SAP rated as SA's Best Employer for 2010

The Best Employers ranking, released Thursday night in Johannesburg, is a unique international HR policy and practice benchmarking project conducted by the CRF Institute.

Following SAP in the overall top ten was: Accenture (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd; MTN South Africa, Coca-Cola South Africa; ENS; Vodacom Group Limited; Dimension Data; Tsogo Sun Group; British American Tobacco South Africa; and Becton Dickinson (Pty) Ltd (BD SA).

The Best Employers ranking is the culmination of months of rigorous research and all findings are also independently audited by Grant Thornton. Organisations are rated in the following areas: Organisation Strategy; The HR Function; Communication; Diversity Management; Corporate Social Responsibility; Knowledge Management; Talent Management and Engagement; Performance Management; and Rewards and Recognition. A total of 55 organisations have achieved certification in 2010.

The latest Best Employers research also revealed some interesting trends in the South African labour market - one of the key findings is that 71% of organisations in South Africa report a shortage of professionals in the talent pool and 38% say this critical skills shortage is constraining the execution of their business strategies.

According to Samantha Crous, CRF's General Manager, the significance of the Best Employers campaign is that it recognises that in a competitive labour market like South Africa, success lies more than ever in an organisation's ability to differentiate itself by establishing and promoting excellent HR strategies that can attract, retain and engage the right kind of talent.

"The organisations that have ranked successfully in this campaign are paving the way for other organisations in the country with regards to their forward-thinking HR strategies and employee intelligence - they show just how valuable HR excellence and high employee engagement are, particularly in tough economic times," she said.

Siphiwe Sibanda, HR Director at SAP, said that despite the recession and the associated hardship, SAP has been able to maintain and even improve on its total employee value proposition through an innovative strategy.

"The key to achieving this is our ability to keep our employees actively affianced in our purpose as a business and the value that we bring to our customers. In addition, the high level of openness and transparency in the organisation also creates engagement, and, enhances the accountability and responsibility of our people," she said.

Steven Veenendaal, CEO of the CRF Institute, commented that it is no coincidence that the organisations that have been certified are the ones that have best weathered the recent economic storm. "Never has there been a more compelling argument in favour of companies establishing and entrenching conversations and actions which move the employer/employee relationship forward," he said.

"The organisations certified this year are of particularly high quality. They have risen to the challenge common to most during economic turbulence and have been able to address the pressures that are inevitably part of working life. In recent years, particular emphasis has been placed on the importance of work/life balance. Indeed, with stresses mounting in an unstable economic environment, the value of interventions such as counselling services, financial advisory services, concierge services and on-site wellness facilities cannot be underestimated.

"When measures such as these are in place they serve to forge a deep connection between employer and employee - employees become truly inspired to work towards the company's objectives," said Veenendaal.

Sibanda said that for SAP the award is recognition of their global human resources principles, which has empowered them to manage their employees well. Consequently, she said, they are able to provide their employees with many opportunities.

The 45 companies to also receive Best Employers certification were: AfriSam (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, Cashbuild, Cell C (Pty) Ltd, City Lodge Hotels, Clicks Group Limited, CSIR, East London Development Zone (ELIDZ), Edcon, Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs Inc, Ernst & Young, Exxaro Resources Limited, First National Bank, Group Five Construction (Pty) Ltd, Hilti South Africa, IBM South Africa, Industrial Development Corporation of SA Ltd (IDC), Imperial Automotive Retail, Innovative Mining Products (New concept Mining), Itron, Joburg Market (Pty) Ltd, JSE, Kimberly Clark of SA, Legal Aid South Africa, Liberty Holdings Limited, Lufthansa Global Telesales, Meltwater Group, Missing Link, Mix Telematics Africa (Pty) Ltd, Mr Price Group, National Development Agency, Nestle SA (Pty) Ltd, Old Mutual (SA), Peninsula Beverage Company, Pick 'n Pay, Platinum Group Services, Procter & Gamble SA (Pty) Ltd, Rectron (Pty) Ltd, Regent, Safripol (Pty) Ltd, Sanofi-Aventis South Africa (Pty) Ltd, SAS Institute (Pty) Ltd, Siemens Ltd, South African National Roads Agency Ltd, Telkom SA, The Effectiveness Company and Unilever South Africa (Pty) Ltd.

For more information on Best Employers 2010 and applying, organisations can contact 021 425 0320 or visit www.bestemployers.co.za.