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Go Ape’s name may reflect its fun adventure activities, but when it comes to ensuring that its people are engaged and their wellbeing prioritised, the organisation isn’t monkeying around.
As the UK's leading forest adventure company, Go Ape believes that ‘adventure should be for everyone’. This ethos is not only aimed at the more than 10 million adventurers who have taken to the trees since its inception in 2002, but also its employees - its ‘Tribe’ - too.
In 2023, Go Ape partnered with Best Companies to better understand what its people needed by identifying it key drivers of engagement and to use this insight to build a workplace where every Co-Owner could thrive.
During an interview with Claire Schofield, Head of People at Go Ape, we explored the key strategies and initiatives that have helped Go Ape move from a Ones to Watch to a 1-Star organisation, while also seeing increases across all 8 Factors of the Best Companies Methodology.
Go Ape’s progress over the past year wasn’t accidental. It was shaped “from Devon to Scotland, you’ve got feedback from people everywhere”, what this data revealed and leadership’s willingness to act has helped Go Ape accelerate its engagement levels.
The organisation’s response to its Best Companies insights from previous years has helped form the foundation of its cultural transformation.
A strong sense of a Fair Deal - the belief that employees are treated justly and equitably - is crucial for organisational success. When employees feel they are fairly compensated and valued, their motivation and commitment soar.
Fair Deal has seen the greatest average decline across all Best Companies organisations in the past year; however, Go Ape bucked this trend.
Fair Deal was underperforming relative to Go Ape’s strong community-driven culture. Employees wanted greater transparency around how reward, contribution and shared success fit together.
A major component of its Fair Deal strategy was it remaining committed to its Employee Ownership practice and the Real Living Wage. For the support teams and management, being Co-Owners provides a vested interest in the business's success and culture.
Claire Schofield, Head of People, explained how this move solidified Go Ape’s culture, giving "a sense of belonging" and making the business feel like "a family". The transition further established a deeper sense of shared responsibility and identity across the organisation.
Further living up to the 'adventure should be for everyone' ethos, Go Ape supports its Tribe’s personal adventures.
Fair Deal increased by a significant 7%, helping Go Ape to defy the national downward trend and reinforce it culture of shared success.
Leadership is perhaps the most critical factor in driving employee engagement. Effective leaders who are accessible, communicate openly, and genuinely value their teams create an environment of psychological safety and trust, leading to increased loyalty and performance.
56% of Best Companies businesses have seen declines in this factor over the past year.
Go Ape’s Co-owners wanted:
A key initiative Go Ape implemented was leadership visits to all 37 UK sites. Claire highlighted that these face-to-face interactions allowed people to “see the more human side to the directors”.
Furthermore, the organisation invested in communication techniques to ensure everyone stays informed. Go Ape provides monthly company meeting updates via various channels and houses information on its internal social platform, The Tribe Hub. Claire noted the success, stating that the number of people attending the monthly meetings has “really increased this year”, showing that “people are interested”. This has also made leadership “much more accessible” so that employees feel comfortable going “direct to Nick [the Managing Director]” with queries, praise, or complaints, eliminating “boundaries or barriers”.
Improved transparency, accessibility and human connection led to a 7% rise in Leadership, reinforcing psychological safety and organisational clarity across all sites, and further enhancing its ‘family culture’.
The My Team factor of the Best Companies Methodology underscores the value of strong interpersonal relationships and a sense of community within a workplace.
A collaborative, connected team environment is essential for a positive culture and is a powerful driver of organisational health.
Go Ape needed to continue strengthening cross-site cohesion and amplify employee voice across its widespread network.
Go Ape’s focus on bringing its teams together is epitomised by the Co-owner Council, made up of nominated and elected employees from all areas and levels, serves as a crucial sounding board, ensuring that teams across all sites are heard and supported.
Claire describes the unique 'bottom-up' approach the Co-owner Council enables. The members “tell you what they're hearing on the ground” so leadership can create its strategy. Fundamentally, she states, “What it also does is provide you with a mirror. So, if you're going off track, they will bring you back”.
Go Ape saw an incredible 5% increase in this factor, which also means it is scoring 4% higher than the average of 2-Star companies, positioning the organisation well for a higher Accreditation next year.
Go Ape’s community isn’t just its people; it also encompasses the wider communities of its site locations and the organisation's role in helping others to ‘live life adventurously’.
The Giving Something Back factor taps into an employee's desire to feel that their organisation has a positive impact on local communities and the environment. Aligning a business's mission with a social purpose significantly boosts employee engagement by providing a sense of meaning in their work.
Go Ape and its Co-Owners had a strong community purpose already but needed a more structured way to connect employees to the organisation’s fundraising efforts.
Go Ape created the Go Ape Foundation, which aims to make adventure and the great outdoors accessible to everyone, regardless of their financial situation.
The Foundation partners with the charities, Go Beyond and Free to Be Kids, donating a minimum £15,000 per year to both and providing experiences to disadvantaged children.
Through its support, Go Ape has seen incredible effects on those who have been through the programme. Claire recalled one person who spoke about his experiences, noting how the charity had helped him overcome a “terrible upbringing” and how with the charities help, he was able to understand his value and grow a successful business.
Giving Something Back increased by 5%, reflecting a commitment to the ethos, “adventure is for everyone”, and increasing pride, purpose and a deeper sense of meaning among the Tribe.
“The Best Companies survey data provided us with powerful feedback that pinpointed the most critical areas for improving employee engagement. These actionable insights became the foundation of our strategic decisions, enabling us to focus resources where they mattered most. By acting decisively on this intelligence, we not only accelerated our engagement strategy but also delivered measurable improvements that have transformed performance across the business.”
Claire Schofield - Head of People at Go Ape
