Is Edward Jones A Good Company To Work For?
Company Overview:
Founded in 1949, Edward Jones is an American financial services company that provides financial products and advisory services through its network of exclusive financial advisors across the US. Edward Jones employs over 16,000 people who specialize in investing products for corporations, government entities, institutions and individuals.
Products Offered:
Edward Jones has more than 280 branches nationwide with over 16,000 employees globally. The company offers full-service brokerage accounts with no loads or transaction charges on all securities transactions on more than 10 exchanges around the world.
Company Culture:
Edward Jones is a company that places great importance on the needs of its employees and strives to provide its employees with a positive and productive work environment.
It offers an excellent benefits package that includes:
• Health, dental and vision coverage
• Life insurance with three options: Salary Continuance, Income Protection and Waiver of Premium (whichever is best for the employee)
• Disability insurance
• Pension Plan (formerly called Profit Sharing Plan)
• A 401(k) retirement plan with company match up to 6% on employee contribution; plus employees can contribute up to $17,500 a year and receive the full match of 6% on their contribution. Employees can choose from a selection of investment funds. They also offer an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. This plan allows eligible employees to purchase company stock at a 15%-20% discount off the current market price each six-month enrollment period throughout the year.
• Paid time off
• Flexible Spending Accounts for medical and childcare expenses.
• Health insurance for dependents of employees who have disabilities or who are caring for a family member with a disability. This plan allows them to purchase a plan from either Aetna or Humana. Employees can choose either plan, however, they cannot have both plans in the same coverage period.
• Accident and disability insurance as well as short-term and long-term care insurance as needed throughout the year. In addition, the company offers various types of supplemental health care coverage for eligible employees through Kaiser Permanente HMO, Blue Shield HMO and Aetna PPO plans.
Why should you work at Edward Jones?
Edward Jones is committed to being an employer of choice by creating an environment where employees are valued and motivated to be the best they can be, providing support for continuous development and growth. Some of their employee programs include:
• Employee Recognition Program – Each year the company recognizes employees for their exceptional work effort with the “E” Award.
• The Edward Jones Leadership Institute – This is a national program designed to provide development opportunities for employees throughout the organization. This is supported through a partnership with Dr. John Christensen and his leadership and management training programs.
• Employee Charitable Association – This is a national program that allows employees to make contributions to important charities in their communities.
• Account Executive Education (formerly called the Certified Salesperson), Financial Advisor (CFA) and Investment Counselor (ICC) programs.
• Professional Development Programs – These are designed to provide opportunities for continuous professional growth. They include: Edwina Lowther’s Leadership, Keller Williams Integrated Education, Securities Regulation, Internal Audit and Strategic Planning.
• Edward Jones Academy – Designed to supply employees with the necessary skills, knowledge and competencies needed to successfully provide financial solutions to their clients.
• Mentoring Programs – These are designed to offer opportunities for employees to speak with senior management about various business issues.
Accolades for Best Workplace:
Edward Jones was named the #1 Best Workplace to Work For in 2014 by “Forbes” magazine, making it the only financial services company included on this list for two years running. The ranking is based on feedback from employees through a survey sent out by the company to all of its employees.
Diversity & Inclusion:
Edward Jones is proud of its diversity record. As part of its commitment to diversity, Edward Jones offers an equal opportunity program that allows all employees to rate their supervisors using nine criteria. All nine criteria are then weighted equally and the final rating is based solely on these ratings, resulting in an overall rating of one through nine with one being very high and nine being very low. This is used to ensure that employees are fairly ranked.
Community Involvement:
1. Edward Jones Community Investment Program (formerly called the Community Outreach Program) offers support to the communities where Edward Jones employees live and work. This program provides assistance with community events that promote financial literacy, economic growth and educational advancement. In addition, the program allows employees to volunteer at local schools and for local events throughout the year.
2. Edward Jones Financial Alliance Program – This is a national initiative that allows individual financial advisors a way to contribute a portion of their revenue back to their communities through their financial centers. This program enables them to have a direct effect on improving important services within their communities including education, healthcare and recreation.
3. Edward Jones Foundation – This is a national organization designed to improve the financial education of children and youth. It has initiated programs to help ensure that children and youth have the necessary education and resources to succeed, so that they will embrace the tools that will allow them to achieve their financial goals.
Work life at Edward Jones compared to other companies:
As an independent financial advisor, Edward Jones is very different from other workers in their industry. A big difference with Edward Jones is that their financial advisors are not employees. They are independent contractors with the company through which they are licensed. While this means that it is difficult to be sure of their benefits, it also means that the company is able to have a close relationship with its financial advisors at all times. Their work life atmosphere can be compared to other companies because they are given the flexibility to work at home with the possibility of having flexible hours and working from home more frequently, as well as the ability to take your clients’ business home. The similarities between their work environment and other companies is that they like working on commission, though unlike some other companies, there is no salary compensation.
Conclusion:
Edward Jones is known for its high value of work life balance, with the ability to work at home and do work-life integration. With all of its recent great books ranking, it can be said that their company strives to be the best place to work for all employees.
