Manitoba's Top Employers

8 The Birchwood Automotive Group is proud to be recognized as one of Manitoba's Top 30 Employers, as well as one of Canada's Best Employers. birchwoodcareers.ca Drive your career at: Our team members are individuals of character, competence, and commitment. They are trustworthy, they work together and they are committed to enhancing our work environment and the experience of our customers. We are extremely proud of each and every one of them. We offer team members a respectful and challenging work environment, an industry leading benefits package and opportunities for advancement. GRATITUDE IS KEY AT BIRCHWOOD AUTOMOTIVE GROUP BY JENNIFER MCFEE Gratitude has remained a driving force at Birchwood Automotive Group for 55 years and counting. R.M. Chipman launched the company in 1963 with one dealership. Since then, the booming business has expanded to employ approximately 1,300 employees at 22 dealerships. The founder's son, Steve Chipman, currently runs the company. "Even though we've grown over the years, our culture has sustained itself," says MaryAnn Kempe, Chief Human Resources Officer. "Our corporate culture begins with gratitude and we work hard at it. We integrate it in all our recognition programs and new employee orientation." Throughout the business, three questions guide discussions to develop an attitude of gratitude. "What are you grateful for? What is your dream? What is one thing that you could do that would improve the life of a co-worker, a team member, your community, your family or yourself?" Kempe says. "We ask our employees these powerful questions, which are really entwined in all of our culture." From there, it's easy to create a roadmap that steers employees towards their leadership potential. "Personal leadership is about always looking at yourself and being self-aware. Our goal is that people take accountability," Kempe says. "They are serving our customers and they want to give you extraordinary service." When it comes to the company's values, it stands strong on four basic tenets: trust, respect, continuous improvement and generosity. "We train all our employees on awareness starting with self, which comes from building trust and respect with customers, team members and business partners," Kempe says. "We're always striving to improve. We know that you can't stand still; you have to move forward. The car business is changing, and we have to change with it." As for generosity, it's clear to see the company's commitment through initiatives such as its well-supported United Way campaign. "Giving back to our community is huge at Birchwood. We just had a record year for gifts and participation in our United Way campaign," Kempe says. "We encourage employees to get involved throughout our entire organization, and this year 93 per cent of our employees participated. To me, that says a lot about our employee engagement." Birchwood Automotive Group also takes the time to ensure that the employees feel appreciated. For Sarah Giesbrecht, manager of human resources, it's important for the employees to know that they can advance within the company. "They have the opportunity to move internally within the organization," Giesbrecht says. "We have a mandate where 80 per cent of our management positions are to be filled internally within the organization as well. We want to give our team members that opportunity to grow within the group." The employees also feel valued through benefits such as access to a nearby fitness facility and the ability to contribute to a group RRSP savings plan. "Right now, the average age of our employees is 34 years old, so we're a really young company," Giesbrecht says. "We try to encourage people to save for the future." In addition, Birchwood focuses on education by offering ongoing training for employees and scholarships for their children. "We really believe in continuous improvement," Kempe says, "and that starts with improving yourself." The company also takes pride in its strong communications through Apex and Compass, internal programs similar to LinkedIn that allows employees to learn more about anyone else in the company. As well, employees enjoy the chance to get to know each other better at company events such as the annual Christmas party and weekly Truck on Tuesdays lunches throughout the summer months. It's initiatives such as these that have propelled Birchwood Automotive Group to the Manitoba Top Employers list for the second straight year. "We appreciate and are grateful for the recognition of being a best employer – it helps us to attract and retain great people," Kempe says. Birchwood Automotive Group team members are passionate about the United Way and giving back to the community. PHOTOS BY SPOT ON CREATIVE

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