Undoubtedly, one of the stories of this year's Best Firms to Work For list is PricewaterhouseCoopers. For a firm with the sheer size of PwC to rise six spots up to No. 8 and leapfrog some of the profession's tried-and-true consultancies is quite an achievement. It's even more so when one considers the move has occurred in the midst of a tumultuous economy where much smaller firms might seem to have a "cultural" advantage.
"Being recognized as a Best Firm to Work For reflects our laser focus on our clients and our people. It is one of the reasons why we attract and retain professionals who are passionate about their work and driven to make a significant impact for our clients and our firm, says Dana McIlwain, U.S. advisory leader for PwC. "The personal and professional development of our people is extremely important to us. Being a Best Firm to Work For means that our people have access to career development and learning opportunities that can propel them to the next level in their career and enable them to bring greater value to our clients."
Indeed, career development was a bright spot for PwC. Few firms do it better, according to the survey data. Employees have benefited from the firm's increased focus on coaching and continuous improvement, McIlwain says. "We know that our people value getting timely and candid coaching feedback. It helps them better develop their careers and personal brand at the firm, and it builds trust," he says. "The overall development of our people is very important to the firm, and we not only give them the support they need to succeed, but we engage them as active participants in planning and guiding their own personal development."
One example, he says, is PwC's annual development planning process, which enables people to establish goals and objectives that support both their personal career objectives and PwC's strategic objectives. "We know that it will take all of us, working together, to achieve PwC's objectives and best serve our clients—and we have tied personal development planning to the firm's objectives so that our people can see very clearly how they can have a direct impact on our—and our clients'—success," he says.
PwC also attained great scores in the area of Culture and Work/Life Balance, of all things. Traditionally, mega firms tend to struggle in those areas, but McIlwain says the firm has made conscious effort to improve both. And, despite the economy, PwC had a robust year. That, of course, always helps.
"Our consulting business enjoyed tremendous growth this year, and we are poised for additional growth in the years ahead," McIlwain says. "Our people have worked hard to achieve this success, and collectively feel a strong sense of pride in what has been accomplished to date. We're all bullish on our future and share a sense of excitement and enthusiasm for what we expect to accomplish."
Q&A with Dana McIlwain
On the survey, PricewaterhouseCoopers excelled in the areas of Work/ Life Balance and Culture. We asked Dana McIlwain US Advisory Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers, why the firm scored so high in these areas.
Work/Life Balance
We're very focused on creating a flexible work environment for our people, one that allows them to maintain work/life balance and offers them the opportunity for a variety of work/life experiences.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.