TOP WORKPLACES
How the San Diego Humane Society cares for its people
By Roxana Popescu UNION-TRIBUNE
Getting licked repeatedly in the face by a wiggly puppy isn’t in the typical job description for a CEO. But then, this isn’t a typical job.
At the San Diego Humane Society, CEO Gary Weitzman is constantly working toward two goals: taking care of animals and taking care of people. Not just the people from the public who come in to relinquish animals, adopt or access the nonprofit’s many other programs and services, but the 720 people who work there.
“We have a culture here that we really take seriously. It’s our culture of care,” Weitzman said in a recent interview at the Humane Society’s Linda Vista headquarters. “It sounds hokey, but if we can’t take care of each other and make this a great experience for people, then we’re not going to be able to take great care of animals and the people in our community. So it’s really the bedrock of the Humane Society.”
That focus has made the 144-year-old nonprofit one of San Diego’s Top Workplaces in the large company category.
Flanked by his two dogs — Rosie, a German Shepherd with lustrous fur and an elegant snout, and kissy Millie — Weitzman said in the same breath that he isn’t qualified to give advice about how to lead a top workplace and offered this succinct pearl.
“Be present. Be honest. And care.”
Be present: Senior leaders frequently visit each of the nonprofit’s campuses, from Oceanside to Escondido to Ramona, to stay connected.
He’s also keenly aware his employees live in a high cost of living region. “We look at our wages constantly. We try to be above the living wage scale for San Diego, which is already very, very high,” he said. Wages start at $20. “We have health plans that don’t cost the employee anything,” he added. Eligible workers get sabbaticals and flexible schedules to let people find better balance, Weitzman said.
Be honest: This requires listening, noticing and introspection. What do people need to do their jobs well and be supported? Could the organization be more inclusive, more equitable?
When it comes to offering perks and benefits, like bring your pet to work and hybrid schedules, Weitzman has felt conflicted. On one hand,
it feels great to let employees have these options. On the other, it troubles him that not all employees do have these options, because not every job comes with an office or tasks where a little friend can tag along.
As one alternative, the Humane Society lets employees “check out” an animal and host it, on site, for the day. That’s a win for workers, and also for animals.
Care: “Not a single person works here that isn’t completely devoted to the cause,” he said.
One of those people is Dr. Danielle Clem, the Humane Society’s hospital director. Her work is challenging. Complex. Emotionally charged. Rewarding. Months ago, she repaired the broken leg of a mountain lion cub who was then
rehabilitated and released — only to be run over and killed. More recently she neutered an 11-week-old puppy who wiggled playfully in her calming hands after his surgery. He is on track to being adopted.
“Our medical teams go above and beyond everyday,” she said.
Clem said she values the nonprofit’s “culture of compassion and inclusion. I’m very involved in the DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) committee here, and so we’re always planning celebratory events and just learning from each other and helping each other grow,” she said. The nonprofit recently launched its Native American land acknowledgement, a result of DEI work. One more example: People helping animals (or people) can experience compassion fatigue — when a caregiver or health care provider feels depleted. So they started “compassion rounds,” a play on medical rounds. They meet and talk about how work is affecting them. “It’s important for us to take a break and really just talk about and support each other when times get tough,” she said.
Amid a nationwide veterinarian shortage, the Humane Society snagged Clem about 10 years ago, first as an intern. She has stayed, even knowing her skills are in high demand.
“I could probably make a lot more money at a corporate type hospital, but I choose to work here because I value my happiness and my mental health more,” she said. “I really believe in the work that I do here, and I like having the freedom to just focus on what the animals need, and not having to worry about, you know, an estimate that needs to be fulfilled.”
Dr. Gary Weitzman, president and CEO of the San Diego Humane Society, is licked by his dog Millie, right, while posing for a photo with his other dog Rosie in his office in San Diego. MEG MCLAUGHLIN / U-T PHOTOS
Dr. Danielle Clem, hospital director for the San Diego Humane Society, works with puppy Bruce at the Humane Society on Oct. 15 in San Diego.
TOP WORKPLACES TOP-RANKED COMPANIES
LARGE COMPANIES WITH 500 OR MORE EMPLOYEES IN THE REGION
1. Booz Allen Hamilton
Founded: 1914
Sector: consulting
Description: Consulting firm with experts in analytics, digital solutions, engineering and cyber.
Local employees: 600
2. Mission Federal Credit Union
Founded: 1961
Sector: credit union
Description: A member-owned, not-for-profit, full-service financial institution exclusively serving San Diego County.
Local employees: 600
3. Marsh McLennan Agency
Founded: 2008
Sector: insurance consultants and brokers
Description: Provides business insurance, employee health and benefits, retirement, private client insurance to organizations and individuals.
Local employees: 652
4. Hologic Inc
Founded: 1985
Sector: medical devices and products
Description: A medical technology company focused on women’s health.
Local employees: 1,079
5. Valley View Casino & Hotel
Founded: 2001
Sector: casino
Description: Valley View Casino & Hotel, which is owned and operated by the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians, combines slots, luxury hotel rooms and six bars.
Local employees: 985
6. Aya Healthcare
Founded: 2001
Sector: staffing
Description: A health care staffing and talent software company.
Local employees: 1,500
7. Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers
Founded: 1996
Sector: restaurants
Description: Has more than 700 restaurants in 36 states and five countries.
Local employees: 783
8. Guild Mortgage Company
Founded: 1960
Sector: mortgage lending
Description: Offers pilot and specialized residential mortgage products and local in-house processing, underwriting and funding.
Local employees: 624
9. Sycuan Casino Resort
Founded: 1983
Sector: casino
Description: Sycuan recently completed a $260M expansion, which includes a 12-story luxury hotel tower with more than 300 guest rooms and 57 suites.
Local employees: 2,511
10. Panda Restaurant Group
Founded: 1973
Sector: restaurants
Description: The parent company of Panda Express, Panda Inn and Hibachi-San.
Local employees: 1,611
11. Cox
Founded: 1898
Sector: other services
Description: Its primary divisions are Cox Communications and Cox Automotive. Its emerging businesses include cleantech and agriculture.
Local employees: 1,138
12. San Diego Humane Society Founded: 1880
Sector: nonprofit
Description: Provides animal services for 13 cities within San Diego County.
Local employees: 654
13. Charles Schwab
Founded: 1973
Sector: investment management
Description: Provides brokerage, banking, and financial advisory services through its operating subsidiaries.
Local employees: 866
14. Sempra & SDG&E Founded: 1998
Sector: utilities
Description: San Diego Gas & Electric, a subsidiary of Sempra, is an energy company.
Local employees: 5,082
15. Viejas Casino & Resort
Founded: 1991
Sector: casino
Description: Viejas Casino & Resort offers casino, luxurious resort accommodations, dining, shopping and entertainment.
Local employees: 1,600
MIDSIZE COMPANIES WITH 150-499 EMPLOYEES IN THE REGION
1. Evotek
Founded: 2014
Sector: value-added reseller
Description: In addition to architecture and engineering, Evotek offers advisory services and strategic sourcing to help bridge the gap between IT and business. Local employees: 190
2. Community Interface Services
Founded: 1983
Sector: human and social services
Description: To assist people with developmental disabilities in reaching their individual potential for community participation and independence, the mission of Community Interface Services is to provide individualized, communitybased support and training in employment, housing, community living and other related services. Local employees: 1733
3. Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa
Founded: 2004
Sector: hospitality, entertainment, recreation and travel
Description: This AAA Four Diamond boutique hotel and 2022 Condé Nast Readers’ Choice Award winner features 10 acres of gardens, courtyards and adobe fireplaces. Meandering pathways lead to 210 garden guest rooms and suites. Local employees: 2504
4. Palomar
Founded: 2014
Sector: specialty insurance
Description: Offers protection for earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and other disasters.
Local employees: 2375
5. Symons Fire Protection Inc.
Founded: 1993
Sector: security and protection
Description: Specializes in the design, installation and repair of fire
sprinkler systems for residential and commercial properties.
Local employees: 160
6. Toward Maximum
Independence
Founded: 1981
Sector: human and social services
Description: Provides assistance in areas like employment, community living and family support to children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Local employees: 227
7. Vividion Therapeutics
Founded: 2014
Sector: biotechnology
Description: Advances a broad, diversified pipeline of multiple, selective small molecule therapeutics for highly sought-after disease-causing target proteins in oncology and immunology.
Local employees: 235
8. Blanchard
Founded: 1979
Sector: business services
Description: Delivers leadership and management development training.
Local employees: 150
9. Manna Development Group
Founded: 2003
Sector: restaurants
Description: Operates more than 150 bakery cafes in 10 states.
Local employees: 200
10. TrellisWare Technologies
Founded: 2000
Sector: wireless communication
Description: Develops advanced algorithms, waveforms and communications systems that range from small form factor radio products to fully integrated solutions.
Local employees: 227
11. Edward Jones
Founded: 1922
Sector: financial advisers
Description: Financial service firm that helps clients manage wealth and retirement needs.
Local employees: 210
12. Housecall Pro
Founded: 2013
Sector: mass market apps/software
Description: Helps home service professionals in plumbing, electrical,
cleaning and other field service businesses with scheduling, dispatching and payments.
Local employees: 216
13. The Classical Academies
Founded: 1999
Sector: primary, secondary schools
Description: It oversees more than 4,500 K-12 students at free charter campuses in Escondido, Vista, Oceanside and online.
Local employees: 481
14. Rock West Composites
Founded: 2006
Sector: aerospace, defense
Description: Supplies custom components with strict engineering requirements for multiple markets including aerospace, defense, science, research, energy, marine, medical devices, sporting and consumer goods, and industrial applications.
Local employees: 226
15. Dr. Bronner’s
Founded: 1948
Sector: consumer goods
Description: Produces eco-friendly liquid and bar soaps.
Local employees: 367
16. ASI Hastings
Founded: 1952
Sector: heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration
Description: Its services include plumbing, air conditioning and heating.
Local employees: 250
17. USG — SD
Founded: 1902
Sector: building products
Description: Its wall, ceiling, flooring, sheathing and roofing products enable its customers to build the spaces where people live, work and play.
Local employees: 290
18. Crest Beverage LLC
Founded: 2009
Sector: distribution, logistics and freight
Description: It has four business units: Reyes Beer Division, Martin Brower, Great Lakes Coca-Cola Bottling and Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling. Crest Beverage is a part of Reyes Beer Division.
Local employees: 380
See MIDSIZE COMPANIES on Page 15
TOP WORKPLACES LARGE COMPANY LEADERSHIP
Collaboration and feedback are key components
Nonprofit welcomes involvement from its employees in an effort to achieve its vision of financial empowerment
By Rob Nikolewski UNION-TRIBUNE
After serving eight years as chief financial officer at Mission Federal Credit Union, Doug Wright moved up to chief executive in March, following the retirement of longtime CEO Debra Schwartz.
Mission Fed is the largest member-owned, not-forprofit, full-service financial institution serving San Diego County.
“My job as a leader is certainly to develop and establish a vision. But that vision should be a shared vision.”
— DOUG WRIGHT
With 34 local branches, the credit union has nearly 300,000 members and assets of more $6 billion.
In its 63-year history, Mission Fed has made a conscious effort to foster a collaborative environment between its employees and members — a trait that Wright underscored during a conversation in his office at Mission Fed’s headquarters in Scripps Ranch.
Wright is being recognized this year for his leadership in the Top Workplaces special awards for a large company category.
This interview has been edited for space and clarity.
Q: Why do you emphasize the collaborative approach?
I really believe that all of us bring good ideas and different perspectives. My job as a leader is certainly to develop and establish a vision. But that vision should be a shared vision.
I don’t think one person develops a really strong vision without significant feedback from all of the other players and staff members.
The more that you involve people and the more that they participate, the more they’re excited they become about the vision as well.
Q: How are you able to focus if you’re getting so much input from so many different people?
I think it’s about establishing a relatively defined process so that you are establishing ways and means by which people can provide feedback.
Then it’s narrowing down that focus into a much more defined set of
strategies or ideas that one can act on.
Q: So what is the vision, the strategy, for Mission Fed?
Our vision is really around financial empowerment. Mission Fed is a notfor-profit organization, which means the funds we receive and the money we earn goes back into serving members. The other thing is trying to make the complex simple.
We are living in an increasingly complex financial world so our hope is that we make those
facts less complex and make it easier to bank with us.
Q: In your company bio, it mentions how you value access to financial literacy. Why is that important?
Our society does a lot of things really well, but one of the things we don’t do very well, starting in an early age, is educating people about how to manage their finances.
If you are more financially literate, you’re going to make better decisions around spending
and saving. That can help you handle emergency expenses — when the car breaks down or something goes wrong in your home or whatever the case may be.
But you’re also better prepared for the longer term — whether that is starting a new business, buying a car, buying a home and ultimately being able to retire at a time and in a manner that you want.
As a credit union, we have a really strong set of solutions that are available to members.
DOUG WRIGHT CEO OF MISSION FEDERAL CREDIT UNION
Doug Wright is the president and CEO of Mission Federal Credit Union. ALEJANDRO TAMAYO / U-T
How the winners of the San Diego 2024 Top Workplaces were chosen
By Bob Helbig
How do you judge the quality of a workplace? Ask the experts: The employees.
For the 12th year, employee survey firm Energage has partnered with the Union-Tribune to determine the best places to work in San Diego County. It’s not a popularity contest, and not everyone gets a blue ribbon. A select few are honored based on a scientific survey process.
Energage administers an employee survey that covers 24 factors and takes just a few minutes to complete. The survey asks employees to offer feedback about such things as pay and benefits, direction, leadership, meaningfulness and appreciation. Energage crunches the feedback data and scores companies based on the responses.
There is no cost to participate in Top Workplaces and no obligation to purchase any product or service. For 2024, 3,284 organizations were invited to survey their employees, and 124 agreed to do so. Based on the survey
feedback, 93 have earned recognition as San Diego Top Workplaces.
“Being honored with a Top Workplaces award is a distinctive mark of excellence, setting companies apart in a recognizable way,” said Eric Rubino, Energage CEO. “Top Workplaces embody the highest standards, and this award, rooted in authentic employee feedback, is a point of immense pride for company leaders.”
The award is open to any employer with 50 or more employees in San Diego County. Survey results are valid only if 35% or more employees respond; employers with fewer than 85 employees have a higher response threshold, requiring responses from at least 30 employees.
Employers earn Top Workplaces recognition if their aggregated employees feedback score exceeds national benchmarks. Employers are grouped into similar sizes to best compare similar employee experiences.
Energage has established those benchmarks based on feedback from about
30 million employees over 18 years. They are ranked within those groups based on the strength of the survey feedback.
There are a few reasons why you might not find a particular company on the list. Perhaps the organization chose not to participate. Or, the employee survey feedback might not have been strong enough to merit recognition. It also might not have been large enough to meet participation standards, or not enough employees responded.
Energage runs tests on survey feedback and in some cases may choose to disqualify organizations, for example, if a high number of employees said they felt pressured into answering positively.
To participate in the 2025 Top Workplaces awards, or for more information, go to the nomination page at sandiegouniontribune.com/ nominate.
Helbig is media partnerships director for Energage, an employee survey company based in suburban Philadelphia.
WORKPLACES MIDSIZE COMPANY
Estancia hotel celebrates workers with competitive pay
‘My coworkers make me laugh, make me look forward to coming into work,’ says one of the La Jolla hotel’s 275 employees
By Lori Weisberg UNION-TRIBUNE
Seven months into the pandemic, the once robust staff of 225 at the Estancia La Jolla Hotel and Spa had been decimated. Just 44 employees were left as COVID restrictions forced cutbacks, and workers reassessed their career choices.
Now, four years later, the 10-acre resort boasts a staff of 270, easily eclipsing its pre-pandemic workforce, a phenomenon that hotel general manager Eric Jenkins attributes to decent pay and benefits, but just as important, a company culture that regularly rewards and honors its employees for a job well done and seeks to include them in internal decisionmaking.
A return to normalcy, though, wasn’t so easy following such a devastating pandemic that took a particularly big toll on the hospitality industry, Jenkins acknowledges.
“In 2021, it was all about how to attract talent and get seasoned veterans back in the hotel again,” said Jenkins, who had arrived in September of 2020. “It was about figuring out how employees could have work-life balance and retain the things that happen to attract people to the industry, which includes interacting with human beings.”
Just as the hacienda-style resort was working to regain its financial footing, it was put up for sale. By the end of 2021, it had a new owner — Maryland-based Pebblebrook Hotel Trust, which subsequently invested $26 million in a resort-wide renovation.
“Having competitive pay and benefits is the most
important thing but if you want to retain talent. You have to have engagement programs, communication channels and development opportunities,” Jenkins said.
That may well explain why Estancia earned a UnionTribune Top Workplace award for midsize companies this year.
Employee comments in a survey by Energage for the Top Workplaces initiative offer a window into the kind of environment Jenkins says the hotel tries to foster among workers.
“My coworkers make me laugh, make me look forward to coming into work, and support each other 100% of the time,” said one employee. Pay for non-tipped workers at Estancia generally
mirrors the hourly wages earned by employees at comparable San Diego hotels, says Jenkins, and as the local minimum wage has climbed steadily each year, the hotel’s hourly workers have seen their pay boosted at a similar pace. Housekeepers start at $20 to $22 an hour, well above minimum wage, while the pay for cooks is $20 to $25. Beyond financial benefits, Jenkins offered up some examples of the sorts of initiatives the hotel undertakes to promote inclusivity, camaraderie and recognition: Food truck Friday. The hotel brings in a local food truck, providing complimentary lunch and dinner for the day. Cuisine can vary, from street tacos and burritos to pizza, burgers and sushi.
Two annual parties, one in June and another in January. The June gathering is a day of games and prizes, raffles and a food and beverage spread for the employees. The postholidays celebration recognizes the team member and manager of the year. In addition, there’s a raffle that includes fairly generous prizes such TVs, iPads, laptops, gaming systems and hotel stays.
A Thanksgiving meal shopping spree where the hotel sets up a mini farmers market for employees. A shopping bag in hand, they can select all the ingredients for their meal, from whole turkeys and ham to fresh produce.
On the philanthropic side, the Estancia has three employee-led committees focusing on community volunteer work, environmental issues and diversity and equity within the hotel. Each year, for example, employees will organize a beach cleanup or walks for breast cancer.
The hotel also places a premium on communicating with its workers, soliciting their input, in addition to offering opportunities for career development, Jenkins said.
“We have a monthly roundtable where I sit with a cross section of the employees to get their ideas, and I’ll follow up with all the actions we take based on the ideas they brought to the table,” he said.
Jenkins also has what he calls a “shadow” program where workers can spend a day or two — while getting paid — in another hotel department to see whether another discipline in hospitality appeals to them.
“I have 15 team members who were promoted after a shadow day,” Jenkins said.
Estancia hotel workers — from left, Leslie Diaz, Olga Gonzalez and Felipe Gomez — prepare for an event at the La Jolla resort. HAYNE PALMOUR IV / PHOTOS FOR THE U-T
Estancia hotel employee Hannah Hills helps George Ellis check in at the front desk.
TOP WORKPLACES MIDSIZE COMPANY LEADERSHIP
KIMBERLY LARSEN COMMUNITY INTERFACE SERVICES CEO
For success, people and recruitment are important
Community Interface Services employees make in-person contacts with those challenged by everyday needs
By Rob Nikolewski UNION-TRIBUNE
For more than 40 years, Community Interface Services has helped improve the lives of about 3,000 people in the San Diego area with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including autism, cerebral palsy and seizure disorders.
“We’re not making widgets. We’re working with people. ... People need you to care about them.”
— KIMBERLY LARSEN
Some 170 full-time employees make in-person contact with more than 1,000 participants and assist them in meeting their everyday needs.
A recently expanded financial management program helps 2,000 participants handle their bills.
Winning this year’s leadership award for mediumsized companies marks a repeat performance for CEO and executive director Kimberly Larsen, who spoke to the Union-Tribune from her organization’s new main office in Vista.
This interview has been edited for space and clarity.
Q: This is the second time in four years that you’ve won a leadership award. So what are you doing right?
We have a really good leadership team. It’s not just me by any means. We have a board of directors that are all very familiar with the organization, very supportive, very involved.
Q: What’s the mission of Community Interface Services?
To support folks with developmental and intellectual disabilities, to increase their independence and be a part of their community. It’s what we were founded for.
It is the population that we serve. We believe strongly that everybody has the
right to live and work in the community and have a full and fulfilling life and have
relationships, successes and failures and just experience life like everybody else does.
Q: You’ve mentioned that one of the core goals is making sure you have a place that employees are comfortable working in. Why is that important?
We call it our parallel mission. We’re not making widgets. We’re working with people.
People need your attention. People need you to care about them. People need you to be competent. People need you to be present.
So it’s absolutely critical that we have a good, trained, happy, productive, innovative workforce.
Q: So how do you find them? And how do you mold them?
We spend a lot of time and effort on recruitment. We’re very selective. We want folks who not only have some sort of experience in education that are going to blend themselves to this position, but folks with positivity who are interested in being excited about work, being involved and going above and beyond.
In terms of molding, we have lots of training. We have a career jumpstart program where if we can get people through their initial training, get them up and running, have them meeting their benchmarks and doing the work successfully, which takes about six months, then they are eligible for a pay increase. And then we have a career tool that outlines very clearly what the expectations are.
It’s transparent. All the data that goes into that — we can see, they can see, they can put in notes, we can put in notes.
Kimberly Larsen, CEO of Community Interface Services, with a recent group photo of employees in a hallway of the company’s offices in Vista. CHARLIE NEUMAN / FOR THE U-T
This company offers Padres tickets, medical and dental perks
Erickson-Hall Construction Company started in 1998 and became employee-owned in 2019; its business is booming
By Phillip Molnar UNION-TRIBUNE
Tech companies
might get all the attention for wild employee benefits but, in San Diego, some of the best perks in town are at a construction company.
Employee-owned Erickson-Hall Construction Co. has 100% paid health and dental insurance (with no deductible), 401(k) contributions without an employee match, and generous vacation and sick time packages.
Based in Escondido, Erickson-Hall started in 1998 and became employeeowned in 2019.
Its main bread and butter is building schools, but it also has constructed churches, civic buildings and fire stations. It was selected, based on employee interviews, as one of The San Diego Union-Tribune’s 2024 Top Workplaces in the smallbusiness category.
Erickson-Hall President Mat Gates said the company has grown from roughly 150 employees in 2020 to 208 today.
Their work has spread out to Orange, Los Angeles, Imperial, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. He said the struggle they continually face is not enough workers.
“If we could add another 25 percent, we would,” Gates said while giving a tour of the company’s latest project, America’s Finest Charter School in the Chollas View neighborhood in East San Diego.
San Diego County’s construction industry is growing. There are 93,000 people employed in the industry as of August — up by 28,500 in a decade. The industry is only about 2,000 jobs away from hitting its
peak from 2006 during the housing boom.
The pay at Erickson-Hall can add up quickly, especially with overtime. Most jobs are public works projects that must be paid prevailing wage, which is more than $40 an hour in most cases. Because the company is owned by its workers, they are part of an Employee Stock Option Plan, or ESOP, meaning they are awarded shares — benefiting when the company does well.
Kyle Kipp, a construction manager at a nearby school Erickson is working on, said the employee-ownership model means he is invested in how well the America’s Finest Charter School does — even if he is busy at another job site. “I want them to be
successful,” he said.
Gates said there’s a sense of shared responsibility at job sites, down to small things like making sure lights are turned off when everyone leaves for the night.
Still, despite their best efforts, recruiting has been difficult. The sales pitch typically goes something like this: Don’t go to college where you will get a bunch of student debt, but work an apprenticeship and start earning money in a career right away.
There are a variety of reasons why young people don’t want to work in construction, according to surveys, namely that jobs are physically demanding and
there is skepticism about the pay. The growth of remote work probably doesn’t help the sales pitch.
James Broome, a construction manager at Erickson-Hall, said it offers great benefits out of necessity.
“It helps attract the people we need,” he said. Broome said a lot of the workers feel pride in building schools because it is providing something for the next generation.
He said several of the workers have had their own children end up in schools they’ve built.
America’s Finest Charter School was a busy, loud job site in early October, but the first building is set to be completed by next summer, and then completely finished by February 2026.
Gates said revenue has increased at the company, but declined to say by how much. However, he said they are currently working on roughly $300 million in projects.
There are little things at Erickson-Hall that probably don’t seem like a big thing to them, but might stand out for your average worker.
All employees get their birthday off as a paid holiday, they get nine paid holidays off (when most American workers get six to eight on average) and the company has San Diego Padres season tickets it raffles off to workers.
As ticket prices were skyrocketing for everyone else, Erickson-Hall got a suite for workers at Petco Park for the Wild Card series.
Several workers on the day the Union-Tribune visited the job site were preparing to go to the second game against the Atlanta Braves. The Padres won.
An employee-owned company, Erickson-Hall Construction offers 100% paid health and dental insurance and generous vacation and sick time packages.
Mat Gates, second from right, at a construction site in San Diego. Erickson-Hall Construction is one of the winning small businesses for the Top Workplaces in San Diego County. NELVIN C. CEPEDA / U-T PHOTOS
TOP WORKPLACES TOP-RANKED COMPANIES
MIDSIZE COMPANIES
19. Dudek
Founded: 1980
Sector: consulting
Description: A planning, environmental and engineering consultant with nationwide offices and more than 800 planners, scientists, civil engineers, contractors and support staff.
Local employee: 249
20. American Specialty Health Inc.
Founded: 1987
Sector: vendor serving health care industry
Description: Administers benefit programs for more than 57 million Americans and provides access to consumer self-pay fitness programs.
Local employees: 491
21. Loews Hotels & Co.
Founded: 1960
Sector: hotels
Description: Operates 25 hotels
and resorts in the U.S. and Canada.
Local employees: 312
22. Balboa United & Balboa
Nephrology
Founded: 1973
Sector: physicians practice
Description: Helps medical providers develop and operate their practices.
Local employees: 225
23. Jack Henry
Founded: 1976
Sector: vertical industry software products and services
Description: Strengthens the connections between people and their financial institutions through technology and services that reduce barriers to financial health.
Local employees: 308
24. CACI International Inc.
Founded: 1962
Sector: enterprise software
Description: It’s a $7.7 billion company whose technology and expertise play a vital role in national security.
Local employees: 253
25. Innoflight
Founded: 2004
Sector: aerospace, defense
Description: Offers space avionics, including communications and networking solutions, cybersecurity solutions, processing, data storage and payload interface electronics solutions.
Local employees: 157
26. Rivo Holdings LLC
Founded: 2008
Sector: conglomerate
Description: Its services include sales, marketing, customer care, compliance, analytics, underwriting, administrative support, software development and contract negotiations.
Local employees: 216
27. Community Health Group
Founded: 1982
Sector: hospitals, health systems
Description: A nonprofit health plan serving more than 330,000 members in San Diego County. Local employees: 456
SMALL COMPANIES WITH FEWER THAN 149 EMPLOYEES IN THE REGION
1. Kidder Mathews
Founded: 1969
Sector: agents, brokers
Description: Offers brokerage, appraisal, asset, consulting, and debt and equity finance services for all property types.
Local employees: 71
2. Raken
Founded: 2014
Sector: information technology
Description: Contractors use its web and mobile app for daily progress reporting, time and production tracking, and safety and quality management.
Local employees: 105
3. Marque Urgent Care
Founded: 2011
Sector: physicians practice
Description: A clinic for immediate walk-in care and non-life-
threatening emergencies.
Local employees: 70
4. San Diego Foundation
Founded: 1975
Sector: nonprofit
Description: Its causes include helping residents recover from COVID-19 and wildfires. It has also provided more than $36 million in scholarships to students pursuing higher education. To date, it has granted more than $1.7 billion to the nonprofit community.
Local employees: 97
5. RWM Home Loans
Founded: 1994
Sector: mortgage lending
Description: Offers loan programs that can close in less than 17 days. Licensed in 15 states.
Local employees: 105
6. Recon Environmental
Founded: 1972
Sector: consulting
Description: Provides environmental planning and habitat
See SMALL COMPANIES on Page 17
ERIC LESTER BOOZ ALLEN HAMILTON VICE PRESIDENT
New thinking, diverse perspectives are priorities
‘At
its foundation, a collaborative approach to problem-solving
By Hang Nguyen FOR THE UNION-TRIBUNE
Booz Allen Hamilton prides itself on innovation.
The employees at the 110-year-old consulting company appreciate that managers at all levels are open to their ideas and frequently ask for their opinions on approaches and new initiatives.
It is this year’s Top Workplace winner in the special awards category for cultivating new ideas in its workplace.
One of the firm’s mottos is that it seeks to make the biggest difference in every problem it solves. Below, Eric Lester, a Booz Allen vice president who is based out of the San Diego office, discusses how the company fosters innovation through collaboration.
Responses have been edited for clarity and space.
Q: Do you think collaboration leads to innovation and creativity? Creative solutions, like those our clients require, cannot happen in a vacuum. Diverse perspectives from multidisciplinary teams are essential to innovation that has no biases or blind spots.
At its foundation, a collaborative approach to problem-solving stimulates engagement, innovation and creativity.
Q: How does your company promote collaboration?
stimulates engagement, innovation and creativity’
Software, Data Engineering, DevOps, Cloud, Machine Learning and Data Science programs. Participants get handson experience to further their careers in these leading-edge fields and earn a salary while participating.
The program includes a virtual cohort community of peers and mentoring circles with subject-matter experts to accompany you on your journey, instructor-led training in a virtual environment, and labs and functional projects that provide hands-on experience.
THESE COMPANIES ARE RECIPIENTS OF TOP WORKPLACE 2024 SPECIAL AWARDS
These workplaces were chosen for special recognition based on standout scores from employee responses to specific questions on the survey.
Leadership: I have confidence in the leadership of this company.
Doug Wright, Mission Federal Credit Union; Kimberly Larsen, Community Interface Services; Pierre Bergougnan, Marque Urgent Care
Direction: I believe this company is going in the right direction. Toward Maximum Independence Managers: My manager helps me learn, grow and cares about my concerns. EVOTEK
New ideas: New ideas are encouraged at this company. Booz Allen Hamilton
Booz Allen’s global staff of 35,000 are united through a robust ecosystem of employee communities, technical experience groups, training cohorts and networking events.
We host frequent functional and market team meetings, bringing together multiple functions to meet client needs.
The nature of our support to the federal government also promotes collaboration, as there are many systems and programs that need to interoperate to meet the mission requirements.
Collaboration and information-sharing are core to our culture.
Q: How is innovation celebrated at the company?
The principal embodiment of how we celebrate innovation is the annual Booz Allen Excel-
lence Awards program.
(For the gala in May this year, the McLean, Va.based company provided entertainment as well as transportation and hotel for people who flew into Washington, D.C., for the awards.)
Locally, we celebrate innovation with individual and team awards, and spotlights shared across teams for broad adoption as best practices for reuse.
Q: Talk about your FlexEd program and how it encourages innovation. Our FlexEd program provides a sliding scale of tuition support based on years of service. However, it is just one part of the many upskilling and reskilling opportunities we offer to empower our employees to pursue their own career journey. While degrees are
a part of the solution, technical training and certification often represent the most direct path to staying on the cutting edge.
As an example of our in-house upskilling opportunities, Booz Allen offers AI training to its entire workforce to make everyone AI-ready. This also includes advanced courses for AI engineers and consultants.
Q: Your Tech Excellence program is another example of a training program. What is that?
Booz Allen’s Tech Excellence program is a cohort-based training program for employees interested in deepening their expertise or pivoting to a new in-demand field.
The program actively seeks tech professionals to join our Modern
Q: How often do employees meet with managers?
At a minimum, employees have monthly checkins with their career managers.
There are also quarterly career conversations, semiannual career discussions and annual reviews.
Employees are also encouraged to reach out to their senior leaders and build connections. Our open-door approach and regular engagement leads to both ad-hoc and scheduled conversations vertically and horizontally across our organization.
Q: Anything else you’d like to add regarding how the company fosters good ideas?
We take pride in automating the repetitive and getting after the most pressing challenges facing our clients.
Doers: At this company, we do things efficiently and well. RECON Environmental
Meaningfulness: My job makes me feel like I am part of something meaningful. San Diego Humane Society
Values: This company operates by strong values. Hologic Inc.
Clued in Senior Management: Senior managers understand what is really happening at this company. Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa
Communication: I feel wellinformed about important decisions at this company. Blanchard
Appreciation: I feel genuinely appreciated at this company. Raken Work/Life Flexibility: I have the flexibility I need to balance my work and personal life. San Diego Foundation
Training: I get the formal training I want for my career. Symons Fire Protection Inc.
Benefits: My benefits package is good compared to others in this industry. PeopleConnect People Search (formerly The Control Group)
Eric Lester is a San Diego-based vice president for Booz Allen Hamilton, which won a 2024 Top Workplace special award for new ideas. ALEJANDRO TAMAYO / U-T
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Local employees: 55
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Local employees: 63
16. Optima Office
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See SMALL COMPANIES on Page 18
TOP WORKPLACES TOP-RANKED COMPANIES
29. Corinthian Title Company
Founded: 2008
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Local employees: 88
23. American Systems
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Local employees: 60
24. NSBA Group
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25. TEAM Risk
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Local employees: 80
26. Coyne & Associates
Education Corp.
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27. Sun Diego Charter
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Local employees: 56 SMALL COMPANIES FROM PAGE 17
We are proud to be recognized as a top place to work in San Diego for the third year in a row.
Team Vividion is a dynamic team working with passion and urgency to advance science and bring for ward new medicines to help patients around the world, in our communities, and close to our hearts.
