Every year, the Tampa Bay Times seeks to identify the best places to work in the region based on what their employees have to say about them. We’ve been doing it for a decade.

Starting in September, we welcomed anyone to nominate companies as top places to work. Our third-party partners invited 1,514 employers to subject themselves to scrutiny by letting us survey their workers. Any company was eligible, as long as it had at least 50 employees in the area. They could be public, private, nonprofit or governmental. There was no cost to enter.

In all, 191 organizations agreed to take the survey. Combined, they employ 96,636 people in the bay area. Of those employees who received questionnaires, 40,363 responded, either on paper or online. We used those responses to identify the Top 100 Workplaces for 2019.

Click here to view photos from this year’s Top Workplaces Live event.





How the survey was done:

The employee survey asked 24 questions related to workplace culture. Topics included:

Alignment - where the company is heading, its values, cooperation

Connection - employees feel appreciated, their work is meaningful

Effectiveness - doing things well, sharing different viewpoints, encouraging new ideas

My manager - cares about concerns, helps learn and grow

Engagement - motivation, retention and recruiting

Leadership - confidence in company leaders

The basics - pay, benefits, flexibility, training, expectations

Read more about how the survey was done here.

Finally, we compared and ranked companies in similar size ranges, grouping them as follows:

Small companies: 50-149 local employees

Midsized companies: 150-499 local employees

Large companies: 500-plus local employees





Without further ado, here are the 2019 Top Workplaces.





Best small companies to work for in 2019

Rober Frijouf, 8, Elle Frijouf, 10, and Gwen Frijouf, 14, browse the options at Yogurtology at 1202 S Church Ave. in Tampa on March 18. [MONICA HERNDON | Times]





#1. Yogurtology

Sector: Restaurant

Number of employees: 50

Years on the list: 4

Read more: Free samples and family atmosphere make Yogurtology a sweet place to work





#2. Guardian Angels Catholic School

Sector: Education, Primary/secondary school

Number of employees: 54

Years on the list: 2





#3. Engel & Völkers

Sector: Agents/brokers

Number of employees: 85

Years on the list: 1





For the complete list, click here.





Best midsize companies to work for in 2019

Ester Azeredo, 35, of Tampa working at TransferWise, an international money transfer company that is located in Ybor City, on March 4. [OCTAVIO JONES | Times]

#1. TransferWise

Sector: International money transfers

Number of employees: 156

Years on the list: 2

Read more: Break nooks? Check. Friday happy hour? TransferWise checks all the Top Workplace perks





#2. Century 21 Beggins Enterprises

Sector: Real estate

Number of employees: 429

Years on the list: 10





#3. Bouchard Insurance, A Marsh and McLennan Agency

Sector: Insurance

Number of employees: 207

Years on the list: 10





For the complete list, click here.





Best large companies to work for in 2019

Members of KnowBe4's human resources department meet in a conference room March 21. The company employs over 600 workers at offices around the world. [CHRIS URSO | Times]

#1. KnowBe4

Sector: Security awareness training

Number of employees: 562

Years on the list: 4

Read more: KnowBe4 made it to the top of the list by growing fast without losing its identity





#2. Power Design, Inc.

Sector: Electrical

Number of employees: 741

Years on the list: 8





#3. Grow Financial Federal Credit Union

Sector: Credit Union

Number of employees: 512

Years on the list: 8





For the complete list, click here.





We talked to leaders of perennial Top Workplaces and those making the list for the first since since we started these surveys. See the rest of our coverage below.















