This document provides information about winners and finalists of a "Best Places to Work" award in the large companies category (101-200 employees) in Buffalo, New York. Gold winner DiVal Safety Equipment fosters a culture driven by meeting customer needs. Silver winner HoganWillig promotes work-life balance for employees. Bronze winner The Hamister Group recognizes employees exemplifying its values. Finalist Buffalo Hearing & Speech Center offers services to those with communication needs and fosters continuous learning and collaboration among employees. Finalist Northtown Auto Group supports the local community in various ways through its brands and locations.

12. MARCH 2, 2012
| BEST PLACESTOWORK
| BUFFALO BUSINESS FIRST | 11|
LARGE—Companiesemploying101-200
|LARGE CATEGORY WINNERS
GOLD:DiValSafety
EquipmentInc.
1721 Niagara St. • Buffalo, NY 14207
716-874-9060 • divalsafety.com
CEO: CJVallone • COO: ChrisWerner
Employees (FT): 179
Founded: 1977
What company does: Distributor of safety,
industrial, contractor, MRO supplies and sup-
port services.
Example of best practice: DiVal fosters a cor-
porate culture that is driven by a“whatever it
takes”attitude to meet and exceed customer
needs and expectations.
The survey says:
• DiVal gives employees a great deal of latitude
on work hours to attend to personal / fam-
ily matters such as leaving for 2 hours in the
middle of the day to transport family to work
and day care. Promotions are made from
within.You can see that if you want to move on
to another position that it will be possible to do
that when an opening arises.
•They trust that employees will do the right
thing and get things done at our own pace.
They lead with smiles on their faces. Makes me
happy to be here and work for someone who is
happy to be here as well.
•The president makes an effort to walk around
the office at least three times a week to say
hello to everyone by name.
SILVER:HoganWillig
AttorneysatLaw
2410 North Forest Road • Getzville, NY 14068
716-636-7600 • hoganwillig.com
CEO: Corey Hogan
COO: DianeTiveron
HR contact: Jessica Hulbert, jhulbert@hoganwil-
lig.com
Employees (FT): 109
Founded: 1975
What company does: Full-service law firm
Example of best practice: HoganWillig
promotes a healthy work/life balance for all
employees across all levels. From excellent ben-
efits to weekly lunches, we truly strive to make
HoganWillig a place people enjoy coming to.
The survey says:
• Provides the latest technology, and the neces-
sary training for use of same.
•The senior leadership is transparent about our
strengths, weaknesses and goals as an organi-
zation.
• We are located in a green building, which is a
healthier environment to work in. I appreci-
ate the fresh air and the daylight from all the
windows.
BRONZE:TheHamisterGroupInc.
6400 Sheridan Drive •Williamsville, NY 14221
716-839-4000 • hamistergroup.com
CEO: Mark Hamister
COO: JackTuresky
HR contact: RoseWalsh, rwalsh@hamistergroup.
com
Employees (FT): 200
Founded: 1977
What company does: Healthcare and hotel
management company
Example of best practice:We honor our co-
workers for exemplifying our company’s values
of honesty, integrity, work ethic, accountability,
respect and trust with our co-worker recognition
program that’s called by the acronym“HIWART.”
The survey says:
• Employees have the freedom necessary to
take accountability for our responsibilities. I
feel like my skill set is strongly reinforced, and
my opinion as a technical expert is trusted and
encouraged.
• A hands-off mentality. If I need assistance, my
manager is more than willing to help. I like the
fact that I can complete the tasks at hand and do
my job without my manager micro-managing
me. I’m able to bring ideas to the table and I get
honest opinions and answers from my manager.
• Birthday cards with lottery tickets and
employee of the month plaque with a $25 gift
certificate
|Finalists, Large
BuffaloHearing&
SpeechCenter
50 E. North St.
Buffalo, NY 14203
716-885-8871
askbhsc.org
CEO: Joseph Cozzo
COO: Joseph Sonnenberg
HR contact: Patricia Randle
prandle@askbhsc.org
Employees (FT): 200
Founded: 1953
What company does: BHSC
offers innovative services
to children and adults with
communication and educa-
tional needs.
Example of best practice:
Buffalo Hearing & Speech
Center fosters an environ-
ment of continuous profes-
sional growth and develop-
ment for our employees.
We pride ourselves in
building meaningful and
collaborative relationships
among our peers and
families.
The survey says:
• Every time Joe Cozzo gets
up there and tells us we’re
great, I really believe he
thinks that.
WhereveryougoinWesternNewYork,itgoeswithoutsayingthatNorthtownispartofit.
Weworkhere.Weplayhere.Welivehere.Wetakeprideinourcommunityandsupportitinmanyways.
With17brandsand7locations,wearecommittedtoservingyouourcustomersandneighborstodayandtomorrowtothenthdegree.
communityn
NorthtownCenteratAmherst
CentralAmherstLittleLeague
NorthtownPlayPlaceattheBoulevard
Mall
KaleidaHealth
UpstateNewYorkTransplantServices
BuffaloSabres
BuffaloBills