Bill Raveis, Chairman and CEO of William Raveis Real Estate, Mortgage & Insurance, LLC, recently announced the firm has been chosen as the #1 company to work for in Massachusetts by the Boston Business Journal’s annual “Best Places to Work” survey. The honor recognizes company achievements in creating a positive work environment that attracts and retains employees through a combination of employee satisfaction, working conditions and company culture.The events leading to this unexpected honor included making a first cut of 440 companies amidst thousands that completed an employee satisfaction survey. The second round selection was even tougher, with only 60 companies qualifying…William Raveis made the cut. “We felt thankful to be in the top 60, considering the number of participants in the survey and being amongst 5,000 or so real estate companies in the state of Massachusetts,” said Mr. Raveis. The top 60 companies were invited to a function at the lovely Seaport Hotel in Boston, attended by over 500 participants, including high level executives from companies such as Microsoft, Google, Accenture, Ritz Carlton and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. Bill and Chris Raveis, executive vice president and managing partner of William Raveis, Massachusetts and his management team attended. Once everyone was seated, members of The Boston Business Journal staff began counting down the best companies starting with number 60. The Raveis team held its breath before each company was called, expecting to soon hear its name. However, when the firm made the Top 10 and then Top 5 cut, a sense of excitement came over the Raveis team. # 2 was called…and it wasn’t William Raveis. “When #2 was announced and it wasn’t us, Chris and I looked at each other and realized that we won the #1 Place to work in Massachusetts. It was quite a moment for me, Chris and his management team,” said Mr. Raveis, feeling humbled to receive the prestigious accolade.William Raveis sales associates and staff members completed an anonymous online survey submitted for review amidst over 20,000 other responses. “This award is particularly meaningful because it reflects upon our company mission of treating agents as our customers not only in Massachusetts, but throughout the northeast. This is a testament to our hardworking agents, management and staff-congratulations to them for an excellent job!” said Mr. Raveis. Since first entering the Massachusetts marketplace in 2003, William Raveis has experienced phenomenal growth. In 2007, the company opened three new offices in Marblehead, Orleans and Osterville, with statewide sales volume jumping 48% from the previous year. In 2008, the company launched four additional offices in Falmouth, Scituate, Marblehead and Hingham. In 2009, the company added new offices in Chatham, Eastham, Orleans and Natick making William Raveis Real Estate the largest independent real estate firm in Massachusetts. Currently, the company has 20 offices and over 500 sales associates in Massachusetts. William Raveis Real Estate, Mortgage & Insurance is one of the top companies in the nation. It was recently ranked in 2009 by sales volume in REALTOR® Magazine as the #1 family-owned real estate company in the Northeast and the 10th largest real estate company in the USA. Presently, the firm has 2,400 highly trained sales professionals and 73 company-owned and affiliate offices throughout the northeast. A 2009 Commercial Record poll voted William Raveis the “Best Real Estate Company” in Connecticut and a 2008 and 2009 Banker & Tradesman poll voted the firm as “The Best Residential Real Estate Company” in Massachusetts, a testament to exceptional achievements in both states.William Raveis offers extensive home-buying and selling services, including mortgage and insurance divisions. Since its establishment 26 years ago, William Raveis Mortgage LLC has closed more than $6 billion in mortgage loans and is rated in the top 1% of all FHA lenders in the United States. William Raveis Insurance provides competitive proposals for life, home, flood, automobile, excess liability, valuable items and other personal insurance. For more information, please visit www.raveis.com.