Working it Out

"EMPLOYEES AND MEMBERS of their immediate families are ineligible to compete.” We knew that. Otherwise, we know San Diego Magazine would have been among the nominees—and surely won a prize—for “Best Place To Work” in San Diego.

And so, bowing to tradition, and ethics, we give kudos to Scripps Health, Provide Commerce and Proffer Financial. They’re the winners in three categories—based on number of employees—for San Diego’s best workplace environments and employee perquisites. Associate editor Julia Beeson, who labored for six months with the professionals at Employers Group to divine the best, took the process seriously. And so do the winners.

As Beeson’s story makes clear, this is about more than money. The criteria for selection include pay and retirement plans, of course. But they also measure less-tangible attributes, such as opportunity for advancement, flexible hours, health benefits, daycare availability, educational support, counseling and legal assistance.

The winners—out of 104 semifinalists—were chosen by a combination of feedback from employers and employees. Our story lists the top 10 vote-getters among businesses with 500 or more employees, 100-499 employees and 99 or fewer. They’re all great places to work. But then, so is San Diego Magazine. Ask Beeson, who just celebrated her one-year anniversary here.

ON YOUR NEXT FEW WORK BREAKS, you’ll want to check out the rest of the inviting editorial in this month’s issue. Our Travels magazine-within-the-magazine focuses on Mexico, with special attention paid to Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos and La Paz. Eilene Zimmerman’s feature on Monarch School provides warm insight into the homeless children who make their own way to the classroom each day and the faculty who nurture them. In our Health department, double-duty Zimmerman looks at the rising rates of TB and HIV, and growing concerns about cross-border diseases. Laura Byrd test-drives the Mazda MX-5, the newest incarnation of Miata, the erstwhile “chick car.” With San Diego at Home, Deirdre O’Shea explores a family-friendly, Mediterranean-style manse in Rancho Santa Fe. And Ron Donoho’s Journal introduces us to San Diego Magazine’s longest continuous subscriber. Also, savor the stunning results of the magazine’s 2006 Photo Contest. Ninety-seven readers submitted a wide range of images of life in San Diego—and life never looked so good.

Oh, and for after work, check out Brendan Morgan’s “Sun, Sand and Suds”—a quenching cruise through the county’s bounty of boutique breweries. In recent years, San Diego–brewed beers have ranked among the best in the country. The folks who make them take their jobs seriously, too. Talk about a great place to work.

Tom Blair
Editor-in-Chief

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