3rd Annual 'Best Places to Work in Indiana' List Announced; Company Rankings Given at May 7 Indiana Chamber Dinner

February 25, 2008 (INDIANAPOLIS) — Sixty-six Hoosier companies were designated today as a "Best Place to Work in Indiana" for their ability to create a strong workplace culture in which employees feel valued. The program, in its third year, is managed by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and presented in partnership with Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield.

Of the 66 honorees, 40 received the same distinction in 2007. A record number of companies – over 120 – from throughout the state took part in the evaluation and were eligible for the ranking process.

The program honors the top companies in the state, as determined through employer reports and comprehensive employee surveys. Winners were selected from two categories: small to medium-sized companies of between 25 and 249 employees, and large-sized companies consisting of 250 or more employees. Out-of-state parent companies were eligible to participate if at least 25 full-time employees are in Indiana.

The Best Companies Group has overseen similar programs in 18 other states. ModernThink, LLC, a workplace excellence consulting firm, handled the selection process. The basis for this initiative is Fortune magazine’s noted "100 Best Companies to Work for in America."

"'Best Places to Work in Indiana' not only recognizes our state's outstanding employers, but also sets a high standard for other Hoosier companies by encouraging them to realize the importance of evaluating their own workplace," states Indiana Chamber President Kevin Brinegar. "It is clear that a positive work environment makes employees more engaged in their job and in their company, which is a win-win situation for the Hoosier workforce and for every business’ bottom line."

The actual rankings of the top Hoosier companies will be announced at the Best Places to Work awards dinner on May 7 at the Indiana Roof Ballroom in downtown Indianapolis. Winners will also be recognized via a special section of the Indiana Chamber's bimonthly BizVoice® magazine and through Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick – both of which reach statewide audiences. Additional program partners are the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, the Indiana State SHRM Council and the Indiana Youth Institute. The 2008 Best Places to Work in Indiana Awards Dinner is open to the public. Individual tickets and tables are available at www.indianachamber.com.

Earlier in the day, a session on what makes a company a Best Place to Work will be featured as part of the Indiana Chamber’s 44th Annual Human Resources Conference. To register to attend the awards dinner or for the HR session, visit www.indianachamber.com.

All companies that participated in the 2008 Best Places to Work program receive an in-depth evaluation identifying strengths and weaknesses according to their employees. In turn, this report can be used in developing or enhancing employee retention and recruitment programs.

For more information on the Indiana Chamber's Best Places to Work program, go to www.bestplacestoworkIN.com.

Program sponsors for 2008, in addition to Anthem, are Baker & Daniels, Ball State University, FedEx, First Merchants Corporation, French Lick Resort Casino, Hill-Rom, Professional Staff Management, Roche Diagnostics and Simon Property Group.

The 2008 Best Places to Work in Indiana companies listed in alphabetical order, no ranking:

Large Companies (250 or more employees)

Company / Location

Angie's List / Indianapolis

Baker & Daniels LLP / Indianapolis

Bingham McHale LLP / Indianapolis

Bose McKinney & Evans LLP / Indianapolis

BSA LifeStructures / Indianapolis

Centier Bank / Crown Point

Cintas / Carmel

Clarian West Medical Center / Avon

Clark Memorial Hospital / Jeffersonville

Columbus Regional Hospital / Columbus

Crowe Chizek and Company LLC / Indianapolis

Duke Realty Corporation / Indianapolis

Edward Jones / Indianapolis

Emmis Communications / Indianapolis

Ernst & Young, LLP / Indianapolis

Fort Wayne Metals Research Products Corporation / Fort Wayne

FORUM Credit Union / Indianapolis

Goshen Health System / Goshen

Indiana Business College / Indianapolis

Interactive Intelligence, Inc. / Indianapolis

LaPorte Regional Health System / LaPorte

Monarch Beverage Company, Inc. / Indianapolis

Shiel Sexton Company, Inc. / Indianapolis

St. Joseph Hospital & Health Center / Kokomo

The Capital Group Companies, Inc. / Indianapolis

Small to Medium-sized Companies (25-249 employees)

Company / Location

AIT Laboratories / Indianapolis

ANGEL Learning, Inc. / Indianapolis

Aprimo, Inc. / Indianapolis

Ash Brokerage Corporation /Fort Wayne

Bamberger, Foreman, Oswald and Hahn, LLP / Evansville

Bowen Engineering Corporation / Fishers

Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company / Fort Wayne

Colliers Turley Martin Tucker / Indianapolis

Cripe Architects + Engineers / Indianapolis

Double-Take Software / Indianapolis

Elwood Staffing / Columbus

Employment Plus Bloomington

eTapestry / Greenfield

ExactTarget, Inc. / Indianapolis

Fusion Alliance / Indianapolis

G & S Research, Inc. / Indianapolis

Gregory & Appel Insurance / Indianapolis

Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman, PC / Indianapolis

Heartland Community Bank / Franklin

Indiana Organ Procurement Organization / Indianapolis

Jackson Systems, LLC / Indianapolis

Katz, Sapper & Miller / Indianapolis

Keystone Construction / Indianapolis

KPMG LLP / Indianapolis

Krieg DeVault LLP / Indianapolis

Lake County Convention and Visitors Bureau / Hammond

Matrix Integration, LLC / Jasper

Morales Group, Inc. / Indianapolis

Network Solutions, Inc. / Granger

RW Armstrong / Indianapolis

Safety Management Group / Indianapolis

Schmidt Associates / Indianapolis

Somerset CPAs / Indianapolis

Sommer Barnard PC / Indianapolis

T2 Systems, Inc. / Indianapolis

The Estridge Companies / Carmel

The Heavyweights, Inc. / Indianapolis

TLS.net, Inc. / Columbus

United Consulting / Indianapolis

VMS / Indianapolis

WestPoint Financial Group / Indianapolis

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The Indiana Chamber of Commerce has been the state’s largest broad-based business advocacy organization for over 85 years. Today, it serves more than 26,000 members and customers.