HIW CRR 2022 FINAL - Flipbook - Page 32
H E A LT H Y A N D R E S I L I E N T C O W O R K E R S
EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT
Highwoods has long demonstrated a commitment
to individual career growth. We have a robust
professional development program that encourages
on-going education and professional development. All
our full-time coworkers participate in annual career
conversations that coincide with annual compensation
decisions. To foster a collaborative and inclusive work
environment, we support internships and mentorships
that provide the opportunity to learn, grow and
build relationships. Additionally, we encourage
our associates to pursue continuing education
opportunities and achieve industry accreditations,
including LEED, Fitwel, AEE and BOMA designations.
Throughout the year, we facilitate internal trainings
on recent enhancements to our resiliency and ESG
initiatives and how our team can contribute and
help us grow. We provide leadership, management,
functional and technical learning opportunities
and will consider individual requests for job-related
tuition reimbursement. To promote an ethical and
supportive work environment, we provide training to
our coworkers on corporate policies and programs,
including diversity, equal opportunity, workers’ rights,
non-discrimination and non-harassment. These
policies extend to all board members, our executive
team and coworkers.
Through these efforts, nearly one-third of our current
employees have experienced significant career
advancement during their tenure at Highwoods. We aim
to create an environment that fosters and encourages
an “ownership” mentality throughout our company and
empowers our employees to continuously seek new
and better ways of doing business.
In addition to supporting the career growth of our
coworkers, we also seek to grow as an employer. We
periodically solicit feedback from our employees
through employee engagement surveys so that we
can retain and attract a talented workforce. In 2022,
we surveyed all our employees on topics ranging
from diversity and inclusion, work environment
satisfaction and individual professional development
to identify opportunities for further improvement
and engagement.
32