Newsweek announced their annual rankings for the Top 100 Most Loved Workplaces® list, and North Alabama based Bank Independent ranked #33. This is the second consecutive year that Bank Independent made the list after ranking #36 in 2022. The 2023 Top 100 Most Loved Workplaces® are the result of a collaboration with the Best Practice Institute (BPI), a leadership development and benchmark research company.

The results were determined after surveying more than 2 million employees from businesses with workforces varying in size from 50 to more than 10,000. The list recognizes companies that put respect, caring, and appreciation for their employees at the center of their business model.

“Our culture is truly wonderful and being recognized on America’s Top 100 Most Loved Workplaces list for the second year in a row is further validation of that fact,” stated Rick Wardlaw, CEO of Bank Independent. “At Bank Independent, we are committed to ensuring that every team member feels connected and valued and that they understand their important role in our mission to make a positive difference in people’s lives. The bank invests in our team members, and this investment is reflected in the trust our customers place in us. It is also reflected in the growth and positive impact our team members have on each other, their families, and their communities.”

The key areas included in the analysis are based on how well companies demonstrate the areas within the Spark Model as defined by BPI including Systemic Collaboration, Positive Vision of the Future, Alignment of values, Respect, and Killer Achievement. Employee sentiments and emotions indicating how engaged employees are, how positive they feel about their workplace, and how committed they are to the organization’s success were analyzed to identify the Top 100 Most Loved Workplaces.

“With the rapidly changing workplace and competition for top talent, more companies are recognizing the importance of employee engagement and commitment”, said Nancy Cooper, Global Editor in Chief, Newsweek. “The workplaces that have demonstrated a commitment to their employees in 2023 are more likely to attract the best talent and deliver strong business outcomes.”

“Fully understanding and acting upon employee sentiment, emotion, and recommendations continues to be a challenge and top priority of executive leadership,” said Louis Carter, CEO of Best Practice Institute. “The companies on this list have committed to listening carefully to their employees to create a workplace employees love.”

To identify the top 100 companies for the Newsweek ranking, companies were evaluated and scored as follows: 35 percent of the initial score was based on employee survey responses; 25 percent was derived from analysis of external public ratings from sites such as Comparably, Careerbliss, Glassdoor, Indeed and Google; and 40 percent came from direct interviews with and written responses from company officials.

Newsweek then conducted additional research into every company on the list, as well as the top runners up, to determine the final list of 100 companies and their ranking. The list includes both U.S. firms and companies with a strong U.S. presence that are based overseas.