Grinnell Mutual named 2022 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award winner

Grinnell, Iowa — Grinnell Mutual has received the 2022 Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award (GEWA). The award recognizes the most engaged workplace cultures globally.

By connecting employee engagement to every aspect of their culture, these organizations fuel the motivation and innovation that drive business results far beyond their competition around the world and give people what they really want from their careers and lives: belonging, learning, and growth, recognition, a great manager, and the opportunity to do what they do best every day.

“Gallup’s 2022 GEWA winners have steered their organizations through another unprecedented and challenging year. They didn’t slow down or hit ‘pause’ during times of uncertainty. They stayed true to their organizational values. Gallup commends all the 2022 GEWA winners for their resiliency, determination, and commitment to making their people a priority,” said Jim Harter, Gallup’s chief scientist of workplace management and wellbeing.

Jeff Vogts, Grinnell Mutual’s vice president of Talent Development, said the company’s culture of trust and respect has always been a draw for potential talent.

“Grinnell Mutual has built a reputation for living its corporate values on every day. We call this the ‘Grinnell Mutual Way.’ Grinnell Mutual continues to treat its employees as what they truly are: the most important factor in our business success,” Vogts said.

“The deep commitment we have to our employees and to keeping the promises we make to customers is fundamental to the way we do business. How we rose to the challenges of 2020 and 2021 and emerged not only whole, but even stronger as both an employer and an insurer, confirmed what we have always known,” he said.

“If you build a business around doing what’s right — for the company, the customers, and each other — not only does employee engagement reflect that, the bottom line does, too. We are very happy to win this prestigious award for a second year in a row.”

Because 70 percent of GEWA winners’ employees are engaged, those companies’ turnover rate is 43 percent lower, productivity is 18 percent higher, and profitability is 23 percent higher than at other workplaces.

“It’s amazing what can be accomplished when your team has a collective vision and purpose. Grinnell Mutual is an employee-focused company and we are so fortunate to have the best employees in the nation. Every day we receive wonderful stories about the great service our teams provide our customers,” said Grinnell Mutual President and CEO Jeff Menary. “They truly care about their company, their customers, their communities, and their co-workers. I believe the work and successes of our employees is the model of how businesses should operate.”

Gallup’s meta-analysis on team engagement and performance is the most comprehensive workplace study ever conducted, with data on more than 2 million employees in 276 organizations across 54 industries and 96 countries.

Organizations with highly engaged employees significantly outperform their peers in important business outcomes, including customer ratings, safety incidents, shrinkage, absenteeism, quality, wellbeing, and organizational citizenship.

See the 2022 winners’ page.