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TH E M R EP O RT | 19 FEATURE and see the Champion presented with both financial rewards and peer recognition." At MiMutual Mortgage, a Team Member Recognition Program al- lows employees to recognize each other for living the company's core values. According to Jacobs, "Our President's Club recognizes top sales production, but we also have a Circle of Excellence rec- ognition program that recognizes key quality achievements of sales and operations, without regard to the amount of production the in- dividual contributed. This allows everyone a path to recognition for their respective achievements." Giving to the Community F or many employees, volun- teering for social initiatives or giving back to the community is also a rewarding experience, and organizations within the industry have been quick to include them in these initiatives. From helping veterans integrate with the mainstream and giving grants to various foundations to helping in neighborhood and community development, organizations are involving their workers so they can take pride in giving back to the community. "MCS is committed to sup- porting veterans' organizations, as well as organizations for police, firefighters, and first responders. Our employees look forward to the events that we schedule throughout the year where they can volunteer, show their support, or help raise funds for one of these deserving groups," Diaz said. "We have family events such as our MCS Walk for Heroes, on-site festivals/picnics, fun- draisers for local military groups, and special speaking events where our employees have an opportunity to hear from the organizations that we're helping." Safeguard formed the Safeguard Cares Committee in 2011 to cen- tralize and coordinate its fundrais- ing efforts. Made up of employees from Safeguard's two offices in Ohio and Texas, members are responsible for picking a charity and planning and promoting the fundraising efforts. "Safeguard places a big emphasis on promot- ing volunteerism in the company's contractor network as well, sup- porting monthly volunteer efforts that help to maintain strong and vital neighborhoods, improve quality of life, and provide a safe environment for families to raise children," said Jennifer Anspach, AVP of Human Capital, Safeguard Properties. Both Black Knight and Carrington have robust programs to help veterans integrate with the mainstream. While Black Knight has a special hiring process for veterans, Carrington has supported housing for veterans through its Carrington Charitable Foundation (CCF). "CCF's Veteran-focused Signature Programs focus on providing mobility, stability, pur- pose, and prosperity for veterans returning from post-9/11 conflict battlefields," Sharga said. Carrington House is one such program which provides housing near key military hospital centers for families of injured servicemen and women during the difficult post-injury recovery process. Through this program, donated homes from Bank of America are remodeled and readied for veterans and their families by the Carrington Companies, while other homes are new builds. "The Carrington Companies repair, reno- vate, and build custom, adaptive homes in communities across the United States to meet the unique needs of wounded Veterans so they can live independently and com- fortably," Sharga said. "Since 2011, proceeds from the annual CCF Golf Classic have raised more than $16 million to support veterans. So far, Carrington House has built 19 homes for deserving veterans." Black Knight's veterans-only career fair and its support for Operation New Uniform helps veterans make the transition to private-sector work. It All Begins at the Top T he transformation to become a great place to work, like any other change in a company, must begin at the top. The latest Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) CEO survey revealed how impor- tant it was for CEOs across the globe to hire and retain top talent to compete in an increasingly digital world. "But they're not just improv- ing compensation packages, it's crucial to create the right em- ployee experience too," the survey indicated, with 86 percent of the CEOs saying they were mod- ernizing their working environ- ment and 77 percent saying they were implementing flexible ways of working to recognize how today's top talent wants to work. The same survey found that 67 percent of CEOs agreed they had a corporate responsibility to retain employees, especially those whose jobs were automated. Whether it is best hiring practices or fostering a culture of giving back, employee engagement begins with the top management. From something as simple as sharing the company's vision via live video feed to all employees nationwide on a regular basis, to actively interacting with employees every month, leadership is driving employee retention from the top. "We use a variety of commu- nication tools to ensure our team members are never in the dark," MiMutual Mortgage's Jacobs said. "Semi-Annual Corporate Rallies help via live video feed to all employees nationwide. This is our opportunity to share our CEO's vision, our current corporate goals, our outlook on the industry and the company, make important announcements, and to celebrate our successes together through various forms of recognition." Steve Smith, Finicity's CEO, takes an active role in mak- ing sure all employee voices are heard. "One example of this is that every month he holds a 'birthday' lunch, where team members whose birthdays are in that month meet with him," Hutchins said. "He answers their questions and solicits their input for the company culture, as well as discussing business initiatives." At Black Knight, its mentor pro- gram matches mentors and mentees based on common interests and potential for knowledge transfer. "These relationships are cultivated through regular meetings, formal networking, and community service events," Circelli said. Listening to employees is also an integral part of leadership en- gagement. According to Anspach, the company's Connecting With Respect initiative was born from Safeguard's employee-satisfaction surveys which showed that, although Safeguard has a solid corporate culture foundation, more could be done to support Safeguard's corporate value of "Respecting our employees and contractors." Today, the Respect Initiative class is mandatory for all employees. "The Connecting With Respect initiative spurred several spin-off initiatives, including the leader- ship team's Code of Cooperation and Safeguard's Culture Code. The Code of Cooperation guides leadership's interactions with one another and with all staff," Anspach said. "The five points of the Culture Code were voted on by employees and promote behav- iors, attitudes, and approaches im- portant to defining the company's corporate culture and creating a great workplace." RADHIK A OJHA Online Editor at the Five Star Institute, Ojha is a graduate of the University of Pune, India, where she received her B.A. in commerce with a concentration in accounting and marketing and an M.A. in mass communication. Upon completion of her master's degree, Ojha worked at a national English daily publication in India (The Indian Express) where she was a staff writer in the Cultural and Arts Features section. Ojha also worked as Principal Correspondent at HT Media Ltd. and at Honeywell as an executive in corporate communications. She and her husband currently reside in Dallas, Texas. You can contact her at Radhika. Ojha@theMReport.com.