Allstate Insurance Co.

Why you want to work there

This Northbrook, Ill.-based insurer is serious about its green initiatives. The company recently opened a gold-level LEED-certified data center in Rochelle, Ill., and launched a paper reduction campaign that achieved a 21% reduction in just seven months. Managers are encouraged to support employees who volunteer in the community, even if it means allowing them to take time off during the workday. An internal Web portal called VolunteerMatch lists more than 55,000 nonprofit organizations and allows workers to find and register for volunteer events that fit their interests, skills, locations and schedules. Innovation with a kick Last year, Allstate held a contest called "App Attack" in which employees were challenged to develop mobile applications that would improve the productivity of employees, insurance agents or both. For 48 hours, entrants worked in Allstate's Technology Innovation Lab or connected virtually and tried to build an app from an original idea. More than 100 employees on 43 teams entered the contest, some remotely from across the country and from as far away as Ireland.