Top 50 Companies to Work for in 2018

One of our mantras here at The Dots is ‘life is short, work somewhere awesome!’ - so if 2017 didn’t quite pan out how you wanted, then the brilliant thing about New Year is it’s a time for new beginnings.
If your resolution is to work with people that inspire you and for brands you respect, then here’s a great list of 50 companies that could be the perfect fit, as chosen by over a quarter of a million amazing creators that call The Dots their home. Make sure to follow them to keep up to date with the latest jobs, opportunities and projects.

Image: Soho House Berlin

50.  United Visual Artists (UVA)
This London based art practice combines a myriad of artistic methods, from 3-D scanners, lasers, multi-sensory motions, digital technology to light installations and more.

49.  Liberty
Founded in 1875, Liberty prides itself on craftsmanship and talent. Work can be found in their fulfilment centres or in the decadent sections of their world-famous West End store.
48.  Anyways Creative
This creative agency values adventure and meaning when assisting brands. Whether they are creating content or regenerating parks, they are a company that thinks outside the box.

47.  Hearst Magazines UK
The publishers of 22 brands and counting, with a roster including Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Good Housekeeping and more. 4 million copies are sold and 17 million UK based people engage online every month.

46.  Association of Illustrators (AOI)
The AOI was established in 1973 and supports illustrators by protecting their rights, helping with portfolios, pushing the promotion of its members and celebrating achievements and excellence.

Image: Airbnb

45.  The Roundhouse
This iconic arts venue, set in the Grade II former railway engine shed in Chalk Farm, London, provides an array of creative opportunities. There’s an abundance of placements for young people on creative schemes or in work experience.

44.  Selfridges
The home of those yellow bags and high-end fashion is the second largest shop in the UK. Creative job roles are based on London’s Oxford Street and around the UK. Keep an eye on hires for dressers for their famous Christmas Windows!
43. Channel 4
4Talent is always on the lookout for new people, with a particular interest in people with a spark and huge passion. The HQ of Channel 4 plays hosts to apprenticeships, training schemes, industry talent schemes and more.

42. Bartle Bogle Hegarty
BBH’s legacy asks, what is it that makes a black sheep? The creative agency wants people who see things differently and want to make a difference, when recruiting for their offices in NYC, India and London.
41. Squarespace
A content management system, integrated website builder, blogging platform, hosting service, commerce platform, domain registrar and one of the slickest, most famous website builders in the world.

Image: Frieze London Art Fair

40. Saatchi & Saatchi 
This global communications and advertising agency has over 140 offices in 76 countries with the HQ in London. The agency’s motto is ‘Nothing Is Impossible’.

39. Topshop/Topman
Topshop and Topman are a fundamental part of the high street and employ in a plethora of positions on their shop-floors and in their creative offices.
38. Burberry
Home to the Great British trench coat, Burberry is one of the leading luxury fashion brands on the planet. Whether it’s photography or art-direction, Burberry is an evergreen classic company to turn your career up a notch.

37. The Dots
Striving to make the creative industries more open and diverse, The Dots looks to the future of creativity as a force for good and provides a visually-rich platform to showcase work, connect with jobs, opportunities and people.
36. Virgin
From Virgin Atlantic to Virgin Media, behind this powerhouse there’s a string of creative teams in different segments of the Virgin empire, creating, devising content, experiences, strategies and much more.

Image: The Barbican Conservatory 

35. Barbican
This performing arts centre in the City of London is the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre crosses classical and contemporary in all walks of creativity, from film to theatre and art to music.

34. Frieze
Frieze is a contemporary arts magazine, published eight times a year from their HQ in East London, and is also renowned for Frieze Art Fair.

33. Jotta
Jotta intersects installation, exhibition and design with new technologies to create narrative led environments for a range of cultural and commercial clients.

32. Cheil Worldwide
Cheil Worldwide Inc. is a marketing company under the Samsung Group that offers advertising, public relations, shopper marketing, sports marketing and digital marketing. Their HQ is in Seoul, South Korea.

31. Tatty Devine
This  jewellery company based in the East End of London has cultivated a huge following for their quirky and kitsch designs and continues to thrive because of their trademark style.

Image: Tatty Devine Studio by Gareth Cattermole/Getty 

30. AMVBBDO 
Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO is an ad agency that works with over 85 brands, including BT, Sainsbury’s, Diageo, Walkers and Mars. AMV campaigns incorporate digital, social, experiential, print or broadcast media.

29. Wolff Olins
This brand consultancy, spanning from San Fran to London, employs designers, strategists, technologists, programme managers and educators. The company acts as creative partners to ambitious leaders.
28. Sony Music
Representing household names such as Paloma Faith and London Grammar, Sony Music look for risk-takers, collaborators, the inspired and the inspiration. Always working towards cutting edge solutions.

27. Oglivy & Mather Group UK
Ogilvy & Mather is a New York City-based advertising, marketing and public relations agency. It started as a London advertising agency founded in 1850 by Edmund Mather and laid many foundations in the ad world.

26. Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN)
Comprised of many of the world's most popular multimedia entertainment brands including Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., Paramount Channel, Viacom is a behind many big TV channels.

Image: MOO HQ, Farringdon

25. MOO
MOO is a print on demand business, flying business cards and other materials around the world. Their London HQ is infamous for a partiality to sweet-shop pastel colours.

24. Grey London
Grey London is an ambitious collision of creatives on a mission to make a different shape of work, partnering with brands to play a meaningful role in culture.

23. Mr. President
With an ethos of ‘Question bravely. Answer boldly. The bravest questions get the biggest results’, this independent agency beckons anything but boredom in the creative space.

22. Harrods
With a mission to be the number one department store in the world for luxury goods, Harrods shows no sign of stopping their combinations of product excellence and eccentricity.

21. MTV
The original Music Television, MTV is owned by Viacom Media Networks and headquartered in New York City. MTV offers opportunities worldwide in television, content, media and more.

Image: Spotify by Tetris Office Design 

20. Harvey Nichols
Luxury department store Harvey Nichols offers designer fashion, beauty, food and wine both online and in-store including Knightsbridge, Leeds & Edinburgh.

19. AKQA
AKQA is a leading, innovative, digital agency that specialises in creating digital services and products. It employs 2,000 staff globally with offices in Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Australasia.

18. Somerset House
This Neoclassical building just by the Thames, situated on the south side of the strand is home to the Courtauld Institute of Arts and runs outdoor music and culture events, especially in the summer.

17. Royal Academy 
Based at Burlington House in Piccadilly, the RA holds down its fort as one of the most important art galleries in the UK. The privately funded institution runs art exhibitions and educational programmes.

16. Spring Studios
This integrated creative and photographic agency puts on high-end events and creates communications across the borders of beauty, fashion, lifestyle and luxury.

Image: ASOS by MoreySmith

15. Spotify 
Since launching in October 2008, this Swedish music, podcast and video streaming service is one of the most popular apps in the world, their HQ is in Stockholm and there are offices worldwide.
14. Wieden & Kennedy 
Wieden+Kennedy is an independently owned American advertising agency best known for its work for Nike. Their aim is to create strong, provocative relationships between good companies and customers.

13. D&AD
D&AD represents global creative, design and advertising communities and celebrates brilliance in commercial creativity, running a variety of schemes for emerging creatives such as ‘New Blood’.

12. Airbnb
This hospitality service made it big by enabling people to lease or rent short-term lodging with a whole new approach to holiday accomodation and personalised experiences.

11. V&A
The world's largest museum of decorative arts and design often advertises curational, arts educational, marketing, PR and visitor services roles. The V&A also run the Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green, East London.

Image: Pentagram Office ft. installation by Domenic Lippa

10. Conde Nast
The mass media company is based at One World Trade Center  and is mother to Glamour, The New Yorker, Wired, Vogue and more. The publisher engages over 164 million consumers across its 20 brands.

9. Pentagram
Pentagram paves its way as the world’s largest independent design consultancy. It’s owned and run by 21 partners, all of whom are leaders in their creative field. The HQ is in West London but there are offices in Berlin, Texas, San Fran and NYC.

8. Dazed Media 
This independent media brand is one of the world’s leading for fashion and culture. The brand started as the  bi-monthly style mag ‘Dazed and Confused’ covering music, fashion, film, art and now produces across print, digital and video.

7. YOOX NET-A-PORTER
This leading online luxury fashion retailer is international with Anglo-Italian roots, the result of a game-changing merger of YOOX GROUP and THE NET-A-PORTER GROUP; two companies revolutionizing the luxury fashion industry since their birth in 2000.

6. Soho House & Co 
These members clubs are aimed primarily at those in the creative arts, tech and media. The original location is at 40 Greek Street, Soho, London, but jobs can be found in their houses across the UK and further afield in Berlin, Istanbul, Barcelona, Malibu and more.

Image: V&A Design Week 

5. ASOS
ASOS.com is an English online fashion and beauty store. Primarily aimed at young adults, ASOS sells over 850 brands as well as its own range of clothing and accessories. 

4. BBC
The world's oldest national broadcasting organisation has a  huge variant of jobs to match up to their wingspan across education, entertainment and information.

3. Facebook 
This global hub of culture and innovation is ideal for talented engineers, marketers, and designers hungry to make an impact. Teams work on a diverse range of projects that span across cultures throughout the EMEA region.

2. The Dots Staff Pick: Save the Children 
Creativity is imperative to charities and many have in-house creative teams to help drive their message to the public. We had to swoop into the list and recognise Save the Children for their involvement in creative projects such as 'Six Stories for Six Years' and their international vacancies in marketing, technology and creative management.

TOP COMPANY: TATE

This year’s creative company grabbing the number one spot is the Tate.
A quadruplet of culture, the Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Liverpool and St.Ives institutions are one of the UK's top attractions, a non-departmental public body and an exempt charity. Tate’s mission to increase the public’s enjoyment and understanding of British art from the 16th century to the present day and of international modern and contemporary art. 

Outside of the curational, art-handling, teaching, marketing, design (and many more) positions at their galleries and offices, the Tate runs learning programmes for schools, teachers, young people, communities and the public. Other facets of work are in conservation and research.

Images: Tate Modern (above), Tate Britain (below)

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