29 May 2025
As the anticipation builds for this year’s Great Place To Work Award Ceremony on October 31 at Muson Centre, Lagos Island, one powerful question continues to echo across boardrooms, HR departments, and employee conversations:
What truly makes a workplace great?
At Great Place To Work®, we’ve spent decades helping organisations uncover the answer—and each year, our Certification Program and Awards shine a light on the companies that are not just talking about culture but living it.
This October, we will gather once again to celebrate workplaces across Nigeria that have earned the coveted Great Place To Work Certification and made it to our annual list of Best Workplaces. But more than that, the evening will be an opportunity to reflect on the core ingredients that define great workplaces and propel them to exceptional heights. These core ingredients include:
🔹 Trust: The Bedrock of Greatness
At the heart of every great workplace is Trust—not just between leaders and employees, but among peers and teams. Our Trust Index™ Survey, the cornerstone of the Certification process, measures the levels of credibility, respect, fairness, pride, and camaraderie within organisations.
This isn’t a feel-good metric; it’s a business-critical insight. Companies with high-trust cultures consistently outperform their peers in innovation, employee retention, and customer satisfaction.
🔹 Leadership That Listens and Empowers
Great workplaces are led by people who listen intentionally, act decisively, and care deeply. These leaders don’t merely manage—they inspire. They create environments where employees feel seen, heard, and empowered to bring their best selves to work.
As we prepare to recognize our Best Workplaces for Leadership Effectiveness, we’re reminded that it’s not titles or strategy decks that define a leader’s greatness—but empathy, transparency, and action.
🔹 Inclusion and Belonging
A truly great workplace is one where everyone feels they belong—regardless of background, identity, or role. Inclusion isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a driver of collaboration, innovation, and loyalty.
We’ve seen organisations make bold moves in 2025 to create equitable and inclusive cultures, and many of them will be recognized on October 31 for their 'Greatness Through Our People' approach—our theme for this year’s celebration.
🔹 Purpose and Passion
Employees don’t just want a paycheck—they want meaning. Great workplaces connect people to a shared sense of purpose, aligning daily work with a larger mission that inspires pride.
Organisations that cultivate this sense of purpose witness higher engagement, stronger advocacy, and deeper commitment from their teams.
🔹 Recognition and Celebration
Let’s not forget the power of simply saying “thank you.” Recognition, both formal and informal, fuels morale, fosters connection, and reminds people that their contributions matter.
Our Award Ceremony is itself an embodiment of this principle—a night to celebrate not only milestones but the culture champions, HR leaders, and forward-thinking CEOs who are reshaping the future of work in Nigeria.
🔹 A Look Ahead
As we count down to October 31 at the Muson centre, Onikan, Lagos Island, we look forward to gathering with leaders, employees, media partners, and supporters of workplace transformation.
Join us for a remarkable evening of celebration and storytelling, where we shine a light on the people and organisations shaping the future of work in Nigeria. Be inspired by the journeys of certified great workplaces, witness the unveiling of Nigeria’s Best Workplaces List 2025, and celebrate companies that are leading ‘Greatness Through Our People’.
Above all, this event is a powerful reminder:
Great workplaces don’t happen by chance.
They are intentionally built, nurtured with care, and sustained through consistent commitment.
Great workplaces don’t happen by chance.
They are intentionally built, nurtured with care, and sustained through consistent commitment.
Are you ready to start your own journey?
With five months to go, there is still time to take meaningful steps toward transforming your culture and earning recognition as a Great Place to Work–Certified™ organisation.
Don’t wait.
Let this be the year your organisation is not just part of the audience—but part of the celebration.
