Each year, Ranking Arizona magazine conducts the state’s biggest and most comprehensive business opinion poll. Ranking Arizona is based purely on opinion and ranks companies based on how voters answer this simple question: “With whom would you recommend doing business?” Each year, some of the categories that attract the most voters include categories focused on the best places to work in Arizona, the best places to live, and the companies with the best workplace culture.
READ ALSO: Ranking Arizona: Top 10 best places to live for 2021
Workplace culture has never been more important than it is in 2021, so Az Business analyzed the results of the Ranking Arizona voting and compiled a list of the “100 Best Places to Live and Work in Arizona for 2021.” These are the 100 companies and cities that got the most votes. The companies and cities are listed in alphabetical order. Over the next several weeks, we will spotlight some of the best places to work in Arizona with video interviews featuring company leaders, including Rob Schwister, Arizona market president for Alerus.
Alerus
What the company does: Alerus offers banking, mortgage, wealth management, and retirement services.
Inside the company culture: “We just did an employee engagement survey right in the midst of the COVID pandemic with people working from home,” says Rob Schwister, Arizona market president for Alerus. “I’m proud to say we have about 98 percent approval rating from our employees. They really like working there. They enjoy what they’re doing. They like working together as a team.”
The differentiator for Alerus: “I think there are a couple of things that makes us different,” Schwister says. “First of all, it’s the stability of the leadership team. Second, we’re pretty consistent on what it is that we do. We’ve always stuck to what it is that we do best and we don’t change a whole lot. The third thing that’s really most important is the employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). Our bank is owned by the employees. So every employee’s working together to do what’s right for the bank and do what’s right for our clients, and they all benefit from it. So having an ESOP really helps keep everybody in line with what it is we’re trying to do.”
100 Best Places to Live and Work in 2021
ABI Multifamily
ANDERSON Advertising & Public Relations
Ace Building Maintenance
Aker Ink PR & Marketing
Alliance Bank of Arizona
American Express
Arizona Central Credit Union
Arizona Federal Credit Union
Ashton Woods Homes
Aurora Behavioral Health System
Avison Young
azarchitecture/Jarson & Jarson
BMO Harris Bank
Banner Behavioral Health Hospital
Bar Napkin Productions
Bel-Aire Mechanical
Bivens & Associates
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona
CBRE
CHASSE Building Team
CORE Construction
Cachet Homes
Canyon State Electric
City of Chandler
City of Glendale
City of Mesa
City of Peoria
City of Phoenix
City of Scottsdale
City of Surprise
City of Tempe
City of Tucson
Comitz Beethe
Corgan
DAVIS
DPR Construction
Davis Miles McGuire Gardner
Delta Dental of Arizona
Desert Financial Credit Union
dpa architects
Dignity Health
Dignity Health St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center
FabCom
Frazer Ryan Goldberg & Arnold
GCON
Geneva Financial
Gensler
Gust Rosenfeld
HDA Architects
Henry+Horne
Highnoon
HomeSmart International
Hospice of the Valley
Ideas Collide
Jennings, Strouss & Salmon
LAVIDGE
LGE Design Build
Land Advisors Organization
Landings Credit Union
LaneTerralever
Loud Rumor
Lovitt & Touché, A Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC Company
MSA Engineering Consultants
Mark-Taylor Residential
Menlo Group Commercial Real Estate
NAI Horizon
National Bank of Arizona
North & Co. Real Estate
ORION Investment Real Estate
OneAZ Credit Union
P.B. Bell Companies
Precision Air & Plumbing
ReThinc Advertising
Realty One Group
Resnick & Louis
Ryan Companies US, Inc.
SDB Contracting Services
SVN Desert Commercial Advisors
Snell & Wilmer
Speedie & Associates
StringCan Interactive
Sun Health Grandview Terrace Care Center
Taylor & Lihn
Team Select Home Care
The CORE Institute
The James Agency
Tiffany & Bosco
Town of Gilbert
USAA
VIP Mortgage
Vision Community Management
Weitz Company
Willmeng Construction
Wood, Patel & Associates
Zion & Zion