In the second year of the program, eight organizations from across Canada have fulfilled the requirements to be named a Canadian Nonprofit Employer of Choice. The 2016 award recipients are:

• BC SPCA (BC)
• CMHA York and South Simcoe (ON)
• DeafBlind Ontario Services (ON)
• Oakville Hospital Foundation (ON)
• The Participation House Project (Durham Region) (ON)
• Plan International Canada (ON)
• Richmond Hospital Foundation (BC)
• The Society for Selections: A Career Support Service (AB)

All winners successfully completed the NEOC Organizational Profile and Employee Commitment Survey achieving a minimum overall score of 75% to qualify for the award.

In 2006 it was predicted that the nonprofit sector would experience a deficit of leaders. A decade later the Social Stanford Review reports that little progress has been made. A related concern for the sector has been the lack of talent management and gaps in the skill profile of the labour force. The NEOC Award process provides a framework to evaluate an organization's talent management issues and start constructing a corrective plan of action. This program further enables the board and senior staff to probe and analyze the issues and start the transformational change needed to achieve the impact the donor rightly expects. The bottom line is always about mission impact.

“We are thrilled with the interest and positive feedback we've received from the sector on this new awards program.” said Jeff Doran, president of CCEOC Inc. “We commend these organizations for making talent management a priority. All of the winning nonprofits showed strong leadership qualities, particularly in the areas of communication, employee engagement and involvement.” Doran said, “These organizations can now take advantage of unique branding opportunities and continuous improvement initiatives to help make their organizations even better places to work.”

Hilborn:ECS has again taken a leadership role in the sector with the launch of the Nonprofit Employer of Choice (NEOC) Awards in 2015. By partnering with CCEOC Inc. as well as The Goldie Company this new awards program for nonprofit employers is the first of its kind in Canada. Other supporting partners of the NEOC Award program include: Canadahelps.org, the Sustainability Network, and PGgrowth.

Applications for the 2017 NEOC Awards will soon be accepted: http://neoc.ca