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Australian-based software company Atlassian (the maker of popular digital tools Jira and Trello) has proudly put in place a workplace culture that prioritizes transparency, honesty, and two-way dialogue, while also acknowledging that management isn't infallible. "We don't get all the decisions right, but we are always open," explains Erika Fisher, chief administrative officer and general counsel at Atlassian. "We believe that owning up to not knowing something as a leader or admitting a mistake helps foster trust across the company."¹

At the same time, Atlassian is also not afraid to ruffle a few feathers. For example, the company has taken public stands on issues such as climate change, racial justice, and voters' rights. Most recently, Atlassian signed a public statement against the anti-abortion heartbeat bill in Texas. Fisher explains:

Our employees trust us to do the right thing and ultimately contribute to healthy communities for them to live in. We know that access to healthcare is a huge concern....It's our responsibility to use the platform that we have as a global company to stand up and fight for their rights.²

With that kind of leadership and social justice ethos, it's no surprise that in 2021 Atlassian made its debut (at rank 23) on Fortune's latest list of World's Best Workplaces.³

The 25 companies that made the 2021 list stood out for criteria such as supplying special and unique benefits, providing fair pay, and offering robust training opportunities for employees to develop professionally. On average, 85 percent of employees at the World's Best Workplaces say that they experience well-being at work, and over 90 percent say that they are proud of their employer and that their management is honest and ethical in its business practices.

The World's Best Workplaces Lead with "Head and Heart"

Other companies on the list include IT brand Cisco, hotelier Hilton, and cloud software company Salesforce, all of which made it to the top five for the third year in a row. Shipping and logistics behemoth DHL Express replaced Cisco in the number one spot on the 2021 list, standing out for, among other things, including employees in decision making that affects them. Regine Buettner, global head of HR for DHL, explains the company's bold policy of "leading with head, heart, and guts":

The head is really the performance-oriented area. The heart is "what do you really feel" and "what can we do better." And guts is to really stand up and follow your company goals. If times are difficult, you need to manage it.

DHL encourages all of its employees -- from managers to frontline workers -- to follow this "head, heart, and guts" model by allowing them to be entrepreneurial. For example, DHL staff are encouraged to proactively collect and act on customer feedback, rather than stick to an up-the-chain protocol of traditional customer service. By granting employees the autonomy and initiative to represent the company in a way they can feel proud of, employees deliver better quality service to customers, creating a win–win situation all around.

Global Companies Need Global Thinking

With more than 100,000 employees in 220 countries and territories, DHL is a truly international company -- which means it faces plenty of challenges when it comes to rolling out a unified strategy and common core values. "For multinational company leaders, it's vital to consider the varying regional and country-level perspectives," says Buettner. "You need to really get to know and understand local cultural sensitivities."

DHL relies on an annual employee survey to assess employee trust across the company, examining responses at the local level and then looking for patterns within regions and globally. A sounding board and steering committee featuring members from different countries also act as liaisons between the regions and the global management board to review topics such as employee engagement and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Buettner explains:

The main focus is really on trust, and how our people feel. It's not important what we as a management team want....What's important is how people feel, how people understand. And this is why we get feedback: to see what we can do better.

Although Atlassian isn't nearly as large as DHL, it's still a global organization, with nearly 6,400 employees across 13 countries.

The company over-indexed Great Place to Work's U.S. benchmark on employees "feeling proud to work there," and staff scored the company high for "people being treated fairly regardless of race or sexual orientation." Atlassian has made DEIB (diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging) a major priority -- with particular emphasis on the I. "For every dollar you spend on diversity, spend two on inclusion," Fisher says. "Leaders often forget that equity isn't just about hiring diverse people. It needs to live throughout the employee life cycle."

Atlassian's performance reviews, promotion paths, and compensation plans are designed to mitigate bias from the outset. Fisher explains, "We've worked with researchers to quantify an inclusion index, helping us measure our successes and failures."

For DHL, inclusion means adjusting diversity efforts to fit local cultural norms in its 220 countries. For example, in Saudi Arabia, DHL wanted to hire more women, but women were forbidden to share a workspace with men. As a workaround, DHL created a dedicated workspace that made it possible for women to join the team. (Currently, DHL's sales director and HR director in Saudi Arabia are both women.)

Promoting DEIB also means understanding the difference between equality and equity. For example, after the COVID-19 pandemic hit, DHL decided to pay out a €300 bonus to everyone in the company. Following initial discussion about adjusting payouts regionally to reflect exchange rates and local costs of living, in the end DHL opted to pay everyone the same amount, the rationale being that employees in developing countries were likely struggling more than their colleagues in more developed places.

What's Good for the World Is Good for Business

At DHL, employees aren't recognized just for the work they do on the job, but also for volunteering outside their working hours. Every year, the company selects country and regional winners for their personal volunteer work, with DHL making financial donations to those employees' charities of choice. In addition to its social justice and environmental work, Atlassian has its own foundation, which offers donation matching and five days of volunteer time to every employee.

Among the World's Best Workplaces of 2021, 91 percent of employees feel good about the ways their companies contribute to the community. Corporate giving and social responsibility are top drivers of employee experience: when employees can connect their work to what is happening outside in the broader community, they feel an increased sense of purpose. An employee who feels good about how their company contributes to the community is 1.9 times more likely to feel proud of their organization and 1.7 times more likely to say their work is more than "just a job."

"Organizations need to do more than focus on delivering profits for shareholders," says Fisher. "Times have changed. Employees expect more. The world deserves more."