What is a Most Loved Workplace?

A Most Loved Workplace is an organization where employees feel a deep connection and commitment to their job, team, and company, which fosters higher levels of performance.

What are the benefits of being a Most Loved Workplace?

Employees in these environments are 94% more likely to perform at a higher level, 41% more willing to recommend their company, and report stronger team cohesion and lower intentions to leave.

What are the key qualities of a Most Loved Workplace?

Based on BPI research, the six most prominent qualities are: Teamwork/Collaboration, Honesty and Integrity, Respect, Effort, Competence, and Communication.

Are pay and benefits the most important factors for employees?

No. BPI's research indicates that qualities like respect, honesty, and teamwork are more powerful predictors of a high-performing organization than pay, scheduling flexibility, or upward mobility.

6 Qualities of a Most Loved Workplace

The Link Between Employee Connection and Performance

It is well established that employees who feel deeply connected to their work and the company they work for tend to perform at a higher level. When a large percentage of a workforce feels this sense of connection, the entire organization performs better. While this connection seems intuitive, there has been a need to identify the specific organizational qualities that foster it.

To understand this relationship, the Best Practice Institute (BPI) conducted research to answer three key questions:

What does it mean when employees love their workplaces?
How do these "Most Loved Workplaces" achieve higher performance?
How can companies cultivate a workforce of employees who love their jobs?

How Most Loved Workplaces® Drive Superior Performance

A Most Loved Workplace is defined by the strongest possible connection between an employee and their job. It is embodied by the colleague who is highly committed, continually prepared, and dedicated to their work and team.

To quantify the impact, BPI surveyed over 150 employees from Fortune 1000 companies. The results were clear:

Higher Performance: Employees in a Most Loved Workplace environment reported being 94% more likely to perform at a higher level. 59% stated they are four times more likely to deliver superior performance.
Stronger Advocacy: 41% of employees in these environments reported a willingness to recommend their company to a friend.
Improved Cohesion: These employees also reported stronger group cohesion and reduced intentions to leave the company.

The Six Core Qualities of a Most Loved Workplace

To identify how companies can foster this environment, BPI used qualitative analysis, interviewing members of high-functioning organizations about the aspects of their company that made them feel most connected. From these responses, six prominent themes emerged as the most critical components.

Core Qualities:

Teamwork/Collaboration: Employees work together effectively to accomplish group goals.
Honesty and Integrity: The organization and its people are predisposed to maintaining integrity.
Respect: The company creates an environment where employees feel respected and trust their voice will be heard.
Effort: Individuals have a personality predisposed to working hard.
Competence: The organization is composed of capable and skilled employees.
Communication: Employees can communicate effectively with one another.

These six qualities are prerequisites for building a workforce that loves their workplace. BPI's research found these themes to be more powerful predictors of optimal organizational outcomes than compensation, scheduling flexibility, or opportunities for upward mobility.

Best Practice Institute

Best Practice Institute is the research organization behind Most Loved Workplace® certification, the SPARK Model, the Love of Workplace Index™ (LOWI™), and The Workplace Report.

The Workplace Report

The Workplace Report is BPI's original workplace culture research and editorial briefing series for CEOs, CHROs, people leaders, talent leaders, and employer-brand teams. It turns BPI's 25 years of research, Most Loved Workplace® certification data, SPARK findings, and current workforce signals into practical analysis leaders can use.

The report format includes executive summaries, research-backed articles, company examples, methodology notes, and practical implications for retention, hiring, culture, leadership, and employee experience. New research and analysis is published on an ongoing editorial cadence at /workplace-report.

Prominent Qualities of Organizations in which Employees Love their Work