All in a day's work: creating a caring, fun workplace.

• Author: King, Heather L.
• Position: Special Report

It's no secret that employees come to work to make a living and companies are in business to make money. But what makes the difference between a company that employees love to hate and one they just love?

Oftentimes, it's the corporate culture surrounding the business. Owners and CEOs who have learned to cultivate a culture of caring and sense of community will often see bottomline success in a number of ways including retention rates and reduced inventory shrinkage--regardless of whether that was their underlying goal or not.

But perhaps the most noticeable benefit to corporations is that happy employees are often healthy employees--which amounts to fewer sick days, lower insurance premiums and a host of other monetary benefits. "We place a very high value on the mental and physical well-being of our employees," Jason Langston, managing partner and CFO for GPS Capital Markets, explains.

When the 32-person, Utah-based company reached its five-year anniversary a few years ago, the company bought Lifetime Fitness memberships for its West Jordan employees. "That's been really well-received and people use that gym membership a lot. We encourage people to take an hour out of their day and go over to the gym and unload some stress." GPS has also put together a RAGNAR team for the past two years and feels that the 12-person relay race is a great team-building activity in addition to helping employees get in shape.

In the high-stress world of this foreign exchange brokerage firm, Langston and the two other managing partners of GPS believe that "if we've got happy employees then they are going to be more productive and that is very key, especially in a sales organization."

The Human Element

While higher productivity and retention rates do mean a greater chance for business success, many companies go the extra mile to make sure their employees understand that they are valued for their talents and contributions outside of the company as much as what they bring to work every day.

Fran Pruyn, a senior principal at the Salt Lake City-based architectural firm CRSA, states, "We don't make the assumption that the firm is always your top priority. We don't assume that your family isn't going to be first or your church or your non-profit organization or even your golf game. At some period in your life it's going to be more important than a small job we are doing. The overwhelming thought is get your job done and then get your life done. We respect them, we...