Captive Resources has been a mainstay on the Chicago Tribune's Top Workplaces list for the better part of a decade now — steadily climbing the rankings since debuting in 2016. This year, we've reached the top of the mountain, earning the No. 1 ranking among mid-size employers on the Top Workplaces 2022 list. The list is based on feedback from colleagues in each company, and the results are measured by the consultancy firm Energage.
According to the Chicago Tribune, “strong leadership, a culture of collaboration and communication, and a commitment to helping employees advance in their careers are fundamental strengths that the companies” on the list share.
While Captive Resources routinely scores highly in all those areas in the annual rankings, one seems to stand out above the rest — a culture of collaboration and communication. In the run-up to the announcement, several members of the Captive Resources team spoke with the Chicago Tribune to provide their thoughts on what makes this a special place to work and elaborate on those topics.
“We believe we owe the same frequent and open communication to our colleagues [that we provide to our clients],” says Captive Resources' Chief Human Resources Officer Rose Frieri. “This begins in the interview process, and all colleagues are continually encouraged to express their opinions and especially their ideas.”
Building a strong company culture starts with attracting and retaining high-quality talent. Frieri attributes Captive Resources' ability to do just that to the company's commitment to providing excellent compensation and genuinely appreciating each colleague.
“We let our colleagues know how important they are to the success of our clients and to our company, and that they are truly appreciated,” says Frieri. “Every colleague knows they are a very important member of our team, and consequently, they feel personally connected, not only to the company but to one another.”
It probably goes without saying, but there has been an influx of new challenges when it comes to maintaining a company culture in recent years. Thanks to strong leadership and a flexible mindset, Captive Resources has deftly navigated how to handle the challenges of working remotely and returning to the office safely.
"We have a beautiful place for everybody to work, and then COVID hit, and we immediately went to remote work or work from home," says Captive Resources' Chief Executive Officer Nick Hentges. "We're back to two days a week in the office and three days a week working from home. If people want to work more from the office, they can."
The arrangement has allowed Captive Resources to maintain the same high-level service to our clients as pre-pandemic and “attract really good folks who want to spend more time at home,” says Hentges. “But we are also able to keep our culture. We think it’s important that people see each other and get to know each other and build those relationships as well.”
To learn more about what makes Captive Resources the No. 1 mid-size workplace in Chicagoland, check out the complete profile from Chicago Tribune.
To determine the rankings, Chicago Tribune partners with Energage, an organization that has been studying and ranking top workplaces for more than a decade. Energage conducts employee surveys for media in 53 markets and surveys more than 2 million employees at more than 7,000 organizations each year.
The companies named to the Top Workplaces in Chicago list were determined through employee surveys conducted by Energage. The surveys measured qualities such as company leadership, communication, career opportunities, working environment, managerial skills, pay, and benefits.
Click here to explore the full 2022 Top Workplaces in Chicago list.
Captive Resources provides mid-market companies with the opportunity to become insurance company owners rather than insurance buyers and lower their total cost of risk. We do this through the creation, development, and oversight of member-owned group captive insurance companies. We currently support 43 group captives with 5,800-plus member companies and $3.5 billion in annual premium. We support every aspect of the captives we advise, from claims advocacy to operational oversight, risk management, financial services, regulatory compliance, investment services, and more.
Sandra R. Springer
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