History

The Great Place to Work^® Institute was founded in 1991 by best-selling author Robert Levering and organisation consultant Amy Lyman, in collaboration with a team of professional organisation and management consultants.

Great Place to Work^® Institute has produced an annual list in the UK since 2001, with AccountAbility becoming the Great Place to Work^® Institute UK national research partner in 2002.

Expansion into Europe began with projects in Italy, the UK, Denmark and Switzerland, and the creation of Great Place to Work^® Institute Europe in 2001.

The services offered by the Great Place to Work^® Institute are based on the over twenty years of research initiated by Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz, and first presented in their book The 100 Best Companies to Work for in America 1984 Edition (Addison-Wesley 1984).

The notion of becoming a great place to work was quickly recognised by leaders in a variety of industries, government organisations and educational institutions as a prime means to both improve their workplace environments and, in doing so, their image and financial performance.

In our first years of operation clients included businesses of all sizes and industries - from Fortune 500 companies to health care organisations, multi-nationals to small businesses with one location - in a variety of industries located across the country.

Our offerings expanded into Brazil in 1995 with the establishment of our first overseas affiliate, followed quickly by the development of our affiliate in Korea and in several European countries.

In collaboration with national List Collaborators in each of the EU countries, Great Place to Work^® Institute Europe coordinated the production of Lists of Best Workplaces in all EU countries in 2002/2003.

On behalf of the EU Commission, the first ever List of 100 Best Workplaces in the EU was announced in March 2003 at a high level event in Brussels. Three special awards were given to companies with particular innovative practices in the fields of Lifelong Learning, Gender Equality and Diversity Management.

Our Best Workplaces and Best Companies to Work For lists, now representing workplaces in 40 countries around the world, have always attracted significant attention from organisations seeking to be recognised for their accomplishments, and from people looking for great places to work.