COLUMBUS, OH – Inc. magazine and Winning Workplaces announced today the winners of the 2011 Top Small Company Workplaces competition and awarded Hopkins Printing one of the 50 coveted spots. The Top Small Company Workplaces competition is an annual contest that has recognized the nation's best small and mid-sized company work environments since 2003.
 
Winning Workplaces and Inc. received nearly 350 completed applications for the 2011 contest. A national panel of experts in leadership and small to mid-sized business judged finalists on employee engagement and development, company mission, rewards and recognition, management effectiveness, and benefits.
 
"These firms represent some of the finest privately held companies in the world," states Bob LaPointe, president of Inc. "Their stories, appearing in the June issue of Inc., clearly demonstrate that taking an innovative approach to creating the right culture-one in which human capital is embedded in a company's value proposition-can create real competitive leadership. Each of these Top Small Company Workplaces offers an environment in which people flourish and, as a result, profit follows."
 
Hopkins Printing is committed to creating an environment where employees can thrive and one way they do so is through a "three-deep" training agenda. 75% of all positions are trained 3 Deep at Hopkins, which means that at any one time three people are capable of operating a particular piece of equipment or covering for a certain position.  Cross-training of all employees to cover other positions increases productivity, creates flexibility, and allows employees to become knowledgeable authorities in multiple areas of business and production.
 
"It is a true honor to be named one of the best small workplaces in the nation and a greater surprise to have Hopkins as one of the featured companies in the Inc. magazine article. Winning Workplaces reviewed each of our programs, policies, and benefits before they surveyed all of our employees.  It was a thorough process and we're pleased that everyone was able to contribute their thoughts.  Hopkins employees care about the success of our company and together we all make it a great place to work!" said Michelle Waterhouse, HR director for Hopkins Printing.