Best Companies Guide

An organisation approaches us and requests to take part in our accreditation process. We then confidentially ask employees of that organisation 54 key questions, which are central to eight workplace factors. From these answers, we then rank each organisation and attribute a Best Companies Index (BCI) score. Depending on an organisation's BCI, it may achieve one, two or three star status or it may not be accredited at all. A proportion of those who have not attained star status are listed as Ones To Watch. Of course, the fact that an organisation has taken part in the process means it is already listening to its employees and taking their comments on board.

Year on year statistical analysis has shown that there are eight main factors that drive employee engagement. The How it all works section identifies what the key factors are that drive employee engagement.

The Best Companies Guide offers a unique insight into almost 400 of the UK's top employers including blue chip corporations, independent companies, the public sector and charities. However, in order for the results of the employee surveys to be statistically valid, an organisation must have a minimum of 50 full time employees or part time equivalents.

The latest version of the Best Companies Guide now has live jobs as well as company profiles. We have kept the search mechanism very simple. If you want to search for a particular company or a specific job title, you can type your search terms into the 'Search' box on the left hand panel of each page. You can also search by sector type, company size, location and star rating using the drop down lists. Tick the 'Companies' box to see company profiles or 'Graduate Jobs' and 'Other Jobs' if you want to see job adverts.

With the Best Match tool you can prioritise your search results according to which workplace factors are most important to you in order to find like-minded employers. This will not limit your search results but will order them according to your personal preferences.

The sliders are all connected, and moving one will affect the others. The idea being that you focus on which workplace factors are most important to you.

No, anyone can view the information about companies within the Best Companies Guide. However, if you want to save any companies you're interested in to the My Best Companies section, or if you want to receive jobs by email, you will need to register.

The My Best Companies section allows you to save companies that you're interested in for future reference. You will need to register in order to save and access this area.

Yes, when you view information about a company, there is a Compare button in the top right corner. If you click this button, the top line information about this company will be shown down the left hand side of the page. You will be given the option to go back to your search results so that you can choose another company to compare it against.

We encourage companies to publish all their current job adverts on this website. If you see a suitable job advertised, click the apply link and you will either be re-directed to the company’s own website or you will see a form to submit your application directly. We also provide a link to the company's recruitment section or their homepage in the contact details on each company profile page.

We have compiled a list of questions that you may like to ask in your interview to help you gauge how a company performs within the eight key workplace factors.

On the Login page, click on the link "Forgot your login details?" and you will be emailed your password.

If you email support@bestcompanies.co.uk with your old email address from your new email address, we will change your login details accordingly. We will send a notification email to both your old and new email addresses when this change has been made.

The Best Companies Guide is based on a three star accreditation system. The specific cut-off points for One, Two, and Three Star Accreditation remain constant year on year so any company achieving the required Best Companies Index (BCI) score will always be accredited. The BCI score applies equally to organisations of all sizes.

With The Sunday Times 100 Best Companies To Work For list, companies within the UK and Northern Ireland are able to enter into categories dependent on their size as follows:

• Best Small Companies: 50 - 249 employees
• Best Mid-sized Companies: 250 - 4,999 employees
• Best Big Companies: 5000+ employees

The Sunday Times 100 Best Companies To Work For list has a massive impact at the time of publication, whereas the Best Companies Guide is a constant, year-round reminder of an organisation's status of being an exceptional place to work.

Yes, we would recommend that organisations sign up for both. Success on the list will provide significant profile for organisations at the time of publication and the Best Companies Guide will continue that profile throughout the year.

The next survey process commences in September 2009 with BCI scores and Accreditation successes being announced in January 2010. Click here to register.

You will need to login using your existing Best Companies account details. You can then add, edit and delete jobs directly on this website at any time. Click here to login.

In order to be eligible to participate, your organisation must meet the following criteria:

• Have been in existence for at least 3 years as of 1st March 2010
• Have a minimum of 50 full time employees or part time equivalents working in the UK as of 31st August 2009 (not including contractors/freelancers, implants, or employees not on your payroll).
• Any major mergers, de-mergers or acquisitions must have been completed before 31st March 2009.