payroll services company serving small and mid-sized businesses from more than 100 offices nationwide, including one in East Providence. “Training is key” to Paychex’ high score, Fortune said; this Rochester, N.Y.-based company provides an average of 107 hours per employee.
• No. 57: Ernst & Young (www.ey.com), the New York City-based accounting and financial services firm. “Over three months in 2007, E&Y built the fastest-growing recruitment group on Facebook, and it now has more than 12,200 members,” Fortune said.
• No. 71, KPMG (www.us.kpmg.com), also based in New York City, where benefits include “generous time off” and most workers “said they are encouraged to balance work and family life.”
• No. 72: Marriott International (www.marriott.com). The annual turnover rate at this hospitality giant, based in Washington, D.C., “is among the lowest in the field,” at 18 percent, Fortune said.
• No. 89: Bright Horizons Family Solutions (www.brighthorizons.com), a child-care provider based in Watertown, Mass., is one of the few winners whose annual income is tallied in millions rather than billions. Caregivers at its 639 centers – including one in Providence and one in West Greenwich – “get benefits … not generally available in the field.”
• No. 90: PricewaterhouseCoopers (www.pwc.com), a financial services firm based in New York City “sweats the small stuff,” Fortune said, down to giving umbrellas to NYC workers on rainy days.
• No. 97: FedEx (www.fedex.com), teh Memphis-based delivery service, which the magazine said “continues a no-layoff philosophy, offers health insurance to retirees and part-timers, and promotes from within.”
Nixon Peabody LLP is one of the nation’s largest law firms, with 17 offices including Providence; Boston; New York City and Rochester, N.Y.; Chicago; Los Angeles, San Francisco and Silicon Valley, Calif.; Washington, D.C.; and London. Its 700 attorneys collaborate across 25 major practice areas. Nixon Peabody has been recognized by American Lawyer Media as a Global 100 firm.To learn more, visit www.NixonPeabody.com.
Additional information, including Fortune magazine’s full 2008 list of the “100 Best Companies to Work For,” visit www.fortune.com. The full list will also appear in the Feb. 4 issue of Fortune, available on newsstands Jan. 28.
