Sunday Times names Portsmouth firm as one of UK's best places to work

Carrington West has made it into the top ten medium-sized businesses in the prestigious rankings pulled together by The Sunday Times.

James Fernandes, MD of the Lakeside North Harbour-based company, said: “We are immensely proud to be featured on this list and I would like to thank our employees for taking the time to share their thoughts and feelings. When we founded the company we set about creating a company that we wanted to work for. Our senior leadership team have since been on a steep learning curve to nurture a culture of trust. We have kept this goal at the heart of our vision and we truly believe that putting our people first has led to our commercial success.”

The list has long-been considered a definitive guide to the best employers across the country. It is run in conjunction with workplace engagement software supplier WorkL and is based on responses to an anonymous survey completed by employees. The survey covers in depth areas based on employees’ overall happiness, willingness to recommend their employer to a friend as well as feeling valued, supported and provided opportunity for growth. An assessment is also made from the responses of the provision of employee wellbeing programmes, reward and recognition, learning and development and overall employee engagement.

Carrington West HR Manager Emily Christmas said: “Keeping employees engaged as the business grows is one of the biggest challenges we have faced as a business. Our culture has evolved and we have had to evolve our people practices accordingly. We have done this by listening to what our employees want and need to be happy and feel trusted at work.”

The accolade comes as Carrington West recently doubled its office space in Lakeside to accommodate a period of rapid growth. Founded in 2011, it has grown to 100 employees and a £75m turnover, and is currently looking to expand further over the next few years.

Chris Longcroft, EVP Publisher, The Times and The Sunday Times, said: “The Best Places to Work awards recognise companies that create a happier and fulfilling working environment for all, by fostering engagement from their teams, yielding great business and performance in return.”