BJC HealthCare has been named to Newsweek's list of "America's Greatest Workplaces 2023 for Diversity."
Newsweek global editor-in-chief Nancy Cooper noted that although most companies talk about diversity, it can be difficult for job applicants, customers and potential business partners to tell "who is serious about supporting a diverse workforce and who is not."
The Newsweek list includes the 1,000 companies "that employees say really respect and value different kinds of people," according to Cooper.
"We appreciate this national recognition of BJC's diversity efforts and are proud to be the only health care provider within our region to achieve the highest 'five-star' diversity score on the Newsweek list," says BJC diversity, equity and inclusion vice president Steven Player, PharmD, MBA, CDM.
Player says creating a place of belonging for all employees doesn’t happen by accident.
"It is a result of intentional efforts to create a workplace where everyone feels safe, supported and has a true sense of belonging," Player says. "It includes having varying perspectives and experiences at the table when decisions are made. It provides employee programs and offerings that fit the needs of all. And it ensures access for all to high quality health care."
Some of those intentional efforts at BJC include:
- Establishing eight BJC Connection Groups where belonging is experienced and celebrated all while supporting members' ability to thrive within BJC and to further BJC’s mission, vision, values and priorities
- Focusing BJC’s 2022 Diversity Week on “Belonging is Intentional” to provide moments to purposefully reflect and reinforce the diversity in BJC’s workforce and communities
- Enhancing systemwide new employee orientation to be grounded in BJC’s values; reinforcing diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, and emphasizing BJC’s mission and vision
- Launching an internal resource hub from the BJC Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion’s SharePoint site to provide education and resources and support events
- Continuing to establish representative leadership teams with a focus on people of color at the director level and above that reflect the patients, team members and the communities BJC serves — supported and endorsed by BJC’s board and executive leadership
- Continuing to partner with talent acquisition to ensure talent sourcing supports a diverse slate of candidates
- Enhancing bias training to increase awareness and training accessibility while providing leaders with the tools needed to ensure equity as we aim to attract, retain and develop team members
- Continuing to create a sense of belonging for all team members that enables them to thrive within BJC
"There is no better feeling of safety and support than when you feel seen, accepted and included. When you, those we work alongside, and those we care for feel they belong, it enhances our collective mission and values," Player says.
Of 125 health care providers that made the Newsweek list, BJC was one of only 38 providers nationwide to achieve five stars.
To create the list, Newsweek partnered with market data research firm Plant-A Insights and based scoring on a review of publicly available data, interviews with human resources professionals and an anonymous online survey of a diverse pool of employees at U.S. companies with 1,000 or more employees.
Respondents were asked questions about corporate culture, working environment and other subjects at both their own companies and others they were familiar with. The survey yielded more than 350,000 company reviews.
See the Newsweek article here.