What the Judges say about The Principal® 10 Best Companies-2004
What the judges say About The Principal 10 Best Companies for Employee Financial Security-2004
A distinguished panel of business leaders and benefits experts recently selected The Principal® 10 Best Companies for Employee Financial Security from more than 750 growing businesses nominated for recognition. The judges noted this year's winners maintained a strong commitment to health care benefits with an increased emphasis on wellness programs.
"With health insurance premiums going up so drastically, we saw a number of companies that came up with innovative ideas for handling medical insurance and keeping their costs down. We saw a real commitment to wellness and improving the health of the staff." ~Todd Surline, vice president of human relations, Michigan State University Federal Credit Union, winner The Principal 10 Best Companies-2003.
"I was impressed at the level of commitment to health care in the top companies. Health care is the biggest concern for employers; it is the biggest concern for employees. If employees have to spend all their money before retirement taking care of medical, then by the time they get to retirement, there isn't much left over. So to the extent that these employers are providing premium health care coverage, I think it allows the employee to do a better job at saving for their own retirement." ~Nevin Adams editor in chief Plan Sponsor Magazine, Plansponsor.com
"I noticed more strategies for communicating and evaluating benefits to help the employee understand the options available. Many offer financial planners to the employees to help them, which is great." ~Howard Wolosky executive editor, The Practical Accountant
"I was impressed with the commitment of a number of companies to wellness programs as an innovative practice. I hope that companies who read about The Principal 10 Best will look into wellness as a very valuable way to improve the physical health of employees and at the same time support the financial health of the company." ~ David Wray, president of the Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America (PSCA)
"What stood out to me were the number of employers offering both a defined benefit plan as well as retiree coverage for health care and prescription drugs. For employers to be able to offer both of those plans is a tremendous benefit to employees." ~ Susan Bjork, SPHR human resources director, Lancet Software Development, Inc., winner The Principal 10 Best Companies- 2003.
"Overall, the judges were impressed by the innovative things companies did to help their employees have more financial security. The Principal 10 Best are the companies that succeeded in being sensitive to meeting their employees needs while at the same time trying to be conscious of the cost of benefits." ~ Mathew Greenwald, president, Mathew Greenwald & Associates, who lead judges in evaluating entries.
