WESTMONT, IL—The Best Christian Workplaces Institute (BCWI), a research-based organizational and human resources consulting firm, has announced that InterVarsity is certified as a 2021 Best Christian Workplace.
To achieve certification, organizations must complete the Best Christian Workplaces Institute employee engagement survey and meet predetermined standards of excellence. Employees of IVP answered more than fifty questions measuring employee satisfaction in terms of organizational commitment, Christian witness, supervisory effectiveness, opportunities for personal growth and development, teamwork, communication, and fairness of pay and benefits. Additional open-ended questions provided an opportunity for department managers to gain insight into what employees think and ways they might improve.
“It seemed a bit risky to have Al Lopus and his team administer the Best Christian Workplaces Institute engagement survey after thirteen months of a global health pandemic that had required extreme resilience and adaptation on the part of our staff, but I’m so glad that we took that step,” Jeff Crosby, IVP publisher, said. “I was grateful to see our engagement scores increase significantly and attribute that to the exceptional work of both our senior leadership team and staff from throughout our organization, who demonstrated an incredible commitment to our mission, our authors, our customers, and each other throughout a challenging year.”
With ninety-three employees, IVP had an exceptional 98 percent of staff engagement. BCWI describes staff engagement as the degree to which employees are emotionally and spiritually connected and committed to their organization and their role, exerting discretionary effort for the betterment of the organization and those they serve. IVP’s overall scores were on the margin between a “healthy” and a “flourishing” organization. IVP also had the second highest total since the organization started taking the BCWI survey more than ten years ago.
Al Lopus, CEO and cofounder of BCWI and author of The Road to Flourishing (IVP, Spring 2022), said, “We find that InterVarsity Press models the characteristics that define being a Best Christian Workplace based on their employees’ feedback. Their BCWI survey results highlight that their employees are passionate about working together to produce exceptional, high-quality books. They also appreciate the supportive, high-trust culture their leaders create, especially this past year during the Covid-19 pandemic. Employees repeatedly commented about the care they experience from their leaders and each other, making IVP a great place to work.”
Crosby said, “In his manuscript of his forthcoming InterVarsity Press book on organizational flourishing, Al Lopus writes, ‘When I use the term employee engagement, I mean that team members are motivated to bring their fullest contribution—their unique giftedness and creativity—to their role in the organization for the sake of its success.’ That’s how I view the 2021 certification of IVP as a Best Christian Workplace. It’s a portrait of the work, the giftedness, and the creativity of my colleagues here.”
Crosby added, “In some ways, a flourishing organization is like a riddle to be solved or like a thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle waiting to be assembled. It’s challenging to decipher and put together, but when we do, a vibrant picture emerges, and we can celebrate the work of God—and each other—in our midst.”
Best Christian Workplaces Institute’s purpose is to serve faith-based organizations by creating processes of discovery, facilitating organizational effectiveness, and encouraging practices that build healthy workplaces.
Contact: Krista Clayton | 630.734.4013 | kclayton@ivpress.com
