Largest employers
The Globe invited 1,586 employers to participate in the 2012 Top Places to Work survey. Of those, 304 organizations employing over 210,000 people went all the way through the process, allowing us to conduct a confidential survey of their workers. Research partner, WorkplaceDynamics of Exton, Pa., specialists in employee engagement and retention, contacted more than 135,000 employees at those companies and received completed surveys from 81,907 individuals. They were asked to grade their organizations performance according to 24 distinct statements, ranging from New ideas are encouraged at this company, to My manager makes it easier to do my job well." More on methodology.

- Charts Small employers
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- Medium employers
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- Large employers
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- Largest employers
Rank | Company | Description | Ownership | Mass. locations | Mass. employees | US employees | US headquarters | Profile revenue |
1 | Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Co. | Pharmaceuticals | Private | 1 | 1,236 | 1,417 | Cambridge | N/A |
2 | Keller Williams Realty | Real estate | Private | 18 | 2,392 | 69,951 | Austin, Texas | $96.7 billion |
3 | Bright Horizons Family Solutions | Human services | Private | 55 | 1,600 | 19,000 | Watertown | $974 million |
4 | Winchester Hospital | Health care | Non-profit | 26 | 2,700 | 2,700 | Winchester | $268 million |
5 | The Herb Chambers Cos. | Auto dealer network | Private | 46 | 1,950 | 2,000 | Somerville | $1.9 billion |
6 | MITRE Corporation | Research | Non-profit | 1 | 2,090 | 7,663 | Bedford, Mass., McLean,Va. | $1.4 billion |
7 | New Balance Athletic Shoe | Athletic footwear and apparel maker | Private | 7 | 1,257 | 2,475 | Boston | $1.1 billion |
8 | FedEx | Distribution, logistics, and freight | Public | 10 | 1,733 | 260,000 | Memphis | $11.2 billion |
9 | Brooksby Village & Linden Ponds-Erickson Living | Senior housing | Non-profit | 2 | 1,500 | 12,000 | Hingham | $123 million |
10 | Tufts Health Plan | Health insurer | Non-profit | 3 | 1,750 | 1,753 | Watertown | $2.9 billion |
11 | Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates | Health care | Non-profit | 29 | 4,243 | 4,243 | Newton | $1.3 billion |
12 | Roche Bros. Supermarkets | Grocery | Private | 19 | 4,200 | 4,200 | Wellesley Hills | $600 million |
13 | Harvard Pilgrim Health Care | Health insurer | Non-profit | 4 | 1,037 | 1,100 | Wellesley | $2.8 billion |
14 | Akamai Technologies | Internet services | Public | 1 | 1,011 | 1,600 | Cambridge | $1.2 billion |
15 | South Shore Hospital | Health care | Non-profit | 1 | 3,929 | 3,929 | South Weymouth | $436 million |
16 | Vertex Pharmaceuticals | Pharmaceuticals | Public | 2 | 1,420 | 1,850 | Cambridge | $1.4 billion |
17 | Eastern Bank Corp. | Financial services | Cooperative/Mutual | 105 | 1,670 | 1,677 | Boston | $415 million |
18 | Benchmark Senior Living | Senior housing | Private | 22 | 1,811 | 4,000 | Wellesley | $276 million |
19 | Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research | Pharmaceutical research | Public | 9 | 1,642 | 3,140 | Cambridge | N/A |
20 | VA Boston Healthcare System | Health care | Government | 7 | 4,258 | 4,258 | Boston | N/A |
21 | Kronos | Workforce management software | Private | 1 | 1,085 | 2,542 | Chelmsford | $630 million |
22 | Newton-Wellesley Hospital | Health care | Non-profit | 1 | 3,166 | 3,166 | Newton | $416 million |
23 | EMC Corp. | Data management | Public | 13 | 9,200 | 22,000 | Hopkinton | $20 billion |
24 | New England Baptist Hospital | Health care | Non-profit | 1 | 1,031 | 1,031 | Boston | $206 million |
25 | Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts | Health insurer | Non-profit | 5 | 3,508 | 3,508 | Boston | $6.3 billion |