Launch of Aon Hewitt's Annual Best Employers in Canada Studies Brings Employee Engagement Back Under the Microscope

Canadian Organizations Invited to Participate, Discover Ways to Drive Higher Engagement

TORONTO, March 5, 2012 /CNW/ - With employee engagement firmly established as a critical factor in business success, the 14th annual Best Employers in Canada studies present employers with an opportunity to assess and understand the retention risk within their workforce.

The launch of the studies, announced recently by Aon Hewitt, provides participating organizations with a chance to not only measure their employees' engagement level, but understand the next steps on the path to higher employee engagement.

"Our research shows that high employee engagement results in lower turnover, greater employee productivity, increased customer satisfaction, less absenteeism and, in many cases, greater economic returns," said Neil Crawford, a partner at Aon Hewitt and leader of the Best Employers in Canada study. "With that in mind, developing a roadmap for raising engagement is becoming a priority for many employers - and we expect this to be reflected in the number of participants registering this year."

As in previous years, organizations must have operated in Canada for at least three years to be eligible to participate. The Best Small & Medium Employers in Canada study, sponsored by Queen's School of Business and the Queen's Centre for Business Venturing in conjunction with Aon Hewitt, is open to organizations with 50 to 399 employees. The Best Employers in Canada study targets employers with 400 or more employees. Participation is free and organizations have until the end of May to sign up at www.hewitt.com/bestemployerscanada. Organizations are also encouraged to contact Colin Platt at [phone] / [email protected] to discuss their specific interest.

All eligible participants have the opportunity to gain public recognition for generating high employee engagement. The Best Employers in Canada list will appear in Maclean's magazine and La Presse newspaper this fall, while the Best Small & Medium Employers in Canada rankings will be published in PROFIT magazine.

Additional lists include The Green 30, published by Maclean's to recognize employers with eco-friendly initiatives, as well as the Toronto Star's Best Employers in the GTA and La Presse's Best Employers in Quebec lists, which celebrate regional organizations with high employee engagement.

"There are unquestionably challenges to achieving high employee engagement and being named a Best Employer - and those that make the list deserve to be celebrated for their accomplishments," stated Crawford. "However, those organizations that are committed to creating a better workplace for their employees are also to be applauded. We invite all eligible organizations to begin their journey towards higher engagement."

About Queen's Centre for Business Venturing (QCBV) 
Based at Queen's School of Business, Canada's leading business school, QCBV's mandate is to become the leading and definitive source of knowledge and expertise in the creation, leadership and management of new ventures. It accomplishes March this by developing innovative curriculum, providing access to pools of capital to fund new ventures, conducting applied research, brokering and being a hub of SME and new venture knowledge, and by playing a key role with decision-making bodies. Its focus is to increase the odds of success for Canadian new ventures.

About Aon Hewitt
Aon Hewitt is the global leader in human resource consulting and outsourcing solutions.  The company partners with organizations to solve their most complex benefits, talent and related financial challenges, and improve business performance. Aon Hewitt designs, implements, communicates and administers a wide range of human capital, retirement, investment management, health care, compensation and talent management strategies.  With more than 29,000 professionals in 90 countries, Aon Hewitt makes the world a better place to work for clients and their employees.  For more information on Aon Hewitt, please visit www.aonhewitt.com.

About Aon

Aon Corporation (NYSE:AON) is the leading global provider of risk management, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, and human resources solutions and outsourcing services. Through its more than 61,000 colleagues worldwide, Aon unites to empower results for clients in over 120 countries via innovative and effective risk and people solutions and through industry-leading global resources and technical expertise. Aon has been named repeatedly as the world's best broker, best insurance intermediary, reinsurance intermediary, captives manager and best employee benefits consulting firm by multiple industry sources. Visit http://www.aon.com for more information on Aon and http://www.aon.com/manchesterunited to learn about Aon's global partnership and shirt sponsorship with Manchester United.

Media Contacts:  
Stephen Barrigar, 416-868-5724, [email protected]