Best Workplaces: No Place I'd Rather Work...

There's no doubt that if a "Seven Habits of Highly-Effective Printing Companies" publication were to be released, at least one of the tenets would touch upon employees: How to nurture them and cultivate relationships that are mutually beneficial for the worker and the employer alike.

Finding top talent is one thing. Any HR staff worth its salt can spot a multi-tool performer in sales or glean the cream of the crop that emerges each year from Rochester Institute of Technology, Cal Poly and the like. Providing a compensation package for employees that goes beyond a salary commensurate with that person's experience and skills is paramount for printing companies that wish to be more than a stepping stone to a better gig.

Instead of devising our own wholly subjective criteria with which to judge printing companies, we have instead deferred to the wisdom of the Printing Industries of America (PIA), which produces its own annual Best Workplace in the Americas Awards. It's not that we're shiftless and lazy, but how could we possibly improve upon the flawless judging system concocted by PIA? We can't, so we won't.

What we have done, however, is provide you with a cross-section of companies that garnered Best Workplace designations last year. It is not all that surprising to note that many of these printers have copped Best Workplace distinctions in the past, as well. And what better recruitment tool can a printer have than third-party validation of its greatness?

The PIA judges printers based on a number of criteria, ranging from workplace health and safety, training and development opportunities, recognition, rewards and the ability to strike a work/life balance. The 2014 honorees will be announced by PIA shortly.

Midstates Inc., Aberdeen, SD

The Midstates Group consists of four brands—Midstates Inc., Quality Quick Print, Panther Graphics and Jacob North—and employs about 400 workers across the enterprise. Its brands cover the full range of printing and serve a wide client base, ranging from health and wellness to education, manufacturing, automotive, communications and agriculture.