/ 13 October 2017

Africa’s Top Employers lead the way in the development of their people

Billy Elliott is Top Employers Institute country manager Africa.
Billy Elliott is Top Employers Institute country manager Africa.

The Top Employers Institute is a global HR Certification organisation that creates value for employers that build optimal conditions for their employees so that they can develop themselves and thereby enrich their lives both personally and professionally.

Headquartered in the Netherlands, we have been recognising Top Employers around the world for over 25 years and in Africa for 20 years.

Chief executive of the institute David Plink says that since 1997, hundreds of employers on the continent have opened their doors and allowed us to assess their HR and people development practices. “The organisation has seen tremendous growth in maturity of HR policies and practices on the continent and we have seen African employers continuously working to optimise their employee conditions and put the development of their people first. The organisations certified as Africa’s Top Employers lead the way in the development of their people and set an example on the continent and beyond — an achievement they can be truly proud of.”

Each year we certify leading organisations in countries, continents and on a global scale. We recognise Top Employers based on a global six-stage certification programme governed by a strict standardised process, recognising the conditions created by organisations for a best-in-class development environment for employees.

The Top Employers Certification Programme’s objective research methodology has proven that these organisations do in fact create life-enriching experiences for employees, enabling them to develop on all fronts. These high-performing organisations were officially certified on October 12 2017 in Johannesburg, South Africa. They become part of an exclusive global HR community and can credibly lay claim to having achieved certified excellence in employee conditions for the next year. Top Employers say that the certification adds structure to their employee development practices and processes, and is a valuable stamp of credibility in the very competitive market for top talent.

EY has been a Top Employer for 11 years. “The certification underpins our high-performing culture,” says Africa talent leader Johanna Mapharisa. “This has led to an enhanced recruitment strategy at EY, which has afforded the firm the opportunity to attract the best and highest performing talent, setting us apart from our competitors [and] adding validity to our values of integrity, respect and teaming.”

Old Mutual says it constantly reinforces its reputation as a great company to work for, for the benefit of both clients and customers. “We ensure that we publish the seals we receive every year on as much of our internal and external material as possible. Examples include our internal Groupnet portal, employee engagement campaigns, Total Reward statements, job adverts on LinkedIn and on our website careers page,” the company said.

I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate Africa’s Top Employers for 2018. We are immensely proud to be associated with employers who nurture and develop talent throughout all levels of their organisation and strive to continuously optimise employment practices.