????在下曼哈頓區上空兩百英尺，約20名員工肩并肩坐在一間寬敞的現代化會議室里，參加冥想課程。他們跟著導師的指導吸氣和呼氣。導師讓他們在心中默數五個數，每次注意力動搖的時候就重頭開始默數。導師輕聲說：“注意你的思緒會飄向何處。放下今天的壓力。”

????這項冥想課程源自這家公司的“每周恢復”健康計劃，涉及在五個工作日內的壓力管理、幸福和工作生活平衡問題。而它只是這個舒適的工作場所提供的諸多非常規福利中的一項。其他福利還包括太極俱樂部、每周五次的普拉提課程、餐廳的泡泡茶、曾奪冠的龍舟隊、邀請嘉賓到公司演講（如棒球明星德瑞克?基特），以及出于慈善目的舉辦的通宵尋寶游戲等。

????這些聽起來像是谷歌總部才會有的活動，但在這里你會看到人們穿的是愛馬仕（Hermès），而不是衛衣，而這些冥想者們都在為高盛（Goldman Sachs）工作。這家可敬的投資銀行已有144年的歷史。近幾年，高盛一直處在風口浪尖，因為金融危機而備受指責和批評；而且，在這里每周工作70至80個小時更是家常便飯。但這家公司也有另外的一面。除了媒體上的報道外，這家公司有著獨特的文化和對公司非常滿意的員工。我們發誓，人們都渴望能在這家公司找到一份工作。

????別懷疑我們說的話。大家可以問一問那里的員工。高盛在今年的《財富》100家最適宜工作的公司排行榜上名列第45位。這份榜單以員工反饋為依據對工作場所進行排名。自1998年該榜單設立以來，高盛年年上榜。榜單上像這樣的“常青樹”一共也只有13家公司。【摩根大通（J.P. Morgan）與美林集團（Merrill Lynch）是其他兩家曾經上榜的大型投資銀行，但他們直到1999年以后才開始上榜。】今年，高盛員工幫助公司的排名上升了48位。

????為什么會這樣？傳統觀念認為，人們之所以對這里心滿意足無非是因為錢。確實，過去12個月，這家公司的平均薪酬約為380,000美元。雖然公司高層數百萬美元的高額薪酬讓這個數字有些虛高，但高盛員工的薪酬的確一直高于其他大型銀行。

????然而，員工意見顯示，他們熱愛這家公司并不只是因為薪酬。更不是由于氣派的公司總部，長達四個月的產假，也不是因為對慈善捐助的癡迷。針對此次榜單，卓越工作場所研究院（Great Place to Work Institute，負責員工調查）共從這家公司收集了62頁超過40,000字未經過濾的員工意見，并經過《財富》雜志審核。

????Two hundred feet above lower Manhattan in an airy modern conference room, some 20 employees are sitting elbow to elbow as they participate in a meditation session. Breathing in, then out, they heed the guidance of their instructor, who tells them to count to five silently -- and to start over every time their attention wavers. "Notice where your mind wanders to," she implores. "Let go of the day's stresses."

????The course grew out of the company's Resiliency Week, a wellness initiative on stress management, happiness, and work-life balance over five days. It's one of a number of unconventional perks at this plush workplace. Others include a tai chi club, five-times-a-week Pilates, bubble tea in the café, a champion dragon-boating team, lectures from visitors such as Derek Jeter, and an all-night scavenger hunt for charity.

????It may sound like the Googleplex, but you'll find Hermès rather than hoodies here: The meditators work forGoldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500), the venerable 144-year-old investment bank. Yes, the one that's been in the cross hairs in recent years as it both reeled from and was blamed for the financial crisis; yes, the one where 70- to 80-hour workweeks are considered routine. Say hello to the other side of this company. Beyond the headlines, there's a unique culture and a remarkably satisfied workforce. We swear. And people are dying to get jobs here.

????Don't take our word for it. Ask the employees. Goldman Sachs is No. 45 this year on Fortune's annual list of 100 Best Companies to Work For, the definitive ranking of corporate workplaces based on employee feedback. And no, this isn't the result of a new mission to improve working conditions: Goldman has earned a spot on our list every year since we started it in 1998 -- and it's one of just 13 companies that can make that claim. (J.P. Morgan (JPM, Fortune 500) and Merrill Lynch are the only other big investment banks to ever make the list, and not since in 1999.) This year Goldman employees helped to bump up their company 48 slots.

????What gives? Conventional wisdom might say it's the money that keeps people sated here. Indeed, the firm saw average compensation of roughly $380,000 over the past 12 months. And while that number skews high because of multimillion-dollar paychecks at the top, Goldman typically sets aside more cash for compensation per employee than any other major bank.

????But according to 62 pages and more than 40,000 words of unfiltered employee comments collected by the Great Place to Work Institute (which conducts the employee survey) and reviewed by Fortune, it's not just the pay that makes the employees so fond of their firm. Nor is it the swank corporate headquarters, the four-month maternity leave, or an obsessive devotion to philanthropy.