PRESS RELEASE
June 21, 2001
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACTS:
Joyce Gioia (joy-yah)
Employer of Choice, Inc.
336-282-2019
joyce@hermangroup.com
Angela Tarr
Cohen Public Relations for Fresno Surgery Center
559/237-4139
atservice@worldnet.att.net
www.fresnosurgerycenter.com
FRESNO, CA. Employer of Choice, Inc. of Greensboro, North Carolina, will, on Friday, June 22 at 12:30 p.m., award its prestigious designation of “Employer of Choice®” to Fresno Surgery Center (FSC). The award recognizes an organization’s dedication to a higher level of employee continuity that assures customer loyalty and employee satisfaction.
“We are an organization that values people and relationships; profitability follows,” states Alan Pierrot, M.D. and CEO of FSC Health, Inc. “This award reinforces the fact that our hospitality inspired model of care and service works.”
Employer of Choice, Inc. created the “Employer of Choice®” designation as a commitment to the philosophies and testimonials laid out in How To Become an Employer of Choice. Written by Roger E. Herman and Joyce L. Gioia, and published by Oakhill Press in April 2000, the book describes how enlightened employers can differentiate themselves from others.
“Employers of Choice, such as Fresno Surgery Center, who are able to attract, optimize, and retain top talent, will enjoy a substantial tactical advantage over their competitors,” says Roger E. Herman, chief executive officer of Employer of Choice, Inc. “They will have the knowledge, experience, resiliency and power to respond quickly to their patients’ needs, delivering what patients want more efficiently and effectively than competitors plagued by employee turnover. This strength will allow them to maintain high levels of customer service and loyalty.”
To receive the award, Fresno Surgery Center first completed the application process and then each FSC employee completed an anonymous electronic 68-question survey. One employee’s comments were similarly echoed by many of his/her fellow workers: “It is an extremely gratifying place to work – where your opinion counts. Your abilities are fully tapped into, and you leave the workday with a feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction. I feel honored to work for this organization as I am passionate about FSC’s mission and values.”
As a physician owned and governed hospital, Fresno Surgery Center is modeled after fine hotels. With over 6,000 surgeries performed annually, and a one to three nurse to patient ratio, patient confidence and satisfaction is the highest priority at FSC. Fresno Surgery Center holds six strategies at the core of its success: exceptional clinical quality, exceptional customer service, operational excellence, being the employer of choice, active community support and superior financial performance. These positive attributes led Fresno Surgery Center to becoming a recipient of the Employer of Choice® award.
Tom Olivo, President of Success Profiles, the company that administered and scored the survey results, says that Fresno Surgery Center scored exceptionally well. He has personally worked with over 600 diverse companies, has data on over 4,600 business units, and FSC scored in the top 3% of those companies. “They have unique business practices, and the leadership is committed to excellence. Our observation is that companies that are already good tend to be obsessed with getting better. It is not easy to achieve the Employer of Choice® award and it is extremely difficult for a company to do things this well.”
According to Joyce Gioia, President of Employer of Choice, Inc., “Everyone would like to work for an Employer of Choice®, and given the option most employees will choose the company that is following the practices that FSC exemplifies.”
“We are, of course, pleased with the designation of Employer of Choice® and feel that this award validates our business practices, but at the same time we recognize the need to continually strive to do better,” said Andrea Kennedy, Vice President of Human Resources at FSC Health, Inc.
In addition to the Employer of Choice® award, Fresno Surgery Center has been the recipient of numerous quality, service, business and innovation awards including the Award for Design Excellence, Best of America – Western Region, Central California Entrepreneurial Success Award, Eureka Award for Quality and Service Excellence, Innovative Award of Merit, Innovator of the Year Award, Northern California Entrepreneur of the Year, The Horizon Award, and the Top Five Business Award.
Fresno Surgery Center has invited a group of Central Valley business leaders to join them Friday for the ceremony and to listen to as Roger Herman and Joyce Gioia make a presentation on How to Become an Employer of Choice®. Fresno Surgery Center has been a leader in bringing TimeWorkLife practices to the Fresno area business community and hopes that other valley companies will also apply to become Employers of Choice.
The authors of How To Become an Employer of Choice, Joyce Gioia and Roger E. Herman, will be available to sign copies of their book after the awards presentation at Fresno Surgery Center located at 6125 N. Fresno Street. The book, packed with scores of practical examples on how to win the war for talent, and how to retain the brightest and best of employees, retails for $30 each. Twenty percent of the proceeds will be donated to The United Way.