Computerworld ranks UPS among best places to work in technology

In a significant jump from the previous year, UPS (NYSE:UPS) has been ranked No. 20 on the 2003 list of “Best Places to Work in IT” by Computerworld magazine.

The ranking, up from No. 60 in 2002, cited UPS for increased employee satisfaction, proper training and development and the use of modern technologies that offer employees exciting challenges. The magazine published the results in its June 9 issue.

“Technology is a key part of everything we do at UPS, powering every service we offer and every operation we perform,” said UPS Chief Information Officer Ken Lacy. “UPS IT connects millions of buyers and sellers worldwide through a massive, award-winning telecommunications network and allows UPS to help customers manage the flow of goods, information and funds around the globe .”

More than 5,000 UPS IT professionals help the company synchronize global commerce, electronically collecting package information on more than 90 percent of all packages that move through the UPS system. IT professionals at UPS also maintain the backbone for a ubiquitous Internet presence that extends to more than 60,000 customer Web sites that integrate UPS tools. IT employees help UPS handle more than 7.2 million online tracking requests daily.

This is the 10th year for “Best Places to Work in IT,” an annual ranking of the top 100 work environments for technology professionals compiled by IDG’s Computerworld, the newsweekly for IT leaders. Computerworld compiles the lists based on a comprehensive questionnaire regarding company offerings in categories such as benefits, diversity, career development, training and retention. In addition, Computerworld conducts extensive surveys of IT workers and their responses factor heavily in determining the rankings.

“Our extensive survey of IT workers, from CIO’s to help desk technicians, gave us a compelling yardstick with which to measure employers’ offerings against the work environments that technology professionals prize most,” said Maryfran Johnson, editor in chief of Computerworld. “We’ve found that the best employers, no matter the industry, are able to retain the best technology people by creating focused, responsive and challenging workplaces.”

For the annual “Best Places to Work in IT” list, Computerworld surveys nominated companies based on average salary and bonus increases, percentage of IT staff promoted, IT staff turnover rates, training and development and percentage of women and minorities in IT staff and management positions. In addition, information is collected on how each organization rewards outstanding performance; its retention programs, and its benefits, ranging from child and elder care to flextime and reimbursement for college tuition and technology certifications.

For the first time in the history of this annual list, more than half of a company’s score came from a survey of its IT employees and what those employees said is important to them in their jobs. Topics covered included satisfaction with training and development programs, base salary, bonuses, health benefits, stock/ESOP plans and work/life balance. In addition, employees were asked to rate morale in their IT departments, the importance of various benefits and their level of agreement with a variety of statements covering topics from career growth to management’s fair and equal treatment of employees.