Giving Something Back - The extent to which employees feel their organisation has a positive impact on society
Giving Something Back focuses on the organisation’s social responsibilities. If key factors such as ‘Leadership’ and ‘My Manager’ are performing well, it can influence the improvement of all the other factors, boosting your overall engagement.
As a company tech21 invest heavily in providing an amazing work environment for their colleagues to work in, so as a company they encourage employees to give something back to the community. In the last three months they have introduced a policy to allow employees to volunteer and in return they offer paid time off for up to three days per year. tech21's company philosophy is to “pass it on”. This essentially means pass on the benefits that they provide to support local communities who are in need. Last year they managed to raise a total of just over £9,000 through activities that their employees had participated in. Through the local dragon boat race employees raised money for the NSPCC. This is just the start, their focus next year is to partner with a local charity and run different fundraising activities that employees can be involved with to help raise money and give back to the local community.
As a company tech21 invest heavily in providing an amazing work environment for their colleagues to work in, so as a company they encourage employees to give something back to the community. In the last three months they have introduced a policy to allow employees to volunteer and in return they offer paid time off for up to three days per year. tech21's company philosophy is to “pass it on”. This essentially means pass on the benefits that they provide to support local communities who are in need. Last year they managed to raise a total of just over £9,000 through activities that their employees had participated in. Through the local dragon boat race employees raised money for the NSPCC. This is just the start, their focus next year is to partner with a local charity and run different fundraising activities that employees can be involved with to help raise money and give back to the local community.
tech21 have a learning and development policy to ensure that they are enabled to support professional growth in the business where the company can fund training at all levels – so far with 100% approval as they are keen to develop teams and watch them grown and move up in the business. They also have mentors in the business aligned to colleagues identified as potential for the future through performance reviews, this allows them to provide more insight into the business and they have been purposely paired with someone outside their function and specializing in an area that the company are keen to develop. One thing that tech21 have been excited to introduce is their pass it on policy, allowing colleagues to look into volunteer work or other things that will give back to the community or wider and develop them on a personal level. They hold lunch and learn sessions and they have colleagues for example who train colleagues in house from their own skills – excel for example.
Open communication and accessibility to the senior team are key within Tate. Through spending time in the branch network and asking for feedback in terms of what's working and what should change there is an environment of continuous improvement. Everyone has a voice and opinions and ideas are valued. The Regional Directors hold a weekly conference call to share news and updates and send out a weekly update highlighting achievements and performance. The values at Tate are not just something written on a piece of paper, or in the Boardroom, they are actively practised in the business, and there is an expectation within Tate that all employees, including Senior Management, demonstrates them at all times. They ran a survey earlier this year about values and engagement in the business to identify people's concerns and issues. The results of this survey were shared from the senior management team addressing all of the questions and providing solutions and answers to ensure everyone feels their opinion is valuable to the business. The CEO lives the brand and the culture with a capability of making the vision a reality and he is always very visible and accessible within the business, working from each branch and constantly asking for feedback. His style is very inclusive and he build strong relationships with all employees. He has a sense of humour and appreciates that hard work and gaining results don't have to be to the detriment of fun along the way. David is very highly regarded and respected in the business, very approachable, open and interested in everyone. He is results oriented, but ensures great customer satisfaction is at the forefront of everything Tate do.
Open communication and accessibility to the senior team are key within Tate. Through spending time in the branch network and asking for feedback in terms of what's working and what should change there is an environment of continuous improvement. Everyone has a voice and opinions and ideas are valued. The Regional Directors hold a weekly conference call to share news and updates and send out a weekly update highlighting achievements and performance. The values at Tate are not just something written on a piece of paper, or in the Boardroom, they are actively practised in the business, and there is an expectation within Tate that all employees, including Senior Management, demonstrates them at all times. They ran a survey earlier this year about values and engagement in the business to identify people's concerns and issues. The results of this survey were shared from the senior management team addressing all of the questions and providing solutions and answers to ensure everyone feels their opinion is valuable to the business. The CEO lives the brand and the culture with a capability of making the vision a reality and he is always very visible and accessible within the business, working from each branch and constantly asking for feedback. His style is very inclusive and he build strong relationships with all employees. He has a sense of humour and appreciates that hard work and gaining results don't have to be to the detriment of fun along the way. David is very highly regarded and respected in the business, very approachable, open and interested in everyone. He is results oriented, but ensures great customer satisfaction is at the forefront of everything Tate do.
Open communication and accessibility to the senior team are key within Tate. Through spending time in the branch network and asking for feedback in terms of what's working and what should change there is an environment of continuous improvement. Everyone has a voice and opinions and ideas are valued. The Regional Directors hold a weekly conference call to share news and updates and send out a weekly update highlighting achievements and performance. The values at Tate are not just something written on a piece of paper, or in the Boardroom, they are actively practised in the business, and there is an expectation within Tate that all employees, including Senior Management, demonstrates them at all times. They ran a survey earlier this year about values and engagement in the business to identify people's concerns and issues. The results of this survey were shared from the senior management team addressing all of the questions and providing solutions and answers to ensure everyone feels their opinion is valuable to the business. The CEO lives the brand and the culture with a capability of making the vision a reality and he is always very visible and accessible within the business, working from each branch and constantly asking for feedback. His style is very inclusive and he build strong relationships with all employees. He has a sense of humour and appreciates that hard work and gaining results don't have to be to the detriment of fun along the way. David is very highly regarded and respected in the business, very approachable, open and interested in everyone. He is results oriented, but ensures great customer satisfaction is at the forefront of everything Tate do.
In many businesses the contributions of 'backroom staff' can be forgotten; however at Swansway they do things differently. On a regular basis the company celebrate the 'backroom staff' by asking the Managers to nominate a colleague who they believe has made an outstanding contribution to the business, is not expecting an extra reward and who is a shining example of company culture and values. The awards are given every quarter and the number of winners is not limited. Wherever there is a nomination and the Unsung Hero board considers it be valid, the nominee will receive a trophy to keep, is treated to afternoon tea and even a £50 voucher to treat themselves to a gift.
In many businesses the contributions of 'backroom staff' can be forgotten; however at Swansway they do things differently. On a regular basis the company celebrate the 'backroom staff' by asking the Managers to nominate a colleague who they believe has made an outstanding contribution to the business, is not expecting an extra reward and who is a shining example of company culture and values. The awards are given every quarter and the number of winners is not limited. Wherever there is a nomination and the Unsung Hero board considers it be valid, the nominee will receive a trophy to keep, is treated to afternoon tea and even a £50 voucher to treat themselves to a gift.
The creation and evolution of the Swansway Company values 'Caring, Honest & Proud' have become truly ingrained in the company's culture. This has only been possible through employee buy-in and this involves all Senior Management within the Company. The values are used as a 'sensor check' for all decision making within the organisation, the results of which filter down from board level to Senior Managers and beyond. This has promoted trust, confidence and engagement within all practices of the organisation. Michael Smyth is not only the Chairman of Swansway Group, but also the founder. He has been in the motor retail business for 48 years and is incredibly passionate about what he does. With the gritty training of life as a door to door salesman for Hoover, Michael built the business from scratch, always with the drive and determination to be the best. Through the years Michael has embraced change, always been open to new ideas and ways of doing things and is happy to share his knowledge with his staff. Everyone knows that Michael is happy to roll his sleeves up and lead the way. He is honest, expects honesty in return and is rightly proud of the business he has built and of the people who have helped him to build it.
All of the offices have the Core Values printed as large vinyl's onto the wall. Swanstaff promote the company ambition right from the outset at interview stage, through to the induction and this is also spoken about regularly by the CEO and Management team at events andtraining. Swanstaff ‘thank you' badges on the HR system refer to the Core Values so that staff can recognise when someone has met the value. The annual appraisal process, probation reviews and monthly one on one supervisions also refer to the core values and staff are asked to reflect on how well they work to these values and how well they feel these are reflected in the company culture. These are also spoken about in the induction video, showing new employees how these are reflected in every day work. Employees often recite these core values when speaking to clients and candidates - they are also shared with candidates through the Ambassadors programme.
All of the offices have the Core Values printed as large vinyl's onto the wall. Swanstaff promote the company ambition right from the outset at interview stage, through to the induction and this is also spoken about regularly by the CEO and Management team at events andtraining. Swanstaff ‘thank you' badges on the HR system refer to the Core Values so that staff can recognise when someone has met the value. The annual appraisal process, probation reviews and monthly one on one supervisions also refer to the core values and staff are asked to reflect on how well they work to these values and how well they feel these are reflected in the company culture. These are also spoken about in the induction video, showing new employees how these are reflected in every day work. Employees often recite these core values when speaking to clients and candidates - they are also shared with candidates through the Ambassadors programme.
Swanstaff encourage people to share good news or innovative ideas via the ‘All Staff' email thread. This increases communications and opens up visibility of best practice. They run regular team challenges including a "Spaghetti Tower" challenge that took place at a recently quarterly meeting ensuring groups sat with other branch and teams to encourage cross company communication and interaction. They encourage their staff to thank their colleagues, this is done via the system ‘People HR' and notifies the employee when they have received thanks. This has been used over 150 times in the last month alone.
During the year STL removed water machines from each office and one plumbed in machine was installed in the centre of as an alternative. This encourages staff to get up and walk to the machine. They also introduced a Wednesday waddle, where staff had a lunchtime walk together if they wanted around the local canal or village. STL also provide fruit and a smaller number of larger printers to encourage people to get up from their desks. There is a staff room including a Wii, computer, large screen TV, sofas and magazines. STL provide ice cream on hot days, books in the staff room for all staff to use and all staff can book an appointment with any Manager for ten minutes to discuss anything they would like or to chat to HR.
During the year STL removed water machines from each office and one plumbed in machine was installed in the centre of as an alternative. This encourages staff to get up and walk to the machine. They also introduced a Wednesday waddle, where staff had a lunchtime walk together if they wanted around the local canal or village. STL also provide fruit and a smaller number of larger printers to encourage people to get up from their desks. There is a staff room including a Wii, computer, large screen TV, sofas and magazines. STL provide ice cream on hot days, books in the staff room for all staff to use and all staff can book an appointment with any Manager for ten minutes to discuss anything they would like or to chat to HR.
STL use spot awards, which are £50 gift cards that are presented to an employee if they have gone above and beyond their job description, thereby showing appreciation for the efforts shown. Office staff awards are given in front of the whole office in a two-minute ceremony they are then followed up to remote staff. Remote staff awards are posted but emailed to all staff. As well as showing appreciation, the awards encourage employees to work hard and to live the company values.
Stevens and Bolton encourages its employees to join several charitable and community initiatives. One example of such an initiative is the Tour de Law, in which every employee rode static bikes to help raise money for charity. Other examples include the company's Give & Gain initiative, work for Sports Relief, the Guildford Legal Walk and the Surrey Hills Challenge. These events occur alongside many other initiatives that take place more regularly in the workplace, such as Macmillan's World's Biggest Coffee Morning, a charity day for Phyllis Tuckwell in the office and managing members of the firm being put in stocks and having sponges thrown at them for money. Stevens and Bolton is a member of PRIME, an alliance of law firms and legal departments across the UK that has made a commitment to broadening access to the legal profession. As a PRIME member since 2015, the firm is committed to providing work experience placements for students from less privileged backgrounds and, by using the firm's resources and expertise, help them gain important employability skills.
Stevens and Bolton currently operates the 'Thx!' scheme. One of the key strategic objectives for the firm is to make this a great place to work for all their people and an important part of that is acknowledging and showing gratitude for the help their colleagues give day to day. Often a simple ‘thank you' will suffice, but sometimes it would be nice to acknowledge people in a more public way. This can be done via the 'Thx' online system, which allows staff to allocate Thx points to their colleagues for exemplary work. Each staff member is allocated 25 Thx points for the year and can award single or multiple points via the profile of a certain staff member on the online 'Sandbox' platform. At the end of the year, the top five employees at the top of the leader board are then given a budget to use on a joint treat day or experience.
Stevens and Bolton currently operates the 'Thx!' scheme. One of the key strategic objectives for the firm is to make this a great place to work for all their people and an important part of that is acknowledging and showing gratitude for the help their colleagues give day to day. Often a simple ‘thank you' will suffice, but sometimes it would be nice to acknowledge people in a more public way. This can be done via the 'Thx' online system, which allows staff to allocate Thx points to their colleagues for exemplary work. Each staff member is allocated 25 Thx points for the year and can award single or multiple points via the profile of a certain staff member on the online 'Sandbox' platform. At the end of the year, the top five employees at the top of the leader board are then given a budget to use on a joint treat day or experience.
Stephensons Solicitors produce a full CSR review document twice a year, which sets out all the community initiatives in place at the firm. During 2016 the firm donated £1,600 to Mustard Tree, a Greater Manchester based charity which provides support to homeless and marginalised people. For over 20 years, Mustard Tree has helped support communities challenged by poverty, disadvantage or unemployment. The charity provides a number of initiatives to provide much needed life support, promoting mental and physical wellbeing and providing avenues into training and employment. Janine Turner, head of HR and an associate at the firm, joined staff and volunteers from Mustard Tree in Manchester to learn more about the charity and witness its work first-hand.
Stephensons Solicitors produce a full CSR review document twice a year, which sets out all the community initiatives in place at the firm. During 2016 the firm donated £1,600 to Mustard Tree, a Greater Manchester based charity which provides support to homeless and marginalised people. For over 20 years, Mustard Tree has helped support communities challenged by poverty, disadvantage or unemployment. The charity provides a number of initiatives to provide much needed life support, promoting mental and physical wellbeing and providing avenues into training and employment. Janine Turner, head of HR and an associate at the firm, joined staff and volunteers from Mustard Tree in Manchester to learn more about the charity and witness its work first-hand.
Stephensons were one of the founding firms taking part in the innovative Employer Ownership of skills initiative run by the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce. Not only did Stephensons help to set the agenda for legal apprenticeships, but together with other leading North West law firms, committed to taking on 80 legal apprentices between them. Since this time, Stephensons have retained their commitment to apprenticeships and offered opportunities in a number of areas, including IT, PR and Marketing, as well as within the fee earning departments.
St. Dominic's Sixth Form College fundraise through charity walks and runs. The organisation also has a Fairworld Week, where staff and students volunteer at local charitable institutions. On top of this they also have links through some of the subjects that they offer, for example Design and Technology, in which students design products to help community based charities. In the past their staff have regularly raised money for a local Hospice by a Sponsored Walk and teams enter the Race for Life. Their Head of Art and DT together with her students takes on work from local social support services, such as web design, leaflet and logo design as live commissions.
St Dominic's is a Roman Catholic Sixth Form College committed to the personal and spiritual growth of all its members based on Christian values, academic excellence and high quality pastoral care. They all have a responsibility to themselves and to others. Education concerns the whole person - body, mind and spirit - and enables each person's God-given talents and skills to be used for the benefit of all creation. They have a responsibility to build relationships within their community and reach out to the disadvantaged in the wider world. By worshipping and praying together they can all acknowledge their need of God and each other, as well as promote the self-esteem of all the members of their community. Their common nature enables them to respect the diversity of faith and culture in their College.
St Dominic's is a Roman Catholic Sixth Form College committed to the personal and spiritual growth of all its members based on Christian values, academic excellence and high quality pastoral care. They all have a responsibility to themselves and to others. Education concerns the whole person - body, mind and spirit - and enables each person's God-given talents and skills to be used for the benefit of all creation. They have a responsibility to build relationships within their community and reach out to the disadvantaged in the wider world. By worshipping and praying together they can all acknowledge their need of God and each other, as well as promote the self-esteem of all the members of their community. Their common nature enables them to respect the diversity of faith and culture in their College.
Specsavers seeks to reward employees in a variety of formal and informal ways, from peer to peer shout outs and customer first awards to long service recognition and the annual Specsavers Ball. The company's quarterly bonus is also based solely on an individual's achievement of their objectives and is in no way related to company performance. All employees who have passed their probation are eligible to receive this. The scheme creates employee engagement, motivation and the need for Managers to manage their people effectively and appropriately. The scheme also means that all Managers have to meet each quarter to calibrate their bonus recommendations. This creates the need for a discussion about overall performance, like a mini people review on a regular basis, which thereby enables consistency and employee recognition amongst leadership teams.
Specsavers are passionate about giving back to and working with many local, national and international causes. The company are involved in a vast number of activities to raise money for charities, for example their continued work with Vision Aid Overseas to safeguard the nine eye clinics Specsavers established with them in Zambia. The company also help to deliver a range of hand-crafted quilts made in Guernsey to an orphanage in Johannesburg, South Africa. Also in its 20th year, the annual Spectacle Wearer of the Year competition has raised £80,000 for UK anti-bullying children's charity Kidscape. New starters can donate a 'coin' to one of the charities that Specsavers support at the end of their induction, giving them an early understanding and participation in the organisation's charity work. Through the 'Giving back to our local communities' policy, staff are also encouraged to spend one working day per year helping out in the community. Specsavers also have staff nominated charities in each office and encourage staff to raise money for them. Last year the company raised almost £190,000 for these fantastic charities.
Specsavers seeks to reward employees in a variety of formal and informal ways, from peer to peer shout outs and customer first awards to long service recognition and the annual Specsavers Ball. The company's quarterly bonus is also based solely on an individual's achievement of their objectives and is in no way related to company performance. All employees who have passed their probation are eligible to receive this. The scheme creates employee engagement, motivation and the need for Managers to manage their people effectively and appropriately. The scheme also means that all Managers have to meet each quarter to calibrate their bonus recommendations. This creates the need for a discussion about overall performance, like a mini people review on a regular basis, which thereby enables consistency and employee recognition amongst leadership teams.
South Oxon have an annualised hours scheme for the majority of their employees. This gives them greater flexibility to manage their workloads and to balance work and domestic responsibilities. They can start work earlier or finish later than in a traditional working pattern and potentially vary their hours each week. Both the organisation and the employee can benefit from individuals being able to increase their hours during busy periods and lower them during quieter times. The organisation have a budget per member of staff for each service area to facilitate team activities, such as away day visits to The Shard or The Houses of Parliament. Sport activities include archery, punting and team cricket matches, whilst the annual quiz night raises money for charity as well as improving team working across service areas in a fun way.
South Oxon have an annualised hours scheme for the majority of their employees. This gives them greater flexibility to manage their workloads and to balance work and domestic responsibilities. They can start work earlier or finish later than in a traditional working pattern and potentially vary their hours each week. Both the organisation and the employee can benefit from individuals being able to increase their hours during busy periods and lower them during quieter times. The organisation have a budget per member of staff for each service area to facilitate team activities, such as away day visits to The Shard or The Houses of Parliament. Sport activities include archery, punting and team cricket matches, whilst the annual quiz night raises money for charity as well as improving team working across service areas in a fun way.
South Oxon have an annualised hours scheme for the majority of their employees. This gives them greater flexibility to manage their workloads and to balance work and domestic responsibilities. They can start work earlier or finish later than in a traditional working pattern and potentially vary their hours each week. Both the organisation and the employee can benefit from individuals being able to increase their hours during busy periods and lower them during quieter times. The organisation have a budget per member of staff for each service area to facilitate team activities, such as away day visits to The Shard or The Houses of Parliament. Sport activities include archery, punting and team cricket matches, whilst the annual quiz night raises money for charity as well as improving team working across service areas in a fun way.
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