Owen‑Ames‑Kimball Company (O‑A‑K), a preeminent general contractor with a longstanding presence in Southwest Florida, has been named a Southwest Florida Best Places to Work, a survey competition managed by Best Companies Group (BCG) and published by Gulfshore Business. O‑A‑K was one of 16 companies selected this year to join the ranks of the Best Places to Work in Southwest Florida.
“O‑A‑K Florida Is 100% employee-owned,” said Matthew Zwack, president of O‑A‑K Florida. “We work hard to give our 48 team members a great work-life balance and provide a family atmosphere. Being employee-owned contributes to our exceptionally low turnover rate and our ability to attract top talent. That translates to a great team dynamic, transparency in communication, and accountability for our actions. We’re a people company providing construction project management to our partners and clients.”
The company allows pets to accompany their owners to the office to help relieve workday stress. In addition, to build teamwork and morale, the company regularly holds employee lunches, years-of-service award ceremonies, and outside work events. O‑A‑K also offers robust benefits, flexible hours, generous parental leave benefits, mentoring opportunities, tuition reimbursement for business education workshops and conferences, and a profit-sharing program.
To be chosen among the cream of the crop, Southwest Florida companies apply to the Best Companies Group, an independent research firm specializing in identifying and recognizing great places to work. BCG administers the program in which local companies pay an application fee and complete a two-part survey – one for the employer that details company policies, practices, benefits, and demographics, and another for employees that include an in-depth set of 77 statements they are asked to respond to on a scale of 1 through 5. Then, BCG analyzes the results and creates a list of the Best Places to Work in Southwest Florida from the information collected.
An employee-owned company, O‑A‑K Florida, Inc.’s Board of Directors comprises members from the company’s Florida operations. Owen‑Ames‑Kimball Company has provided premier general contracting, design-build, and construction management services in Southwest Florida since 1982.
O‑A‑K’s Florida operation is an affiliate of its parent company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Florida operation has offices in Collier and Lee counties. Its Lee County office is located at 11941 Fairway Lakes Drive in Fort Myers. Learn more about O‑A‑K at www.owen‑ames‑kimball.com.
