America’s Most Admired Companies: Full list

I speak from a consumer’s point of view after one long, horrendous, nightmarish transaction with JC Penney, over which I have made multiple painful calls, have not received a single e-mail or phone call, as requested–and worse, not a single assurance that they are not going to KEEP RIGHT ON SCREWING UP as they have been doing for almost a solid month. In the course of this one transaction, JC Penney staff has violated a whole slew of their own corporate principles, as posted on their website.

RIGHT NOW, I wouldn’t give two cents for JC Penney’s corporate reputation; and maybe YOU SHOULDN’T EITHER UNTIL YOU GET YOUR INFORMATION RIGHT FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH–THE CONSUMER.

You might then have something to shout about.

DST Systems has a horrible people management record, who comes up with these statistics? A management poll was taken 2-3 years ago and failed miserably. They have not attempted another since.

CarMax is all about image and impressing shareholders.
They don’t care about anything else.
Wake up and smell the coffee everybody.
Their cars are overpriced, have paintwork, and they low-ball customers who come in to sell their vehicle.
Management is horrendous. No other word to describe it.
They treat their associates very poorly, though they’ll brainwash internal and external customers otherwise. Plus, they use the constructive dismissal technique with employees that they don’t like so they don’t collect unemployment. shameful.
wake up and smell the coffee. This company is EVIL!

How IKON got ranked 4 in managing people is beyond me. First of all, IKON underpays their people, even by market standards based on the demands placed upon them. And on top of that they allow their employees to deal with rudeness, disrespect and unprofessional treatment by clients all to keep the money coming in. I worked for IKON and my wife does now, and I was unimpressed. I have worked for other companies on the list, like Peabody Energy, and I can say that IKON doesn’t measure up.

UPS is admired only by the people outside the company. Unless you are simply happy with stability and the comfort of a financially strong company, I would not recommend them to anyone. They do not pay well, and overwork their employees.

I have to agree about the analysis of Target… It is not the workplace it once was. So sad.

Target is on this list??? You’ve got to be kidding me! Target is a terrible place to work….slave labor and slave wages. Target is great at marketing an image…great for “guests” only. It is a god-awful place to work. Aside from the terrible pay and benefits, the atmosphere is unprofessional and juvenile… And way too many young, uneducated, and inexperienced managers making important decisions that they are not qualified to make. It is a strong AVOID!

Someone should do a study at UPS about the prevalence of alchoholism, divorce, depression, suicide…

I have worked for starbucks for the past 5months and it the probably the best job that I have had in a long time.

I have worked for Starbucks for going on 5 years. The company has done some things in the last month that I am really proud of. By realizing our previous faults, taking ownership and providing long term steps to make amends, we are showing the world why we have been able to change the face of coffee, one cup at a time.

I have worked for JPMCHASE for 3 1/2 years…and they capped retail bankers’ salaries, cut expenses drastically and eliminated the ability to ‘purchase additional time off’. With only two weeks vacation and most branches open 6 days a week, it was not worth the ‘wall-street’ darling name.

I think that Northwestern Mutual is a great company as I have invested with them for years. My policies with them have outperformed any other companies that I own in my portfolio. The fact that they’ve stayed mutual is a great benefit to the policyholders.

i have worked for bluecross of california.. it’s a contact center..
after watching the documentary of michael moore , i felt guilty.
-
even if there are some cases of fraud with american healthcare..i still cant get the point of insurance companies trying to get away of the bills that are due…
-
some of the medical review people are testifying that they are getting paid to deny hospital claims..
tsk tsk..
-
move to france!

Aerospace & Defense looks like a SNAFUed ratings job. How do you do a top 10 in that industry, even if you restrict yourself to businesses with a substantial American footprint, and manage to leave out EADS (incl. Airbus, and market-leader Eurocopter), and also BAE Systems?

I’m the Editor in Chief at Defense Industry Daily, and cover these industries on a daily basis. Folks, any methodology that would exclude these 2 companies, in this sector, needs a lot of rethinking.

Hopefully, we’ll see some of that rethinking in the 2008 ratings.

IBM has a score of 7.46 and number 1 in their industry ahead of Apple who have a score of 7.44. Apple rank in the number 7 overall with IBM not even in the top 20. How so ?

American Express/Ameriprise is the most despicable company I know and I have interviewed/profiled hundreds of companies as a professional journalist. When our elderly aunt and uncle need more cash from their annuities, American Express promised them one payout plan with interest and then switched them to one witout interest. After, they died (within a day of each other) American Express tried to impose non-allowable fees on the benficiaires, and cheat the bneneficiaries out of the interest promised in its written proposal. Although we got the Florida Department of Financial Services to get Ameircan Express/Ameriprise to pay what it originally offered at the specified rate, the FLDFS never punished American Express for its numerous violations of Florida Statutes. Likewise, Governor Crist failed to provide any justice and protect Florida elderly against prerdatory practices by unscruplous financial services firms.

I’ve wanted to leave the insurance industry altogether after working with a different company so when I started working for Aflac I went into it very reluctantly. I’m pleased to say that with all my reluctancy I’m still proud to work for a company that provides benefits in an amazing way to take care of people in their times of need.

MassMutual is a great company. I personally love the LifeBridge insurance product, Free for low income people. Hows that for social responsibility?

FPL does have great untilities. With the weather being as severe as it is in Florida my electricity hardly goes out. However, their customer service is absolutely horrible. They know that they control the electrcity market and do not have to provide great service. They will turn your service off after ten days of being late. They are rude on the phone and always unhelpful. When I originally moved to Florida was was a single mom of two barely making it and they turned off my electricity and offered no solutions and hung up on me. I called back to speak with a manager and he did the same thing. We went two weeks without electricity. The governemnt needs to regulate electric companies. I pay my bills but when you live pay check to pay check sometimes you miss a bill. I wish I didn’t have to do that but I wish more that FPL wasn’t so haeartless.

You should try working for IBM. If you want poor employee treatment, IBM should be your kind of environment. As far as you go in IBM you hear one thing. Work Life balance, but when it comes down to it, it more a case of work-work balance. I have been an IBM employee for 2 years, and yes my performance rating is 1. I am not just complaining, I give my best. Management just doesn’t give back.

I believe that IBM could be one of the greatest companies to work for; they need to look at the level 1 and 2 managers. These people are costing IBM valuable recourses and allot of money.

I have worked for Northwestern Mutual for 7 years. They have been #1 in their industry as the most admired every year that Fortune has compiled the lists. How is that for long term investment?
-Paul

I’m not surprised WAMu is on the list. I worked for them without a salary, and with all the merging and equisitions no wonder the CEO made over 18 million while we the people brought in the business. I closed almost 18 million in sales last year and make 60k. They should stop the ARM loans as more and more people will foreclose due to high margins and index is over 5% at the moment. Who is running the country these days? Mr Bush can’t do it all alone…

If FPL is the best, I’d hate to see the second best or 10th or 100th best electric utility!!

I worked for CarMax for 5 years before leaving so my wife could accept a promotion. Even though I had to leave the company on a severance package, I will not hesitate to say that is one of the finest working enviroments I have ever been in, automotive or otherwise.

The managment is responsive, the lending and selling are ethical and the people are outstanding. Hourly associates have legitimate opportunities for upper management positions and the benefits are top notch.

If you are looking for a vehicle, do yourself a huge favor and try CarMax first. If you are a big-box manager and want to feel good about your career, call them.

True. Google has built a lot of air around it most of it fake. They just buy over and say its theirs ..ex google earth brought over from keyhole .. and now people speak that its google maps or earth or whatever … they have the worst recruiters … i took 2 months .. and finally i was recruited but the process killed me … i am suffering in the company now …….

I have to say - GOOGLE is a giant company, and the owners/founders are doing pretty well (financially).
I work in the same building as GOOGLE has its New York City headquarters. let me tell you that their employees have an attitude like they own this universe, just because they have so many perks other comanies do not provide - from their own chefs, to bringing pets to work and getting massages… think what employees have to give back to the company for all the perks:-) nothing is for free in this world:-)

I seriously see some lacking in the ratings. How can a few Businesses rate one another and it makes it to the top? Thhere are companies which are literally have negative Customer Satisfaction and still make it to the top. I think another “double blind” rating is necessary taking to account a sample rating from customers from every city in America. The customers should be chosen y a neutral agency and not whatever the company provides from its database. Then we can feel it to be a fair rating. most admired by Banks, business and certain political Lobbies and not by customers, by hard work..Yes the ones on the Top are correct by the later rankings in 40’s -60’s are erroneous. Please do something.

Though not surprised, I was, however, thoroughly outraged by Google’s inclusion on “Most Admired”. Their recent ploy over locating a server farm in NC and fleecing all the other taxpayers in the state for “incentives” is nothing else but selective taxation. Google was granted tax breaks that could amount to $260 million over 30 years.
(http://www.newsobserver.com/104/story/562527.html)
Yet another article had Google supposedly playing a NC vs. SC game
(http://www.newsobserver.com/666/story/561382.html), in which SC not only got an equivalent site but may get a second as well. I guess Google’s #1 rank in “Social Responsibility” didn’t include paying their fair share of the tax burden on our state’s infrastructure. I guess accountability to stockholders was the only criteria. Coming on the heels of another $280 million in incentives given to Dell Computer, we’re looking at over $500 million in tax breaks given to just 2 companies. Just 2. Of course, ultimately, it’s our own lawmakers’ fault, since they’re the ones that approved all this in the first place. Little wonder that NC is considered among the top states to do business in, as long as you have name-brand recognition.

Dear John from San Jose - you need a new manager, not a new company.

I’m surprised Aetna made it on the list. Lately, their customer service is slacking. They have unprofessional power-trip attitudes and I get a different story every single time I call with a question or for an explanation of coverage. When I tried to speak with a supervisor, even she had attitude.

Toyota on the list? You bet. Reliable cars built in America, hiring workers while the Big 3 are laying off by the 10s of thousands, too. Just because the company is headquartered overseas shouldn’t be a deciding factor in whether to buy. If you insist on buying only stuff made by Americans and owned by American companies - you might want to stop buy Chevy’s and Fords. They’re coming from Mexico. Talk about outsourcing!

Tell me, are you more upset about Toyota being admired, or the fact that they’ve successfully fended off unions? I personally wouldn’t shed a tear if all the unions went belly up. But you bet I’d buy a car from a place that wasn’t unionized.

Cisco should be at the bottom for people management. All they do is micro manage and play politics, career development means leave Cisco and go some where that will provide you some proper training

How can you rate Accenture #2 in social responsiblity? This is a company that moved it’s headquarters off-shore to avoid paying US taxes.

Accenture Wins AgainWhile it is true that they keep getting better and better at what they do, part of the reason they won is because of the “good enough for government work” mentality of their competitors. I manage contracts with three big IT integrators, and Accenture is the only one that seems to care about the end result of their work.

Dillards employees are working a living nightmare. This company should not even be on the list of Most Admired Companies. The constant nightmre of having your pay cut by 10% is awful and don’t even think about having a personal crisis. That could be cause for immediate dismissal.

Easy to see why Quintiles is on the list of the most respected companies. Quintile gets all the work done for the pharmaceutical industry. Well, it deserves to be higher on the list….

FPL GROUP MOST ADMIRED DEFINETLY NOT BY THE EMPLOYEES.

Are you Joking?? Cardinal Health is one of the worst distributors I’ve worked with. I’ve been in the field for over 12 hears and their local service and accountabilty is Nil! I’m not convinced the info used was thoroughly review or researched correctly. I’m not arguing certain aspects of the company may be better then others but the fact that they made #1 makes me ill.

McDonald’s is on its way to #1.

They obviously didn’t poll Missouri residents! Wellpoint (Anthem) has made health insurance a nightmare in Missouri. This coming from an agent who has 95% of his business with Anthem.

I couldnt be more proud to work for CDW.

CDW has the best service in the industry - bar none

Norhtwest Airlines is NOT admired by this consumer. I have dealt with some of the most unprofessional people here and wouldnt recommed them to my worst enemy

SYSCO is run by a bunch of ex Waiters with no business acumen.

In my mind, Southwest Airlines is tops in that industry in all counts.

Whenever possible I fly Continental. They still believe in service.

Sears made this list? That is a joke! They treat their employees poorly, they don’t pay over minimum wage, no benefits, pay raises of 7 cents per year. Some dont even receive raises at all! Maybe it is better for managemnet but for the front line cashiers, customer service personel and sales people, forget it!

My husband and I always fly Continental; they remain the only airline with food and they have helped out when we needed to change dates. Personnel have always been helpful; especially when my husband had to fly his 99 year old aunt from CA to NY last year.

Continental is not admired by this household. I have witnessed Continental overbook filghts. Have to much weight on a plane, passengers and luggage. I have seen them taxi to the end of the runway and burn fuel so they can take off because the plane is over loaded. I have had luggage permanantly lost and not been adequately compensated. I have been treated rudely by Continental employees. No I can not admire this company I am to in fear for the poor souls who fly with them.

i work for a company accquired by fedex and i can say its not a good company to work for, they have cut benefits, cut staffing and have taken a company that was good to work for to make it a horrible place to work. i have worked for wal-mart in the past and was treated better there than with fedex

I’m proud to say that I work for one of the most admired companies in America! I love working for such a reputable organization. This ranking not only illustrates Sears Holdings’ commitment to “focusing on our customers” but also how we create “lifetime relationships” with our customers. Sears Holdings’ employees strive and work hard to offer the best solution and service to our customers. I can say that the company does not sacrifice quality at the expense of the customer or the associate. Our values of “how we lead” and “work together” focus on being socially responsible and company stewards in the communities we serve. Thanks to the millions of customers that have joined the Sears Holdings family. We appreciate you and will continue to provide the services and products that you enjoy. Many kudos to every Sears associate for your contributions and efforts in making Sears Holdings one of Fortune’s most admired companies.

Intuit again, where mediocraty reigns? I bought into the “hype” about Intuit in 2005, actually worked there for about 11 months. Aside from having a lock on a narrow market segment, what is inspiring here? Their financial picture is always bleak. They buy and bleed other companies to sell them off in 2-3 years. They churn through staff on an annual basis.

I just don’t get how a company that annually suffers from heavy consumer satisfaction, has hidden core product fragility (code) under an annual upgrade policy that few if many users continue to tolerate, and that is completely comfortable with juggling minimum(IT) wage workers in and out of the door every season, how can they be an inspiration. If the most admired came from consumer and not employee responses, the final tally might look a bit different.

United Airlines is no surprise thought it would be lower.

Graybar is an excellent company to work for. They believe in promoting within and encourage advancement in the work place. Focus on the quality of service we provide to our customers is key to our sucess, both internal and external. Excellent benefits and the incorpation of SAP software has provided employee-owners the ability to appreciate what a great company Graybar is to work for.

Centex is a wonderful company! A great place to work, and a company that really does do the right things for the right reasons.

I am so pleased to see the recognition for HCR. They are a leader in the Health Care Industry and truly live their philosophy of care. I have worked for HCR for 1 1/2 years and could not be more happy. They treat and respect their employees the way you only hope that you can find in your career. That respect then extends out to the patients and families that are cared for by this wonderful organization.

JCPenney should be at the top with the turnaround they have enjoyed. The customer has really spoken and let the retail world know they want them around for the long term.

I have worked for Countrywide for over five years. I am surprised to see that it makes to the list of Most Admired Company. All I can say is the company cares for bottom line and nothing else. Countrywide denied it’s employees raises or promotions for jobs they are already doing. There are only a few women on the top executives while there are more of women at middle level managers. They continue to downgrade their benefits and pension. They stop offering pension to new employees. In my department, we are denied request for additional training and equipment upgrade like computer, they took away our flex time while other department continue to have flex time. Each division doesn’t have consistent policy or guideline regarding promotion. The manager promote who they want to promote. Countrywide culture doesn’t really care for its employees. It is very discouraging to be working in this culture.

Why is it that a company that continues to make money at what they do and most others fail, or lose money cannot get its stock price back to its pre 911 prices? This even after most analists said SOUTHWEST AIRLINES was probably one of the best stocks(Airline) in history for your money, and probably the best buy in all of 2007.

Jabil continues to grow during tight economy conditions. As an employee of nearly 12 years I have been transferred three times. Company paid for the moves. As a supervisor I only have 3 temps in my staff. Like any other company. You get what you put into it. Work hard and you will be rewarded.

United Healthcare is a mistake. Besides thier stock option misbehavior they have a terrible and lengthy time for paying claims as I have found many times.

JCPenney needs to care about their associates more to be on this list

It’s very simple why Genentech arrived on top the list this year. We care about the patient.After a while, people realize that.

Broadcom - I’m proud to work for a company with great employee morale and when under fire, the dignity to scrub their own stock program. Although, not the best paying of their competitors, they make up for it in a real work-life balance and plenty of on-site amenities. Don’t believe me? Check how many cars are left in the parking lots at 7pm! When mgmt believes in balance, it’s contagious and builds a company that people stay with.

I have to admit when I started working for JCPenney 6 years ago I did not even consider making my career with this company. I don’t usually shop at JCPenney as they are a little higher end than I can afford. However, I want to say that they have really turned the company around and their focus on their employee’s is amazing. I’ve worked for other companies that their only concern is the bottom line. Yeah JCPenney is concerned about the bottom line but not at the expense of their employee’s. I plan on staying with this amazing company for the next 25+ years. Thanks for recognizing such a wonderful employer.

YRCW made it because they limited profit sharing for all but their top managers to 15% of their anticipated share in the profits. Lets see how YRCW will fare next year ?

I am so grateful to work for Graybar. After I had an emergency c-section and my daughter had to go to St. Louis Children’s Hospital, my co-workers provided so much encouragment and support it was unbelieveable. They held a fundaiser for my family and the proceeds from it have been a great blessing. All this and I don’t have to contribute a portion of my paycheck towards short term disability is one of the reasons why I feel very fortunate to work for Graybar Electrical Distributors.

McDonald’s made the list?? This company does little in the way of personal responsibility, or true community outreach. Sure the Ronald McDonald House Charaties does good work, but at the same time this company advertises high fat, high colestural food to children only adding to this countries obesity problem.

Having a photo of Toyota’s employees holding an American flag makes me ill. Just because something is made here does not mean it is an American product. All of the profits go directly back to the parent company in Japan. We will never get the country back to a sound financial state as long as the majority of the buying public is gullible enough to fall for their “Made In America” tagline. Get real.

I do not believe Wells Fargo did not make the list. It is one of the finest corporate neighors, fiscally sound, has high colleague regard and esteem, and had enough staying power that they even paid their shareholders dividends during the Great Depression

Can’t believe Iron Mountain made the list. The morale in the company is so negative. I left there after 2 months. The company doesn’t treat the employee well at all. May be that’s why they’re so financially sound.

AmEx may have some good things to look at on the outside. But having worked there for 3 months, the inside has issues. I never felt comfortable with transferring customers to supervisors or to other departments and I had to many times. I did not have the confidence that my customer would be treated respectfully.

I don’t know whose responses constitute the survey results, but clearly it is a biased sample with little knowledge of some of the companies they rate. Blatant bias in the comparative rankings of Intel v. AMD is glaringly apparent. To suggest that AMD ranks ahead of Intel in any of the categories listed is ridiculous, but the clear bias is the lower ranking for Intel in the areas of “Use of corporate assets”, “Quality of management”, “Social responsibility”, and “Quality of products/services”.

I can’t understand why people would admire Walmart. After all the court cases about how they treat their workers and women especially, Keep shopping there America.

Aveda Corporation–part of Estee Lauder–should drive that company to the top of the environmental list. Aveda’s comitment to environmental practices leads most industries in packaging, product design, recycling etc.

It is amazing to me that you would rate FedX so highly, after they bought Watkins, took the work to the FedX employees, and dumped the Watkins contractors on the street. At that point the Watkins contractors were in effect FedX employees……

Jabil most admired??
I worked there as a temp, in fact 75 % of the plant was temps, some had been temporary for over a year!!!
Jabil is a joke to work for.
Wayne

Am I the only American who gets it.
Every time you buy a Toyota, 86cents
of every dollar goes back to Japan.
What they couldn’t do to America in
WWII they are doing economically in
2007, with the help of the citizens of
the USA. Made in America is the jus-
tifecation these buyers use, lets clear
that up too. Made in JAPAN, assembled
in the USA. Wake up America, your de-
stroying our great nation with your
own money and hard work. Motor Trend
Truck of the Year was made in America,
not Japan. Support the USA.

I am so very shocked to see ELECTRONIC ARTS as one of the top 308 companies. ELECTRONIC ARTS is the owner of POGO which is a games and entertainment system on-line. If you were to poll the POGO members who pay $39.95 a year to play games, you would be dismayed at how many people are truly digusted with them. They have the absolute worst customer service and the worst customer service system. They do not offer a phone number to call and by the time you go through all the steps just to get to the point where you can contact them by e-mail, it just makes things more infuriating. All they are interested in is collecting the membership fees and then forgetting those very same members. It is obvious that their system cannot handle the volumne of players on-line, yet it seems nothing is ever done to correct it and when you do send them an e-mail message it is answered with a “phony” name. I am sure that the name they put on all those acknowledgements is not handled by one person. But in this day and age of out sourcing, things are getting worse in the United States than better. I suggest that the people who devised this list all become POGO members with ELECTRONIC ARTS and I think that very soon you will understand what I am saying and be singing a different tune.

How can GE rate the most admired when its stock is stuck in neutral–a poor investment and it hires,trains and promotes the Bob Nardellis of this world.

Walgreens…hmm, look up the definition of sweat shop for pharmacists and you will probably see the word Walgreens in it.

Dun & Bradstreet is a great institution which solicits prolific participation from its associates in their shareholder value maximization objective. This is what is reflected by the Peer rankings. The corporation which employed 4 US Presidents (Lincoln, Grant, Cleveland & Mckinley) stills continues its roller-coaster ride. Way to Glory!!!

“Our stores were conceived and built for this moment in time - to roll out iPhone,” Steve Jobs.
That is profound!

NetApp is truly a great place to work. I work at a location outside of Sunnyvale where our headquarters is, and we have all of the benefits and live the same culture. Tell anyone in the area that you work for NetApp and they think you have “hit the jackpot.” The company really does care about its employees.

It also makes me wonder who within the company is interviewed/questioned to come up with such a lofty ranking. I can tell you that if virtually any of the “bee workers” were interviewed where I work at, this internet blog wouldn’t be discussing Motorola.

Shocking that Motorola would be considered one of the most admired companies. Motorola has denied it’s employees raises or promotions for jobs they are already doing, for an additional 3 months this year to make the bottom line look better. And for the second year in a row, the pension plan has again been downgraded. They have also regularly denied many requests for education reimbursement for business and engineering programs over the past three years.

Makes one wonder what the least admired companies are doing!

Nike Just Did It. Again.
We are proud as Nike employees.

ExxonMobil is financially sound, outperforms peers, and puts items such as safety and internal controls among its most important values.

It is without peer in its industry.

As a Con-Way employee for two years and going, I can honestly say that this honor is well deserved, and that this company is a great one to work for. We’re #1!!!

Stewart Title is not just great to work with, it is great to work for. They are a solid company and treat their associates like family from CEO Morris on down. They deserve the recognition… congrats, Stewart!

Quick testimonial: when hurricane Katrina hit the company’s local offices were closed and when the storm passed, their first priority was to account for all associates and their families… search teams were sent out to find the few still missing and global notifications were sent out throughout the ordeal to keep the rest of the company posted. More corporations should take this as an example; it really shows a company that cares.

I am an employee with Wellpoint. I am very blessed to work for such a great company. Not only as an employee but as a Member, the incentives Wellpoint offers is the best I have yet to see.

Whoever ranked Honeywell with 8’s and 7’s for Innovation, People Management, Use of Assets, Management Quality, and Long-term Investment obviously didn’t do their homework. Ask any employee and you will see those ranks deserve to be no higher than 4’s or 5’s.

I work for UPS. If the world really knew. Nuff said.

you’ve left out HSBC, the world’s local bank. HSBC is the first financial institution to go carbon-neutral and HSBC North America holdings leads the way on improving water sources throughout the developing world

UPS does not deserve it’s ranking.
It is the rare exception of an organization whos reputation is derived primarily from its’ union drivers. Ask a non-union/non-managemet employee about the people management skills of UPS and it will quickly fall out of the top 25.

My job with St. Jude Medical is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I never imagined that I could enjoy a career so much. My company is truly number one in my book…………….

Just because a company is moving jobs to India, doesnt mean a company should be admired.

In a global market where the mantra is adapt or perish, companies will do what it takes to adapt and grow. We need to keep in mind that companies can “guarantee a lifetime of employability” and “NOT a guarantee of employment.”

I had an account with Fifth Third, went to National City, then switched back to Fifth Third after approx. 18 months. National City is one of the worst banks I’ve dealt with when it comes to customer service. It’s a big bank that probably needs to stay with big business. Every time I had to call customer service, the attitude was rude and dismissive. Fifth Third bank is friendlier, and the bank comes across as caring. At least they know how to train their employees to treat customers this way. Every experience with them has been very satisfactory.

The most admired companies are more oftenthan not, smaller companies that are making a difference in the world and still respect employees. I now work for a biotech company hoping to find cancer cures.We still have time for all company breakfasts and snacks and a movie days.

I can’t believe a company like Fed Ex can beat UPS in any category much less overall. Their drivers are in a class action law suite because the company doesn’t want to treat them like employees. UPS is the largest corporate contributor to the United Way and they continuously encourage us to volunteer and be positive forces in our communities. I’ve been a proud UPSer for 12 years and nobody beats BIG BROWN! nobody.

I was surprised to see Yahoo! ranked high for people management. While at the macro-level, they have done well at integrating acquisitions into the company culture, at the micro-level, my experience was failure. There is too much middle-management which is focused on politics rather than recognizing and developing the individuals to best contribute to the organization based on their skill sets.

I can’t believe that Xerox is an admired company. With all the layoffs, cut backs and offshoring, what is there to admire?

I am sad to see Visteon on so many of the worst lists. I spent almost 10 years there and although the company never made money, people worked hard and gave it all they had. When the new leadership arrived the company stopped caring about it’s employees and focused only on profit - which they have yet to achieve.

It’s a tough industry and a tough town (Detroit) to make money in, but when an company abandons the people that work for it then it really has no hope of being one of Fortune’s Most Admired Companies, even if they do manage to become profitable one day.

How does Toyota get ranked number 3 when BMW outscored them overall, and in nearly every sub category? Both are foreign owned with plants in the U.S.

J&J is the Best of the Best!!

I’ve worked in various large companies across the US and I am very impressed with the FPL Group’s professionalism. With the exception of some individuals, managers do not have to be a jerk to be efficient and people respond in kind.

Gosh, Centex Homes really is a great company. I love working for them. It’s so satisfying to make such a difference in the lives of our homeowners. Plus, we have such a “CAN do” attitude.

Progressive Insurance has always put the customer first. It’s a pleasure having an insurance company where the employees, dealing with trauma on a regular basis, still perform their job duties with a smile on their face and exceeding all customer expectations! You know you have a great insurance company when the employees believe in the company as much as you do!

CDW is absolutely the finest company to do business with and to work for. I am so proud to be a part of a team that really believes in the golden rule and treating customers with respect. It’s a pleasure to wake up every morning and know that your co-workers are pulling for your success, working as a team and enjoy their customers as much as a family friend.

PNC is a great place to work. Management takes great pride in our Company, Community, and the people who make PNC great, the employees. They recognize that PNC is not just a company for one purpose, but an asset to its investors, employees, and the community. However, I do disagree with the low score in Social Responsibility. It is unwarranted. PNC is recognized as a leader in building Green Office Buildings and Branches within the Banking industry. PNC also sponsor’s Grow Up Great for Preschool Education, a commitment over many years to help children excel from preschool on. This is a Nationally recognized program that is available in all communities throughout the PNC Footprint.

I am a self-employed individual in the mortgage business. At some point and time, I have been a customer of most of these businesses. I have had good and bad experiences and can truthfully say that any company that moves it’s IT or Customer Service departments to a foreign country is asking for customer dissatisfaction. Please do not think that I am some “Hillbilly Bigot”. I hold a law degree and have traveled extensively. The American Consumer, as well as the American worker, is tired of being sold out for nothing other than pure profit.

Ok putting Disney on the list of most admired is outrageous. Have you talked to any employees of Disney Orlando lately. Low pay, long hours etc. I truly think Walt would rollover in his grave if he knew how some of his employees were treated.

Aren’t Target and Walgreens both responsible for employing/condoning pharmacists who wont fill certain prescriptions for women? Why are they on any list but ones that expose them for such things?

15 years and 3 industries deep in my career, I’ve found my home with Centex literally and vocationally. Our company has earned its rank and will continue to out perform the competition. Thank you for the salute.

I don’t see how a company like Safeway made it on the list of most admired. They treat their employees like dirt, their stores are dated and filthy, and they don’t have a clue as to how to spell innovation, let alone, know what it is.

Federated will never be Famous-Barr. 1400 people lost their job because of one man. The CEO. He with his $15 million umbrella clause. I will always despise him for what he did to the May Company and all of the good people who worked there. I feel better now.

I work for Centex in the Central Valley of California and couldn’t agree more. Centex is great to both its employees and home buyers/owners. It is so nice to be happy about going to my job each day. Thanks Centex!

If the general public only knew what UPS is really like they’d be horrified. They have no social responsibility and treat their employees like chattel. Their focus is on the money and their culture fosters employee abuse. They’ve carefully crafted a public image that is “smoke and mirrors.” I had 17 years with them before being “downsized” 3 years before pensioning out. My life and health are better since I left 2 years ago.

I would love to know the definition of socially responsible when picking the top 10. As an example, my criteria for socially responsible would include the products they sell being fit for human consumption, humane and environmentally responsible. I speak about the food industry. With few exceptions, the food industry as a whole is ranked #2 as being the most inhumane, irresponsible,destructive and with a callous disregard for what their business practices are doing to the health of people, animal life and the environment.The amount of land used to raise food products yields a vast amount of food, yet most of that yield goes back into the production to be used as feed, fertilizer,etc.Don’t get me started on what happens with the waste products this produces. No wonder we are seeing things like eColi. McDonalds is a prime example. Their business is selling unsafe and inhumane food with absolutely no regard to the destruction of the environment. There are numerous other companies on this “best of” list that are part of our food supply and their business practices are no better. The health of the world is of no importance. If this constitutes socially responsible,then it is a sad reflection on society and the human race. In the end, it’s really all about the bottom line isn’t it?

I have worked for True Value for over 15 years and for several other companies in the meantime. True Value as one of the lowest employee morale’s I have ever seen. Their management team continually promotes self-preservation by creating fiefdom’s and silo’s. A truly horrible company to work for.

I am proud and honored to be an employee of HCR Manorcare. I took a small cut in pay originally to come to work for the company, but since have not only recouped the money; I have been provided the opportunity to take care of my patients and their families better than ANYWHERE in the world.
A Happy Nurse!

Centex is a great company to work for. THanks for the recognition. In this market, that is really saying something. WE are PROUD.

Washington Mutual has layed off 15000 people in the past 3 years, it has outsourced IT to India and hired Indian contractors to take away IT jobs in Seattle. What is to be admired by treating employees to what amounts to wondering if your next

I had 39 years service with Graybar….thank you for the recognition…..we are very proud of our history as an 100% employee owned company…..its nice to see someone recognizes the efforts of our quality people,,,,,thanks again

I can not believe HP was not listed higher on Fortunes list. HP is number #1 in computer sales beating Dell last year, and they will beat them again this year. HP has pushed the mark of printing speeds and technology to what it is today. WOW 12 sec 4×6 photos!
HP’s products are above and beyond innovation. If Fortune would find out what the consumers like and not focus on their own investments, we would get a more accurate list from them!

What companies do you admire most? Tell us what you think.

Have you worked for any of these companies, or bought their products or services?

What do you think of the industry leaders on Fortune’s America’s Most Admired Companies list?

GE : THE BEST