Best Places To Work Survey Hits Home With Brandon Employees

A group of Greater Brandon area businesses are among the best places to work in the Bay area according to a poll of thousands of local employees.

Workplace Dynamics collected responses from 16,797 employees, scoring each business on a variety of factors. The result was a list of 60 Bay area companies where employees love to work.

The survey was created for the St. Petersburg Times and its Tampa Bay Top Workplaces survey.

George Graham had a couple of jobs in customer service before he joined T-Mobile at , a winner in the best places to work survey. The retail sales representative has enjoyed his job since he started 18 months ago.

“I love this company. It’s extremely friendly and easy going and very conducive to everyone getting alone and maximizing sales at same time.”

The ever-changing technology of mobile communication also keeps Graham interested.

“The technology being released for phones is constantly expanding and upgrading. It’s exciting to see where the future takes us.”

Pleased, not surprised, was the reaction to their award at Bank of Tampa.

“We are very well aware our employees do enjoy working here based on the way we implement our values,” said Chris Sinton, the bank’s marketing manager. “We believe strongly that if you treat employees well they will treat clients well. It’s all about mutual respect and integrity.”

 Sinton, who has worked at the bank for 11 years, said the company also tries to remain cognizant that employees have lives outside the office.

 “We have such a loyal client base that it also creates better working environment and that feeds off itself,” Stinton said. "We have a great longevity here and it’s a very stable business. When people come into the bank people like to that the staff knows their name and that works well.”

Kevin E. Riggs runs Renaissance Consulting and Development, a Greater Brandon area firm specializing in small and closely held family businesses in the Bay area and beyond. 

A satisfied and engaged workforce is not just good for morale, Riggs said, it also pays off for the company on their balance books.

 “That employee loyalty pays off in dollars. Just as it costs more to get a new client than to hold onto one, the same also goes for employees. To get a new employee costs more with training and you are also losing someone with corporate knowledge.”

Riggs has been helping small businesses for more than five years and has found one key element all successful businesses share.

“Communication is fundamental. If there’s standardized communication practice in a company that usually promotes tremendous loyalty.”

 Among the Greater Brandon area companies named among the best places to work were:

• JSA Healthcare — JSA Oak Park, 427 South Parsons Ave.

• Camden Property Trust — Camden Lakeside, 529 South Parsons Ave.

• USAmeribank Brandon Office — 668 Oakfield Drive

• The Bank of Tampa Brandon Division — 1217 Oakfield Drive

• Ameridrug (JSA pharmacy division) — 1933 West Lumsden Road

• JSA Brandon — 1933 West Lumsden Road

• Camden Property Trust — Camden Royal Palms: 826 Milano Circle

• JSA Woodlands — 2326 S Parsons Ave.

• T-Mobile, Brandon Town Center — 459 Brandon Town Center

• JSA Bloomingdale — 406 West Bloomingdale Ave.

• Camden Property Trust, Camden Providence Lakes — 1702 Chapel Tree Circle

• Fifth Third Bank, Seffner Financial Center —  11710 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

• JSA Seffner — 770 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

• WRH Realty Services, Valrico Station Apartments —  104 Valrico Station Road

• Fifth Third Bank, Valrico Financial Center — 3402 Lithia Pinecrest Road

• Progressive Group of Insurance Companies, call center  — 4030 Crescent Park Drive