Statement on FORTUNE Magazine's "100 Best Companies to Work For" in America

Monday, January 08, 2007

ROCHESTER, Minn. — FORTUNE announced today that Mayo Clinic has been ranked 62 on its 10th annual "100 Best Companies to Work For" list, the magazine's compilation of companies that "rate high with employees." Mayo Clinic ranked 18 among the 39 companies on the Best Large-Sized Company list. The complete list and related stories will appear in the Jan. 22 issue of FORTUNE, available on newsstands Jan. 15 and today online at www.fortune.com (link opens in new window).

"It is a testament to the staff of Mayo Clinic to earn this national recognition for a fourth consecutive year," says Denis Cortese, M.D., president and CEO of Mayo Clinic. "The efforts of each person contribute to the daily mission of the clinic to put forth our best for our patients and our families and each other. Our thanks go to our staff for this honor."

Last year, Mayo Clinic ranked 89 on the overall list, and 31 among 38 large-sized companies. Only one other Minnesota-based company, Medtronic, made this year's list.

Competition to get on the "Best Companies" list has intensified over the past 10 years. Companies that are at least seven years old and have 1,000 or more employees are eligible for the list. This year, 446 companies vied for a slot, up from 161 in 1998.

"The 100 Best Companies to Work For" list is compiled for FORTUNE by Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz of the Great Place to Work Institute in San Francisco (www.greatplacetowork.com), based on two criteria: an evaluation of the policies and culture of each company, and the opinions of the company's employees.

The employee survey is given more weight; two-thirds of the total score comes from employee responses to a 57-question survey, which goes to a minimum of 400 randomly selected employees from each company. More than 100,000 employees from 446 companies participated in the survey this year. Mayo Clinic employees in Rochester, Minn.; Jacksonville, Fla.; and Scottsdale and Phoenix, Ariz., were asked about such issues as attitudes toward management, job satisfaction and camaraderie within the organization.

The remaining one-third of the score is based on an evaluation of each company's demographic makeup, pay and benefits programs, and culture. Companies are scored in four areas: credibility (communication to employees), respect (opportunities and benefits), fairness (compensation and diversity), and pride/camaraderie (philanthropy and celebrations).

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About Mayo Clinic

Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, not-for-profit group practice in the world. Doctors from every medical specialty work together to care for patients, joined by common systems and a philosophy of "the needs of the patient come first." More than 3,700 physicians, scientists and researchers and 50,100 allied health staff work at Mayo Clinic, which has sites in Rochester, Minn; Jacksonville, Fla; and Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz. and community based providers in more than 70 locations in Southern Minn., Western Wis. and Northeast Iowa. These locations treat more than half a million people each year. To obtain the latest news releases from Mayo Clinic, go to www.mayoclinic.org/news. For information about research and education, visit www.mayo.edu. MayoClinic.com is available as a resource for your health stories.