Every year, LinkedIn releases its list of the top workplaces to grow your career in Canada and the US.
As you can imagine, the obvious bigwig companies dominate the lists, with finance giants securing the top spots in Canada, and Silicon Valley tech behemoths coming out on top in the US.
This year's lists feature a new data-driven ranking of the top companies (25 in Canada and 50 in the US) and uses unique LinkedIn data to go beyond the companies that attract talent to uncover the companies that invest in their workforce.
The new methodology has seven key pillars, each revealing an important element of career progression: ability to advance, skills growth, company stability, external opportunity, company affinity, gender diversity, and educational background.
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According to LinkedIn, Canada's big five banks (RBC, TD, Scotiabank, BMO, and CIBC) each earned a spot thanks to "their resilience amid pandemic pressures," while SickKids and Sunnybrook "reinforce the healthcare industry’s pivotal role in the wake of COVID-19."
Other companies that saw increased demand for their services including Alphabet (the parent company of Google), computer software company SAP, and information and technology service, IBM, also made an appearance.
The companies on this year's list span several industries including banking, tech, telecommunications, retail, finance and accounting, food and beverage, engineering, and health care. Though there is one industry that notably didn't make an appearance on this year's Canadian list: real estate.
Given how monumental real estate has been to the resurgence of the Canadian economy amid the pandemic, this seemed the most likely year they'd finally make the cut.
Mind you, George Weston Ltd. ranked in the 6th spot and does operate Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust, though its prime focus is certainly retail.
But what's interesting to point out is that two real estate companies that also operate in Canada did make it onto the US list -- Keller Williams.
Keller Williams is the world’s largest real estate franchise by agent count and the largest in the US by units sold and sales volume, with over 1,000 offices and 180,000 associates across the the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
While its prominence is much more definite in the states, Keller Williams still has countless offices here in Canada, with dozens located here in the GTA.
Realogy -- the parent company of CENTURY 21, Coldwell Banker, ERA Real Estate, The Corcoran Group, Sotheby's International Realty, and Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate also made it onto the US list, albeit at #31 (remember, Canada's list only went to 25).
Though, as the pandemic's third wave and real estate activity continues to thrive here in Canada, perhaps we'll see real estate companies make it onto LinkedIn's annual list next year.
