What are companies doing with regards to 'Giving Something Back'

Employees are encouraged to volunteer at Lucy Brown House, a sheltered accommodation centre for older people. Each Christmas, they take part in the Better Bankside scheme ‘Together at Christmas', where staff donate gifts that are then given out to local homeless, elderly and vulnerable people.

Employees are encouraged to volunteer at Lucy Brown House, a sheltered accommodation centre for older people. Each Christmas, they take part in the Better Bankside scheme ‘Together at Christmas', where staff donate gifts that are then given out to local homeless, elderly and vulnerable people.

Each year Cambridge Online take two students on a work experience programme. Each member of the Leadership Team spends time and shares their views of what it is like to run a team within a company. The students then spend time with each member of those teams to bring to see how it works in reality. This gives them a great insight into what work is really all about and how different teams interact and the views and needs of companies and their managers or employees from a real employer's perspective. The Managing Director spends time giving an overview of the pressures of managing a business and bringing together how all the departments need to work together to effect this. Additionally, there is a session on making a difference as an employee and instructions as to how companies interview and guidance on how to approach the job market. They offered a week's work experience to someone known to the Company who has recently fallen on hard times. This has given him the opportunity of regaining some self-respect and feeling valued again, giving him the benefit of a good reference and hopefully giving him the inspiration to seek further employment. They also have a team who organise various charity events for staff to attend throughout the year. These events are funded by the Company and raise a significant amount of money for a chosen charity. Cambridge Online are proud of their continued support of the apprenticeship scheme and each year aim to continue this.

Each year the Leadership Team run a series of presentations to include all members of staff entitled "The Cost of COSL". The sessions are intended to give all members of staff a detailed understanding of how the company make their money, where it comes from, where they spend it and what happens to the profits. Cambridge Online see this as a unique way to engage with staff and let them know exactly what they are contributing towards. In running these sessions, they feel that they lead from the front in demonstrating honest and openness of communication, improving awareness and helping people to understand how their individual actions contribute to the overall success of the Company. They have implemented a Lean and 6 Sigma culture and have commenced a programme of workshops designed to raise awareness of how individuals can contribute to the Company's greater success by working in cross-functional teams. David, the CEO, strikes an excellent balance between compassion and focus. He has really energised and focussed the team but remains fully aware that everyone who works at the company is a person with personal responsibilities and needs. David has created a culture of empowerment reversing 33 years of autocratic management. This has been achieved through an open communication style and building a Leadership Team with complementary skill sets to each other. In order to define the strategic direction of the company, David introduced the "6 Pillars" of the business. They are based on the 6 core principles. There are projects and activities aligned to each pillar with timescales and ownership. This is published on the intranet for all staff to view.

A dedicated mentor is assigned to each of YWR's Managers who undergo the training programme. They provide ongoing coaching and mentoring based on the training programme provided within all divisions of the company. The management programme has catch-up sessions to ensure peers support one another during the learning process, as well as the senior staff providing general feedback. The company's best feature is their open house session on a monthly basis, whereby learners can speak to YWR's in-house L&D team regarding any aspects of their learning which they are having difficulty translating back to their daily activities. There are a number of ways in which the company measure the performance of Managers, including quarterly reviews with their Line Manager to identify issues and training requirements. They also hold regular engagement sessions with employees to establish any issues with their Line Management, which are then further addressed at review.

YWR supports the learning and development process within the company with talent planning, a detailed career structure and internal promotion process. They also have in house staff dedicated to providing training and bespoke mentoring. All employees have an individualised training programme, which is linked directly to the appraisal format and their career potential.

Yarlington are constantly rethinking and reinvigorating how they can help their team learn more and develop their approach. A recent example of this is when the company delivered a series of three half day workshops to five different management teams across the business, helping them explore the new Investors in people framework so that they could take ownership of it and use it to improve their approach to leadership, performance management and continuous improvement. Yarlington also offer bespoke workshops for individuals and teams with specific learning needs and believe that investing in face to face learning allows people to interact with colleagues and their L&D Adviser in a safe and learning orientated environment. The staff are now working in a more agile way through the ELearning Academy, a web based application which gives everyone access to the Infinity Library of courses, covering everything from IT Skills and Finance to Personal Development and Written English. For those who wish to continue their professional development, the Yarlington Bursary enables people to access the best academic courses available to them and then apply what they learn at work on a daily basis.

Yarlington are constantly rethinking and reinvigorating how they can help their team learn more and develop their approach. A recent example of this is when the company delivered a series of three half day workshops to five different management teams across the business, helping them explore the new Investors in people framework so that they could take ownership of it and use it to improve their approach to leadership, performance management and continuous improvement. Yarlington also offer bespoke workshops for individuals and teams with specific learning needs and believe that investing in face to face learning allows people to interact with colleagues and their L&D Adviser in a safe and learning orientated environment. The staff are now working in a more agile way through the ELearning Academy, a web based application which gives everyone access to the Infinity Library of courses, covering everything from IT Skills and Finance to Personal Development and Written English. For those who wish to continue their professional development, the Yarlington Bursary enables people to access the best academic courses available to them and then apply what they learn at work on a daily basis.

Xoserve have a reward toolbox where colleagues, team leaders and managers can recommend a reward as immediate recognition for employees in relation to a piece of work, consistent behaviours and such. The toolbox offers managers the choice of rewards such as, gift vouchers, team meals, meals for up to 4 people and Additional Annual Leave. Managers are also able to offer an Ex-gratia payments. The company also utilises their internal social network, Yammer, to acknowledge successes both individual and team related. They hold an Annual Christmas party for all staff and a summer event, this year's summer event was a family fun day where employees could bring guests and children or relatives to the event which included, It's a knock out, food, bouncy castles, entertainment and face painting. Xoserve host Customer Service awards where employees have the opportunity to nominate a colleague for good service, if successful they are awarded a voucher. Donut and cupcake deliveries to thank staff for supporting various initiatives. Various awards are given for employees for the following length of service, from just a year to up to 50 years! The level of award differs for each milestone.

Xoserve have a reward toolbox where colleagues, team leaders and managers can recommend a reward as immediate recognition for employees in relation to a piece of work, consistent behaviours and such. The toolbox offers managers the choice of rewards such as, gift vouchers, team meals, meals for up to 4 people and Additional Annual Leave. Managers are also able to offer an Ex-gratia payments. The company also utilises their internal social network, Yammer, to acknowledge successes both individual and team related. They hold an Annual Christmas party for all staff and a summer event, this year's summer event was a family fun day where employees could bring guests and children or relatives to the event which included, It's a knock out, food, bouncy castles, entertainment and face painting. Xoserve host Customer Service awards where employees have the opportunity to nominate a colleague for good service, if successful they are awarded a voucher. Donut and cupcake deliveries to thank staff for supporting various initiatives. Various awards are given for employees for the following length of service, from just a year to up to 50 years! The level of award differs for each milestone.

Employee engagement and interaction is critically important to the day to day competitiveness and the culture of our business. X4 Group understands that positive interaction between all members of staff boosts morale and improves performance. They have a digital leader board visible to all teams in the office to share every team's performance and showcase their position on the leader board with updated deals. This information system provides employees with instant updates of the whole company's performance, allowing a transparent working environment which they have found greatly improves efficiency and competitiveness between teams. The company encourage weekly competitions among different teams in different markets and have monthly nominations for Team, Deal & Consultant of the month where each winner gets a prize. Prizes include team lunch, night out, West End show, champagne etc. Every team in the company is eligible to win every month so it encourages team members to support each other. They are highly focused on attracting and hiring the right people so have a very collaborative approach, involving employees in the hiring process. Under this process candidates interact with future teammates improving team interaction from the very beginning. They have several team building days out annually to encourage company interaction. Recently the company did a Mud Run Assault Course followed by an all paid for company party. They also do things like go-karting, charity sports days etc. In addition to this they have several sports teams and play competitively in tournaments against other companies!

Employee engagement and interaction is critically important to the day to day competitiveness and the culture of our business. X4 Group understands that positive interaction between all members of staff boosts morale and improves performance. They have a digital leader board visible to all teams in the office to share every team's performance and showcase their position on the leader board with updated deals. This information system provides employees with instant updates of the whole company's performance, allowing a transparent working environment which they have found greatly improves efficiency and competitiveness between teams. The company encourage weekly competitions among different teams in different markets and have monthly nominations for Team, Deal & Consultant of the month where each winner gets a prize. Prizes include team lunch, night out, West End show, champagne etc. Every team in the company is eligible to win every month so it encourages team members to support each other. They are highly focused on attracting and hiring the right people so have a very collaborative approach, involving employees in the hiring process. Under this process candidates interact with future teammates improving team interaction from the very beginning. They have several team building days out annually to encourage company interaction. Recently the company did a Mud Run Assault Course followed by an all paid for company party. They also do things like go-karting, charity sports days etc. In addition to this they have several sports teams and play competitively in tournaments against other companies!

This year White Stuff relaunched its benefit offer on a new online platform called ‘The Biscuit Tin'. The site went live in June 2016 for the annual benefit selection window and was a huge success, seeing a 65% increase in total logins compared to the same time last year. The Biscuit Tin offers a complete information hub with easy navigation to benefits. Employees can select their benefits whenever they wish, giving them the power to control when and how they access their rewards. The site is fully interactive, containing videos and help guides to enable their family to make choices that are right for their lifestyle. Employees can use The Biscuit Tin to claim on their insurances, access discounts and review their Total Reward Statement. They re-designed the Total Reward Statement for the June 2016 launch and employees can now see the value and split of their package at-a-glance. Staff can drill down on each element of their Reward to explore how the building blocks of their package. There is also access to historical reward statements for detailed comparison of individual's pay and benefits over time. This year they have also used The Biscuit Tin to build awareness of retirement planning and pension savings amongst their family. There is an interactive pension-modelling tool where employees can adjust their contributions, pension fund and retirement projections to get the most out of their investments. The site gives access to the annual Pension Newsletter that explains the performance of the Default Pension Fund, where 90% of the White Stuff family is invested.

This year White Stuff relaunched its benefit offer on a new online platform called ‘The Biscuit Tin'. The site went live in June 2016 for the annual benefit selection window and was a huge success, seeing a 65% increase in total logins compared to the same time last year. The Biscuit Tin offers a complete information hub with easy navigation to benefits. Employees can select their benefits whenever they wish, giving them the power to control when and how they access their rewards. The site is fully interactive, containing videos and help guides to enable their family to make choices that are right for their lifestyle. Employees can use The Biscuit Tin to claim on their insurances, access discounts and review their Total Reward Statement. They re-designed the Total Reward Statement for the June 2016 launch and employees can now see the value and split of their package at-a-glance. Staff can drill down on each element of their Reward to explore how the building blocks of their package. There is also access to historical reward statements for detailed comparison of individual's pay and benefits over time. This year they have also used The Biscuit Tin to build awareness of retirement planning and pension savings amongst their family. There is an interactive pension-modelling tool where employees can adjust their contributions, pension fund and retirement projections to get the most out of their investments. The site gives access to the annual Pension Newsletter that explains the performance of the Default Pension Fund, where 90% of the White Stuff family is invested.

Wheatley Group's approach to rewarding people has been reviewed with the employee voice. This has resulted in what is now called the W.E. Reward and W.E. Benefits, with an extensive package and approach to reward and recognition now in place. WE Benefits contains an extensive range of benefits that people can draw from to suit need and choice, for example health services and insurance, contribution to eye and dental care, cycle to work support, the ability to buy extensions to annual leave, study leave, funding for education and qualifications, paid summer work placements for family and friends, salary sacrifice for childcare vouchers, discount vouchers with a range of retailers, the option to buy technology and digital equipment at discounts and pay from salary interest free via an employer scheme, discounted legal and conveyancing services, a counselling service and much more.

Wessex Water Enterprises recognises the hard work from all of their employees and is committed to ensuring staff members have a comfortable work life balance. As a result, employees are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the company's exclusive staff discount portal, Rewards4u, which offers a host of discounts for a variety of retailers. The portal is accessible at any time through the intranet ‘Source', where offers can help employees save money or even earn cash back. To suit the needs of every employee across the divisions, there are local offers available for restaurants, sports activities such as Bristol Sport tickets and even automotive services. In addition, employees are able to earn cash back when booking holidays through specific websites and can claim childcare vouchers or save on adventure days out. The company also have an ongoing feedback scheme 'Eureka', which encourages innovative thinking across the employee structure. A reward of £100 is given if an idea is implemented and the scheme has proven to open interdepartmental working opportunities and promotions in specific business areas.

Wessex Water Enterprises are working with local charity Young Bristol to turn their vision on sustainability and renewable energy into artwork. The project will create three separate designs, which will be displayed in the new meeting space at the Avonmouth site offices at Bristol sewage treatment works. The youth driven charity works to offer a range of opportunities for all young people and the project with Wessex Water Enterprises will involve 40 young people, ranging from 8 to 16 years old, from clubs in the local communities of Avonmouth. Additionally, if any employees are taking part in a fundraising event for a local charity, Wessex Water Enterprises helps employees raise more money through their Community PlusFund scheme. For every £1 raised by staff members for a local charity, Community PlusFund will match it up to a maximum of £250. Wessex Water Enterprises also teamed up with the Prince's Trust to offer work placements to six young people struggling with long-term unemployment. They were asked to carry out a range of different duties and after impressing both Managers and colleagues, each of the trainees were rewarded with further employment within the business.