Dubai: Metropolitan Group, a leading real estate group in the UAE, has once again ranked among the Best Workplace™ in 2025 in the Large sized business category by the Great Place to Work, a global authority on workplace culture, at their annual awards ceremony that took place last night. 

The Group continues to make history as the first and only real estate brokerage to ever make the list. The official index ranks the UAE’s best employers based on the confidential feedback of all employees and an audit of management practices and culture at work.

In 2024, the Group achieved its highest-ever ranking in the Best Workplace in the UAE moving up three places from 2023. The Group was also recognised as the #1 Best Place to Work for Women in the GCC in 2022 and achieved the Best Workplaces list for millennials in the GCC two years running.

“The Metropolitan Group has a clear vision to being recognized as the #1 brokerage for real estate services in the UAE and an employer of choice for the real estate community,” said Nikita Kuznetsov, CEO Metropolitan Group. “This recognition validates the hard work and dedication of our entire team. At the Metropolitan Group, we have always believed that a thriving workplace culture is key to our success and this achievement is a direct result of our continuous commitment to employee development, engagement and empowerment.”

One of the primary drivers for Metropolitan Group’s success was its substantial investment in the rollout of various people and culture initiatives in 2024. These new programs focused on strengthening the Group’s core values, fostering a robust feedback culture, enhancing recognition and rewards, promoting innovation and prioritizing employee training and development.

Mike Fleet, Metropolitan Group’s Deputy CEO said: “Being recognized as one of the top workplaces in the UAE for the fourth consecutive year speaks volumes about our people-first culture. Our ongoing success is driven by our investment in our people and our efforts to create an environment where innovation, respect and excellence can flourish. We are particularly proud of our new workplace culture strategies; employee feedback campaigns and the recognition programs that have helped us strengthen the bond with our people and further position the Metropolitan Group as a leader in the real estate market.”

The Group introduced several new initiatives in 2024 to further cultivate the employee experience and culture at work.

DRIVE values: The Group revisited its core values, resulting in the creation of DRIVE – which stands for Discipline, Respect, Integrity, Vibrancy and Excellence. These values reflect the Group’s ethos and are embedded into the hiring process and day-to-day operations, with award categories introduced to recognize employees who embody them. The Group also established a new ethics framework that was supported by an ethics committee, to promote the right behaviors across the organization.

Feedback culture: Taking a step further with its employee-first culture, the Group introduced several new initiatives to encourage feedback and foster open dialogue. Regular employee surveys were conducted to gather feedback on all aspects of the working environment along with input from first-line managers. The feedback from the surveys helped develop actionable plans to ensure that employees feel heard. The company also established an open-door policy, with CEO and Deputy CEO accessible for direct feedback.

Recognition and rewards: The launch of the Metropolitan Stars program rewards high-performing employees with non-monetary recognition, including digital sales notification display with deal alerts, a ‘Wall of Fame’ for top performers and an online community platform, Metropolitan Hub, for recognizing employees who go above and beyond

Innovation: The Metropolitan Minds initiative has encouraged employees to share innovative ideas, leading to 25 new ideas being submitted in just two months with a few of these ideas already being implemented. To further support development, the company launched the Metropolitan Online Academy to provide employees with cutting-edge sales training, product knowledge and career development tools.

Metropolitan Essentials: The Group also introduced a new skills program focused on the essentials for a high performing sales agent. The course concentrates on mastering the highest standards of client interactions, like calls, meetings and viewings, through a blend of live learning, online capsules and on the job assignments. On completion of the program learners are accredited as a certified Metropolitan Agent.

CSR and team building: The Group’s commitment to employee engagement extends beyond the office. In 2024, the Group organized a beach cleanup event on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi as part of its CSR initiative, alongside an outdoor team-building event, attended by over 650 employees, with a partnership donation to Global Giving Initiative, Buy 1 Give 1, supplying over 900 nursery children in Africa with learning materials. Other partnerships include NYU and Sorbonne University bringing new internship opportunities to students in the Capital.

The Metropolitan family has over 1,000 employees and 66 nationalities speaking 41 languages.

The Metropolitan Group includes three full-service real estate agencies: Metropolitan Premium Properties (Dubai), Metropolitan Capital Real Estate LLC (Abu Dhabi) and Luxury Immobilien GmbH (Vienna). The Group also includes Metropolitan Consulting FZE, providing personal and business legal services in the UAE. In 2022, the Group introduced its luxury division - Penthouse.ae powered by Metropolitan, to cater to the discerning needs of Ultra High-Net-Worth Individuals (UHNWIs) who require a bespoke real estate experience in the UAE.

About Metropolitan Group 

Established in 2008, The Metropolitan Group (MG) includes three full-service real estate agencies: Metropolitan Premium Properties (Dubai), Metropolitan Capital Real Estate LLC (Abu Dhabi) and Luxury Immobilien GmbH (Vienna). The Group also includes Metropolitan Consulting FZE, providing personal and business legal services in the UAE. 

In 2022, the Group introduced its luxury division - Penthouse.ae powered by Metropolitan, to cater to the discerning needs of Ultra High-Net-Worth Individuals (UHNWIs) who require a bespoke real estate experience in the UAE.

MG’s real estate agencies are among the top three most recognized and awarded in the UAE for developer off-plan sales working with the likes of Emaar, Dubai Properties, Meeras and ALDAR.   

About Metropolitan Premium Properties  

Metropolitan Premium Properties (MPP) is the Metropolitan Group’s flagship property company based in Dubai. It is a full-service real estate agency offering customised solutions to developers, owners and investors who are looking to maximise value from their luxury real estate assets. MPP offers a complete real estate solution under one roof and has the UAE’s largest premium property portfolio.  

About Metropolitan Capital Real Estate  

Metropolitan Capital Real Estate (MCRE) is a full-service leading property company based in Abu Dhabi. MCRE provides end-to-end services and customised solutions under one roof to the capital’s residents and nationals. The company is accredited by the largest developers in Abu Dhabi and is the official broker of Abu Dhabi development group ALDAR. 

About Penthouse.ae  

Penthouse.ae powered by Metropolitan is the luxury division of Metropolitan Premium Properties, a Dubai-based full-service real estate agency and the flagship property company of the Metropolitan Group. The brand was launched in 2022 to cater to the discerning needs of Ultra High-Net-Worth Individuals (UHNWIs) who require a bespoke real estate experience in the UAE. The agency caters to properties valued at AED 15M and above, offering tailored end-to-end solutions that include opening bank accounts to assistance with visas, legal services, company formation and property management among others.   

About Great Place to Work®

Great Place to Work® is the global authority on workplace culture. Since 1992, they have surveyed more than 100 million employees worldwide and used those deep insights to define what makes a great workplace: trust. Their employee survey platform empowers leaders with the feedback, real-time reporting, and insights they need to make strategic people decisions. Everything they do is driven by the mission to build a better world by helping every organization become a great place to work For AllTM.