VIBE Awards 2022: Best Companies for Financial and Retirement Benefits

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It’s easy to just focus on salary when evaluating a job offer, but compensation is about so much more—including benefits that make you feel financially secure and better prepared for retirement and large expenses like buying a home. Luckily, employers—including the ones on this list—value the whole package. According to a 2022 survey from the Society for Human Resource Management, 82% of employers ranked retirement and savings benefits as one of the most important employee benefits they can offer, up from 55% the previous year.

Financial and retirement benefits is just one of the seven perk and benefits categories we highlight in the 2022 VIBE Awards. “VIBE” stands for “voted in by employees.” As the name suggests, our methodology combined our own data as well as votes from employees, who ranked the strength of their company’s perks and benefits. Each category includes winners and honorable mentions for small (up to 250 employees), medium (251 to 5,000), and large (more than 5,000) companies.

UnitedMasters, one of the winners in the small company category, stands out for its well-rounded approach to financial benefits. Says one employee, “Our 401(k) plan is the best I have ever experienced. They couple that with frequent financial well-being trainings and resources that drive employee financial knowledge and independence.”

Among the medium-sized companies, CashApp offers various ways for employees to earn money beyond their salaries. “I am hoping to buy a house in the next couple years, and the employee stock purchase plan and restricted stock unit program have made that more of a possibility for me,” says an employee.

And employees at Biogen, a winner in the large company category, appreciate how their employer consistently evaluates compensation. As one notes, “Biogen routinely does market analysis and will give a raise unsolicited if the data shows someone is underpaid. I got an unexpected raise a few days ago from this.”

Read on for the full list of winners in the financial and retirement benefits category.

Small Companies

Asensus Surgical

Who they are: This healthtech company is digitizing the interface between surgeons and patients before, during, and after surgeries.

What employees are saying: “The company restored 401(k) matching last year, which made me feel like our management team is taking an interest in retaining employees by striving to offer benefits that are on par with or far above what other companies offer. We already had excellent PTO benefits and stock options that made Asensus a desirable place to work.”

GameChanger

Who they are: This tech company and app helps youth sports teams stay connected, live stream games, keep score, and more.

What employees are saying: “I am very happy with my salary and bonus, as well as the 401(k) match that vests immediately. I feel very financially secure, even during tough times like the COVID lockdowns and the current high inflationary environment.”

UnitedMasters

Who they are: This music distributor gives artists the tools they need to manage their business as well as full ownership of their master recording rights.

What employees are saying: “The company matches our 401(k) contributions, which for a startup is unique. Additionally, we are offered equity in the company.”

Honorable Mention: BrainPOP

Honorable Mention: Opentrons

Medium Companies

Brilliant Earth

Who they are: Brilliant Earth sells jewelry made with ethically sourced diamonds and other gemstones.

What employees are saying: “I regularly attend our financial health webinars where experts discuss investing, taking advantage of your 401(k), how to plan for life events, and more. Through these resources, I’ve been able to understand my finances in my personal life so much better and plan for my retirement.”

Cash App

Who they are: This mobile payment service allows users to send, spend, invest, borrow, and save money.

What employees are saying: “The company offers free access to a financial planner. My wife and I met with the planner and got really helpful advice on combining our finances after marriage and planning to buy a house. We were also able to file our taxes at a discounted rate. Our taxes were fairly complicated this year, so having a professional do it for an affordable price saved us a lot of time and stress.”

Stack Overflow

Who they are: This online platform provides a community for programmers, where they can learn, share knowledge, and network with each other.

What employees are saying: “Having equity in the company is transformative to me. I live in an incredibly high-cost-of-living city and while I’ve always aspired to own a home rather than rent, it never seemed like an achievable dream—that is, until I got hired by Stack and was offered equity in the company. I 100% intend to use that benefit toward owning a home.”

Yext

Who they are: This tech firm helps companies provide answers to questions that consumers ask, primarily on search engines.

What employees are saying: “Yext offers a lot of restricted stock options, gym allocation—which is huge for me personally—and a great 401(k). And the retirement system Shareworks makes it very easy to sell, buy, or trade stocks.”

Honorable Mention: Dolby

Large Companies

Biogen

Who they are: This biotech company researches, develops, and distributes therapies for neurological and neurodegenerative diseases.

What employees are saying:“Many companies only grant long term incentives (LTIs) to employees at certain levels or roles, but Biogen offers this to all employees. This is a great investment in our financial well being. Also, Biogen offers a very generous 401(k) match helping us save for our retirement. I really appreciate all the great benefits Biogen provides.”

Boston Consulting Group

Who they are: This global consulting firm that works alongside other businesses to help solve real-world problems.

What employees are saying: “No matter what, I get 10% of my annual earnings put into a retirement account. It’s a great surprise to my nest egg. I am very grateful for it.”

Chick-fil-A

Who they are: Chick-fil-A is one of the largest American fast-food chains and is known for its chicken sandwiches.

What employees are saying: “Our perk of having both a pension and 401(k) partnered with the ability to retire at 55 has completely changed my retirement outlook. I can ‘retire young’ confident that I will be set up for life afterwards.”