It’s Official: We’re a WBE, GPTW, and Two-Time Inc. 5000 Honoree!

Whew, August 2021 was big!

We’re honored to announce (and celebrate!) three certifications and achievements we received that month.

We were certified as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) and a Great Place to Work® (GPTW). We were also included in Inc. Magazine’s 2021 list of fastest-growing U.S. companies.

Women’s Business Enterprise

Since Beth Kelly founded HR Collaborative in 2013, we’ve been proud to share that we were a women-owned and led organization. 

This year, we decided to make it official. We partnered with the Great Lakes Women’s Business Council (Great Lakes WBC) to become certified as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) through the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC). 

The WBENC was founded in 1997 to develop a national standard for women-owned business certification.

Since then, the organization has become the largest third-party certifier of businesses owned, controlled, and operated by women in the United States and a leading advocate for women-owned businesses in corporate and government supply chains.

The WBENC only awards WBE certification to organizations that are at least 51% owned, controlled, and operated by women.

We sought the WBE certification as confirmation and formal acknowledgment of our dedication to diversity, equity, inclusion, and women empowerment. 

Great Place to Work

For the third year in a row, we’ve been Certified™ by Great Place to Work®. The prestigious award is based on what current employees say about their experience working at our organization.

Great Place to Work® is a global leader in employee engagement measurement. Since 1992, they’ve surveyed more than 100 million employees worldwide and used those insights to define what makes a great workplace.

This year, 86% of employees said HR Collaborative is a great place to work – 27 points higher than the average U.S. company.

But below our standards. Leadership is working closely with staff to dig deeper into ways we can head into 2022 even stronger.

For our founder and visionary, Beth Kelly, the insights from this rigorous third-party perspective on our organization are invaluable:

“Surveys like this one help to keep us focused on the type of work environment we create for our own team.  We can’t fulfill our mission of making work better for our clients if our own workplace isn’t the best it can be.”

2021 Inc. 5000

In August, we received word that we were one of the 28 West Michigan businesses that made Inc. Magazine’s 2021 list of 5000 fastest-growing companies. We first made the list in 2019.

The criteria for the Inc. 5000 are based on percentage growth in revenue over three years.

For the 2021 rankings, that period was between 2017 and 2020. By nature of the calculation, it’s easier to rank early in a company’s history but more difficult as it becomes more established.

So we were honored (and a little surprised!) to be included for a second time.

The inclusion in this year’s list spotlighted staff’s flexibility, resilience, and dedication as they helped clients navigate the pandemic while also navigating the pandemic themselves.

It also highlighted a renewed focus from business leaders we work with on the strategic impact of HR and the importance of investing in their talent.

Recognition and Celebration

At our monthly, all-staff event in August, we had the opportunity to recognize and celebrate these recent achievements as a team (both in-person and virtually).

The celebration included pizza from The Mitten Brewing Company, cake from Connie’s Cakes, balloons, connection, and a chance to reflect on the hard work and dedication of everyone at HR Collaborative. 

In light of the past year and a half, the celebration of where we’ve been and recognition of where we’re headed was especially important for Beth.

“These last 18 months have stretched us and challenged us in so many ways. I’m so proud to work with a resilient team that can stay flexible in the moment and focused on the future.”