Top Workplaces 2022: At Magid Glove and Safety, an intentional approach to workplace culture attracts top talent

Ask Kristy Williams why she likes her job as vice president of talent at Magid Glove and Safety in Romeoville and she quickly extols the virtues at great length.

“Magid has been very intentional in creating a workplace culture that attracts top talent,” she said. “Part of it is that our CEO, Greg Cohen, takes a lot of time to make sure that team members are aware why Magid is a great place to work. He does a great job bringing clarity regarding Magid’s vision and making sure that we all understand how we connect to it.”

“He is very involved with meeting with our director team and our senior leaders and emphasizing the importance of leadership, which is key to making sure that as we get talent we are able to keep talent,” Williams said.

Magid, a manufacturer and distributor of personal protective equipment, is a fourth-generation, family-owned business that is ranked No. 47 among mid-size employers in the Chicago Tribune’s 2022 list of Top Workplaces, as measured by the consultancy Energage in Exton, Pennsylvania. Magid does serious work — providing innovative safety products to protect workers in hazardous environments. But it also likes to have fun and understands the importance of work-life balance.

“The No. 1 key to our success is our strong team,” Cohen said. “We currently have the strongest team in our history, and that is what truly drives Magid’s success. An integral part of our business model is helping our team members develop, grow and succeed.” The company offers tuition reimbursement, internal training and support for outside training programs.

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“We like to say that safety isn’t just a job, it’s our legacy. Since 1946, my family has been passionate about keeping workers safe. Years later, we are still a family-owned business, and that passion and care for helping others has carried on and grown with our organization,” Cohen said.

“When I walk around Magid and speak with employees, it’s clear that our team is proud to work at a company where they know they’re making a difference every day. We aren’t just making and shipping products. We’re helping our customers keep their workers safe.”

Because Magid is in the personal protective equipment business, it was able to provide first responders and health care workers with the PPE they so desperately needed, donating over a quarter-million dollars of products to various organizations throughout the pandemic.

Magid also partnered with large companies like Google, Amazon, Tesla and Bechtel to make joint donations of large quantities of PPE.

Beyond that, Magid team members volunteer with Feed My Starving Children and Habitat for Humanity, and participate in fundraising activities throughout the year, such as the Allstate Hot Chocolate 5K and a variety of food, toy and clothing donation drives during the holidays.

“Founder’s Day is when we celebrate significant anniversaries and milestones,” Cohen said. “Some people have spent their entire careers here and it is a special experience to celebrate those members who have contributed to the business 30-, 40-, 50-plus years.”

Magid has found that providing a fun, engaging workplace makes employees more motivated, productive and happy.

“Two words we often hear when our team members describe working at Magid are family and fun,” Cohen said. “We work hard to achieve our mission of protecting workers, but we take time out to have fun and appreciate each other, too. We celebrate holidays and events together, we celebrate each other’s achievements, and we encourage our team members to take care of themselves, build relationships and support one another.”

He added, “A healthy work-life balance is a top priority at Magid, and so is physical well-being. We provide opportunities for camaraderie like indoor and outdoor walking tracks, a game court with basketball, pickleball and Ping-Pong, and even an occasional yoga-at-your-desk session.”

Caring for people within the organization and outside of it in the larger community leads to a higher level of purpose for Magid. This takes shape in numerous ways.

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“We take care of our community with holiday drives to donate clothing, food and toys,” Cohen said. “We sponsor blood drives, group volunteering sessions and have even partnered with Chicago Scholars to offer opportunities for youth from under-resourced communities. It’s in these moments where Magid’s strong company culture can best be seen. After over 75 years in business, we strive to be a place where people can be themselves, have fun and give their best to help the company grow.”

Sarah Anderson, senior director of marketing and product management, has climbed the corporate ladder at Magid. She started as a product manager about 10 years ago.

“Over the years, Magid has made significant investments in my professional development,” she said. “It is a huge reason why I have stayed so long with the company. Magid helped me realize my potential by offering me ample opportunities and training programs to enhance my professional and leadership skills.”

She added, “One of the things that we are working toward is leading our industry with innovative safety solutions, and through that, one of the processes we take is in-depth discussions about our customers so that we can create products that keep our workers safe. That mission is very inspiring for all of the employees here.”

The importance of having a strong organizational culture can’t be emphasized enough. A group called The Forum! meets regularly to foster a high-performance culture.

“Upper management and I meet with representatives from every part of the organization and anyone in the company can submit concerns, requests or opinions,” Cohen said. “The representatives are tasked with bringing issues to the group and we answer each one in writing and send it out to the entire Magid team. Over the years, we’ve used this feedback to make changes as small as adding straws to the cafeteria to as big as implementing our first work-from-home policy.”

Brenda Richardson is a freelance writer.