Dozens of excellent books already
exist to help you choose a career, write a resume, dress for the
office, etc. Such things are not the purpose of PLUNKETT'S
EMPLOYERS' INTERNET SITES. Instead, this book's job is to
help you sort through the millions of sites on the World Wide
Web to quickly locate careers information and job openings posted
by America's giant corporate employers-to determine which employer
may be the best for you, or to see how your own company compares
to others. Whether you are newly entering the job market and looking
for your first position, or thinking about switching companies
mid-career to find more promising vistas, you'll find this book
to be a valuable guide for your online search. We also suggest
you obtain additional information about major corporate employers
from our complete line of business, Internet and careers books,
including The Almanac of American Employers.
The two primary sections of this
book are devoted first to general information for job seekers,
and then to the "Individual Data Listings" for THE
ONLINE EMPLOYERS 500. If time permits, you should begin your
research in the front chapters of this book. Also, you will find
lengthy indexes in Chapter 4 and in the back of the book.
GENERAL INFORMATION FOR JOB SEEKERS
Chapter 1: Applying For A
Job Online. This chapter presents an encapsulated view of
using the Internet to find a job with a major corporation.
Chapter 2: Research-7 Keys
for Job Seekers. This chapter provides a definitive list of
resources to use and items that job seekers should look for when
conducting research into major corporate employers.
Chapter 3: Important Contacts
for Job Seekers. This chapter covers contacts for important
government agencies, organizations, employment consultants and
more. Included are World Wide Web sites and contact addresses
for associations in specific industries.
THE ONLINE EMPLOYERS 500
Chapter 4: THE ONLINE EMPLOYERS
500: Who They Are and How They Were Chosen. The companies
compared in this book (the actual count is 484) were chosen from
selected leading industries on a nationwide basis. They were selected
from the largest American-based employers that provide exceptionally
useful careers information on their Internet sites. For complete
descriptions, see Chapter 4.
Individual Data Listings: Look at
one of the companies in THE ONLINE EMPLOYERS 500's Individual
Data Listings.
You'll find the following
information fields:
Company Name:The company
profiles are in alphabetical order by company name, followed by
the web site address. If you don't find the company you are seeking,
it may be a subsidiary or division of one of the firms covered
in this book. Try looking it up in the Index by Subsidiaries,
Brand Names and Selected Affiliations in the back of the book.
The firm's industry code is also listed in this area. For a complete
description of industry codes, see Chapter 4.
Web Site Contains the Following Types of Data: A "Y"
in appropriate fields indicates "Yes." An "N"
indicates "No." These are Fields that indicate whether
specific types of data or special information are available on
the web site of each employer.
These fields include:
- specific job openings
- international jobs
- a corporate profile
- press releases
- college internship information
- college recruiting information
- online application functionality
- information for job seekers
who are physically challenged
- employee benefits
- corporate financial results
- the company's annual report
Also indicated is whether certain
searchability functions are built into the site for job seekers,
including whether job openings are searchable by location or type
of job.
Types of Business: A listing
of the types of business specialties conducted by the firm.
Brands/Divisions/Affiliations: Major brand names, operating
divisions or subsidiaries of the firm, as well as major corporate
affiliations-such as another firm that owns a significant portion
of the company's stock. A complete Index by Subsidiaries, Brand
Names and Selected Affiliations is in the back of the book.
Contacts: The human resources or hiring contact is listed,
along with his or her direct phone and email, where available.
Address: The firm's full headquarters address, the headquarters
telephone number, plus toll-free and fax numbers where available.
Financials: Annual Sales (2003 or the latest fiscal year
available to the editors): These are stated in thousands of dollars
(add three zeros if you want the full number). This figure represents
consolidated worldwide sales from all operations. 2003 figures
may be estimates or may be for only part of the year—partial
year figures are appropriately footnoted.
Annual Profits (2003 or the latest fiscal year available to the
editors, plus up to four previous years): These are stated in
thousands of dollars (add three zeros if you want the full number).
This figure represents consolidated, after-tax net profit from
all operations. 2003 figures may be estimates or may be for only
part of the year—partial year figures are appropriately
footnoted.
Stock Ticker: When available, the unique stock
market symbol used to identify this firm’s common stock
for trading and tracking purposes is indicated. Where appropriate,
this field may contain “foreign,” “private”
or “subsidiary” rather than a ticker symbol.
Total Number of Employees: The approximate total number
of employees, worldwide, as of the beginning of 2001 (or the latest
data available to the editors).
Apparent Salaries/Benefits: Due to wide variations in the
manner in which corporations report benefits to the U.S. Government's
regulatory bodies, not all plans will have been uncovered during
our effort to research this data. Also, the availability of such
plans to employees will vary according to the qualifications that
employees must meet to become eligible. For example, some benefit
plans may be available only to salaried workers - others only
to employees who work more than 1,000 hours yearly. Benefits that
are available to employees of the main or parent company may not
be available to employees of the subsidiaries.In addition, employers
frequently alter the nature and terms of plans offered.
A "Y" in appropriate fields indicates "Yes."
NOTE: Generally, employees covered by wealth-building benefit
plans do not fully own ("vest in") funds contributed
on their behalf by the employer until as many as five years of
service with that employer have passed.All pension plans are voluntary—that
is, employers are not obligated to offer pensions.
Pension Plan: The firm offers a pension plan to qualified
employees. In this case, in order for a “Y” to appear,
the editors believe that the employer offers a defined benefit
or cash balance pension plan (see discussions below).The type
and generosity of these plans vary widely from firm to firm. Caution:
Some employers refer to plans as “pension” or “retirement”
plans when they are actually 401(k) savings plans that require
a contribution by the employee.
- Defined Benefit Pension Plans: Pension
plans that do not require a contribution from the employee are
infrequently offered. However, a few companies, particularly
larger employers in high-profit-margin industries, offer defined
benefit pension plans where the employee is guaranteed to receive
a set pension benefit upon retirement. The amount of the benefit
is determined by the years of service with the company and the
employee’s salary during the later years of employment.
The longer a person works for the employer, the higher the retirement
benefit. These defined benefit plans are funded entirely by
the employer. The benefits, up to a reasonable limit, are guaranteed
by the Federal Government’s Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
These plans are not portable—if you leave the company,
you cannot transfer your benefits into a different plan. Instead,
upon retirement you will receive the benefits that vested during
your service with the company. If your employer offers a pension
plan, it must give you a summary plan description within 90
days of the date you join the plan. You can also request a summary
annual report of the plan, and once every 12 months you may
request an individual benefit statement accounting of your interest
in the plan.
- Defined Contribution Plans: These are
quite different. They do not guarantee a certain amount of pension
benefit. Instead, they set out circumstances under which the
employer will make a contribution to a plan on your behalf.
The most common example is the 401(k) savings plan. Pension
benefits are not guaranteed under these plans.
Cash Balance Pension Plans: These plans were
recently invented. These are hybrid plans—part defined benefit
and part defined contribution. Many employers have converted their
older defined benefit plans into cash balance plans. The employer
makes deposits (or credits a given amount of money) on the employee’s
behalf,usually based on a percentage of pay. Employee accounts
grow based on a predetermined interest benchmark, such as the
interest rate on Treasury Bonds. There are some advantages to
these plans, particularly for younger workers: a) The benefits,
up to a reasonable limit, are guaranteed by the Pension Benefit
Guaranty Corporation. b) Benefits are portable—they can
be moved to another plan when the employee changes companies.
c) Younger workers and those who spend a shorter number of years
with an employer may receive higher benefits than they would under
a traditional defined benefit plan.
ESOP Stock Plan (Employees' Stock Ownership Plan): This
type of plan is in wide use. Typically, the plan borrows money
from a bank and uses those funds to purchase a large block of
the corporation’s stock. The corporation makes contributions
to the plan over a period of time, and the stock purchase loan
is eventually paid off. The value of the plan grows significantly
as long as the market price of the stock holds up. Qualified employees
are allocated a share of the plan based on their length of service
and their level of salary. Under federal regulations, participants
in ESOPs are allowed to diversify their account holdings in set
percentages that rise as the employee ages and gains years of
service with the company. In this manner, not all of the employee’s
assets are tied up in the employer’s stock.
Savings Plan, 401(k): Under this type of plan, employees
make a tax-deferred deposit into an account. In the best plans,
the company makes annual matching donations to the employees'
accounts, typically in some proportion to deposits made by the
employees themselves. A good plan will match one-half of employee
deposits of up to six percent of wages. In other words, an employee
earning $30,000 yearly might deposit $1,800 (6%) into the plan.
The company might match one-half of the employee's deposit, or
$900. The plan grows on a tax-deferred basis, similar to an IRA.
A very generous plan will match 100% of employee deposits. However,
some plans do not call for the employer to make a matching deposit
at all. Other plans call for a matching contribution to be made
at the discretion of the firm's board of directors. Actual terms
of these plans vary widely from firm to firm. Generally, these
savings plans will allow employees to deposit as much as 15% of
salary into the plan on a tax-deferred basis. However, the portion
that the company uses to calculate its matching deposit is generally
limited to a maximum of 6%.Employees should take care to diversify
the holdings in their 401(k) accounts, and most people should
seek professional guidance or investment management for their
accounts.
Stock Purchase Plan: Qualified employees may purchase the
company’s common stock at a price below its market value
under a specific plan. Typically, the employee is limited to investing
a small percentage of wages in this plan. The discount may range
from 5 to 15%. Some of these plans allow for deposits to be made
through regular monthly payroll deductions. However, new accounting
rules for corporations, along with other factors, are leading
many companies to curtail these plans—dropping the discount
allowed, cutting the maximum yearly stock purchase or otherwise
making the plans less generous or appealing.
Profit Sharing: Qualified employees are awarded an annual
amount equal to some portion of a company's profits. In a very
generous plan, the pool of money awarded to employees would be
15% of profits. Typically, this money is deposited into a long-term
retirement account. Caution: Some employers refer to plans as
"profit sharing" when they are actually 401(k) savings
plans. True profit sharing plans are rarely offered.
Competitive Advantage: A brief statement
regarding an outstanding feature that gives the firm an edge in
the marketplace.
Recommended Career Types: A grid showing various career categories
for the company. A "Y" in the appropriate field indicates
"Yes." A complete index by career types is in the back
of the book.
Other Thoughts: A "Y" in appropriate fields indicates
"Yes."
Apparent Women Officers or Directors: It's difficult to
obtain this information on an exact basis, and employers generally
do not disclose the data in a public way. However, we have indicated
what our best efforts reveal to be the apparent number of women
who are either in the posts of corporate officers, or who sit
on the board of directors. There is a wide variance from company
to company.
Hot Spot for Advancement for Women/ Minorities: These are
firms that either have posted a far above-average number of women
and/or minorities to high posts, or that have a good record of
going out of their way to recruit, train, promote and retain women
or minorities. (See the Index of Hot Spots For Women and Minorities
in the back of the book.)
Web Site Comments: Listed here are observations regarding
each firm's careers information on its web site. This includes
comments on where to find certain information, as well as special
search engines the company may provide.
Corporate Culture Comments: This section provides information
about unique aspects of the company, such as dress code, relocation
programs, on-site facilities and other factors related to working
at the firm.
Location of Corporate Profile: Describes
how to find links which provide information about the company
as a whole
Location of Press Releases: Describes how to find current
information and press releases about the organization.
Location of Financial Information: Provides information
about how to obtain financial information from the company's web
site.
Locations: Primary locations outside of the headquarters,
categorized by regions of the United States and by "International"
locations. A "Y" in the appropriate field indicates
"Yes." A complete index by locations is in Chapter 4.
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to Plunkett's Employers' Internet Sites with Careers Information
