Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) was ranked 16th in Glassdoor’s annual survey of Top 25 Companies for Work-Life balance, just in time for CEY Marissa Mayer’s one year anniversary at the helm.
Mayer made her name at Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), joining the company a year after its founding and becoming one of its most recognizable and well respected executives. She left Google after 13 years to become the president and CEO of Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO), which had been losing ground to Google for years and had fallen from the top company in search to a virtual also-ran.
Yahoo Bans Telecommuting
Mayer was criticized by employees and industry watchers earlier this year when she banned telecommuting at Yahoo, saying that it wasn’t right for Yahoo. Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) had previously had a flexible work-from-home policy that was popular with employees. The move was especially surprising from Mayer who contributed to Google’s unique corporate culture, making it popular with aspiring techies.
Glassdoor’s high ranking should provide some assurance that Mayer still knows how to build a positive work environment despite making one unpopular policy decision. Of course, investors are more than happy with Mayer’s performance. Yahoo’s market value has gone up 70 percent since she became CEO, including a 35 percent rise in value so far this year.
Yahoo’s Competitor Google Not On The Work-Life Balance List
Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) was joined by another company that was once nearly synonymous with the internet. AOL, Inc. (NYSE:AOL) may be off many people’s radar since it separated from Time Warner in 2009, but Glassdoor ranked it as the 13th best company for work-life balance. Mayer’s former company Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) was nowhere to be found. As popular as it is with many employees, many of the perks that attract people to the company have the effect of keeping people on the company’s campus – not exactly a boon for work-life balance.
The top company for work-life balance is the privately owned SAS Institute, one of the world’s top developers of data analytics software. Its flagship application, also called SAS, is a staple in statistics-intensive industries such as drug development and social science research.
Other companies that made the list include Nokia at 10th, MasterCard at 18th, Shell Oil at 20th, and REI at 23rd.
