Manitoba's Top Employers (2025) - Flipbook - Page 24
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MANITOBA’S TOP EMPLOYERS (2025)
Efficiency Manitoba offers a purpose-driven culture
D
ori Chudobiak was
one of the first five
employees hired to
help create a new
Crown corporation,
Efficiency Manitoba, in 2019.
It was set up as an independent
organization to promote energy
efficiency and achieve significant
electricity and natural gas reductions through consumer incentives
and expert guidance. Operations
commenced in April 2020.
“It’s a unique opportunity,
setting up an organization from
the ground up,” says Chudobiak,
vice-president, corporate performance and engagement. “We definitely wanted to set ourselves up
in a way that we would be living
our guiding principles” – things
like keeping it simple and putting
people first.
Of course, Efficiency Manitoba
had one big challenge right out of
the gate; it was starting up amidst
the first, hugely disruptive wave
of the pandemic. For its first two
years, it operated mostly virtually
while adhering to public health
restrictions. To Chudobiak,
however, that only contributed to
its uniquely forward-thinking and
continuously adapting culture.
“We had an opportunity with
the pandemic to be really considering the future of work,” she says.
When health restrictions eased
and the organization designed its
office space in Winnipeg, it did not
simply opt for a traditional format
with dedicated workstations for
each of its 95 employees. It optimized the workplace for today’s
needs and expectations.
“We absolutely can have every
one of our employees in the
office on a given day, but we don’t
have unutilized space associated
with assigning a workstation to
every employee,” Chudobiak
says. Employees feel a sense of
ownership about the office, too.
They were asked for their input
on everything from the number
and size of meeting rooms to wall
colours and furniture selection.
“Employee fingerprints are all
over the construction of and how
we use our office space.”
For Gabrielle Cochingco,
Efficiency Manitoba’s flexible
work environment was a big draw
Efficiency Manitoba works with residents at a community level to encourage energy savings.
when she first joined as a co-op
student from the Asper School
of Business at the University of
Manitoba in 2021.
My work is making a
difference for our
province, for sustainability,
for underserved
markets, and it makes me
enthusiastic and motivated
about the work I do.
— Gabrielle Cochingco
Energy Efficiency Analyst
“I was helping take care of
my dad at the time and it was
important that our whole family
stay healthy,” says Cochingco, who
landed a permanent position as an
energy efficiency analyst after she
graduated. Today, she volunteers
on Efficiency Manitoba’s social
committee, which puts on events
meant to get employees from
across the organization together
and foster strong relationships.
What’s kept her committed to
Efficiency Manitoba is the way its
mission and activities align with
her personal values.
“My work is making a difference
for our province, for sustainability,
for underserved markets, and
it makes me enthusiastic and
motivated about the work I do,”
Cochingco says. “Work isn’t just
work when it’s tied to the community I live in.”
Of course, there are other upsides to working there too, such as
a nine-workday schedule, which
means employees generally get
every other Monday off. It allows
