The winners of the second annual Best Places to Work competition know that it takes more than hiring good people to be a best place to work in this community. It requires developing programs that help retain employees and maintain high levels of employee satisfaction.

Presented by First Commercial Bank, this event was created to unveil and honor Huntsville/Madison County’s outstanding employers whose benefits, policies and practices are among the region’s best. More than 100 businesses were initially nominated for the award.

Winners were determined based solely on a survey completed by employees and tabulated by an independent third party, Quantum Workplace, a research partner for the nationwide Best Places to Work™ competition. Quantum Workplace administers more than 5,000 employee engagement surveys each year. Winners were selected in three categories: organizations with between 25 and 74 local employees; organizations with between 75 and 249 local employees; and employers with 250 local employees or more.

Chamber Board Chair Irma Tuder opened the event and praised the companies and their employees for helping to make the community an economic gem that is being recognized nationally and internationally.

“At a time when many in the world are experiencing an economic downturn or outright recession, our dynamic community continues to stand tall,” Tuder said. “Such economic growth and recognition is not possible without great employers with great employees.”

Bryan Cordell, a well-known radio personality in the Tennessee Valley and the founder of Miccheck7 Productions, served as master of ceremony for the event and told attendees that being named a best place to work in a community full of great companies and organizations was a great accomplishment.

“It is obvious that there are much more than 15 best places to work in Huntsville/Madison County, in fact there are probably hundreds,” Cordell said. “But for the next year, 15 of these best of the best can enjoy the honor and the privilege of being recognized as one of the community’s Best Places to Work.”

The top 15 ranked companies include a diverse group of businesses and organizations in the Huntsville/Madison County community.

“I hear from so many of our customers how they face challenges in finding the right people for their company and I know how important it is to create a great place to work in order to attract and retain the best and the brightest. This award recognizes companies that go above and beyond to achieve that type of environment for their employees,” said Charlie Kettle, CEO & president, First Commercial Bank and vice chair of investor relations for the Chamber.

Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle thanked all of the companies represented at the event – adding that the employers and the employees of the organizations in the area make the community so unique.

“We are very fortunate to have the caliber of companies and the caliber of employees that we have in this community,” Battle said. “Congratulations to all of you on your success, and thank you for what you all do to make our community such a great place to be. We are proud of what you do.”

Winners in each of the categories included:

25-74 workers

• Anglin Reichmann Snellgrove & Armstrong, PC
• Aranea Solutions, Inc.
• Modern Technology Solutions, Inc.
• Nesin Therapy Services*
• Willbrook Solutions, Inc.

75-249 workers

• Avion, Inc.
• Booz Allen Hamilton*
• Davidson Technologies
• Intuitive Research and Technology Corporation*
• Tec-Masters, Inc.

250+ workers

• ADTRAN, Inc.
• Camber Corporation*
• ITT-CAS Corporation
• Jacobs ESTS Group*
• Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc.

* Also a 2008 Best Places to Work winner

Quantum Workplace measured and selected companies based on the following criteria:

• Team Effectiveness
• Retention Probability
• Alignment with Goals
• Trust with Co-worker
• Individual Contribution
• Manager Effectiveness
• Trust in Senior Leaders
• Feeling Valued
• Work Engagement
• People Practices

Once nominated, Quantum Workplace, a company that specializes in measuring workplace satisfaction around the country, administered a survey to employees and tabulated the results. Winners were based exclusively on the outcome of the employee surveys.