Canada's Top 100 Employers (2025) Magazine - Flipbook - Page 17
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(CONT.)
broken as the CEO shared recipes
from her kitchen and introduced the
family’s French bulldog. Then Black
Lives Matter happened and businesses addressed diversity more seriously,
adding structure and accountability.
Employers learned to listen.
That fundamental shift towards a
more collaborative and caring
culture continues, with Canada’s Top
100 Employers at the forefront of
creating that change. Some have won
many times. For instance, Vancouver
City Savings Credit Union, or
Vancity, a multiple winner since
2003, offers leading-edge benefits
such as mental health support up to
$10,000 a year, generous maternity
and parental top-ups, and a new
defined benefit pension plan,
designed using employee feedback
and a team of pension experts.
Liz Stretch, Vancity’s interim chief
people officer, says the biggest
change is how communication – the
way employees connect with
management and with each other
– is different from a decade or two
ago.
“We’ve seen an overall generational shift in employee expectations
when it comes to leadership,” says
Stretch. “We’ve moved from
broadcasting information from the
centre out to the organization, to
more of an organization-wide
conversation among all employees
and leadership. The bar is much
higher when it comes to authenticity
and transparency. People expect
greater context around decision-making – including the
opportunity to ask questions of
senior leaders.
“The same applies to creating
opportunities for employees to
connect,” she adds. “That’s why
we’ve set up social platforms so
employees can interact informally at
work, sharing what matters to them.”
At employee-owned PCL
Construction, ranked as one of
Canada’s Top 100 Employers for 16
consecutive years, the focus is on
unlocking the potential in every
team member. Rather than a
one-size-fits-all approach, the
Edmonton-based company curates
personalized experiences to help
each employee thrive – whether
that’s advanced training, mentorship
or lateral moves to expand skillsets.
“Sixteen years ago, we had
development, learning and mentoring, but one of the biggest changes is
that we’re creating these very
thoughtful curated programs,” says
Jaime McGavin, human resources
director at PCL. “It’s not just about
checking boxes. We want it to be
something that fosters engagement
on the employee and manager side”
Another change McGavin notes is
the role of the manager, so PCL is
heavily invested in equipping its
managers with the tools and skills to
support their teams.
“As a manager now, you are a
coach, a mentor, an advocate of the
company – you wear all these
different hats,” says McGavin. “We’ve
always had leadership development
programs for our future executives
and leaders, but there’s that broad
base of middle management that is
holding so much of the employee
experience and engagement on their
backs. We’re focused on whatever
development tools we can offer them
so they feel more confident.”
But how does the business side
fare out of all these progressive
policies?
Desjardins Group/Mouvement
Desjardins, headquartered in Lévis,
Qué., and a multi-year Top 100 winner, would say that, as whole individuals, employees deserve personalized HR solutions, such as a customizable wellness program to suit their
physical and psychological needs, as
well as those of their families. But
business is a big part of it too.
“In the past, human resources
primarily focused on addressing the
basic needs of employees,” explains
Catherine Grondin, director, talent
and people development at Desjardins. “Today, however, we’re working
toward finding HR solutions that
touch multiple aspects of an
employee’s professional and
personal life. This is because we
know, without a doubt, that the
employee experience largely shapes
the customer experience.”
And indeed, a much-improved
employee experience may be the
biggest legacy of 25 years of progress
in Canadian workplaces.
– Diane Jermyn
Desjardins Group/Mouvement Desjardins works to find new HR
solutions that touch multiple aspects of employees’ professional
and personal lives.
PCL
25 YEARS OF CHANGE
DESJARDINS
( 2025 )
Edmonton-based PCL Construction is 100 per cent employee-
owned, allowing staff to share in the company’s success through
profit-sharing.
