Honored Leader: Thomas Raffio, President and CEO
Company Name: Northeast Delta Dental
Location: Concord, N.H.
Nature of Business: Dental insurance
Founded: 1961
Revenue: $190 million
Growth Rate (2004): 3 percent
Number of Employees: 172
Average Tenure: 6.6 years
Northeast Delta Dental is a 44-year-old, nonprofit dental insurance company
with 172 employees. CEO Thomas Raffio has helped foster a culture of service
and improvement through open-book management and a philosophy that "Feedback
is a gift." Consistent with that philosophy, employees have the opportunity
to appraise their manager and their manager's manager during performance
reviews. The team environment is emphasized in quarterly "all colleague"
meetings and the company believes strongly in communication regarding finances,
customer relations, marketing successes, and employee recognition. Community
involvement is emphasized: the company has an admirable record of donating
time, financial resources, and meeting space to a variety of nonprofit causes.
While the industry average is 80 percent, the company currently retains
96 percent of clients from year to year. The company experiences little
voluntary employee turnover: 8.72 percent in 2004, compared to an industry
average of 21.5 percent.
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