MTN scoops best employer of the year award, most empowered employer

MTN South Africa has done it again - winning the coveted 2011/2012 Corporate Research Foundation Best Employer award.

Annually, the CRF, a joint initiative of academics, business journalists, trade associations, researchers and international publishers, recognises excellence in local employment practices.

Founded in 1994 when South Africa became a democracy, MTN has grown phenomenally and fulfilled its mandate of connecting millions of South Africans through mobile telephony.

Annually, MTN employs more than 200 technology graduates and currently runs the biggest graduate-development programme in the country. In the past two years, MTN has provided 2 000 learnerships in which candidates are placed in entry-level positions and given opportunities to develop their skills during 18 months.

“We are delighted and humbled with this recognition. The award reaffirms the diligent work that MTN has been doing to ensure that it not only attracts the best talent, but retains its most valuable asset - its employees,” says Themba Nyathi, Human Resources Executive, MTN South Africa.

Nyathi says MTN exposes its employees “to excellent international secondment opportunities, latest technological innovations in the telecommunications industry, and excellent remuneration and benefits, especially for scarce skills”.

MTN has gone a long way since its inception as the leading provider of voice and data services. Following the acquisition of a number of independent service providers in South Africa, MTN has developed solutions that enhance customer experience in m-commerce, telemetry, mobile banking and telemedicine.

The CRF chooses the country's best employers across various sectors through an elaborate research process. The process comprises, among others, the short-listing of South Africa's BEST Employers based on a thorough market assessment and an HR Best Practices Survey.

The CRF also looks at critical human resources areas such as primary benefits, secondary benefits and working conditions for employees as well as a company's corporate culture.

Only companies who pass the CRF's stringent review and audit process get certified as BEST Employer.

Recently, MTN has earned praise for its philanthropic projects undertaken by its Foundation. This includes the trailblazing annual flagship staff volunteerism programme, called 21 Days of Y'ello Care. In recognition of its community upliftment work, in 2010, the campaign earned MTN The Most Socially Responsible Company in a study conducted by First Principles.

Recently, MTN was allocated an AAA - level 2 rating by ratings and research agency Empowerdex in recognition of its empowerment credentials.

Awards have not, however, made MTN complacent.

“We are pleased with the value of the Employee Value Proposition Programme (EVP) as our main vehicle for attracting and retaining talent,” says Themba Nyathi.

“EVP's five main pillars include leveraging the power of the MTN brand, investing in our talent and celebrating our diverse communities and achieving our performance excellence through total reward and recognition.”