Kenya’s best employers named

Seven organisations have been named best companies to work for in the country. They include Becton Dickinson East Africa Ltd, DHL Worldwide Express Kenya Ltd, Earnest and Young Kenya, G4S, Microsoft, Old Mutual Kenya, SAP Africa and Unilever Kenya.

This is after Research firm Top Employers Institute awarded them the Top Employers Kenya 2015 Certification for having outstanding employee working conditions.

The companies were selected in an annual international research undertaken by the Institute headquartered in the Netherlands and with offices globally.

The Institute recognises leading employers - those that provide excellent employee conditions, nurture and develop talent throughout all levels of the organisation. Top Employers Institute Director of International Business Development Judith Oude Sogtoen, said the named organisations offer the best services to staff. “Now that they have received the Top Employers Africa 2015 certification, they can truly consider themselves at the top of an exclusive group of the world’s best employers, a reason to celebrate,” she said. The Institute ranked the seven organisations, after assessing their employee offerings on talent strategy, workforce planning, on-boarding, learning and development, and performance management. Other criteria were leadership development, career and succession management, compensation and benefits, and culture.

The Top Employers Institute globally certifies excellence in the conditions organisations create for the development of their employees after conducting months of research into an organisation’s HR environment. They cover HR and talent strategy, policy implementation, monitoring and reporting, leadership development, career planning and succession management.

This year’s research also probed the extent to which HR is enabled by smart technology.

The certification programme is independently audited by Grant Thornton. “I am proud to be working for a Top Employer organisation such as SAP because of its constant investment in talent development, especially in young talent,” says Inside Sales Executive at SAP Africa Mariam Morienyane. “Being certified as a Top Employer means we recruit, develop and retain the best people,” says Jeanett Modise, Human Resources Director at SAP Africa.

Strong focus

DHL Express was certified as a Top Employer for its outstanding employee offerings across the region. This is in addition to six African countries - South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia and Ghana that were also certified Top Employers in their local markets.

According to DHL Express Sub Saharan Africa Managing Director Charles Brewer, the achievement is an acknowledgement of the business’s strong focus on employee engagement, development and training on the African continent. Brewer says the accolade is testament to their dedication to having motivated employees, which is a key pillar of their strategy.

Unilever Vice President of Human Resources for Central Africa, Mechell Chetty said as per their growth ambitions in Africa, it is critical to attract, develop and retain the best talent across the continent and the Top Employer Africa certification helps it cement its position as a leading employer on the African continent.