AFR BOSS Best Places to Work 2022: Top professional services firms
The Australian Financial Review and BOSS Magazine have released the 2022 edition of their ‘BOSS Best Places to Work’ list, with 10 professional services firms making the prestigious cut.
The annual AFR BOSS Best Places to Work awards recognises organisations in Australia and New Zealand that excel in providing a great workplace for their staff, and that are pioneering new ways of working in areas such as wellbeing, flexibility and diversity, equality & inclusion.
More than 750 organisations were judged for this year’s list, based on 10 key factors that are critical to employees feeling motivated and engaged at work. Overall, around 100 companies received an award across ten industry-specific categories.
The top 10 employers in the Professional Services category:
1) Slalom
Areas of expertise: Technology Consulting
Number of employees: 200
Brooke Adams, Human Resources Director of Slalom: “At Slalom, we seek to empower every team member to pursue their passion, with flexible career paths and meaningful work. Our culture, learning programs, innovation mindset, and leaders all work towards making this a reality for all.”
Further reading: 7,000-strong US consultancy Slalom enters Australian market.
2) Accenture
Areas of expertise: Consulting, Technology, Outsourcing, Creative
Number of employees: 6,000
Further reading: Peter Burns new CEO of Accenture Australia and New Zealand.
3) L.E.K. Consulting
Areas of expertise: Strategy Consulting
Number of employees: 120
Simone Weston, Chief Talent Officer at L.E.K. Consulting: “There has always been something very special and unique about the L.E.K. culture. We’re extremely proud to have been recognised for this award – a culmination of the deliberate and individualised approach for our people and their needs, combined with significant leadership commitment.”
4) TalentWeb
Areas of expertise: Recruitment & Staffing
Number of employees: 30
Colin Fannon, CEO of TalentWeb: “We have spent over a decade making TalentWeb a collaborative, innovative and supportive place to work which has made us all like family. Our TalentWebbers show up each and every day for their clients and candidates, but mostly for each other. We are delighted with the recognition.”
5) Cube Group
Areas of expertise: Management Consulting
Number of employees: 30
Ben Schramm, Founder of Cube Group: “We’re honoured to be part of such an amazing group of businesses leading the way on workplace policies and practices.”
“We haven’t worked hard to build a culture of continuous growth, flexibility, and equality for the accolades, but it's definitely worth celebrating when named one of the best places to work! It shows Cube's commitment to ensuring a culture that empowers our Cubies to thrive. We would not be where we are today if it wasn’t for our incredible team, who bring such passion to work each day.”
6) Aginic
Areas of expertise: IT Consulting and Project Delivery
Number of employees: 110
7) Portable
Areas of expertise: Social and Care services
Number of employees: 90
Andrew Apostola, CEO of Portable: “We are over the moon with this recognition. It'’s been a big few years for all workplaces and employees, and we are proud to have adapted well at Portable having invested in policies supporting mental health leave, flexible and remote working, and robust professional development and feedback processes.”
8) Bendelta
Areas of expertise: Management Consulting
Number of employees: 90
Natalie Archer, Director at Bendelta: “We are thrilled to announce, for the second year in a row, we have made the AFR BOSS Best Places to Work Top 10 List for Professional Services. Our culture is something we hold very dear, and since Bendelta’s creation in 2003 we have made it our mission to nurture our people and create an empowering, collaborative, and inclusive environment where we can bring our full selves to work.”
9) The Entourage
Areas of expertise: Entrepreneur Services
Number of employees: 80
Jack Delosa, Founder of The Entourage: “Creating the inclusive, collaborative and high-performing environment we have here at The Entourage has been one of the most rewarding aspects of our company's growth over the last 12 years.”
Since the beginning of The Entourage’s journey, we have made it our priority to develop a vision for the future which stood for something important and intrinsically motivated people to perform. It is with our vision to move the world forward through entrepreneurship that we have been able to bring together an incredible team of people.”
“Our culture is one that grows and develops as we do and we cannot wait to continue finding new ways to bring our team together, celebrate personal and professional growth and lead innovation.”
10) Bridge Business Consulting
Areas of expertise: Cloud and Data Consulting
Number of employees: 20
John Desmond, Managing Partner at Bridge Business Consulting: “We are very proud to have been recognised for our efforts in creating an awesome workplace. Congratulations to our amazing team, you all make Bridge the best place to work.”
All winners
A list of all winners of the AFR Best Places to Work 2022:
Overall Best Place to Work: InDebted
Best Employee Experience: Vista
Most Outstanding Practice | Emplyee Wellbeing: Affinity
Most Outstanding Practice | Diversity & Inclusion: Wisr
Most Outstanding Practice | Employee Flexibility: SixPivot
Best Places to Work | Agriculture, mining & utilities: Nufarm
Best Places to Work | Banking, super & financial services: Future Super
Best Places to Work | Government, education & not-for-profit: Elevation Secondary College
Best Places to Work | Health industries: Arriba
Best Places to Work | Manufacturing & consumer goods: Unilever
Best Places to Work | Media & marketing: Affinity
Best Places to Work |Professional services: Slalom
Best Places to Work | Property, construction & transport: Mirvac
Best Places to Work | Retail, hospitality, tourism & entertainment: Kathmandu
Best Places to Work | Technology: InDebted
The AFR Boss Best Places to Work 2022 list was conducted in collaboration with judging partner Inventium, a behavioural science consultancy.
