The award and what it means for Border States
We were honored to be recognized as the Young Professionals Best Place to Work — we work very hard to attract, retain and develop young professionals. To be recognized like this in a community with so many outstanding organizations in really something. 

History and growth
Border States started in 1952 at one location in North Dakota and has grown to include more than 100 locations in 22 states. We are one of the largest 100% employee-owned companies in the United States. 

“While we have more than 2,400 employee-owners across the country, we understand that our strong culture of ownership and giving back means we each have a stake in one another’s success,” said Lindsey Cernik, Organizational Development Consultant. 

Border States has built a strong commitment to helping employee-owners grow in their careers. We focus on learning and development and are big believers in a “work hard and have fun” mentality. We use engagement surveys to listen to employee-owners and learn how we can improve, make action plans and execute them. 

At Border States, you can start at an entry point, such as in the warehouse, and continue to learn and grow your career at Border States, like Jon Becker, who started as a Warehouse Associate at our Fargo branch in 2008. He has served in several roles and now serves as the Branch Operations Manager, overseeing daily operations for the branch. 

“I have had the opportunity to watch the company grow along with my opportunities,” Jon said. As a young professional with a family, Jon said he appreciates the ability to build personal wealth for retirement through Border States’ Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). “Beyond all this, I have always felt valued. I am very fortunate to be a part of an organization that cares about the people who work there.” 

Diversity
Employee-owners from across the country and diverse backgrounds serve on our grassroots Unity Council to promote diversity, equity and inclusion. 

Soedie Torres Correa is a Unity Council member who moved to the United States in 2016 from Puerto Rico. Soedie struggled to find a job doing work she loved — accounting.

“I started to put my resume’ on online pages, filled 81 applications for jobs and … nothing,” Soedie said. “No one wanted to give me a chance because my English was rough.” Then she received an email from HR at Border States. 

“I started to read about Border States, and I fell in love with what I read,” she said. “I thought, this is perfect — more than what I wanted.” Soedie received an offer for the accounts payable job. “Border States gave me a chance when no one else would.” Soedie added.
 

Community
Our Volunteer Policy provides 16 hours annually dedicated to volunteer service for every employee-owner to the nonprofit of our choice. Our young professionals are encouraged and mentored to serve on community boards, lead projects and volunteer. The company also makes community investments of nearly $1 million in nonprofit support each year.


What are your long-term goals and vision for Border States?
During our nearly 70 years in business, our mission and values haven’t changed. We provide value to our customers by delivering innovative product and supply chain solutions. We treat our customers’ businesses like our own and focus on doing the right thing. If we take care of our customers, vendors, each other and the community, the rest will take care of itself.