Google most attractive employer worldwide

For the third consecutive year, Google is the most attractive employer in the world, according to a survey of more than 160,000 career seekers with a business or engineering background from the world’s 12 largest economies.

KPMG and PwC come in second and third on the business list, followed by Ernst & Young, Deloitte and Microsoft, said The World’s Most Attractive Employers 2011 released by Universum.

"The talent market for business career seekers is being dominated by the professional services firms, known for being great places to launch a career, and by companies that offer a new working culture in a dynamic environment," says Lovisa Öhnell, head of research and consulting at Universum.

On the engineering index, Google finds the way to the top spot for the third consecutive year, while IBM takes the second position, relegating Microsoft to the third spot.

"The software industry is highly dependent on its talent, hence the efforts to attract and retain the brightest minds. There's a new working-culture paradigm today — the relaxed and creative office — and part of it we owe it to this industry. Generation Y feels comfortable working in this environment and it's clearly reflected in the attractiveness of this industry," said Carlo Duraturo, global account director at Universum.

Top 10 employers for career seekers with a business background:

1. Google
2. KPMG
3. PwC
4. Ernst & Young
5. Deloitte
6. Microsoft
7. Procter & Gamble
8. J.P. Morgan
9. Apple
10. Goldman Sachs

Top 10 employers for career seekers with an engineering background:

1. Google
2. IBM
3. Microsoft
4. BMW
5. Intel
6. Sony
7. Apple
8. General Electric
9. Siemens
10. Procter & Gamble