Smithfield-based contract-manufacturer LFI Inc. finds value in the very act of filling out the survey for Providence Business News’ Best Places to Work issue. Just going through the process of reviewing and reassessing its employee benefits and perks provides insight the company can use to make the workplace better each year, said Chief Financial Officer Roland Benjamin. “We use it as a feedback loop on how we’re doing and review policies,” he said. “Our focus is ‘to help you make more,’ so we look at how can we continuously improve the employee experience.”

“To help you make more” is the company’s motto. Whether it applies to its customers or its staff, it’s a guiding principle at this partner to some of the most successful aerospace and medical-device companies in the world.

Peer recognition is one of the many ways LFI creates a culture of workplace excellence. Co-workers give each other recognitions, which go on a central wall area. “It’s to thank each other,” said Jessica Mencunas, human resources director, “for whatever action that led to making something more simple for you, like helping somebody reduce time working on something.” New this year, the program has yielded about 70 recognitions.

The growing company is adding employee features as it goes, said Mencunas, such as a wellness program, an increasingly minimal waste stream, flexible work schedules when possible and green building practices, such as motion-sensored lights.

“We’ve always had an undertone of collaboration and helping each other out and genuinely caring – we are kind of building on that,” said Mencunas. •