Volkswagen Group and Volkswagen Financial Services have been recognised as among the UK’s best employers in the 2012 Great Place To Work survey.

According to The Great Place To Work Institute UK, part of the global employment consultancy, the definition of a great place to work is a place where the employees trust the people they work for, have pride in what they do, and enjoy the people they work with.

The results of the survey are based largely on the findings of questionnaires completed by the employees of the Volkswagen Group and VWFS in the UK.

The questions cover areas including credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie. Out of the 25 winners featured in the final report, Volkswagen Financial Services (VWFS) and Volkswagen Group were ranked 11th and 21st respectively.

The results make the Volkswagen Group and VWFS the highest placed automotive employers in the UK, and this is something of which Fiona Roberts, HR director for both companies, is particularly proud.

She said: “Both companies are renowned for their great products but it’s easy to forget that behind any successful business is a great workforce.

"To get the best out of our staff we have to make sure they're motivated, empowered and overall, happy to come to work. We work hard to make sure we provide the right conditions and environment for them, and the outcome of the survey proves that we're getting a lot of it right."

The companies entered Great Place to Work in order to benchmark themselves against some of the world’s biggest companies including Microsoft, Nike and Ikea.

The UK's top performer was Admiral, followed by Capital One and McDonalds.