Google Named Best Place to Work: Here's Why

Much has been said about Google’s free food and on-campus perks, but now it’s official: Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is the top company to work for, according to Glassdoor.

Career site Glassdoor’s annual list of the 50 Best Places to Work is out, and while Google is on top this year, Glassdoor CEO Robert Hohman said non-technology companies have actually been climbing the rankings in the past 12 months.

“This is by far the most diverse list we’ve ever seen,” Hohman said. “There are fewer technology companies and more consulting companies, more health-care companies, more [consumer product goods], more auto, more media companies.”

Hohman chalks up the diversity to an improving economy that has enabled more companies to invest in company culture and benefits.

“Many other industries are borrowing from technology and the innovations that tech has started around benefits and supporting employees,” he explained.

Indeed, there’s plenty of diversity even in the top ten businesses on the list. Consultancy Bain & Company, no. 1 on last year’s list, moves down a spot this year, followed by Nestle Purina. Also breaking the top ten are Chevron (no. 6) and the Mayo Clinic (no. 10).

In order to break into the top 50, Hohman said companies need to have a strong company culture and a united workforce.

“We see across the board that people want to work with smart and challenging colleagues and in a structure that creates opportunities for growth – that’s a common theme,” he said.

And while “vanity benefits” like free food and on-site gyms or massage therapists are all well and good (and most workers wouldn’t complain about them), Hohman said that benefits that affect families, like offering longer paternity and maternity leave, are more meaningful. Google, he said, has recently increased its leave policies for both mothers and fathers, and reworked its onsite daycare program.

One company that’s not doing so hot this year? Twitter. Last year, the social media site ranked no. 2 on Glassdoor’s list and this year it didn’t even crack the top 50.

“It was a very challenging year. I call it them transitioning into adolescence,” Hohman said. “There was a lot of turnover in senior leadership, but they are still a great company.” Twitter now has a 3.6 rating on Glassdoor’s site, on a 5-point scale, while the no. 50 company on the list, Disney Parks, had a 3.8 rating.

Here’s a look at the top 10 businesses on the list:

1. Google 2. Bain & Company 3. Nestle Purina PetCare 4. F5 Networks 5. Boston Consulting Group 6. Chevron 7. HEB 8. In-N-Out Burger 9. McKinsey & Company 10. Mayo Clinic

And to check out the full list, head over to Glassdoor.com.