The Sunday Times, in partnership with global workplace analytics company WorkL, today revealed the winners of the 2025 Sunday Times Best Places to Work Awards at a prestigious breakfast event hosted at The Empire Conference & Event Venue in Parktown, Johannesburg.
The Awards honour organisations that go above and beyond to create workplaces where employees feel valued, engaged, and supported. Unlike traditional recognition programmes, these rankings are based entirely on employee feedback, ensuring an authentic reflection of workplace culture.
South African businesses face unique challenges in attracting and retaining talent. The Awards provide a powerful platform for organisations to benchmark themselves against global standards while showcasing their commitment to employee wellbeing and inclusion.
“These awards are more than accolades – they are a testament to the power of people-first leadership. Every winner has demonstrated that investing in employee engagement is not just good for morale, it’s good for business. Congratulations to all who have set the bar for excellence,” says Lyndon Barends, MD: Strategic Partnerships at Arena Holdings which owns the Sunday Times.
On the partnership with the Sunday Times, Lord Mark Price, Founder of WorkL, says:
“Many congratulations to the Sunday Times Best Places to Work, powered by WorkL. The recognised organisations are leading the way in delivering outstanding employee experiences and will benefit from stronger retention and recruitment in the year ahead. We are proud to power these awards and to support organisations in measuring employee experience, helping them attract and retain the very best talent.”
The 2025 Winners are…
South Africa’s Happiest Workplace
1st – Sasol South Africa | 2nd – Ultra Sound and Vision | 3rd – Piet’s Construction
Best Places to Work for Women
1st – Adhive Group Pty Ltd | 2nd – Alpha Pty Ltd | 3rd – Cloudworx
Best Places to Work for Disabled Employees
1st – Polyco Pro NPC | 2nd – Entelect Software Pty Ltd | 3rd – Western Cape Government
Best Places to Work for LGBTQ+ Employees
1st – Entelect Software (Pty) Ltd | 2nd – Alpha (Pty) Ltd | 3rd – McDonald’s South Africa
Best Places to Work for Employee Wellbeing
1st – Mscsports (Pty) Ltd | 2nd – iLaunch (Pty) Ltd | 3rd – Cloudworx
Organisation Size categories
Small – Adhive Group Pty Ltd | Medium – Elenjical Solutions (Pty) Ltd | Big – Alpha (Pty) Ltd | Very Big – McDonald’s South Africa
The rankings are derived from WorkL’s employee engagement survey, which includes 27 questions designed by behavioural scientists, psychologists, and business leaders. To qualify, organisations must:
- Achieve a minimum engagement score of 70% across six key drivers: Reward & Recognition, Instilling Pride, Information Sharing, Empowerment, Wellbeing, and Job Satisfaction.
- Meet minimum participation rates: Small (50%), Medium (45%), Big (35%), Very Big (25%).
Looking Ahead
The Awards not only celebrate success but also provide actionable insights for continuous improvement. Participating organisations receive detailed feedback to help strengthen engagement strategies and build resilient, inclusive cultures.
For the full list of winners and more information, visit: https://workl.com/business/
