Leadership Drives Engagement

Every year the Company goes on a 5 star incentive trip which is for employees who have met their objectives and performed at the very top of their game. One of the highlight events on all 5 star trips is a team helicopter ride. In May 2012, 18 staff members and Directors enjoyed a trip of a lifetime to Hong Kong. In previous years, the trips have included the Seychelles, Monaco, Barcelona, New York, Las Vegas and this year Sun City. These trips include staying in a luxury resort as well as enjoying high adrenaline activities and wonderful meals, evenings socialising and some unforgettable memories. Because it is a mix of staff, everyone has a chance to bond and get to know each other outside of a work environment. Everyone returns with their own stories, pictures, and memories. These are truly trips of a life time and the motivation to return to another 5 star trip is always high in the agenda!

Practice Plan has phased return to work policy for all staff, risk assessments, regular meetings and updates. The company also provides free fruit, a cycle to work scheme, gym memberships, flexible working and encourages people to take care of each other.

Each year Pets at Home hold their annual conference for the retail team. Last year the company had an Olympic theme, where they highlighted their achievements from the previous year and outlined their goals for the year ahead. Pets at Home asked their colleagues to 'Pick it Up & Pass It On' to cascade these messages back to the teams in store. The company also used the conference as an opportunity to launch their new first value of putting pets before profit. They celebrated success by awarding a 'Pet Star' award to Kate Jones, Customer and Culture Manager, for her achievements during her 15 years' service and most recently in setting up the Customer Helpdesk. The evening was rounded off by a celebration of hero's, both sporting and otherwise, which invariably lead to some interesting fancy dress outfits and a lot of dancing!

Panasonic UK is pursuing an ECO strategy and has an ECO ideas scheme currently in place. By 2018, the company will be the largest supplier of ECO products worldwide. Through clever design, Panasonic's products are using less energy and are able to be recycled, thus having a more positive impact on the environment.

Managers implement their team action plans to support the achievement of the company goals and have team away days to set the direction of the team. Each individual in the company has actions that link to the Corporate Plan and Service Delivery plans, encouarging them to take responsibility for the achievement of these goals.

NRG is very charity focused, they have selected Maggie's Cancer Care Charity for the past four years as their charity of choice. They do not just limit their fundraising activities to Maggie's but continue throughout the year to hold dress down days supporting various charities – Children in Need, Comic Relief, Jeans for Genes etc. NRG's Chief Executive is Chair of the fundraising Board for Maggie's North East and gives her time free of charge and their staff are hugely supportive of her and have raised over £25,000 in the last four years. One of the main challenges the staff undertake is the Monster Bike and Hike which takes place annually in Fort William, Scotland. A gruelling 72 miles made up of 31 miles on a mountain bike followed by a 41 mile hike – all in 24 hours! Teams have also participated in the Three Peaks Challenge climbing the three tallest peaks in Great Britain again within 24 hours. Prior to taking part in these challenges, the teams have raised money by organising various events including: quizzes for staff and client companies raffles coffee mornings gents having various parts of their bodies waxed! NRG no longer send Christmas Cards to clients but make a donation to charity each year. Their Managing Director is also an active committee member of the Theatre Development Committee - created to develop funds for Newcastle's flagship Theatre, The Theatre Royal, to ensure community engagement activities including workshops, dance, creative groups, within the community. She is also a member of Sunderland Business Group - which is a group of private sector organisations working with the public and third sector to support children in schools through work experience.

Methodist Homes have an Employee Assistance Programme which all staff can access. Life assurance cover is provided to all staff with over a year's service and discounts on health care are available.

In 2009 they created their charitable foundation, the Mando Group Foundation and in doing so made a commitment to donate 10% of their net profit to charitable causes. They work in partnership with the Community Foundation for Merseyside, who help manage their funds; their vision is to see local community and international causes transformed through their work. The three main areas in which they invest to achieve this vision are: To enhance the education and employability of young people in Merseyside through sharing what they know best - our digital and leadership skills. To work with international charities in developing countries which is voted for annually by staff and each year the majority of their internal fundraising is done in support of this charity. At the end of the year, the final figure is then matched by the Foundation, doubling their employee's efforts and helping to make a real difference in the causes that motivate their staff.

Every summer a themed party is held for Senior Managers and Head Office Staff. Fancy dress is essential and accommodation and breakfast is provided for all. In July 2012, the company hosted a Prehistoric Party with campfires, dinosaurs, a free bar, a hog roast buffet, live music, fire breathers, a live band and a DJ.

Langley House have Senior Management talkbacks with all of their project teams. These have helped to improve communication within the Trust. Many of their project workers did not understand why some of the changes that had been implemented had to be done. It was good to be able to explain how the legislation that regulates them means Lanagley House sometimes have to make changes and get employees to do this in a different way. They introduced a credit card with their values on which has been well received and their senior team ask for feedback to make sure they are demonstrating these values by the actions they are taking.

Kumon Educational UK provides an appraisal framework which includes details of the objectives for the forthcoming year. This is signed by both parties, to ensure that what is being requested is agreed and manageable. Through the objective process, Associates can earn up to 25% of basic salary through the achievement of objectives. There is also a Staff Recognition scheme, which runs at the end of the year to reward Associates who have gone above and beyond in their roles. In addition, Associates are rewarded ad-hoc if they go above and beyond the normal expectations, for example weekends away, retail vouchers, wine and flowers.

The Kiln Group hold an annual lunch every January. This is an important date in the calendar for all staff, but particularly the leadership team as this is their way of thanking staff and celebrating the success of Kiln. The leadership team make the commitment to hold the lunch every year, and close the office for half a day. The event is viewed as the social highlight of the year by employees and the details, including the venue, are kept a closely guarded secret until the last minute. This is an example of how the leadership team at Kiln engage with the staff and make them feel truly valued for their efforts.

Hansel Group of Charities provides an independent and confidential employee counselling service, available to all staff. Flexibility in working arrangement is available in response to individual factors.

Foolproof is led by the Managing Director, Leslie Fountain. What is distinctive about her approach to management is how she applies her own and the company's values through all levels of the company. Leslie demonstrates how she expects people to work and behave by leading by example. Leslie is continuously on the office floor and sits within the open plan office, to support a true open door culture. Leslie takes opportunities to add her own touches to individuals' work and engages in creative discussions to broaden the employees' views on projects. In summary, Leslie's management style encourages Foolproofers to adapt a more open and creative approach to work as demonstrated by her.

All employees in the company have a target minimum number or hours that must be spent on training and personal development each year. Many people have a portion of their bonus scheme related to meeting this target. Topics for training and development are driven by the employee following a self assessment against their Balanced Scorecard and a needs audit. The employee is responsible for defining their development needs in relation to their own requirements as well as standard competency models for their roles.

Being a fairly small and informal organisation, employees know that they can always be open, honest and candid with their feedback. The company actively seek to recruit people with opinions, who are willing to speak out and make a difference! That said that they also appreciate that sometimes people need a bit of help or support in saying what's on their mind. They therefore conduct an anonymous employee survey every year which covers everything from management style to reward and recognition. Alongside this they run employee participation and suggestion schemes, usually with a theme so they can really focus people's energy into helping solve key matters.

The company's comprehensive internal training schedule supports the specific requirements of their employees in a way that an external provider couldn't necessarily do, as it is so specific to their business, run by people within the business. They have a true knowledge sharing focused approach, which helps to keep costs down, but has proven to be highly successful with increased percentage scores in their annual employee survey for Training & Development. It has raised skill levels across the business and supports the development plans of all employees, as it provides employees with the opportunities to learn new skills and gain further understanding of industry relevant information.

At Corven they offer a comprehensive bonus package to all of their employees across all career bands/grades. It consists of a number of different elements measured against individual and company performance. One of the elements of their bonus package that they believe is unique, compared to other similar sized organisations, is the eligibility of anyone within the organisation to receive a sales bonus for their contributions to gaining new business. Sales bonuses are not linked to status or career levels but based on individual contributions towards winning new business for Corven and can greatly enhance individual remuneration packages.

For CloudSense listening to employees and seeking their ideas and feedback is at the core of engaging with them. The introduction of their social collaboration tool “Chatter” has created a mind shift at CloudSense. All of the senior management team are on Chatter and can post messages, files, videos, etc instantly to the whole company. Any employee can also direct post a message directed to each other, including the senior management team. That message is public so anyone within the company can view the response. They have found that this has created a real time conversation that has driven engagement as it has driven instant public conversations from the management team that everyone can see and respond to. The company no longer use email as their communication tool internally as Chatter has opened up the internal conversation through becoming a social enterprise.

At 5 and 10 years service BIU send staff on luxury holidays.

Michael Saunders, the MD, has an open door policy and is genuinely open to ideas from everyone in the business. He gets out and about to all the teams in the business and gets involved in projects from the largest to the smallest. Once a month Michael hosts a group discussion where a small number of randomly selected employees get together to ask him questions about the company and make suggestions. Michael has a policy of sharing as much information as possible with the whole company which many employees have noted that the level of transparency is reassuring and they feel like trusted and valued members of the company.

To encourage BCM employees to report safety violations or close calls. They incentivise a periodic reporting system by raffling £100 every 4 weeks.

Arcus employees are wholly involved in projects concerning upgrading homes for various Housing Association clients. In this respect they are an integral part of providing decent affordable homes for people across the UK. Each employee also has the opportunity to volunteer for a charity of their own choosing for one day each year to help and support in any way they want. Offices are able to take a working day out to support specific initiatives in their local community if there is something they want to get involved with. Arcus have signed up to ProHelp which allows Arcus to commit their professional time as Project Managers, Architects, Building Surveyors and Cost Managers to making a difference in their local community by providing free advice and professional support. For example, we gave 250 hours of professional time to assist the development of a Community Centre and Synthetic sports pitch in Droylsden, Manchester. The centre will be used by various community groups as well as providing a learning centre for local adults and others within the community.

All staff receive BUPA care and have subsidised gym membership open to them. The firm is generous in its approach to staff illness and personal problems. The firm is able to offer flexibility regarding working hours either on a one off basis or as a longer term arrangement.

Employees have bespoke training programmes devised for their specific job role requirements. These are in various formats, however but follow the ethos of career and personal development. Top Talent is a programme for Consultants to apply for who wish to be promoted to the next level up and devised programme will allow them to gain experience and on the job training and be mentored by colleagues within the organisation to experience what the reality of Branch Managers role is. This development programme is a course to enhance the knowledge and skills of Consultants who based on their current experience and achievements against target are provided guidance and enrichment in their current role whether this leads to promotion to Branch Manager or elsewhere within the Company. Career Ladders is a document provided to all employees to advise them of the expectations in the current role and how they can be supported and what they need to do to get to the next role.

Absoft continue to commit to graduate recruitment and development. They have taken on 10 graduates over the course of this year and as a management team devoted considerable time and energy into a development programme to support this.

Everyone is encouraged to take on as much responsibility as they desire and to be accountable for activities within their control. Staff are given flexibility and autonomy and although guided toward reaching agreed goals, are encouraged to find their own way, asking for assistance when needed. Recognise and reward a job well done. Monthly scorecard to provide metric to Agents and allows them to understand their performance against set and attainable goals

A key message from Jack, the Managing Director shortly follows the fortnightly Senior Management Team meetings to share with employee discussions and decisions made. This promotes transparency and the cascade of important information throughout the Council. He demonstrates through his actions how he wishes to be fairly treated alongside all employees; for example, when the Council tightened up entitlements to payments of car allowances for budget pressures, he relinquished his entitlement to an essential user car allowance and also wrote to the Leader of the Council indicating that because of the economic climate he will not accept any increase in salary for the next 2 years and that, even then, any increase would be subject to the Council achieving its programmed savings for the next 2 financial years.

Supporting local residents to transform their neighbourhoods through environmental projects such as multi award winning Kingfisher trail project. In the 1960's this 1.75 mile area, known as ‘The Brook' was a place of beauty, where local people would often go to escape the bustle of urban life. Over the last few decades, the area was neglected and it became overgrown and a dumping ground for rubbish. The stream clogged up and became filthy and foul smelling. Four years ago, a group of local residents decided they would bring the area back to the place of beauty it once was. Working with the local community, Trent & Dove Housing, the Heart of Burton Partnership, East Staffordshire Council and Staffordshire County Council, they have achieved a tremendous amount. The area has now been transformed, and is once more a place where local people can come to relax, enjoy and escape from the stresses of urban life.

Supporting local residents to transform their neighbourhoods through environmental projects such as multi award winning Kingfisher trail project. In the 1960's this 1.75 mile area, known as ‘The Brook' was a place of beauty, where local people would often go to escape the bustle of urban life. Over the last few decades, the area was neglected and it became overgrown and a dumping ground for rubbish. The stream clogged up and became filthy and foul smelling. Four years ago, a group of local residents decided they would bring the area back to the place of beauty it once was. Working with the local community, Trent & Dove Housing, the Heart of Burton Partnership, East Staffordshire Council and Staffordshire County Council, they have achieved a tremendous amount. The area has now been transformed, and is once more a place where local people can come to relax, enjoy and escape from the stresses of urban life.

Taunton School hold an end of year barbecue and farewell drinks. There is also The Armed man Concert at Wells Cathedral for everyone to attend.

St Wilfrids participate in activities promoted by the Dying Matters coalition which aims to promote increased awareness of the need to discuss issues relating to end of life and encourage everyone to plan for this and discuss their wishes and plans with their loved ones. An additional campaign was launched by Help the Hospices this October and Hospice Awareness Week was marked here by an open afternoon with the theme 'Be Surprised'. This event was held to promote better understanding of hospice care as well as encourage members of the public to discuss end of life issues.

St David's seek to enhance the wellbeing of their employees by offering Occupational Health.

At RHP they believe true leadership happens in the moment between people and there is no one way of leading. Leadership is about ‘making sense of things' in a memorable way to gain commitment rather than compliance where employees follow willingly with energy, enthusiasm, passion and a sense of ownership. Exceptional managers work hard to bring collective intelligence and develop leaders at all levels within the organisation. Their EMT recognise the importance of ‘keeping it real', being connected and getting help from others. Their egos don't lead the organisation, their sense of perspective, clarity of thought, supporting others by providing a great place to work and creating the environment for people to be successful is what makes the real difference at RHP. This works because they have shared values, openness, trust and respect for other's opinions.

For the past two years all staff have received the same amount of pay award irrespective of their level within the organisation. Plus Dane also operate a 'Neighbourhood Hero Award' which staff and managers nominate a staff member to receive. Along with a Neighbourhood Hero card, they receive Marks and Spencers vouchers thanking them for their involvement in a particular piece of work or for them going the extra mile.

P3's annual management conference had a really beneficial impact on employee engagement last year, impacting not only on the managers and supervisory staff who attended, but this also filtered through to all employees. This annual two day event runs on a theme of all levels of managerial staff being involved in updating and reviewing P3's strategic plan. This ensures that all staff are engaged in the plan and understand its purpose and aims. It also means that their plan is relevant to each team and department on a local level as they have been involved in it from the very beginning. This then follows through to teams through team meetings, feedback events and the JCC so staff are aware of where their service fits in to the plan, and how they can impact, both as a team and as individuals.

The leader of Mosscare has a clear passion for and pride in the work of The Mosscare Housing Group. In leading the organisation he seeks to include, engage and listen to staff, customers and other stakeholders so together they can fulfil their vision of “achieving excellence in all they do”. Currently he is undertaking a shadow placement with each of the teams within the Group.

Mosscare's culture and approach to staff engagement is to: - Consult - Listen - Respond - Act. Following this approach develops the trust of staff and gives them confidence to come forward with ideas and suggestions. Mosscare provide three examples of where this approach to engagement has led to positive change: - in the consultation on their 2011-16 Corporate Plan, a staff member encapsulated the approach of Mosscare with the suggested phrase "Pride in our past and passion for our future". These words resonated with the wider staff group and the boards of Mosscare and Mossbank. They were embraced within one of their strategic challenges and featured as the title to the 2010/11 Annual Report; - Their Mosscare in the Community Day, described later in this submission reflected the innovative ideas and suggestions provided by a range of staff from within the group. The success of the day was to a large extent, due to the belief of staff that their ideas had been taken seriously and were making a real difference and impact bringing benefit to local residents and neighbourhoods; - In 2010-11 a proposed staffing re-structure of the organisation was changed significantly following consultation with staff who responded with positive and constructive ideas for a revised structure which was embraced by the organisation as the best way forward. Success has been achieved through the revised structure.

Luminus encourages all employees to be healthy. Their impressive suite of health and wellbeing benefits include an online personal health management system, subsidised gym membership, pension and non-contributory health plan (recently expanded to employees' children). The company believe the most effective wellbeing tool they have is their flexible working policy. Whether it is offering bank workers term-time contracts, or enabling full-time employees to work around rush hour traffic, everyone benefits from this approach. It also ensures that managers are able to monitor their employees' working hours, ensuring a healthy work-life balance. Employees can accrue time and take up to an extra 13 days leave a year, on top of their already generous leave allowance. For some employees, i.e. those with more than five years service, this can amount to up to 43 days (excluding public holidays). Staff are keen to stay with Luminus because of the interest they take in their health and wellbeing, resulting in: an increase in staff retention level to 96.1% (2009: 88.8%), a 40% reduction in sickness absence to 3.4% (8.3% in 2009), and increased staff satisfaction and motivation as evidenced through their 2010 employee survey results.

During Summer 2011 Chan held Premium Brand Employer meetings for all employees over a lunch hour so he could hear views on how they can achieve their 2020 Vision: The Road to Renewal. In these highly interactive weekly sessions he encouraged everyone to be open and honest in their feedback. These meetings greatly impacted on employee engagement as it underlined to all employees that the Senior Management Team were open to constructive feedback. Following these meetings various initiatives have been put in place, including integrating their trades team in their monthly staff conferences instead of holding a separate quarterly meeting for them.

The company's vision statement really sums up what they do - 'No young person or woman, whatever their problems and background, will be without a comprehensive and holistic package of support, until they are truly capable of sustaining an independent and acceptable lifestyle within their chosen community.' Llamau works hard at realising this vision with each and every service user it comes in to contact with. Often service users are referred to Llamau when no other agency will support them due to varying reasons. Their belief is that they can work with almost anyone and will go that extra mile to finding their worth in society. Research: To ensure Llamau continues to develop the most effective services, they are proud to be participating in several research projects. Two of the projects are part of the Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) programme with two Welsh Universities. The organisations are working together in order to improve services at Llamau by transferring research into practice. Developing housing services which reduce reoffending. Llamau has recently undertaken a two year research, strategy and lobbying project to develop effective accommodation services for young people involved in the Youth Justice System.

Llamau operates a core competency training matrix. Clearly listed is the employer's position with regards to employee development. In the last BEST Company survey they won an award based on the principles of how they operate this development programme throughout Llamau.

In summer 2011 the company held an all staff event at the University's sport facilities to promote the facilities to encourage employees to sign up for membership. The event included dodgeball, swimming, 5 a side football, climbing wall, spinning, image consultancy, and walking tours amongst other things. For the last two years the company have also run an employee baking league. This has been particularly effective for engaging their staff in something fun at work , mixing with other people and encouraging them to take a break! In previous years they have offered an employee Wellbeing Week every January. Employees can participate in a number of healthy activities during their working time to improve their health, safety and wellbeing. Free fruit is also provided during the week. The idea for the week is that they provide free of charge taster sessions that employees can then choose to continue in their own time to improve their lifestyles.

The organisation operates an open and transparent management style and their 'flat' structure allows quality communications at all levels. The Chief Executive offers free lunches to all employees three times a year when she is willing to explain and outline proposed changes to service delivery, changes that affect staff and any question which employees feel they want to ask. Since the last survey they have ensured all teams have a breakdown on the results and that they share ideas and suggestions to improve the working lives of employees. Examples have been the installation of water coolers and a tuck shop for staff.

They organise a quarterly new staff lunch where the CEO seeks feedback and ideas from staff who have joined Jewish Care recently. There are also Ask Simon postcards where staff can get in touch with the CEO to make suggestions, give feedback or ask questions. There are also tea and chat sessions where the CEO visits care homes and community centres to chat to staff and volunteers about issues they may have. Since the last survey they have implemented many changes. They have launched their Benefits You booklet giving details of the benefits they offer to all staff, together with their 2011 Reward Statement and have communicated information about bench marked salaries. They have shared results with teams and managers and launched a new leadership award for the manager with the best ‘My Manager' scores - the winner received £500 to use towards their own career development. They are also currently planning a 'not so new' staff lunch for longer serving employees to have lunch with the CEO.

Hospiscare supports employee development best through its comprehensive Learning and Development Programme. This in-house programme offers 71 separate training opportunities between April 2011 and March 2012. These range from one hour sessions on a ‘hot topic', to essential updates to support staff in their roles, to four day courses on Bereavement and Loss. The programme is needs-led and responsive, with managers and employees regularly being consulted on their learning needs. This programme is also informed through analysis of appraisals and the training needs identified within them. Needs are responded to quickly either by provision of an in-house course if demand is great enough and there is capacity within the organisation, if the need cannot be met in-house an appropriate external course is sought.

In the last 12 months there has been the formation of a Senior Managers' Group which means there is a core group of managers responsible for key aspects such as managing attendance and working together to support the Leadership Team as well as managers and colleagues within their teams. It enables idea sharing and a cohesive approach to guiding and supporting colleagues across the Trust, as well as an additional forum for sharing ideas and listening and learning from experiences. Nick Atkin the Chief Executive is an exceptional leader who is the driving force behind the performance, direction and success of the organisation. What makes him distinctive is his approach to business, to the customers; to colleagues and to the working environment he has created. In business, he is very driven and extremely determined. He leads by example, is very well respected and strives for excellence and success. He is innovative, encourages new ideas and radical thinking and embraces change. On a personal level, he is extremely personable and supportive, accessible and takes a personal interest in all colleagues.

GHA knows face-to-face communication is the best way to get staff involved. During periods of change or when new initiatives are launching, the Chief Executive Martin Armstrong takes time out to go round local offices having face-to-face meetings with staff. He talks to them in an honest, open and inspirational way, challenging staff to give their views and listening to their feedback. Teamtalk, their internal communications strategy, ensures information is cascaded to every member of staff to facilitate team discussion sessions and staff are encouraged to give feedback to managers. They have a strong culture of listening to feedback from all surveys and external assessments, celebrating successes and putting in place improvement plans to address all issues highlighted. Their journey to deliver excellent services for their customers has been hugely influenced by survey feedback and external assessment. Staff are involved in shaping the improvements they put in place, through their teams and in joint forums.

Their Staff SVQ programme at their Homeless Person's Project, Victoria House is an excellent example of how the Association supports employee development. They have an annual programme in place for staff going through the SVQ Level 3 in Health & Social Care and to date they have over 75% of staff through the programme which is well ahead of the completion target set by the Scottish Social Services Council. To maximise the support for staff going through this training, the Association invested in training two members of staff as SVQ Assessors this has made a tremendous improvement to the training experience for the staff taking part and it has meant that their training is more focused and minimises travel requirements and disruption to work patterns in this shift working environment.

They have an extensive health and wellbeing programme. The most recent event was the Clyde Valley 10K team. One of the Leaders sought participants in order to raise funds for the chosen charity. He got nominations from all areas of the business and the company paid for entrant's fees and corporate tops. They mixed staff from all areas of the company, who through fun training sessions, became more confident and closer, resulting in improved team working. The team developed a great bond and raised a significant amount of money. The participants were all at different levels of fitness, some ran, some walked, but they all encouraged each other and waited for each other at the finish line. They had a team night out to celebrate and have committed to doing it again next year and encouraging others to join them. The running club has continued and staff now go out for a run once a week. They also did the annual health walk, have an onsite gym, carry out annual health checks for staff and provide advice on general health issues.

During the past year the CEO, Mark Molden, has held a series of workshops, incorporating all members of staff, examining and considering their organisational values and the behaviours that they want to encourage within Care for the Family that are reflective of these values. These sessions have been enormously valuable and have seen staff engaging thoughtfully and passionately with what it means, in practical terms, to live out the values of the organisation. The leader sets the tone for the rest of the organisation and empowers managers to move from being risk averse to risk taking. He is distinctive in that he shares his personal story and openly acknowledges his own weaknesses, which engenders a culture of honesty and authenticity in the organisation.

In addition to flexible working opportunities, ASDAN also provides Work Life Balance days for staff to compensate for overnight stays (one day per three nights away). Centrally they have also responded to interest expressed in the Staff Forum and approved a Pilates class which is now available to colleagues on site after work.

In 2008, they set up the Urban Splash Charitable Trust. The overall ambition for the trust is to be involved with local organisations and charities that are poorly funded. It was set up to fund projects related to deprived communities, the arts and urban regeneration. The trust is funded from the profits of the Urban Splash Group. At the moment, the main activity of the trust is the operation of a scheme whereby each member of staff can nominate his or her favourite charity to receive a donation of up to £100 in any one year. Staff often request help with sponsored events in which they are personally taking part.

The Toolbank News Letter which is sent out every 3-4 months in the year has worked really well as employees are constantly informing them of any fund raising they have been doing, welcoming new staff, congratulating colleagues on their nuptials or new arrivals. The news letter has allowed employees to get involved and the feedback from employees has been that the news letter has been very well received as it is great to know what is going on in the other branches.

The company have a structured charitable giving approach which incorporates the following: * Duke of Edinburgh charity - as a company they donate 20k per year to the charity, as well as employees partaking in events, and raising money for the charity, during the course of the year. A charity and CSR committee that are dedicated to raising money for events and ensuring they are doing all they can as a business to reduce their impact on the environment.

TAFC are continuously looking for ways in which they can reward their staff. This doesn't always have to have a monetary value to it, but Authentic appreciate how hard their team work and want to make sure they feel valued and their loyalty and dedication to the business does not go unnoticed. Alongside bonus payments, pay increases and internal promotions, TAFC offer "spot rewards". These "spot rewards" include concert and football tickets, champagne, hotel breaks and shopping vouchers. These are presented by the MD and the company believe this is a great way of keeping their staff motivated as well as thanking and rewarding them for their hard work. These can be received for implementing a new process or simply being a supportive member of the team.

The leaders of Tamdown believe strongly in giving something back to their community and giving to charity. Tamdown set up the Tamdown Foundation with the aim is to raise £100,000 for charities in 2011. Five charities have been nominated by members of the Tamdown team; each charity has a very personal link with a member of staff. Tamdown committed 1% of its profits in 2011 to get the fund underway. Fundraising events taken place throughout the year include: Tamdown Annual Triathlon, Summer Charity Ball, London to Paris Bike Ride, 24 Hour Swim, Tamdown Quiz Night. So far the Tamdown Group has raised in excess of £75,000 through fundraising events. This figure does not include 1% of the business's profits so the company are on track to reach their £100,000 target.

Each new member of staff at Summit Media, both at the Wolds and at the Farm, undergoes an initial four week intensive training period provided by their line manager and colleagues. A tailored personal development plan is put together which is then reviewed at weekly one to one sessions with their individual line managers. These sessions are designed to monitor progress and to provide guidance. They also have regular coaching sessions covering topics and disciplines specific to the industry. There are bi-weekly training sessions at group level specifically aimed at improving industry knowledge. External training is carried out by Google and MSN and the company's tracking and analytics provider. New staff are also encouraged to participate in online webinars and to undertake personal training in their own time to gain the Google GAP and Microsoft qualifications.

Once a month Skrill has a "Beer & Chips" event in each office where new joiners and new departments are invited to take part in the "CEO Hot Chair", giving them opportunity to ask the company's leaders any kind of questions.

SFP Group is absolutely committed to supporting employee development. At the start of every year, the company identify the training needs for every individual, and determine what courses are most appropriate and the associated costs so that budgets can be agreed. The best example in recent times is the support SFP Group gave to three of their team to take their respective JIE insolvency and accountancy examinations that required long periods (more than one month) of study leave. All three passed. Indeed it is important to stress that prior to joining the SFP Group, two of the three individuals had no experience or qualification in insolvency. Now they have gone from juniors from Managers who, in the next few years, will be office holders. There are other similar examples across the group and in different departments, from broking to marketing.

SFP Group is absolutely committed to supporting employee development. At the start of every year, the company identify the training needs for every individual, and determine what courses are most appropriate and the associated costs so that budgets can be agreed. The best example in recent times is the support SFP Group gave to three of their team to take their respective JIE insolvency and accountancy examinations that required long periods (more than one month) of study leave. All three passed. Indeed it is important to stress that prior to joining the SFP Group, two of the three individuals had no experience or qualification in insolvency. Now they have gone from juniors from Managers who, in the next few years, will be office holders. There are other similar examples across the group and in different departments, from broking to marketing.

Managers at Red Commerce ensure that the reviews they conduct have a '360' element to them, so that after each review both manager and team member have a list of actions to complete. Managers have regular informal feedback sessions with their teams and run regular breakout sessions with their teams to talk about hot topics and share ideas and information. At least once a month, managers will ensure that they spread some time with their teams in a less formal (i.e. social) setting to encourage honesty and openness, as opinions tend to flow more freely in this setting than around the desks! With regards to rewards, managers will offer both individual and team incentives for performance against a variety of targets, daily, weekly or monthly, and will also send emails around the business to highlight outstanding performances.

Pure Recruitment Group holds a Quarterly Communications meeting where the company provides employees with information about the business and staff are actively encouraged to submit items for discussion and new ideas.

PPDG have a comprehensive internal communications strategy, that aims to inform and engage employees in a variety of ways, including: Workshops. Last year their Executive and People Development Directors embarked upon a companywide road show to canvass the opinions of employees regarding a range of key business areas, from IT systems to benefits/rewards. The outputs of all sessions were collated and feedback to operational and departmental heads who are taking direct action where necessary. The results of the exercise and actions taken will be communicated to all workshop participants & discussed at all PPDG site meetings. Executive Briefing: a re-vamped version of a previous communication tool, the Executive Briefing is a discussion document that shadows the Executive Board meeting, with key business updates/strategic issues released to all staff via their intranet system. All managers are encouraged to discuss its content as a standard action point within team meetings.

Outsourcery strives to deliver expertise, supporting individuals to acquire and be recognised for knowledge. Supporting industry recognised qualifications and awards. Whether a professional award in project management, a qualification in management accountancy or a masters degree in human resources Outsourcery look to equip individuals with skills to achieve. Promoting development, Outsourcery have 3 training support policies. Vocational non work related course sponsorship. Professional role specific related course sponsorship.Technical Training . Microsoft competency based qualifications. Colleagues have so far gained expertise in Software Development AGILE, SCRUM. Management Accountancy accredited by CIMA, Human Resources accredited by CIPD, People Management accredited by ILM, Purchasing & Procurement accredited CIPS, Financial Accounting accredited by AAT, Project Management e.g. Prince2 qualifications, Marketing accredited by CIM. Outsourcery will be investing in development further in 2011/12 by introducing a graduate programme where a large number of employees will be involved , helping them develop leadership qualities. Succession planning is key on the agenda during 2012 . They have an internal induction programme. The Insights programme is also utilised by all employees. Train the trainer.

OPM give their staff time for community benefit, and freedom to use that time as they see fit. Staff members get six days a year for volunteering. This has led to a range of innovative and impactful volunteering - community groups in Camden, staff work with a centre in Somerstown. Support includes running a community café and classes for people with English as a second language. For the past eight years staff have worked with the Calthorpe Project a community garden and centre, keeping the site in fit repair. They've also been raising money and campaigning for the Project to continue - an unfortunate victim of council funding cuts, despite the local authority being one of OPM's biggest clients. In terms of support to the ‘wider world', OPM staff run monthly fundraising projects, including bake-offs, bring and buy sales and charity auctions. Staff have raised thousands of pounds for the Pakistan floods appeal, Sudan crisis and Japanese earthquake recovery.

Share information in an open and honest way and ensure fresh and relevant information is relayed in a timely fashion. Facilitating team meetings and ensuring that information is cascaded through the organisation.

NMB offer a wide range of benefits to employees in order to enhance their wellbeing. These include; private healthcare to all employees, their partners and their children, health screening which is provided to all employees upon request or should NMB feel this may be beneficial after a period of long term sickness, etc. and gym membership at either a corporate or local gym is offered. They also promote a Cycle to Work Scheme and reimburse the costs of any eye tests for VDU users. In addition, NMB provides fresh fruit and water daily to all 8 floors within the building and also fund a company netball and football team that both have matches during lunch times to promote and encourage healthy living. There is also a company funded darts team so they're a very active company!

Neal's Yard Remedies manage an employee forum that is designed specifically for employees to be able to get their business ideas heard. Representatives attend the forum from all parts of the business. In addition to bringing all the ideas directly to the table, and into the hands of the Director team, they also operate as a sensory panel to give feedback on all new product development. Monthly briefings are delivered by the Director team to all employees in the Head Office and the London Offices, to make sure that everyone is up to date on the company's performance and strategic direction. This presentation is then sent out to all stores.

MRL Consulting Group offer Consultants a chance to win a Rolex upon achievement of a specific sales goal.

Mercedes-Benz UK have 600 e-learning programmes on-line for employees to access as well as Ashridge's Virtual Learning which all employee have access to.

As a multi-national corporation there are many initiatives that focus on giving back. In fact Medtronic have a Medtronic Foundation which provides over US$60 million in grants and donations to charities and causes over the last year such as the Japanese Tsunami but it is the motivation and enthusiasm to give something back at a local level which makes us stand out. Every UK employee is given one day paid to volunteer or do something worthwhile for a charitable cause. Around Watford where their UK HQ is based teams have been involved in landscaping gardens for the New Hope Trust. Medtronic are co-sponsors of the Great Watford Walk which most recently raised £12,000, giving Watford Mencap, The Peace Hospice and Watford New Hope Trust £4000 each. Sometimes an employee comes up with a great idea which Medtronic are able to support. For example, one of their customer service team suggested running a curry and quiz night for a local girl who was trying to raise money for a defribillator. Forty employees turned out for a curry and quiz night paid for by Medtronic and all proceeds generated from the tickets went to little Maisie's campaign.

Medicare First believe the key to ensuring the wellbeing of their employees is to offer a strong inclusive leadership within an atmosphere of professionalism, fairness, respect, fun, friendliness coupled with reward and recognition for a job well done. The open plan office environment and the hands on approach of their senior management team enables them to communicate, understand and work effectively with the employees to demonstrate they are the company's most valuable asset.

The managers show much greater flexibilty. It is now commonplace for staff to be working from home on some occasions, to be given opportunities to leave the business earlier on a Friday if travelling away for the weekend. The managers create and agree development plans with staff on an annual basis. The managers feedback the vision to their teams and quarterly objectives are created in line with the plan. The managers review competencies with each of their staff at least once a year.

Managers conduct employee reviews twice annually to understand employees' ongoing needs. Managers lead by example regarding ongoing development and actively encourage non-management employees to harness all the training and development opportunities available to them. Managers offer on-the-job mentoring outside of set hours and/or appraisals to continuously give and receive feedback. Managers actively encourage all employees to get involved in CSR initiatives and lead by example on this. The same goes for social sports and other social activities outside work hours.

As the majority of the managers have themselves progressed through the company they have the ability to empathise and understand the workload and pressures that comes with each role. Because Team Managers sit with their teams they are accessible and approachable and are on hand to recognise and observe any excessive workload or pressures their team may have and can rectify the situation before it manifests into something larger. Targets are discussed regularly and performance around the targets is constantly reviewed. All managers actively encourage their teams to recognise their colleagues successes by asking them to vote for who that week is most deserving for recognition and receive the team's trophy.

The hotel focuses on different areas for employee development. This could be personal including OTJ (On the Job), GTT (Group Training Techniques) to MLD (Managing Learning & Development). The hotel has in recent years developed two modular Programmes called Move Up and Move Forward using an external company. Move Up is designed for Supervisors or Junior Managers whereas Move Forward is a twelve month programme which focuses on the development of Department Heads. This course is largely facilitated externally at a cost of £25,000 a year for 10-12 delegates a year and is also accreditated by the ILM. The company also sponsors Senior Managers in full to attend MBA including residentials off-site.

Line managers are given significant training in how to manage their teams, and being open to feedback and allowing team members to ask questions is instrumental in this training. Employees have the opportunity to do this during their one to ones, team meetings, six monthly reviews and yearly appraisals. Plus Lexis encourages an open door policy whereby everyone in the agency is approachable and visible, regardless of title.

The most effective approach is an ambitious digital training programme which began towards the end of 2010 and was completed in the summer of 2011, facilitated by uTalk Marketing. Leo Burnett wanted to inspire and excite their people about the opportunities digital offers and give people the specific, practical skills to create digital communications. By running a fully comprehensive training programme featuring nine interactive workshops for their account management, planning and creative teams, they gave them confidence to integrate digital into their everyday work and talk to clients about digital with the same credibility that they can talk about offline communications. The workshops were attended by mixed peer groups which made interaction between attendees more beneficial and left people feeling empowered and inspired to take a different approach to their day-to-day tasks. Leo Burnett's course evaluation showed the programme was enormously successful. 94% of staff stated that they were "very satisfied" with the programme. To complement the utalkmarketing training activity Leo Burnett also undertook a number of other development initiatives to enhance the digitisation of the agency such as lunchtime learning sessions with companies such as Facebook, Google, etc. and Q&A clinics in specialist areas such as Social Media, User Experience, Hypermedia, Digital Production etc.

Leasedirect encourage an open forum for suggestions and feedback. All departmental managers actively seek new ideas from their teams within their regular team meetings and one-to-ones. At their last Christmas party, they gave everyone giant post-it notes and asked them to put any suggestions on a big blank wall, which also proved a novel and fun way of them getting their ideas across allowing them anonymity if desired. Key sales people have been nominated and taken an active role in the overall management of their business. Leasedirect also regularly 'survey' their employees for ideas, suggestions and feedback on initiatives they are planning before they are launched. Their people are included in all development initiatives in respect of their working environment and the projects that the business supports within the local community.

Langland has supported the work of charity Sebastian's Action Trust for the last five years. Initially, the company provided purely financial support but over the years this has evolved and they now provide professional communications advice and services such as newsletters, leaflets and the website, on a pro bono basis. In 2010, Langland sponsored the employment of an experienced fundraiser and their Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer became patrons of the charity in recognition of the support that they give to the Trust.

Lands' End's managers are keen to understand how they behave in the workplace by completing a Personal Profile Analysis. They also receive direct feedback from their superiors, colleagues and subordinates by completing the 360 degree feedback process. Lands' End managers work with their teams to plan and prioritise workloads. The Managers are able to recognise and reward in various ways including Individual Performance Awards (£), above effective annual appraisal ratings, employee evaluations in our Operational areas (EEvA), trophies, vouchers (£) and team awards.

It is difficult to pull out just one or two examples of how Lands' End seek to enhance the wellbeing of their employees as they offer a raft of opportunities which they believe encompasses the full diversity of their employees. Lands' End recognise that personal development, job satisfaction and a realistic work/life balance all have a positive impact on the wellbeing of their employees.

Kyocera Mita run two ad hoc employee reward schemes. One is an extra mile award which is awarded to employees who put in extra special effort - e.g. during the unexpected absence of a colleague, in order to meet a particular tough deadline, in order to avert a crisis. Employees can be nominated by any member of staff with the Human Resources Manager making the decision as to whether or not the award should be granted. The award is usually a bottle of champagne. The other is the Employee Excellence Award. This is awarded to employees who not only put in extra special effort but who are exceptional in all aspects of their work and are fully engaged in the company culture. Employees can be nominated by any member of staff with the executive team making the decision as to whether or not the award should be granted. The award is usually flowers, champagne and £100 of high street vouchers.

Kyocera Mita run two ad hoc employee reward schemes. One is an extra mile award which is awarded to employees who put in extra special effort - e.g. during the unexpected absence of a colleague, in order to meet a particular tough deadline, in order to avert a crisis. Employees can be nominated by any member of staff with the Human Resources Manager making the decision as to whether or not the award should be granted. The award is usually a bottle of champagne. The other is the Employee Excellence Award. This is awarded to employees who not only put in extra special effort but who are exceptional in all aspects of their work and are fully engaged in the company culture. Employees can be nominated by any member of staff with the executive team making the decision as to whether or not the award should be granted. The award is usually flowers, champagne and £100 of high street vouchers.

KFI has a monthly bonus scheme in place for the majority of people that allows them to earn an additional 20% OTE. Targets are set for each person which are specifically related to performance and quality. Capital bonds are paid over and above the monthly bonus scheme. All of Kwik-Fit's people are engaged in the scheme that allows them to earn bonds each month for achieving performance and quality targets. Bonds accrue over the year and are paid at Christmas. Their employee of the year scheme also ensures people feel rewarded for their efforts. Every month each department identifies their employee of the month. All winners are rewarded with free food in the restaurant, access to the concierge service and gym membership for one month. All winners go through to the four monthly Qualifier Awards and department winners are treated to a day off and lunch with the senior management team. Qualifier winners are also invited to their Employee of the Year ceremony. This is a black tie event held in a 5 star venue and partners are invited. Each department winner gets £1000 and the overall employee of the year is awarded £10,000.

Keoghs have recently funded heavily in all their Team Leaders attending a Team Leadership Development Programme. This course was designed to run over 4 days over 4 months and consists of the following modules; Leading Teams, Developing High Performing Teams, Coaching and Engaging Teams. Each Team Leader upon completing the four modules is asked to do a work based project to be presented to a Business Unit Director. All Team Leaders and the Team Leaders of the future have attended this course which has been a great success.

Each piece of work given to a staff member is formally reviewed by a more Senior Manager, thereby providing very regular feedback. Appraisals are carried out twice yearly for all staff, ensuring that all employees know what is expected of them, and receive feedback on the macro level.

Sometimes the simple ideas which have stood the test of time are the best, so the company place great emphasis on their appraisal process. Appraisals take place twice in the year, and focus not only on an assessment of performance and areas for development, but also on engagement and career potential. Technical and soft skills are assessed by reference to 'Career Maps' - freely available documents which lay out the requirements for staff at each of seven levels within each of their professional practice functions. Every appraisal is read by a representative from the HR team, and one from the Training and Development team, so that support can be given on an individual level to the appraiser as well as the appraisee.

Performance related bonuses are offered across some key areas of the business e.g. sales. An annual bonus is given to all members of staff at Christmas as a thank you for their hard work over the festive period. The company allocates money to each department so they can enjoy a meal out together. A small Christmas Eve party is held for all staff providing drinks and nibbles along with a gift for everyone. When an employee has contributed something really worthwhile they will always use the in house publication to print an article about them.

Lunn's has always provided financial support to worldwide disaster appeals. They are also proud of the fact that they have provided stable employment over the past 30 years through which N Ireland and Belfast city centre in particular was considered a hostile place with violence that was reported around the world.

The company have acted on the results of the survey by communicating to management and the board what they do well and what they could do better. This will be followed by 'next steps' and an evaluation.

Henderson Wholesale has won many awards for the contributions which are made to charities, through Give-As-You Earn payroll deductions. Last year, employees contributed more than £100k of their pay to charities of their choice and this sum was matched by the company. The company was recently Highly Commended at the National Payroll Giving Awards for the generosity of its employees.

Every staff member is treated with respect and as an individual - so everyone will have different needs as an individual with regard to personal wellbeing. As Greenworks Solutions Ltd are nationally based and most staff only visit the office weekly, the organisation cannot provide extensive on site facilities as most people would be unable to take advantage of them. They have staff members whose families have, or had, ageing family members and Greenworks Solutions have developed flexible working and reduced hours specifically to allow them to spend quality time with their family
Greenworks Solutions encourage work sharing, and part time work to fit individuals.

Monthly company funded stress management discussions, facilitated externally, which includes 'stress free days' utilising stress relieving methods. Company funded external quarterly in work hours health and wellbeing consultations covering diet, blood pressure, cholesterol testing, BMI etc. Company subsidised gym membership.

Monthly company funded stress management discussions, facilitated externally, which includes 'stress free days' utilising stress relieving methods. Company funded external quarterly in work hours health and wellbeing consultations covering diet, blood pressure, cholesterol testing, BMI etc. Company subsidised gym membership.

Eurostaff Group respect employees' life outside of work: time for family, friends and outside interests/hobbies. Managers have the ability to alter working hours and responsibilities to make working life more flexible. The introduction of the early finish at 3pm on a Friday was a result of realising the efforts of employees. Managers spend one on one time with each employee at least once a week either inside or outside the organisation, in which they discuss personal goals and ambitions, and what they can do to help them reach their potential. Managers set clear key performance indicators for every employee, and are quick to reward high achievements with a market leading incentive scheme including trips to Paris and Las Vegas. Managers and Directors all sit on the sales floor, not locked away in an office. An open door policy is not necessary at Eurostaff as there are no doors. Each individual's opinion and feedback is invaluable and considered. Many approaches and processes were heavily influenced by employee's feedback to managers.

Simon Bassett has been the Managing Director of EMR since 2008, shortly after the company was acquired by FiveTen Group. One of the key reasons Simon is admired and respected by EMR staff and fellow FiveTen Group management is his extensive marketing recruitment experience, having worked in almost every role in EMR, from Junior Consultant through to now Managing Director. This positively influences the culture within EMR, reinforcing one of leading by example, visibility and open communication. Simon also focuses on leading by example by continuously developing himself both personally and professionally through an executive coach, and being a key contributor to the UK marketing community. As such, Simon is a member of The Marketing Society and a regular judge at the annual Marketing Week Engagement Awards. He also supports the CIM with career planning and advice to their members and has been a guest lecturer at Henley Business School. Simon is also Vice Chairman of M Squared, the marketing sector group of APSCo - the professional body that represents the interests of recruitment organisations. As part of a commitment to innovation, Simon introduced Marketer's Pulse in 2011, a Twitter feed devoted to the UK professional marketing community which encourages all EMR stakeholders to get involved, including clients, candidates and employees.

Simon Bassett has been the Managing Director of EMR since 2008, shortly after the company was acquired by FiveTen Group. One of the key reasons Simon is admired and respected by EMR staff and fellow FiveTen Group management is his extensive marketing recruitment experience, having worked in almost every role in EMR, from Junior Consultant through to now Managing Director. This positively influences the culture within EMR, reinforcing one of leading by example, visibility and open communication. Simon also focuses on leading by example by continuously developing himself both personally and professionally through an executive coach, and being a key contributor to the UK marketing community. As such, Simon is a member of The Marketing Society and a regular judge at the annual Marketing Week Engagement Awards. He also supports the CIM with career planning and advice to their members and has been a guest lecturer at Henley Business School. Simon is also Vice Chairman of M Squared, the marketing sector group of APSCo - the professional body that represents the interests of recruitment organisations. As part of a commitment to innovation, Simon introduced Marketer's Pulse in 2011, a Twitter feed devoted to the UK professional marketing community which encourages all EMR stakeholders to get involved, including clients, candidates and employees.

The organisation does a lot to enhance the welfare of their colleagues. They offer many traditional benefits such as a pension, free life assurance, private medical insurance, dental care, optical care, an employee assistance programme, child care voucher scheme, an enhanced service day and unpaid leave package. Ellis Whittam has their own apple trees, colleagues pick their own apples and their committee arranges for those apples to be pressed and bottled. Their home grown organic Ellis Whittam apple juice is then available free of charge for colleagues to drink throughout the winter months. In addition, they have a vegetable patch and produce from it is offered to colleagues with an honesty box. Any funds raised go towards their annual chosen charity. They also organise regular sports competitions including cycle challenges, 'It's a Knockout' and an annual sports day. Taking time out in the fresh air to play and compete together has proven to be hugely successful in enhancing the feeling of wellbeing and morale amongst their colleagues.

Being ISO 14001 certified means that Eland have identified elements of their business that impact the environment. They have produced a policy that ensures they meet stringent objectives according to environmental legislation. The management and adherence to this policy is an ongoing process.

For the second year in a row, Disruptive had their company boat trip. The whole company went to Henley on Thames where they boarded a boat for a cruise down the river. Food, drink and entertainment was provided - on their return for those who wanted the party to continue (it was only 5pm after all) they were dropped off in Marlow for fish and chips and a pub or too. Great night out and a few sore heads the next day.

Cubic Transportation Systems contribute more than £60,000 to charities including Winston's Wish, Headway, Heavenly Stars, Railway Children and Horley Lions. But they also see our contribution in a different light: they build systems that make living in cities safer and more enjoyable by making public transport easier and more attractive to use. They are the people who devised the Oyster card system. In interviews following the roll-out of the system, one Londoner said that he felt, “..with my Oyster card, I own London...”. Oyster is now a London icon, one of the reasons why so many people love the city. And they do the same in Chicago, New York, LA, San Diego, Brisbane and Miami. Few products or services can be said to have made such a positive difference in peoples' lives.

Commercial has run a successful environmental programme for a number of years. It is the first company in its sector to become CarbonNeutral and was declared a Beacon Company for sustainability in 2008. It has successfully reduced waste to landfill by over 90% and normalised carbon emissions by over 70% since 2006. They also have Green Angels, which are a small group of staff from different parts of the business with different levels of seniority who work together for a short time on a project. They are tasked to deliver two things; communication and business transformation. Each Green Angels group selects one commitment as the focus for their activity. One team focused on Eliminate Waste and revamped the internal signage, introduced new recycling bins and added two new recycling streams. They also held a “What a Load of Rubbish Day” which included all staff in seminars, tours and a game to encourage recycling. Following their activity, not only did the level of contamination in recycling bins decrease, but staff also reported much better recycling rates at home.

In response to feedback received from Managers' during their annual reviews in March 2011 requesting presentations from external speakers; the company engaged with Philip Hesketh, a world renowned motivation speaker to conduct training seminars for all staff. The seminars aimed to energise and motivate staff, build their confidence and enhance their customer service abilities. These were well received by all staff members and feedback was very positive. The leader of the organisation leads the organisation with real passion and drive, believes in quick decision-making and does not shy from making hard choices. His open door policy extends to emails and telephone calls and staff do not shy away from contacting him as they know he will listen and offer fair and direct feedback or advice. He is a people's person and makes each member of staff feel valued and appreciated. He values his good relationship with staff and will always ensure they receive the appreciation of the company for their hard work. At the core of his business style is a non-judgemental broad-minded attitude which is evidenced by his positive focus on and interaction with staff.

Citywire has an open plan office for all staff including senior management, this helps keep communication lines open at all levels of the business and direct feedback is welcomed by the Senior Management Team. The Chairman and CEO hold quarterly "town hall" meetings, where everyone in the company is invited; this keeps the staff up to date on company progress and actively encourages questions from staff. Citywire Improvement Group selects twelve individuals each year and gives them the opportunity to present their ideas to help improve the company. The Citywire Improvement groups have been continued with a further two offsite meetings taking place this year. The people invited are asked to come up with ideas to improve life at Citywire.

Citywire Holdings believe their holistic approach to promoting socially responsible behaviours towards the environment, social justice or local community relations is the most effective thing they do in ‘giving something back'. They have a dedicated ‘in the Community' team formed of employee and senior management representatives who help identify, develop, communicate and support employee participation in a breadth of ‘giving back' opportunities and initiatives. They include schools careers fairs, tea party concerts for the elderly and operating a food bank donation facility. Beneficiaries include local, national and global representatives including the young, the elderly, people in poverty or facing other social and educational challenges, people with disability and victims of natural disaster. They also sponsor every employee who undertakes a charitable fund raising initiative or challenge and actively encourage them to pursue internal promotion and awareness of their cause.

As an organisation they undertake staff surveys twice a year as part of their biannual performance review process. At one of their sites an annual staff survey clearly stated that better internal communication was needed. A Comms Group was subsequently created consisting of a diverse range of volunteers from across the site and they have been successfully creating a quarterly newsletter for all of their staff at Nottingham. This is a great way of communicating upcoming events, charity information, recommendations and other areas which might be of interest to staff. It also regularly profiles different partners at the Treatment Centre and has received great feedback from all staff. They also operate an open-door policy for all management including the CEO. Despite being split across a number of sites, they come together every Monday for a video-conference call run by the CEO with contributions invited from all Partners.

Ceuta spread the 'green word' outside by way of communicating and encouraging their people and all their suppliers to be thoughtful about the environment at home as well as at work.

ByBox gives everybody the chance to prove to themselves how good they really could be. It helps them to find and unlock the unique energy that is in all of us but that so many other companies work so hard to stamp-out. At ByBox, it doesn't matter a jot where you came from, how old you are, how you were educated or what you do in your spare time. All that matters is that you have the true desire to be part of something memorable.

Brookson Ltd held a 15 Year Party in September 2010 to celebrate the 15 year anniversary of the company. There was a large focus on how the company had progressed over the 15 years it has been in operation and awards and special mentions were given to staff that had helped to contribute to the success of the business. The event celebrated both the achievements of the company and also the achievements of individual staff members. There was a three course meal, free bar and lots of entertainment this combined with the awards demonstrated that the company recognised and wanted to reward staff for their hard work over the past 15 years which collectively has resulted in the company's success.

Brookson Ltd held a 15 Year Party in September 2010 to celebrate the 15 year anniversary of the company. There was a large focus on how the company had progressed over the 15 years it has been in operation and awards and special mentions were given to staff that had helped to contribute to the success of the business. The event celebrated both the achievements of the company and also the achievements of individual staff members. There was a three course meal, free bar and lots of entertainment this combined with the awards demonstrated that the company recognised and wanted to reward staff for their hard work over the past 15 years which collectively has resulted in the company's success.