First Global Index of Employer Attractiveness

Universum presents, for the first time, the world’s Top 50 most attractive employers. Compiled from 11 out of the 12 leading economies, nearly 120,000 students from top academic institutions chose their ideal companies to work for. Google is the world’s most attractive employer, followed closely by its rival, Microsoft. This is the only global index of employer attractiveness and highlights the world’s most powerful employer brands, those companies that are the most successful in talent attraction and retention.

Employers today are faced with a shrinking global workforce, a lack of skilled workers and an increasingly demanding generation of new talent. To secure talent under these conditions, employers must develop true and differentiating employer brands. “We have 40,000 engineers a year, but we are lacking 10,000-16,000 more,” said Christian Wulff, premier of Lower Saxony. Another example is NASCOM which reports that the Indian IT sector expects to face a talent shortage in 2010 of 500,000 engineers. The employers that feature in this Top 50 all have one thing in common: they successfully appeal to current and future talent, and they are aware of how scarce talent is.

The global ranking is based on the national rankings that Universum conducts annually all over the world. The companies that are featured in at least eight out of the twelve leading economies were included in the global ranking, and the 50 most attractive employers were identified. The countries represented in the Global Top 50 rankings are the US, Japan, China, Germany, France, UK, Italy, Russia, Spain, Canada and India.

Despite it being one of the toughest years for car manufactures, BMW and Daimler appear in the Global Top 50 rankings. The Big Four accountancy and professionals service firms; financial services companies and management consultancies, still remain strong. They are globally attractive employers, in spite of this year being one of worst recessions since the Second World War and are especially popular with business students. IT employers are highly placed in the engineering ranking, which can be expected, with Google, Microsoft and IBM in the top three. The fast moving consumer goods companies and employers in the retail sector are also attractive employers, recognised for their universal appeal as employers in the graduate recruitment market, attracting students from both a business and engineering background.

 
“These companies in the Top 50 really work with employer branding strategically. The Big Four, for example, are all in the top 10 business ranking, as they have employer branding as part of their business strategy. Many associate their corporate brands to people. This is normal for the service industry, but it’s a new approach for other companies” says Michal Kalinowski, Universum CEO. “These companies are in the Top 50 because they are focused, consistent and differentiate themselves in their communication.”

Irrespective of rank, the Top 50 Global Employers for business and engineering students are very similar, showing strong employer brands transcend many skill and industry groups. Conversely, Oracle and Philip Morris make it to the Top 50 for business students, but not for engineering students. GlaxoSmithKline and Alcatel-Lucent appear in the engineering ranking, yet not in the business ranking. Aside from these differences in choice of employers, what the rankings most certainly reveal is that the big multinational brands are favoured.

Due to the globalisation of the talent market, multinational companies are generally recognised as being attractive employers. Findings from Universum’s various student surveys show that students would like a good career reference, an international career and an employer that can offer secure employment. Lovisa Öhnell, head of research and consulting at Universum, comments, “These multinational brands are globally well-known, they offer relocation opportunities and business travel, interaction with clients and colleagues in various countries, and due to their size and economic strength, they are also seen as being the safest choice.”

Google’s number one position is no surprise. Due to its remarkable brand image, students worldwide see it as a company they would like to work for. What’s surprising about Google, however, is that it doesn’t invest in employer branding much in comparison to other companies that spend massively on branding activities. Farhad Manjoo, a journalist from Time magazine, recently said it best, “What’s astonishing…is how effortlessly Google has come to earn the public’s affection,” while others “spend enormous sums to stay in the consciousness”. The question remains: will Google be able to do this forever?

For more information on the rankings, please visit www.universumglobal.com  

For more information, contact Christopher Van Mossevelde by email at cvm@universum.se or by phone at +46 8 5620 27 49