It’s that time of year again. The complete list of finalists from the 17th annual Montreal’s Top Employers competition has been unveiled, and for the third consecutive year, we’ve made the grade.
So what is it about Broadsign that makes us among the city’s best employers? We asked our Human Resources Director, Meghan Hastings, to weigh in. Meghan shared some insights on what it is about Broadsign that makes it such a great place to work, what steps the leadership team is taking to support its employees, and what she hopes people can expect from a career at Broadsign.
About Montreal’s Top Employers
Before we dive in, a primer on the competition. The Montreal’s Top Employers competition launched in 2006 to award businesses demonstrating innovation and leadership in their respective industries. Finalists are decided on by a team of editors from Canada’s Top 100 Employers magazine. This panel looks at different criteria, including:
- A company’s physical workspace
- Its work and social atmosphere
- The health, financial and family benefits it offers
- Vacation and time off
- Employee communications, performance management, training and development, and community engagement
Earning this recognition is something the executive team is extremely proud of, Meghan says. That’s because Broadsign strives to provide its employees with a positive work environment that continuously reinforces their value within the organization. She adds that the team is always looking to improve and rethink the way that the company works, adding that Broadsign’s success in the OOH industry is the result of the company’s dedication to putting employees and customers first.
A focus on workplace flexibility
According to Meghan, a sizable portion of what makes Broadsign such a great place to work is that the company recognizes and understands that today’s workforce values having options.
Broadsign understood that being a flexible employer would mean more than just giving employees the option to work from home. It’s an understanding that sometimes, life happens — and things don’t always go as planned during work hours.
“The number one thing for us has been making the focus on flexibility,” says Meghan. In light of the pandemic and the many curveballs we’ve collectively faced in the past year, the leadership team has made it a point to rethink the traditional workday and better support Broadsigners. For this reason, employees are free to attend appointments or handle unplanned obligations at home with no issue or questions asked.
Besides that, she says that the leadership team recognizes employees’ needs differ from one to the next. Some Broadsigners feel office life is stimulating, while others say they’re more productive from home. A hybrid work model is currently in place that caters to each employee’s needs and desires, giving them the power to decide on where they work.
Watch: See what the team thinks of Broadsign in this video shot at the 2021 employee summit
Making wellness a priority
With the COVID-19 virus still a part of our realities—not to mention other unexpected life events—Meghan reinforces another differentiating factor: at Broadsign, time off is a given. “If people do catch COVID-19 or have to go on leave, we make sure that the employee does what they have to do to get healthy,” she says. In addition, the company made sure to send out rapid tests to everyone based in Quebec during a time when it was difficult to get access to them.
As teams have been forced to work remotely, instilling a sense of community has been important, and Meghan says the company has successfully accomplished through several initiatives during the pandemic. For example, Meghan outlines that if another employee were to feel sick or catch COVID-19, there’s a program in place in which a colleague can safely drop off groceries or run other errands, if needed.
Another area in which the leadership team has made a strong commitment is with regards to nurturing mental health. New initiatives include an employee assistance program offering increased access to mental health services, including support covering the costs of talk therapy, as well as an increased paramedical budget and new company-wide training on mental health awareness.
Professional development opportunities
More than just focusing on employee satisfaction and well-being, another critical component of its employee-centric culture means investing in its team from a career development perspective.
“Once we do hire talent, we continue to invest in them so that they see themselves growing in their careers,” she says, underlining the importance of cultivating a workplace that cares about how its team is progressing. “We want them to see that their next career step is here, with us.”
Some ways in which Broadsign’s executive team has made this a priority is by rolling out a competency matrix and offering support and training wherever possible. These steps towards career development progression are in place to ensure that employees are motivated by their work at Broadsign and all of the projects they are undertaking.
“We want employees to see their development in their career over time from the time that they started here to where they’re at now,” says Meghan.
What’s in the works
For the next calendar year, Broadsign’s executive team will keep on examining how to provide its employees with the very best workplace available. And, as in-person gatherings resume once more, the plan is to host an employee summit right before summer to get all employees from across the world together.
“We hired 50% of our employees during the pandemic, so our Employee Summit will be the first time many will have the chance to meet one another face to face,” says Meghan.
This week-long event will feature workshops, speakers, and training to help to build and unite the team, no matter where in the world they call home. With remote work here to stay and a geographically-dispersed workforce, Meghan says this is one way to help bring the team a little closer and create a positive work environment. The goal is to ensure everyone feels that sense of belonging vital to the Broadsign mission.
Together, we make great things happen.
If you’re on the search for a workplace that pushes, challenges, and supports you, then Broadsign wants to hear from you.
Browse all our job openings here.
