Printing’s Best Workplaces : The Cream of the Crop
“One of our employees told her husband she works at Camelot,” Reid notes. “We’re always looking for ways to make Vox Printing a better place to work.”
HardingPoorman Group
Indianapolis
Situated in America's Heartland, this printer probably deserves extra credit for its inclusion among PIA's Best Workplace in the Americas crew, given the fact that it is really six integrated companies wrapped into one. It consists of SPG Graphics (commercial and e-commerce), Ropkey Graphics (wide-format digital), Full Court Press (digital, variable data printing and mailing services), Miles Printing on Plastics (point-of- purchase items), Discom Technologies (bind-in CD/DVD sleeves) and Education Connection Publishing (school newsletters).
With a total of 152 employees, HardingPoorman services clients in the medical, pharmaceutical and educational sectors, among others.
“Each company maintains its own identity, specialized workflow and entrepreneurial management team,” explains David Harding, president and CEO. “The synergies of these companies are transparent to our customers (who) benefit from our range of services, expertise and the streamlined convenience of working with one partner.”
Having six firms rolled into one can be challenging from an HR standpoint, but HardingPoorman appears to have weaved a corporate ideology throughout the organization, buoyed by its employee incentives. Not only did HardingPoorman garner printing industry accolades, it was recognized as a 2011 Best Places to Work in Indiana by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.
The company encourages educational enrichment in several ways. Employees who graduate from HPG University (the printer's own program) are eligible for $2,000 a year in tuition reimbursement. Any staff member is eligible for $1,000 per year reiumbursement for job-relevant college courses. Those enrolled in HardingPoorman's Professional Development Program can be covered for up to 65 percent of the cost of classes.
HardingPoorman Group takes an active approach toward health and safety. Employees are encouraged to set health goals (a nurse visits the plant quarterly) and, if they meet their targets, they receive a $400 bonus. A health kiosk is located on campus, allowing workers to measure their weight, BMI, blood pressure and other vital signs. Personal training sessions are offered three times a week; participating employees remain on the clock while working out.
