Canada's Most-Admired Corporate Cultures Named

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WorldatWork

A recent study has named the 10 Canadian companies with the "most-admired corporate cultures." The survey also indicates that 82 percent of Canadian executives believe there is a direct correlation between corporate culture and financial performance.

The 10 companies are:

1. WestJet Airlines
2. Tim Hortons
3. RBC Financial Group
4. Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
5. Suncor Energy Ltd.
6. Starbucks Corporation (Canada)
7. Yellow Pages Group Co.
8. Dell Inc. (Canada)
9. Canadian Tire Corporation
10. Rothmans Inc.

Waterstone Human Capital Ltd., in partnership with Canadian Business magazine, conducted the "Canada's 10 Most-Admired Corporate Cultures of 2005" study. The 10 organizations were selected as a result of face to face interviews with 107 senior executives chosen from Canada's top 1,000 public and private companies as part of The 2005 Canadian Corporate Culture Study. In these interviews, leaders were asked the open-ended, unaided question: "What Canadian organizations do you most admire in terms of having a corporate culture that has helped them be successful?"

"Being named as one of Canada's 10 Most Admired Corporate Cultures of 2005 is truly an outstanding accomplishment," said Martin Parker, managing director of Waterstone Human Capital. "This study provides us with tremendous insight into the tools and strategies driving the cultures of many of Canada's most-successful organizations."

The study's objective was to discover if corporate culture is an asset that Canadian organizations can strategically use to sustain competitive advantage and enhance financial performance.

A direct correlation exists between corporate culture and financial performance according to 82 percent of Canadian executives. Financial performance bears this out: the 10 Canadian organizations defined by their peers as having the strongest corporate cultures realized an average revenue increase of 16.5 percent during the past three years and an average of 17 percent in three-year asset growth - almost double the growth rates of companies in the S&P/TSX Composite Index. Other findings from the study:

* 74 percent of the surveyed executives indicated cultural fit is more important than skills in external hires.

* 72 percent of executives said the corporate culture of their own organization is not what they desire in the future.

* 64 percent of leaders acknowledged the importance of managing culture and are beginning to steer their organizations in new directions.

Named Canada's most-respected corporation for customer service in 2005, WestJet pioneered low-cost, high-value flying in Canada. Don Bell, WestJet's executive vice-president, Culture and Airports, commented: "All 5,000 WestJetters play a major role in developing, growing and propagating our wonderful corporate culture, and this type of external recognition is extremely rewarding."

The Tim Hortons chain was founded in Hamilton, Ont. in 1964. It is the largest quick service restaurant chain in Canada specializing in coffee, baked goods and lunches. The company has more than 2,400 Tim Hortons restaurants in Canada and 250 in the United States. http://www.waterstonehc.com/

© Copyright WorldatWork Feb. 2006

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