Mike Mayhew can describe the climate at Stantec in three words: fun, dynamic and challenging.
“We have a fun, dynamic team with experience and youth,” he says. “I think it's a good mixture of people, and I'm happy to say that our turnover's extremely low.”
That's likely due to a flexible workplace that recognizes the importance of balancing work with life, while offering clients superior engineering services across a range of disciplines, says Mayhew, a born-and-bred Sudburian who serves as practice leader for Stantec's Sudbury office and the director of global business services in mining.
Formed in 1954, Stantec today is a global company with 10,500 employees offering a range of sustainable engineering solutions in the building, environmental, industrial, transportation and urban land disciplines. The Sudbury office, which is part of the industrial group, has 230 employees who work on projects with companies like Vale, Quadra FNX, First Nickel, Xstrata, Lake Shore Gold and Goldcorp.
Employees have the opportunity to work on a range of projects, and cross-training in the firm's other offices is strongly encouraged. State-of-the-art technology such as smart boards and an internal intranet system keep the office up to date, and lunch-and-learn meetings educate employees on their use.
Each meeting starts with a discussion about safety—a company priority—and senior support staff make themselves available to employees. Hard work is acknowledged with recognition awards, and staff can earn bonuses for referring new employees.
“Our culture is learning; you're always challenged,” Mayhew says. “Stantec invests in training, invests in technology, invests in its people. We continue to look for better ways to improve our process, our efficiency and the way we deliver projects to our clients, so it's a good package at both ends.”
The company, which is embarking on a 12-month recruitment program, is a strong proponent of co-operative education at the post-secondary level, and maintains relationships with Laurentian University, Collège Boréal, and Cambrian College, for which Mayhew serves as the chair in mining.
Away from the office, the company is equally sensitive to the needs of its employees, providing incentives such as flexible hours, a comprehensive benefits plan, discounted gym memberships, and access to a smoking-cessation program. Stantec may have a business to operate, but accommodating its employees is significant to the firm.
“We promote a healthy work environment—family comes first,” says Mayhew, who's a father himself. “We're very flexible—you have to be with people today. It's part of our culture.”
Ingrained in that culture is a sense of fun and a drive to generate goodwill in the community. An active social committee organizes annual Christmas parties, a golf tournament, fishing trips, and a weekly hot yoga class. Employees annually sign up a team to participate in the Sudbury Dragon Boat Festival, and the Sudbury Food Bank, Easter Seals and the House of Kin are a few of the charities that have benefited from Stantec's generosity.
At 39 years old, Mayhew said he's a good example of how employees can advance quickly through the company.
“If they believe they've got the right people in the right positions, the opportunity is endless for those who really want to grow their career and expand and go do different things,” he says.
His colleague, senior project estimator Bruce Lang, has been on the job since 1975, worked on six of the seven continents, and says the team at Stantec is the “best I've ever worked with.”
“If you want to be part of a good team, there are no heroes here. We're all team players,” Lang says. “I've worked with some very competent people, but this group has more potential than any I've ever seen.”
