Manitoba's Top Employers

16 P R O U D TO B E R E C O G N I Z E D AS O N E O F M A N I T O B A'S TO P 30 E M PLOY E R S A strong workplace culture drives employees at Liquor Marts, the Casinos of Winnipeg, corporate offices and elsewhere across the province at Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries. Caring. Committed. Collaborative. Creative. Customer-focused. These "five Cs" describe the core values that create the workplace culture at Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries, which has earned recognition as one of Manitoba's Top Employers every year since 2015. Brenda Kriss, Director of Organizational Development and Change Management, outlined the role of the Crown corporation that employs approximately 3,000 people across the province. "We earn revenue in support of important programs in Manitoba, including health care, education, social services, housing and infrastructure. We're responsible for the sale of liquor and gaming, as well as the wholesale distribution of cannabis inside Manitoba," she says. "We operate all the Liquor Mart stores, the Casinos of Winnipeg and Manitoba's video lotto network, as well as playnow.com. "We pride ourselves on being a continued top employer in the province," Kriss adds. "It's the result of our consistent focus on corporate values, at all levels of the organization." Last year, Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries conducted an employee survey that identified opportunities to strengthen its workplace culture across the organization. The organization listens to all of its stakeholders through several means, and shares its results with the community in its corporate responsibility report available online. "Our purpose is to enrich the lives of Manitobans, and we use our core values in order to support that," Kriss says. "It fuels our overall strategy to have a common idea about who we are and what we are doing." Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries also takes great care when it comes to hiring its team. "We're very diverse in terms of the selection of our employees," Kriss says. "We're really mindful in the way that we bring our employees on board. We make sure they know a lot about our organization and how important our customers are to us, as soon as they start." With a focus on ongoing education, the organization offers ample opportunities for employees to learn new skills. "We take great pride in the development and training that we provide for our employees. We have employees who will stay with us for a long period of time. They have the opportunity to work their way up within the organization and take on more responsible roles," Kriss says. "We give them development and training that leads them to advancement opportunities. We also have co-op terms, educational assistance and tuition reimbursement." Adding to the advantages, Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries offers a comprehensive benefits package, as well health and wellness programs. In addition, employees can also enjoy the opportunity to connect with the community. "Our employees have the chance to work quite a bit in the communities that we're involved in. We make volunteer opportunities very visible to our employees and we have a lot of employees who take advantage of that. We also have charitable giving and employee charity of choice," Kriss says. "Our employees are one of our greatest assets in the organization. Our cultural values put people first. It's all about supporting our people so they can be their very best, which lets us be our very best as an organization, and we can deliver that top-notch service." For Coreen Hrabluik, Senior Organizational Change Management Lead, the caring atmosphere was one of the first things she noticed when she joined the organization about a year ago. "Caring is valued. You can see it in the way people treat each other every day, regardless of level or location, and how work life balance is valued," Hrabluik says. "It's those little day-to-day things, like people say good morning and smile. They hold doors open for other people. They take time to ask you about how your day is going. For me, those are some of the things that struck me when I first came here." And this sense of consideration extends beyond the workforce and into the public realm. "The caring is embedded in everything that we do. That's why it translates for employees and it also translates for our customers. Everyone matters to us." CORE VALUES DRIVE EMPLOYEE WELL-BEING AT MANITOBA LIQUOR & LOTTERIES BY JENNIFER MCFEE

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