IEN NOW: Google, Facebook No Longer in Top 10 Places to Work

Glassdoor, the website that enables workers to publicly evaluate their employers, has released its “Best Places to Work” list, and there have been some interesting changes from years past.
“Best Places to Work” is a compilation derived by the rankings employees give their companies, and the year-over-year winners tends to include those big name tech companies out of Silicon Valley that always make the news with their sprawling campuses full of ping pong tables.

Except this year, when former #1s like Google and Facebook dropped out of the top ten altogether, with Google coming in at 11 and Facebook at 23. Ranked number one, instead, was Boston-based social media analytics company HubSpot, who offers things like unlimited vacation time and a pet-friendly office setting.

So, what are the implications of this change? Well, it could indicate that priorities for workers are shifting. When the job market was a little less friendly, high pay and onsite amenities were about as good as it got. But with a job market that’s delivering skill shortages to almost every sector, competition for talent is heating up. And some businesses might need to shift strategies.

In a 2018 report, Forbes cited Harvard Business Review data claiming work-life balance is the second most desired employment perk, coming in only behind medical coverage.

With that in mind, HubSpot’s unlimited vacation time, for example, might be a perk that outweighs Facebook’s free meals and onsite laundry. While those are nice perks, let’s face it: they’re pretty transparently designed to keep employees onsite and working.

So can companies outside of tech compete with these new demands for work-life balance and flex time? The GlassDoor list suggests that yes, in fact, they can. Truck maker Cummins, apparel company Lululemon, and building materials distributor ABC Supply Co. all made the top 50.