When software developer Helen Sanders, EDU ’13, saw a call for Best Places to Work, she nominated Temple University.

“My department feels like a family,” said the 18-year veteran of Temple’s Computer Services department. “When I got married, most of the guests were my co-workers.”

As a result of Sanders’ nomination, Temple participated in Philly.com’s Top Workplaces survey this past December.

The response to the survey broke all previous records for Temple employee participation, attesting to the commitment and interest of the university community.

Of the 6,360 full-time and part-time regular employees and full-time faculty who were surveyed, 57 percent took part.

The results showed that Temple faculty and staff appreciate their benefits and their relationships with their supervisors and department chairs, and they believe the work they do has meaning. The data also identified areas for improvement in efficiency, encouraging new ideas and keeping employees well-informed.

“What we most wanted from this survey was employee feedback,” said Ken Kaiser, FOX ’89, ’94, ’03, vice president, CFO and treasurer at Temple. “This will help us set the course for changes we can make to enhance the experience of working at Temple.”

Human Resources is meeting with individual deans and officers to review and explain their areas’ results and to help craft strategies to address issues identified.

“We’re committed to continuously improving our services across the university, and surveys like Top Workplaces provide valuable detail on how Temple can grow as a world-class place to work,” said Temple University President Neil D. Theobald.  

Ultimately, Temple was only three places away from being honored as a top workplace.  

“The fact that Temple chose to participate says a lot,” said Doug Claffey, CEO of WorkplaceDynamics, which conducted the survey. “Organizations choosing to learn more about their employees’ day-to-day experiences is an important indicator of what it takes to become a top workplace.”

The top five positive responses on the survey centered on benefits, flexibility and supervisors. Those ring true for Helen Sanders. She especially values Temple’s benefits—all three of her children are Temple Owls—and the flexibility the university offers for good work-life balance.

Temple ranked higher than the industry average (70 percent) in number of employees planning to stay at Temple for longer than a year. A majority of employees also said they would recommend Temple (70 percent) and that Temple motivates them to give their very best at work (65 percent).

“We always want to be striving to make Temple a better workplace,” said Eric Brunner, EDU ’14, assistant vice president in human resources. “Happy and fulfilled faculty and staff translate into great experiences for all of our constituents—from students and alumni, to neighbors in the community and our fellow colleagues—and ultimately continued success for the university.”