Pride Powers Performance

Adobe's reward philosophy is to provide market-competitive rewards allowing them to attract and retain great talent and to differentiate based on exceptional company and individual performance. They provide competitive compensation and benefits programmes as appropriate in each country in which they do business. A critical part of the integrated benefits offering, is their relationship with their UK health insurance provider, PruHealth. In addition to providing market leading medical insurance in the unfortunate event that their employees fall ill, a key part of PruHealth's partnership with Adobe is their focus on how they can make it cheaper and easier for their members to lead a healthy lifestyle, and earn some great rewards by doing so. Their integrated wellness programme, Vitality, provides members with significant discounts with leading gyms, health screening centres, bike retailers and entertainment groups, as well as paying non-smokers cash back directly into their bank accounts. Adobe and PruHealth recognise that many employees never use their Private Medical Insurance, meaning it can often be seen as a cost to you as an employee, rather than a benefit. PruHealth's approach to integrated wellness ensures first class medical insurance provision to those who need to claim, but also provide tangible benefits to those who don't, meaning that everyone can now take advantage of their cover.

Adobe's reward philosophy is to provide market-competitive rewards allowing them to attract and retain great talent and to differentiate based on exceptional company and individual performance. They provide competitive compensation and benefits programmes as appropriate in each country in which they do business. A critical part of the integrated benefits offering, is their relationship with their UK health insurance provider, PruHealth. In addition to providing market leading medical insurance in the unfortunate event that their employees fall ill, a key part of PruHealth's partnership with Adobe is their focus on how they can make it cheaper and easier for their members to lead a healthy lifestyle, and earn some great rewards by doing so. Their integrated wellness programme, Vitality, provides members with significant discounts with leading gyms, health screening centres, bike retailers and entertainment groups, as well as paying non-smokers cash back directly into their bank accounts. Adobe and PruHealth recognise that many employees never use their Private Medical Insurance, meaning it can often be seen as a cost to you as an employee, rather than a benefit. PruHealth's approach to integrated wellness ensures first class medical insurance provision to those who need to claim, but also provide tangible benefits to those who don't, meaning that everyone can now take advantage of their cover.

Adjust Your Set have put together a collection of exercises called Deskercise that employees can incorporate into their working day and do at their desk and around the office. They also offer a Stretch and Tone class one lunchtime each week run by one of their employees to allow staff to exercise during their lunch break. They have introduced a couple of standing workstations to encourage standing meetings or to allow employees to work standing up as much of their jobs are very sedentary.

Adjust Your Set held a company away day which involved all staff spending the day away from the office. People were seated at tables which mixed up different teams and departments and each table worked together on a number of tasks and challenges throughout the day. The company also took part in a Tough Mudder event. It was open to all employees and a team of 14 participated and a similar number coming along to spectate and support the team.

Actavis have an employee reward & recognition scheme that promotes recognition through demonstration of the values and rewards employees with vouchers. Employees can be nominated by colleagues or managers.

Actavis have an employee reward & recognition scheme that promotes recognition through demonstration of the values and rewards employees with vouchers. Employees can be nominated by colleagues or managers.

Academy's directors operate a door always open policy and ideas and suggestions are encouraged from the teams.

Academy Insurance Services offer health insurance to all employees and a cycle to work scheme

David and all senior managers at AAT ensures they are always accessible and visible by working and spending time at all of their work locations. David and all senior managers also attend local team meetings and keeps in touch with employees via the Intranet. David also keeps everyone informed via Twitter and our Ability Facebook page.

Ability Housing continually review how they can support their employees whilst at work. They believe by having and creating a work life balance, their employees will continue to give excellent support and service to their customers. All employees are aware of their health care cash plan as well as the support and advice which can be accessed by their Employee Assistance program. All Managers are empowered to listen and seek feedback and to take appropriate action. In addition as part of AbilityPOSITIVE+ they have set up a Wellbeing group which has enabled them to review their current practises and reward schemes. A Wellbeing group as been set up as part of AbilityPOSITIVE+ to review their current practices and benefits. Recently they enhanced their health plan to include an Employee Assistance Program as well as enhanced gym membership.

The organisation has a number of processes in place that allows colleagues to feedback their ideas and suggestions. Firstly, the organisation makes use of the intranet, Sharepoint and social media, Yammer, as tools for knowledge and idea sharing. All employees have access to these sites. A suggestion facility allows employees to share and feedback any ideas and suggestions they may have on any area of the business. This is a straightforward and effective process to allow all employees to be heard. The organisation also holds regular ‘town hall' meetings, which all employees can attend. In these meetings, a brief executive report is made about the current status of the business. Employees will then have the opportunity to ask any questions they have, discuss any emerging issues, voice their concerns and feedback on any ideas and suggestions they may have. The meeting is usually fairly informal, allowing the employees to take the lead and discuss the topics they feel are necessary. Abellio also aims to gain feedback from employees by conducting yearly engagement surveys. A gap analysis is used to understand areas for development and the feasible measures necessary to close the gap.

One of the many ways Abellio seeks to reward employees is through the Abellio Annual Achievement Awards. The awards evening is for all of the Abellio Group, including the operating companies. This special ceremony which is a formal black tie event, is a time for Abellio to award their employees for their efforts in a number of areas such as Excellence, Values, Innovation, Leadership, Teamwork, Employee of the Year. The awards have been established to celebrate the amazing job that their people do everyday for Abellio and for their customers. A particularly unique feature of the Abellio Awards, is the extra mile that the organisation goes to show how much they appreciate the efforts of the employees. As well as receiving an award for their efforts and a special evening out, Abellio also supply the winners with a gift experience voucher of their choice to the value of £350 per person and to a maximum of £1,750 for the team entry. Finalists who attend the Awards Ceremony also have all their expenses paid for to attend this, including travel, subsistence and overnight accommodation. If required, formal attire costs are also repaid.

AMV Grow saw 102 of their employees transform a neglected urban site into a community market garden over a two week period. This involved demolishing three garages, shifting 17 tonnes of soil and two tonnes of gravel, using 85 scaffold boards, 25 oil drums, 39 planters and planting over 380 plants. The project was in aid of the charity Tomorrow's People, who work to rehabilitate ex-offenders and help the unemployed into work. Tomorrow's People have now begun to place young people in horticultural training programmes on site. Secondly, AMV's charitable programme ‘Bud' encourages AMVers to make a difference to the world we live in, by helping others realise their potential. Over the past 12 months, this has included working with school pupils to guide them with their career choices, providing work placements for disadvantaged young people, and providing interview and job application advice to homeless clients of charity Crisis. Coordinating large-scale fundraising events, such as AMV BBDGO – 412 AMVers took part in a long-distance relay which involved the entire agency and raised over £30,000 for Brain Tumour Research. Pro-bono brand consultancy for charities such as The Prince's Trust and Mediatrust. AMV have a long-standing commitment to The Big House - a unique residential facility for London's long term homeless. This ‘second stage house' facilitates the final step back into mainstream society and is the result of a fifteen year innovative partnership between AMV and the West London Mission. AMV now act as an independent advisor for Social Work Mission and help with fundraising and branding advice.

Allowing the people of AMV to have a voice, is embedded in the company's culture. They have several processes in place to enable people to feedback ideas and suggestions. One example is the Account Management department suggestion box, in which everyone within that department is encouraged to post suggestions for improvements. The box is regularly checked and all suggestions are considered. Secondly, all employees at AMV have a free voice. It is engrained in their culture and everyone is supported and encouraged to share their ideas, thoughts and feedback to members of the management team. Thirdly, AMV use Survey Monkey surveys to conduct reviews of particular AMV offerings, which provides everyone with the opportunity to share anonymous feedback and insights and to share their thoughts on possible improvements.

The health and wellbeing of 1st Credit staff is extremely important to 1st Credit. They understand that sometimes throughout working life and personal life times can be difficult. Through ample communication with their staff during return to work interviews and one to one meetings they try to establish and eliminate any cause for concern. 1st Credit has established an open and honest ethos which encourages staff to share any concerns to prevent them escalating further. Working alongside a local doctor's surgery they obtain advice on dealing with work related stress in guidance of the HSE (Heath and Safety executive). 1st Credit also offer an Occupational Health service via the surgery; this enables staff to gain professional medical advice and provides further guidance to 1st Credit in making any further adjustments. They provide behavioural workshops at all levels in the company that address stress in the workplace and provide practical solutions on how to avoid and cope with the demands of the job. These courses are essential for teams who deal with sensitive issues faced by their customers such as bereavement, critical illness, and mental health. This level of development is not only about equipping employees with the skills, knowledge and confidence to deal with such issues but it also ensures that their employees are given a degree of resilience.

For the past 2 years 1st Credit have been visiting Oakwood School in Horley to provide financial awareness training as part of the educational curriculum. Nine sessions were delivered this year by employees who volunteered their time to provide lectures on Credit and Debt awareness, Credit Scoring and Credit Histories, as well as how to be aware of managing Credit as a young adult. In addition to this they also support a work experience programme as well as a kick start your career programme where they offer support and careers advice. Oakwood School is an important project for 1st Credit as it's not just a community initiative, but an opportunity to contribute to the future of their local community by providing sound career advice, debt management awareness and an opportunity for the students to experience a real working environment. 1st Credit hope the partnership that has developed with Oakwood School, will continue for many years to come.

Managers hold informal one to ones with their staff and formal quarterly reviews and both of these are used as methods to thank staff for a job well done. Some Managers also choose to use team meetings as a way of thanking staff in front of their colleagues so everyone is aware of what they have done. One Manager has her own set of thank you cards and she takes the time to write a personal message to the staff member thanking them or praising them for the action they have taken. All of their Managers use the mantra that they would not ask any of their team to do something they would not do themselves.

Wulvern Housing support employee development by their internal coaching development programme - this year they have trained 10 managers to become coaches so they can help and develop staff from across the business. Each coach had to complete a two training course on the basics of coaching, undertake a minimum of 10 hours coaching practice and report on the benefits to the business and the individual of the coaching experience before being added to the coaching bank. The coaching bank are now used to support staff identified by Managers as wanting additional development to progress or where they need performance improvement support. Coaches are now working across the business with staff from all team including Apprentices, Rising Stars and general colleagues needing support. They intend to run their second cohort of coaches training in February to widen the scope of this resource as they want coaching to be a key way that managers support their teams to develop and learn to make decisions and decide actions for themselves. Additionally they run quarterly updates for their coaching bank to give them insights to other methods and style of coaching to give them flexibility and alternatives to the GROW model they learned on the initial two day course. December will see the coaches exploring the Time to Think philosophy and methodology developed by Nancy Kline.

The organisation celebrate Thanks giving, Christmas, Eid and Divali.

The organisation celebrate Thanks giving, Christmas, Eid and Divali.

They have monthly awards for staff who have demonstrated the behaviours which fall in line with their values, passion, integrity and partnership (PIP). The Managing Director presents the winner with an award and they promote it through their news magazine, News at the Core, and the monthly company up date held for staff members. They have mugs, stress balls, stickers and posters all promoting the values.

They have monthly awards for staff who have demonstrated the behaviours which fall in line with their values, passion, integrity and partnership (PIP). The Managing Director presents the winner with an award and they promote it through their news magazine, News at the Core, and the monthly company up date held for staff members. They have mugs, stress balls, stickers and posters all promoting the values.

Colleagues took a break from their day jobs to help create a community garden just minutes from Walsall town centre. WHG leased a plot of land to Caldmore Village Festival Group to create an outdoor space for use by the whole community. In time, it will be used by local residents for growing fruit, vegetables and plants, outdoor education and recreation. Work to transform the site received a boost when WHG announced it would hold a community benefit day to support the venture on the ground. Colleagues from across the organisation turned out in force to do their bit, despite the wet and windy conditions. They rolled up their sleeves and got stuck in by digging, weeding, laying paths, clearing and tidying, trimming and pruning. Mohammed Arif, Vice-Chairman of Caldmore Village Festival Group, stopped off at the community garden during the event and said: “The WHG volunteers had turned up on a rain soaked day and impressed me with their dedication and commitment. On behalf of the group, I wish to thank WHG colleagues and sub-contractors who assisted them once again to make their community garden a reality. All the partners in this project have stood tall and really contributed; I have nothing but admiration for everyone. “

Walsall Housing Group have a recognition scheme called Going the Extra Mile (GEM). “Going the Extra Mile” is defined as activities that have a positive impact on WHG's customers, colleagues or both. The recognition is not for ‘doing the day job' but for activities that are seen to be above and beyond what would normally be expected. GEM in the Community is a colleague recognition scheme that promotes community benefits and rewards positive, community-minded behaviour. The scheme is based on colleagues' voluntary involvement in groups or activities outside working hours. The Emerald GEM recognises teams who go the extra mile to protect and improve the environment by minimising the impact of the company's activities, promoting sustainability initiatives, or suggesting innovative ways for them to become a greener organisation. Colleagues can be nominated by anyone within the business and, if approved by the individual's line manager, their achievements are shared their ‘outstanding colleagues' wall in the main office. They also receive a prize, tailored to the team or the individual and have included restaurant meals, gift vouchers, flowers and days out.

Walker Prestons Solicitors offers an enjoyable and positive working environment with regular team-bonding and building exercises.

Walker Prestons Solicitors offers total flexibility to employee development, allowing employees to take sufficient time off for their training. Significant paid training allows them to further their development.

The people at Gore have a deeply held fundamental belief in the potential of individuals to be creative, solve problems, and exercise judgment and initiative. Their freedom principle succinctly captures the essence of their philosophy of development. They want to encourage associates to grow and to maximise their true potential. Embedded in that wording is the assumption that the ultimate responsibility for an associate's development lies with the associate. The role of other associates, including sponsors and leaders, is to encourage and support the associate in their efforts. Within Gore, they do not have pre-defined career paths or roles that ensure associates' success. Associates must find their own path that enables them to maximise their contributions to the enterprise. Ultimately, the contribution process is the primary determinant for measuring an associate's overall contribution. Associates can grow in a variety of ways. Once established, they can increase their "depth" - become experts in a certain specialised field or they can increase their "breadth", assuming broader responsibilities within the enterprise. The journey for each associate is dynamic and may change over time, but key is the idea that they should all encourage each other in a path of development that helps each individual associate to succeed, increase their ability to contribute, and thereby help the enterprise succeed.

W L Gore & Associates have a lattice structure which means that they have no hierarchy and can go directly to whoever they want /need to talk to with feedback, or questions and using a range of media. This seems like a simple answer, but it works. There is no need to ask permission and it is just a natural every day occurrence for them to challenge decisions, share ideas, seek clarity on strategy. No need for secret suggestion boxes, they support open communication instead. The company teaches listening and communication skills so that the direct communication is not confined to those who are eloquent.

As a charity, Victim Support's purpose is helping victims find the strength to move on after crime. The work that they undertake focuses on giving back to local and wider communities by providing support to victims and witnesses of crime. Since Victim Support first began in 1974, they've helped well over 25 million people affected by crime. Over the last year we, they made almost 74,000 visits to see victims; made more than 1,167,700 phone calls to talk to victims of crime; organised 45,800 pre-trial and 124,034 on-the-day court visits to help witnesses prepare for giving evidence; supported 26,700 witnesses who were vulnerable or intimidated witnesses and identified a further 15,600 people who they felt needed special help at court. Delivery of their services depends on the skills, knowledge and time of their volunteers, supported by their employees. They have over 6000 volunteers undertaking work for Victim Support. They invest in development for their volunteers through training. This is imperative for delivery of frontline services but for many volunteers it also gives them access to skills which will support them in their wider life, whether in paid work roles, whilst studying or as life skills that they can use every day. In the last year they also launched their first apprenticeship programme and are currently supporting apprenticeships for circa 7 paid apprentices; supporting them to gain valuable skills that we hope they will be able to continue to grow and develop with Victim Support.

In London locality Victim Support invited each of the divisions, the National Homicide Service, Locality Head Office, the Victim Care Unit and Supportline to nominate a member of their team to join a new communications working group. The purpose of the group is to act as a forum in which to engage with the London locality staff by acting as a channel of communication between senior management and staff regarding organisational concerns and issues; providing an opportunity for the participation and involvement of staff in developing an action plan in response to the findings of the employee engagement survey; discussing and agreeing actions to address areas for development identified through the survey and taking forward agreed actions with a view to seeking feedback from the respective teams. Meeting at least every two months, the communications group is popular within the locality. As a direct result of engagement with staff, the group have introduced several new initiatives including a work place shadowing scheme and a new London locality newsletter. Members of the group meet with their respective teams and divisions and provide a channel of two way communication whereby matters can be discussed and fed back to the group. Victim Support has also introduced monthly summaries of their senior management team meetings where staff are invited to raise any issues or concerns with their respective manager. Any matters raised are guaranteed to be discussed and considered at the next relevant senior management team meeting and are responded to accordingly.

This year Updata Infrastructure introduced the Employee Assistance programme which offers a helpline where employees can speak to an experienced counsellor, legal representative or qualified nurse 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. This provides around the clock advice and counselling on matters such as, emotional issues, bereavement, relationships, health concerns, healthy living advice, alcohol/quit smoking advice, debt/money matters and landlord/tenant disputes. Employees also receive access to the Worklife Solutions website where you can gain access to help on a number of topics including: relationships, family, home, bereavement, finances, sickness, disability, retirement, change, workplace conflict, working as an expatriate, work-life balance, stress, nutrition, smoking, drinking, ill health, physical health and healthy heart. The Healthy Living website includes an online health coach, Heath Matters E-Zine and information on an extensive range of health related topics. Employees can set personal fitness goals and track their progress online. Finally, employees can take an online assessment, generating their own ‘Q' score, understanding the impact that their lifestyle is having on their health. There is also an area for line managers providing management tools and advice. In addition to this, the company have launched an income protection scheme, the policy will provide 65% of base salary until the age of 65 should an employee become medically incapable of performing their duties. This takes the stress and worry out of any long term sickness situations for the employee.

This year Updata Infrastructure introduced the Employee Assistance programme which offers a helpline where employees can speak to an experienced counsellor, legal representative or qualified nurse 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. This provides around the clock advice and counselling on matters such as, emotional issues, bereavement, relationships, health concerns, healthy living advice, alcohol/quit smoking advice, debt/money matters and landlord/tenant disputes. Employees also receive access to the Worklife Solutions website where you can gain access to help on a number of topics including: relationships, family, home, bereavement, finances, sickness, disability, retirement, change, workplace conflict, working as an expatriate, work-life balance, stress, nutrition, smoking, drinking, ill health, physical health and healthy heart. The Healthy Living website includes an online health coach, Heath Matters E-Zine and information on an extensive range of health related topics. Employees can set personal fitness goals and track their progress online. Finally, employees can take an online assessment, generating their own ‘Q' score, understanding the impact that their lifestyle is having on their health. There is also an area for line managers providing management tools and advice. In addition to this, the company have launched an income protection scheme, the policy will provide 65% of base salary until the age of 65 should an employee become medically incapable of performing their duties. This takes the stress and worry out of any long term sickness situations for the employee.

Unruly offer spot ‘superhero' bonuses to team members who have gone above and beyond the call of duty. These £1000 bonuses are given each quarter to nominated employees. Managers globally are given the opportunity to nominate Unrulies for a superhero bonus, and these nominations are reviewed by the executive team to ensure senior Unrulies are aware of special contributions team members have made. In addition to monetary rewards, Unruly provide a mentoring programme which partners team members based on skills, this is not about hierarchy, it's about subject matter experts providing support to team members seeking development in this area. If someone has delivered wow in a spectacular fashion they are given a pair of tickets to an exclusive film preview, hosted by the NSPCC in Mayfair. This helps the company to reward Unrulies who have delivered wow and to share the love with the NSPCC. They always try to make sure their most dedicated Unrulies are given lots of high profile networking and speaking opportunities, which have included lunches at #10 Downing Street, appearing on stage at the Barbican theatre, industry leadership dinners and invitations to the opening of the market at the London Stock Exchange.

Unruly offer spot ‘superhero' bonuses to team members who have gone above and beyond the call of duty. These £1000 bonuses are given each quarter to nominated employees. Managers globally are given the opportunity to nominate Unrulies for a superhero bonus, and these nominations are reviewed by the executive team to ensure senior Unrulies are aware of special contributions team members have made. In addition to monetary rewards, Unruly provide a mentoring programme which partners team members based on skills, this is not about hierarchy, it's about subject matter experts providing support to team members seeking development in this area. If someone has delivered wow in a spectacular fashion they are given a pair of tickets to an exclusive film preview, hosted by the NSPCC in Mayfair. This helps the company to reward Unrulies who have delivered wow and to share the love with the NSPCC. They always try to make sure their most dedicated Unrulies are given lots of high profile networking and speaking opportunities, which have included lunches at #10 Downing Street, appearing on stage at the Barbican theatre, industry leadership dinners and invitations to the opening of the market at the London Stock Exchange.

What works really well at the Ultimate Finance Group is the fact that there appears to be no political agenda by any member of staff. If people identify an opportunity the management will review and regularly support employees allowing them to deliver and drive their own personal development. The company seeks to promote from within allowing personnel to develop without leaving to a competitor or third party.

What works really well at the Ultimate Finance Group is the fact that there appears to be no political agenda by any member of staff. If people identify an opportunity the management will review and regularly support employees allowing them to deliver and drive their own personal development. The company seeks to promote from within allowing personnel to develop without leaving to a competitor or third party.

Their appraisal process is robust; it encompasses 3 elements: 360 feedback from colleagues and clients, self review and the appraisal meeting with the manager. Embedded into the appraisal process is a ‘training needs analysis' where they identify where gaps exist in employees knowledge/experience and they aim to fill those gaps with recommended training, be it external/internal training courses, mentoring, job shadowing, etc. They have approved and supported most training requests; ranging from short courses, degree courses, right through to MBAs. The appraisal process is focused on enhancing professional development by encouraging all employees to consistently deliver results, capitalise on successes, learn from failures and grow in their position.

Human Resources has been given full responsibility to take appropriate action following the results from the survey. Firstly they plan to communicate the overall results to all. Where appropriate, they will run focus groups to dig deeper and gain insight on the areas that they will work together to translate the results in more concrete action plans. A senior member of the team will be assigned to take ownership of each area. Employees will be given updates on a regular basis on how these things are progressing. They will also take notes on the areas they scored well in and ensure these are maintained and enhanced further.

Trustmarque Solutions combine a corporate and individualised approach to employee development, to focus on both immediate and career-focused needs. They are currently supporting a number of employees through professional qualifications which will enable them to progress in their career path, but will also enable contribution at a higher level in their current role. They have also designed a “Solution Sales Professional” programme for all those in account management, which covers both general sales skills and the specifics of selling their services product set; this combination of product and skills training equips individuals to do their current role, but also enables them to progress through a sales career structure. A similar development plan that mirrors this programme is in place for the Commercial Department, combining Partner and Marketing teams in the organisation and numbering 20 employees. A modular programme of training and accreditations will incorporate generic content together with specialist modules (on topics such as video case studies, content generation and digital marketing) for advanced skills development. This provides a structured, needs-driven programme of training and opportunity for development for the entire team.

All teams have an annual budget for smaller team events which have been used for a whole host of activities that range from karting to chocolate making. In addition, Trustmark hold an annual team building weekend called “Kick-Off”. This involves strategy presentations, motivational speakers, workshops, a team building activity (this year, a GPS treasure hunt), dinner, dancing and awards. The organisation find this to be a very effective way of setting their direction for the new financial year, thanking employees for contribution in the previous year, and developing cross-team relationships. For example this year the organisation chose to launch a “living the values” session at the annual Company Kick-Off event. Employees from all departments across the business were divided into groups and, for each value, asked to work in their teams to select an appropriate quote; a benefit to the organisation; a benefit to the individual; and a group commitment to live that value. Trustmark felt that it was important to involve employees to work together and across departments, outside of their usual working teams, to define what the values meant for them, and to truly bring these ideas to life within their workplace environment.

Michael WB, TRO's managing director, joined TRO 18 years ago as a seasonal event executive. Everyone at TRO appreciates that Michael started at the bottom of the ladder and has worked his way up through a series of well-earned promotions to join the board and subsequently become the MD. Michael's style of operation, his decisions, actions and overall involvement in the business are hugely influenced by his organic development. Staff feel a great respect for his achievement; they have empathy for his views because he has been where they are and covered the ‘hard yards'. Furthermore, they are inspired by the thought that TRO is the kind of place where internal development is encouraged, as evidenced by Michael. It is because Michael knows his way around every single job within the business and because his natural style is open and accessible that TRO staff find him easy to deal with.

Michael WB, TRO's managing director, joined TRO 18 years ago as a seasonal event executive. Everyone at TRO appreciates that Michael started at the bottom of the ladder and has worked his way up through a series of well-earned promotions to join the board and subsequently become the MD. Michael's style of operation, his decisions, actions and overall involvement in the business are hugely influenced by his organic development. Staff feel a great respect for his achievement; they have empathy for his views because he has been where they are and covered the ‘hard yards'. Furthermore, they are inspired by the thought that TRO is the kind of place where internal development is encouraged, as evidenced by Michael. It is because Michael knows his way around every single job within the business and because his natural style is open and accessible that TRO staff find him easy to deal with.

Triodos Bank continually gives something back to the local and wider community through their very existence and business model. They only finance organisations that can demonstrate a positive impact on the environment, society and culture around them locally and globally. Through their lending and customer relationships, co-workers and customers are aware of their local and wider social engagement and impact. The point is it's part of their DNA as opposed to a CSR exercise. As such, they find that both co-workers who are already socially minded, and those who are less so, after spending time working at Triodos almost become more engaged with their local and broader communities simply by osmosis. Community participation, engagement and social impact by co-workers is encouraged, and supported by the bank though away days, social events, customer visits. Their co-workers take part in local sporting teams pitched against other organisations. Many co-workers volunteer at local organisations, and their procurement processes seek to use local, community and/or fair trade suppliers where possible, for example the twice-weekly local organic fruit delivery, the fair-trade tea and coffee supplied for co-worker and visitor refreshments.

Triodos provides a variety of ways to support co-worker well-being. They provide free organic fruit supplied by one of their customers for all co-workers to help themselves. They have a £50p.a. well-being allowance for all co-workers. This can be used towards anything to do with the co-worker's well-being and can be attuned to their interests, for example it has been used for gym membership, massages and bike equipment. They have internal clubs/societies where like minded people can get together and share a passion, such as their book club, craft club and netball club. They have begun lunchtime learning sessions where co-workers can learn a new skill in their lunch break. Their recent lunchtime learning is over an 8 week period -1 hour per week and involves 20 co-workers exploring the 8 Habits of Happiness. This is run by a positive psychologist from the Happy City Initiative. This is the first time such a course has been run at an organisation level so they are pioneering new ground with Happy City. Future planned activities involve learning languages, musical instruments, crafts, and being a DJ! These lunchtime learnings will all be run by their co-workers, who are keen to share their skills.

A memorable event is the annual weekend away, where in the past have visited Malta, Portugal, Jersey and Spain. In September last year they took the whole company away for the weekend to Chewton Glenn hotel in Hampshire. This is of course optional and they had an attendance of 120 people last year. The hotel is a beautiful 5 star hotel set in the New Forest where they hired the whole complex for 2 nights. The weekend included transport to the venue from London, a team building treasure hunt on Friday afternoon, a BBQ in the evening, a company meeting on Saturday morning followed by more team building events, personal time where people had options to do activities such as falconry, golf buggy racing, massages, swimming, archery followed by an evening three course meal and disco. It was a fabulous weekend enjoyed by all and they have received great feedback. They allocate £100 to this event on an annual basis and are very proud to be able to provide this for their employees.

A memorable event is the annual weekend away, where in the past have visited Malta, Portugal, Jersey and Spain. In September last year they took the whole company away for the weekend to Chewton Glenn hotel in Hampshire. This is of course optional and they had an attendance of 120 people last year. The hotel is a beautiful 5 star hotel set in the New Forest where they hired the whole complex for 2 nights. The weekend included transport to the venue from London, a team building treasure hunt on Friday afternoon, a BBQ in the evening, a company meeting on Saturday morning followed by more team building events, personal time where people had options to do activities such as falconry, golf buggy racing, massages, swimming, archery followed by an evening three course meal and disco. It was a fabulous weekend enjoyed by all and they have received great feedback. They allocate £100 to this event on an annual basis and are very proud to be able to provide this for their employees.

Managers recognise employees in various ways. Employees are praised within the team circle; there is an employee of the month and rewards are given such as dinner on the company and gift vouchers. They offer feedback in regular one-to-ones, through formal performance appraisals, personal development plans and training needs analysis. They provide flexible working hours, work/life balance and working from home on occasion under special circumstance. Managers set targets and lead by example, work with team rather than directing, think outside of the box and encourage new ideas.

Managers recognise employees in various ways. Employees are praised within the team circle; there is an employee of the month and rewards are given such as dinner on the company and gift vouchers. They offer feedback in regular one-to-ones, through formal performance appraisals, personal development plans and training needs analysis. They provide flexible working hours, work/life balance and working from home on occasion under special circumstance. Managers set targets and lead by example, work with team rather than directing, think outside of the box and encourage new ideas.

The company has created a new operational management team (OMT) that now runs the business on a day to day basis. The OMT has been created from staff promoted within the business. Any quality issues that arise from people, processes and systems are handled by the team. The major benefit to all staff is faster and more accurate decision making; this has increased both employee engagement and satisfaction. Charles Davis leads by example. He is passionate and committed to the company and its employees; employees respect him and his 'open door' policy ensures they also find it easy to approach him both professionally and socially.

The organisation seeks to reward employees for their efforts. They reward employees for business ideas they contribute that are implemented in the company. The reward is twofold; a financial reward and a public acknowledgement in the company newsletter.

Throughout the year, many Rooflight staff support charitable events such as Children in Need, The Nasio Trust and Nets for Malaria by organising events that are fun and raise money for the nominated charity. The company will match any funds raised by employees and also sponsor 14 children through their school years at an orphanage in Aligarh, India which they got to know through a relationship with one of their suppliers. They have an environmental policy including movement sensors so that lights are not left on, measuring power consumption, recycling of waste materials and the sustainable sourcing of food.

Throughout the year, many Rooflight staff support charitable events such as Children in Need, The Nasio Trust and Nets for Malaria by organising events that are fun and raise money for the nominated charity. The company will match any funds raised by employees and also sponsor 14 children through their school years at an orphanage in Aligarh, India which they got to know through a relationship with one of their suppliers. They have an environmental policy including movement sensors so that lights are not left on, measuring power consumption, recycling of waste materials and the sustainable sourcing of food.

The Real Adventure Marketing Communications Ltd reward their employees in a number of ways, including recognising and rewarding outstanding work through their monthly ‘star awards' for individuals, and regular ‘team awards' for groups. However they believe their most unique approach is their end of financial year reward, as this is a package made up of different elements. The package applies to all employees and comprises one day's extra holiday, a gift of £75 to be spent on a meal or entertainment activity which is taken in employees' own time, a performance related or ‘stretch' bonus (for example in FY13 payments ranged from £250 to £3000), and an after-work evening party at a local venue, with drinks, food, and entertaining presentations by senior management and team members, reflecting on the year past. As the event usually ends after midnight, they provide taxis home or hotel accommodation for those who live further than 30 miles from the office. What makes The Real Adventure Marketing Communications Ltd a unique is that the package combines universal rewards, the holiday, meal gift, and evening out, with individualised rewards, the stretch bonus. It also combines celebrating as an organisation, with celebrating with friends and family, something their employees say they much appreciate.

The Real Adventure Marketing Communications Ltd have a local charity of the Year. This year it is a local, national or international charity nominated by and voted for by all their employees, which they will commit to champion throughout the year by supporting different fundrising events and they will match any funds raised up to £1,500. Their Charity of the Year runs from April to March, and in March 2013 they raised in total £4,000 for MNDA.

The organisation seeks to enhance the wellbeing of employees. They have lots of arenas for communication, both public and private. There are weekly yoga sessions, juices and fruit are always available and there are cycling initiatives. They also give an extra days holiday for birthdays!

The company has an open door policy at all levels. They hold quarterly company meetings where everyone gets to say whatever they want. They then get into teams to solve a specific problem. It could be anything from company titles to dress code to new business opportunities. They then write this meeting up and send it around to everyone. Throughout the quarter they follow up on any actions taken as a consequence to these meetings and send out the outcomes. Nothing gets ignored that has been mentioned in these meetings.

The Glenmorangie Heroes recognition programme allows for peer recognition where colleagues can recommend another employee for an award if they have supported them in some way or delivered for the business and/or customers. Employees receiving an award will be recognised in the Company newsletter and in their quarterly presentation to all employees.

Annually the Glenmorangie Company holds a Company dinner dance. This dance is open to all employes and their partners and is fully funded by the Company. It is a way for the Company to say thank you to all employees and the people who support them. It is also an oportunity to get everyone from the Company together as they bring all employees to a central location. Employees who travel from outlying sites will have transport and accomodation paid for.

The most effective thing Five Lamps does to give something back to the wider world is to help their customers and the local community address social/economic and financial barriers. Each year they will work with over 20,000 people living in the most disadvantaged communities of the North East. Five Lamps is structured with four business divisions. The performance and impact of these divisions are included in their social accounts 2011/12.

The wellbeing of all Five Lamps staff and Volunteers is critical to its ability to deliver services. Five Lamps is committed to providing a working environment and management practices which promote employee wellbeing and good health. Staff were asked to contribute their ideas and ways in which they could enhance their current Wellbeing approach and these are a few of the things they have done so far and have been very successful: Free Financial Health checks for all staff, provided by our Financial Inclusion Team. This helped staff who may be experiencing issues with debt or are struggling financially. It also helped members of staff who just needed advice about what to do with their savings and any investments etc. Staff were asked to contribute a plant to their office to reduce stress levels and make their own office a healthier place to work. Free healthy Heart checks, carried out by the NHS on site. Staff also have the option to attend the smoking cessation at one their community venues and seek advice on alternatives such as patches and gums. Five Lamps asked staff to contribute their ideas on a monthly theme i.e. July 'Summer ideas'.

The clinical team have recently been given the opportunity to take part in a facilitated event which enabled them to explore what affect their actions and behaviours had on each other in a safe environment. It was agreed what sort of team they wanted to be and they created a list of actions and behaviours that would enable them to achieve this.

The clinical team have recently been given the opportunity to take part in a facilitated event which enabled them to explore what affect their actions and behaviours had on each other in a safe environment. It was agreed what sort of team they wanted to be and they created a list of actions and behaviours that would enable them to achieve this.

Although Rosie had been with London Youth since 2005, upon her appointment to the Chief Executive role in April 2012, she took six months to meet every employee, Trustee, a cross section of young people, members, funders and external stakeholders. Her purpose was to understand how each person viewed London Youth, what they do, their challenges and priorities for the future – what they thought they did well and what they should be developing further. With this feedback Rosie considered and re-articulated the Vision, Mission and Principles cascading these through the planning process in 2013. In this way all employees had a part of the new Vision, Mission and Principles and can connect with either a word, phrase or expressed intention of these. Rosie empowers others to lead, manage and deliver the organisational aims. She creates a shared responsibility for what London Youth is and does. Simple acknowledgements – either personally or through organisation-wide communications – can impact on individuals' sense of achievement, contribution and commitment.

The Federation of London Yout Clubs' internal employee attitude survey was introduced in 2011 and repeated in 2012. There was lots of positive feedback, emphasising the commitment of employees across all locations. There was some negative feedback too, albeit a small amount but this was seen as a good thing – they appreciate that employees feel connected to London Youth and confident to share their feedback. In 2012 the Federation noted that a lot of feedback from Hindleap was concerned with what the centre offers, its facilities and need for investment. Theye collect feedback at employee team building and development events to find out what people feel went well and what they'd like to improve. For their Development Days – which seek to improve the corporate responsibilities skills, understanding and involvement of senior delivery staff – they use this information to identify future topics to explore with the group.

The organisation hosts "Skip Sessions" - i.e. skipping layers of management where each quarter five employees meet informally with the leader of the organisation for a two hour session where anything can be discussed and ideas and thoughts on how to improve the way they work can be put on the table and discussed. The only rules are that those attending may not discuss anyone not present and there are no formal minutes but the Director takes away the key un-attributable messages and ensures that they are followed up.

The organisation seeks to reward employees in various ways. They arrange dinner or lunch with a family member from the Estate's owners, which provides an opportunity to say "thank you" personally and for the employee to feel appreciated. Employees receive recognition for years of service by receiving a certificate and gift presented by Lord Clinton and the Estates Director after 10, 20, 25, 35, 40, 45 and 50 years. Our last 50 year certificate was in April 2012; our next will be in 8 years' time.

With over 500 staff and a child-friendly ethos, there are often memorable social events. Recently the staff of one of the residential children's houses climbed to the roof of London's O2 as a teambuilding and fundraising exercise. When the Chief Executive heard about the day he asked if he could come along too! The annual summer barbecue for staff and volunteers is always well attended and gives people from across the organisation a chance to mingle with colleagues from other parts of the charity who they might not see regularly. An excellent big band played at the event and staff were served their lunch by members of the senior management team. More recently, Halloween provided an opportunity for every department to host a spooky, multisensory experience which was enjoyed not only by the children and young people staying with them, but was also their staff.

With over 500 staff and a child-friendly ethos, there are often memorable social events. Recently the staff of one of the residential children's houses climbed to the roof of London's O2 as a teambuilding and fundraising exercise. When the Chief Executive heard about the day he asked if he could come along too! The annual summer barbecue for staff and volunteers is always well attended and gives people from across the organisation a chance to mingle with colleagues from other parts of the charity who they might not see regularly. An excellent big band played at the event and staff were served their lunch by members of the senior management team. More recently, Halloween provided an opportunity for every department to host a spooky, multisensory experience which was enjoyed not only by the children and young people staying with them, but was also their staff.

The central ‘Learning and Development Bursary' Fund – a commitment of between £10 and £15k is made annually by the Trustees to support professional development and the acquisition of qualifications by employees. Application is open to all, and an independent panel sits to assess applications.

Induction Days are held three/four times per year for staff new to the organisation. This is a generic induction to the organisation, its history and development. Colleagues from many different disciplines and departments participate who may not physically work in the same building/facility or setting, and who would not meet one another in the course of their work generally. Participants are put into teams to have a go at a series of activities and challenges in which they learn about themselves, their colleagues and the organisation. The emphasis is on working together and having fun. At one event a member of the Fostering Service met and worked with a new member from the Supervised Contact Centre, and as a result within the year successfully recruited them as a Foster Carer.

The Cavendish London is passionate about taking clear and meaningful steps towards reducing their impact on the environment. Through a little extra creativity, effort and compromise, a carbon neutral meeting package has been developed to ensure that business and environmental objectives can be achieved in tandem. Having won a Visit London Gold award and an Enjoy England Silver award for sustainable tourism, The Cavendish London has created a meeting package in conjunction with Carbon Clear to ensure that all their meeting packages are carbon neutral. The Cavendish London is also supporting Luara ceramic by purchasing in excess of 300 tonnes from Carbon Clear's Arrozal-Guarai Fuel Switch Project. This fuel switch project consists of six small-scale ceramic factories in Rio de Janeiro where each factory has been retrofitted to enable sustainable biomass, waste wood and sawdust to be burned as fuel to heat the brick kilns. Heavy fuel oil was used as the fuel source previously. As a result significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are achieved.

Each new starter has a departmental induction which involves spending time in the various departments to understand how their role fits with the team. We ran a "Wanted Programme" where the successful candidate was awarded with our management trainee placement. As a management trainee, the team member spends a few months within each department in the hotel to have a comprehensive understanding of the hotel operationally. They receive one to one coaching sessions with the Hotel Manager and also participate in our Management Development programme. They receive reviews in each of their departments in order to track the progress they have made. The hotel is also partnered with Purple Cubed who administer the appraisal process and also conduct training sessions within the hotel. The Talent Toolbox appraisal system enables the organisation to identify and place greater focus on development needs.

At the Commercial De-Launch away day which took place in September 2013, they had an awards ceremony which rewards and acknowledges achievements of both the sales and customer service teams from their last financial year (September '12-August '13). The awards recognise the typical achievements of a sales team; achieving key targets but there is also a peer recognition scheme called 'Customer Excellence'. Each member of their sales and customer services team are invited to nominate a member of either team to receive this award. They have to explain why they feel this person should win the award. The prize is a meal at a Gordon Ramsey restaurant.

In September 2013, TSL held a summer party at Kensington Roof Gardens to thank everyone for their incredible hard work. This party was fully paid for by TSL and included a sit down meal, a free bar as well as a live band and a video booth which gave people the opportunity have their 5 mins of fame! The feedback was brilliant and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

TBG Digital's 6 monthly Staff Happiness Surveys, which are totally anonymous, have been particularly effective. They always receive constructive comments and suggestions and many beneficial suggestions to improve life at TBG have been received and implemented.

This year the company has organised and paid for: Go-Karting, Cocktail making and most recently Silly-Sports day on the Hampstead Heath and they also hold regular monthly ping-pong tournaments. Earlier this year TBG Digital held a Macmillan coffee morning. Everyone was encouraged to bring in a home baked cake or biscuits. The response rate was excellent and the winner of the best home baked entry won a small prize. The office was decorated in Macmillan green. The donations from the staff were generous and the coffee morning was a huge hit, it generated a real buzz in the office and of course, there was lots of recipe swapping going on.

They have a fully funded study support package available to people in accounting, taxation, marketing and HR functions. They strongly support CPD and ensure their people are developing professionally as well as acquiring knowledge. They also operate an internal management development program for selected employees every two years. This is a bespoke program developed for taylorcocks by an external provider who has worked closely with the company for over ten years.

The company has both a football and netball team and provides sponsorship to these teams for kit etc. They provide the ability through their IT systems to work from home to facilitate flexibility for employees to take home deliveries or who have travel difficulties. Last winter, employees worked from home during the snowfall rather than risk travelling to the office and those stranded at the office were taxied home by the MD in his 4x4.

In 2011 SwiftKey introduced special effort awards. These are peer nominated awards made to employees who have 'gone the extra mile', for example to meet a demanding deadline or just for a job extremely well done. There are no restrictions on who can nominate who; SwiftKey wanted to encourage wide adoption of the scheme and a culture in which all employees think about how they can recognise the contributions of their peers, whether 'junior' or 'senior' to them and whether part of the same department or a different department. All nominations do require at least one seconder, to ensure that they are appropriate for the scheme and to prevent unfair bias. They believe the scheme is both unique and effective because it doesn't rely on a restricted or formulaic choice of gift (such as a cash bonus or shopping vouchers). They get to know their employees and their personal interests and values, so that they can select a well-considered gift that's particularly meaningful to them. This also encourages people to nominate their colleagues, because they know that the gifts are carefully selected. Examples of gifts that they have previously given are jazz show tickets for a music fan; a copy of a hard-to-find author-published book on 'Arch Linux' for an enthusiastic software engineer; a hamper of locally brewed beers for a CAMRA member; and a 'go pro' camera for a tech enthusiast who's always got a new geeky project on the go.

In 2011 SwiftKey introduced special effort awards. These are peer nominated awards made to employees who have 'gone the extra mile', for example to meet a demanding deadline or just for a job extremely well done. There are no restrictions on who can nominate who; SwiftKey wanted to encourage wide adoption of the scheme and a culture in which all employees think about how they can recognise the contributions of their peers, whether 'junior' or 'senior' to them and whether part of the same department or a different department. All nominations do require at least one seconder, to ensure that they are appropriate for the scheme and to prevent unfair bias. They believe the scheme is both unique and effective because it doesn't rely on a restricted or formulaic choice of gift (such as a cash bonus or shopping vouchers). They get to know their employees and their personal interests and values, so that they can select a well-considered gift that's particularly meaningful to them. This also encourages people to nominate their colleagues, because they know that the gifts are carefully selected. Examples of gifts that they have previously given are jazz show tickets for a music fan; a copy of a hard-to-find author-published book on 'Arch Linux' for an enthusiastic software engineer; a hamper of locally brewed beers for a CAMRA member; and a 'go pro' camera for a tech enthusiast who's always got a new geeky project on the go.

Sweatshop took a team surfing to Croyde enabling them to spend a day out of store, let their hair down and have some fun. They held an outperform leadership programme in Wales over the course of a few days which helped managers develop key skills and behaviours. The company assisted with the Mo Farah 10K run as they currently support the Mo Farah Foundation and they also worked on a school running event in Woking for a day.

Last year Sweatshop launched a staff development programme called 'achieve'. This was in response to staff feedback and with a view to helping internal development of new managers. The company invited applications from staff and had over 20 applications and have had 6 people who started have already been promoted and a large part of this is down to the training and opportunities provided within the programme. They also have 10 people who will be starting Achieve going forward. After the great response to Achieve, they have developed a high performing manager's programme which will aspire those on it to achieve outstanding success. Those on the scheme have the unique opportunity to work closely with senior managers and the board of directors. The most successful managers will be given HPM mentor status and become an integral part in successive managers' development.

Swanswell believe that investing in team members and their continual professional development is essential to retaining talented team members in present and in future. That's why they have a talent development policy and framework, with a full-time talent development manager and a talent development team dedicated to ensuring our team members continue to grow in their roles. Their team managers, skills audits, appraisals and performance reviews help to recognise team members' potential to develop. Where they spot potential to develop, Swanswell provide the necessary support to help. Their talent development team includes two full time senior practitioner trainers who provide ongoing specialist training to their team members. They offer an annual open course programme so that team members can access both essential training for their role and training which supports their career progression. Crucially, their training is specifically created to be interactive and engaging, working for all learning styles and providing an absorbing learning experience which delegates won't forget.

A large proportion of Swanswell's executive team have previously worked in front line roles so they are clear about the expectations and pressures on front line team members. The organisation encourages team members to shadow others, especially at induction stage, to ensure a shared understanding of what everyone does, this is especially used for support and head office team members who may not have worked in this arena before. In addition, the corporate induction day is a really important opportunity for team members to learn about what others do and for the senior team and organisation as a whole to learn. All new team members attend these events. Swanswell offers a number of routes for support to understand the pressures and workloads team members have. Flexi time is offered for team members to work when pre-arranged with an executive team member. Occupational health and wellbeing support is available for all team members with a regular occupational health service and a confidential employee assistance programme. Access to a specialist stress management consultant for confidential support is also available within the organisation and Swanswell's give monthly clinical supervision for front line team members and regular performance reviews with line managers for all team members.

The senior management team at Sutton Housing Partnership has taken on board feedback that they are not sufficiently visible to staff and have made a conscious effort to become more visibly involved in the business through spending a day working in a particular area of the business. Their chief executive recently spent a day answering phones in their customer care team. They are also working more closely with the heads of function to enable them to become more involved in the strategic planning process, which in turn supports succession planning.

The senior management team at Sutton Housing Partnership has taken on board feedback that they are not sufficiently visible to staff and have made a conscious effort to become more visibly involved in the business through spending a day working in a particular area of the business. Their chief executive recently spent a day answering phones in their customer care team. They are also working more closely with the heads of function to enable them to become more involved in the strategic planning process, which in turn supports succession planning.

The Supply Group offers various incentives/rewards to employees. They understand that each employee has different ways that they are motivated by and they adapt their rewards to each individual.

The Supply Group have a 'break out' area which has table tennis, free vending machines, basketball and football goals. This encourages employees to exercise and have a well-deserved break.

Stride Treglown offers university placements for those conducting environment/sustainable research projects and continue to work closely with schools, offering work experience for pupils whilst telling them about architecture, design and environmental issues within the built environment. A number of their senior staff also lecture at local universities and all staff are given time off to undertake voluntary work and/or trustee duties.

Stride Treglown have a green committee that is engaged with One Planet Living which helps them understand how to make the business more efficient and how best to advise clients of environmental matters. Following the One Plant Model, they focus their efforts on; carbon reduction; waste; transport; use of sustainable material; fair trade; food; water and health and wellbeing.

Story Homes' CEO, Steve Errington, is an open, transparent and visionary leader. Steve joined the business in August 2012 and has been working collaboratively with the team and overhauled the core house building processes in order for Story Homes to be fit for purpose and for their ambitious growth plans which has made a huge difference to the business.

For the last two years Story Homes has funded a sports programme which supports nine schools in Carlisle which is ran in partnership with Carlisle District Sport and Physical Activity Alliance Foundation (SPAAF). The programme funds physical education lessons for schools. It started in September 2012, aiming to keep the Olympic legacy alive amongst school pupils. Fred Story was inspired to contact SPAAF and get the scheme up and running after learning that funding for sport in schools was being cut, leaving children with even less opportunity to participate in the sport they had seen in the Olympic Games. Through Story Homes funding, SPAAF coaches spent half a day each week working with the children in their own schools, teaching new sports and encouraging them to get involved in physical activity. They promoted health, hygiene and fitness alongside confidence, self-esteem and motivation to achieve and succeed in sport. In 2010, in order to showcase and encourage interest in site based careers such as bricklaying, joinery, roofing, plumbing and groundworks, Story Homes recruited a team of apprentices, along with their subcontractors, who were challenged to build a 4-bed house at their Magellan Park development. This was filmed and shown on ITV4 in March 2011 as part of a three part series called "Rookie Builders." The majority of apprentices were recruited from the high unemployment area following a jobs fair in order for local people and the community to benefit .

St Lyle's held a staff away day at Ashcombe Country Park for all employees. It involved a short presentation from the CEO followed by team building exercises such as archery and puzzle solving. It was an opportunity for staff to network and get to know each other as well as having a day of fun away from the office. It was a great success. Recently they held a foundation-wide event to bring to life their 2020 vision and strategic plan displaying how it influences their day to day roles and above all, how it can really change people's lives. Following this presentation, senior managers led facilitation sessions where they asked for active participation in delivering the strategic plan and shaping the foundation, specifically within areas such as structure; systems; staff and skill, both in number and capability and shared values. They also hold departmental away days to look at forward future planning.

The senior management team work incredibly hard to demonstrate that their staff are valued within the organisation. Examples of this include an open door management style; regular walkabouts to chat and communicate with staff; being visible to staff in all locations, by doing regular visits to satellite offices and field workers and organising an annual away-day event for all staff which is purely about meeting colleagues and having fun away from the office.

Staff development is integral to St Anne's culture and is covered as part of PDRs and appraisals. Staff can aim to complete competencies at a higher level than their role if they wish.

St Anne's have recently re-invested in a new EAP, which provides day one stress intervention and serious illness/accident support. This has been effective in returning people to work and supporting them through periods of depression and anxiety.

Spirit Pub Company offers “employee care”, an employee assistance programme, provided by First Assist. It's a confidential service where employees have access to a website and a helpline providing advice and support on all aspects of their lives from financial concerns through to quitting smoking. The helpline is available 24 hours a day 365 days a year and is completely free of charge. There is also a telephone counselling service and face to face counselling service available. They also offer employees at the support centre a discounted gym membership at a local golf and country club in Burton where employees can receive a corporate rate peak membership of £49 per month with no joining fee, compared to their usual rate of £65.50 with a £199 joining fee. Memberships can be extended to golf at a special rate too.

In July, Spirit Pub Company held a Summer Bash at their support centre organised by their fun and fundraising team, GRIN, giving employees the opportunity to socialise. They wanted to give a relaxed feel to the event so right from the start they themed it as though the invitation was coming from “Cosmic the Dog” rather than Spirit. The name Cosmic came from the entertainment which they had organised, a fun band called the Cosmic Sausages who went from table to table singing and interacting with our employees. The event, held in the atrium where the bar is located, was totally free to employees and included BBQ food, a full range of drinks and entertainment. Employees could finish work at 4pm to join in the fun. Their atrium was so full with employees that they needed to re-jig the chairs and tables to fit everyone in. Cosmic became famous and the excitement spread, employees were talking about it for weeks running up to and after the event. So much so that they are bringing Cosmic back later in the year for their Christmas bash! Their new approach of “making people smile” has helped to break down barriers between the support team and the operations team to work more effectively.

Somo have started to record their weekly stand-up sessions so that those who cannot attend or are in different time zones can see what is said. The company has also introduced new wiki sites to accompany this.

Somo hold team building days for all new starters as part of their induction. This is a full day which is held offsite and looks at their values and also the way in which the company works. They also hold a summer and Christmas team building event, which includes a full day of information sharing and then an evening social event.

The MRAP scheme (Market Rate Adjustment Programme) was launched in 2008 in response to feedback SIX received on their remuneration section of the employee survey of that year. The MRAP scheme was created with two objectives in mind: (1) to invest money into basic wages part way through the year (rather than waiting for year end) if their salary benchmarking process shows that an individual has fallen below market rate, and (2) to reward individuals with one off cash bonuses for outstanding contribution to a particular project or business issue. The budget for the MRAP scheme is reviewed on a quarterly basis and financial rewards are offered to individual employees for either outstanding contribution during that quarter to their business, whether it be through new ideas put forward, innovative solutions or the successful completion of a project, or investment into their basic salary if the market has shifted. These payments are a separate reward to their annual bonus or annual salary review. HR work closely with line managers to review nominations for the MRAP list. If they are unable to financially reward an individual in one quarter, they remain on the list and are prioritised for the next quarter. The MRAP initiative has been effective in bringing the philosophy of contribution and reward closer together and strengthens employee engagement with the organisation.

The MRAP scheme (Market Rate Adjustment Programme) was launched in 2008 in response to feedback SIX received on their remuneration section of the employee survey of that year. The MRAP scheme was created with two objectives in mind: (1) to invest money into basic wages part way through the year (rather than waiting for year end) if their salary benchmarking process shows that an individual has fallen below market rate, and (2) to reward individuals with one off cash bonuses for outstanding contribution to a particular project or business issue. The budget for the MRAP scheme is reviewed on a quarterly basis and financial rewards are offered to individual employees for either outstanding contribution during that quarter to their business, whether it be through new ideas put forward, innovative solutions or the successful completion of a project, or investment into their basic salary if the market has shifted. These payments are a separate reward to their annual bonus or annual salary review. HR work closely with line managers to review nominations for the MRAP list. If they are unable to financially reward an individual in one quarter, they remain on the list and are prioritised for the next quarter. The MRAP initiative has been effective in bringing the philosophy of contribution and reward closer together and strengthens employee engagement with the organisation.

Shopzilla run wellbeing awareness weeks, offer subsidised gym memebrship and other activities such as yoga and football. They also give quarterly massages.

Shopzilla have a monthly charity budget, that determines the level of contributions to individuals/team who are raising money for their chosen charity partner. Currently their monthly guide is £500, but they are always willing to review this.

Although Seymour House scored quite well in this category last year, it is an area that as a company they are looking to improve on. They are currently building a team section within their intranet which will incorporate links to health campaigns, healthy eating and wellbeing initiatives.

This year, taking on board feedback from employees, the senior management team agreed the introduction of a voluntary benefits scheme. "Seymour Rewards" offers all team members exclusive discounts and cashback deals on thousands of high street and on-line retailers. The take up of this scheme was very high within the first 2 weeks of launch and has been consistently used since then, creating a buzz amongst many staff.

The business at Saville has several initiatives in place to support the wellbeing of employees. The single greatest impact has been the move from a small, crowded office to a larger office space which includes: - Onsite access to a gym which any employee can use free of charge - 9 hole pitch and putt - Swimming pool - Tennis court - Subsidised restaurant - Easy access to public transport. This working environment encourages employees to take a proper lunch break where they are able to eat healthy food and sit and chat with colleagues in a convivial environment. The emphasis on space and the ability to take part in sport and exercise during the week has made a big difference.

The business at Saville has several initiatives in place to support the wellbeing of employees. The single greatest impact has been the move from a small, crowded office to a larger office space which includes: - Onsite access to a gym which any employee can use free of charge - 9 hole pitch and putt - Swimming pool - Tennis court - Subsidised restaurant - Easy access to public transport. This working environment encourages employees to take a proper lunch break where they are able to eat healthy food and sit and chat with colleagues in a convivial environment. The emphasis on space and the ability to take part in sport and exercise during the week has made a big difference.

SAS UK actively uses the findings from the Best Companies to Work for survey to engage with its employees and show that it is listening to the feedback. Successful areas and those that require focus are highlighted at regular company meetings and departments focussed information is provided to managers to share with their teams. Workshops are run for departments to analyse the Best Company data for their team. An action plan for areas requiring improvement is drawn up and implemented. Focus groups were held to discuss particular areas requiring remedial action.

SAS is committed to enhancing individual, team and organisational effectiveness in order to help SAS UK accomplish strategic goals. Providing access to cost effective, high-quality learning programs, resources and services tailored to the needs and requirements of the organisation. The aim is to encourage a culture of learning and knowledge sharing that supports the aspirations of employees and the organisation. There is support and guidance available to help employees and team take ownership of their own development. There is not an open programme of courses if the employee or team require anything from technical to soft skills, personal development to business skills, support and guidance is available and provided using the most suitable learning interventions.

Managers at Retail Human Resources encourage team members to put forward ideas for social events that they are interested and run with them. One example is what has now become known as "RHR Theatre Club".

Managers at Retail Human Resources encourage team members to put forward ideas for social events that they are interested and run with them. One example is what has now become known as "RHR Theatre Club".

ResourceBank have recently established a colleague forum which is made up of five representatives from across the business. The group meets up with Richard every quarter for a relaxed discussion over a working lunch whereby any issues can be brought up and discussed openly. It is not a decision making forum but ideas are brought to it for consideration and many go on to be implemented. So far the forum has successfully suggested improvements to the induction programme, appraisals, clarity over home working and recognition for long serving colleagues.

Each member of the team at ResourceBank has a detailed job specification which clearly identifies and recognises what their role entails. This is reviewed as part of the annual appraisal process. The whole team is involved in recognising and rewarding a job well done. Each quarter nominations are sought for the elements of excellence award. Anyone in the company can nominate a colleague they feel deserves recognition for going the extra mile. All those nominated receive a £25 voucher and the winner £200.

Reed Smith operate a ‘core values in action', employee of the quarter award. The employee of the quarter award is awarded to employees who demonstrate the firms core values on a consistent basis and who have shown examples of ‘above and beyond the call of duty'. Fee earners and managers may nominate employees once a quarter, and the winner receives £750 and a duvet day. There are also honourable mention awards for employees who were nominated for the employee of the quarter award but the committee decided to award them an honourable mention instead. Those winners receive £150 and a duvet day. Awards are presented at the monthly partner meetings, and winners are also highlighted on their intranet, OurSpace. They also ensure that they pay the London living wage, not only to their staff, but to all contractors in their supply chain. At partner level they also have the Shaw's Lion Award, the firm's highest individual distinction. The Shaw's Lion Award is given in recognition of a Reed Smith lawyer's significant impact on the firm. Symbolised by a 100-year-old bronze lion owned by one of the firm's founding partners, the award is given annually to the partner who, in the discretion of the global managing partner, best exemplifies the dedication, qualities and commitment to excellence at the heart of their firm. They also have the Sean Halpin Award, their highest pro bono honour. This Award, which carries with it $10,000 to be donated to one or more nonprofits selected by the winners, celebrates the spirit of service to the less fortunate that animated the life of their late Philadelphia partner, Sean Halpin. This year the award went to a diverse team who helped in the aftermath of the Haiti Earthquake.

In 2012/13 Reed Smith launched an integrated masters in business and legal practice course (LPC) unique in the sector which ensured the trainees who completed this and join us from August 2013 onwards have a deep commercial skill set and a more rounded understanding of business strategy and finance in addition to the law. Their teamwork capability – and application of the commercial knowledge - is also enhanced with a 4 week-long “client project” on a business topic of the client's choosing towards the end of their course. One trainee commented “The client project was the best learning experience I can remember having taken part in”. Their careers competency framework and annual evaluation process for lawyers, staff and secretaries has been further linked to the learning opportunities made available throughout the year. The data from the evaluations was analysed to inform what learning programmes they offered, and this resulted in a number of new programmes being developed. For example, a senior associate business development programme, delivered by an external consultant has had strong feedback throughout and is now in its second year. Building on that they are now creating a senior associate management development programme run along similar lines, plus buddy meetings and a learning log to keep track and share success and progress as a result of the learning. For staff and secretaries they have created a range of courses including confidence and assertiveness, listening and questioning skills and stakeholder management, all of which have had positive feedback. Furthermore, they are rolling out a development programme aimed specifically at managers in their support groups.

Reaseheath College have found the annual staff survey to be a very helpful way of listening to employees and to seek their opinion on all matters relating to the College. In particular, staff felt the staff partnership forum was, in its previous guise, not as effective as it could be. This being the consensus highlighted by the survey a project was undertaken to review the structure and purpose of the Forum. The staff partnership forum is now a more formal channel for employees to give their views, raise concerns and share ideas with senior management. The results of the survey and the actions from it are shared with staff in a “You Said, We Did” format allowing staff to see how their views have been heard and acted upon.

Enabling individual success in their role is very important to Reaseheath College. To be effective, they believe individual learning must be linked back to the needs of the business. With that in mind, managers and team members work together to identify the skills and knowledge required by the role and use this combined with outcomes from individual 121's reviews and PDRs to form the basis for individual learning plans. The best example of how they support employee development in this way has been to develop a programme or learning for their teaching staff by bringing PTLLS, CTLLS and PGCE training in-house. All of their new teaching staff embark on a period of learning to gain this required qualification studying alongside colleagues in their place of work. The benefits of brining this in-house has meant the training forms a natural extension to the induction of new teaching staff and helps them to shape them to be the lecturers and instructors their students require them to be. The organisation's training budget has been developed by managers allowing teams the flexibility and autonomy to plan and arrange their own bespoke training and away days.

The family fun day provides a platform for all ReachLocal UK employees to spend a day with each other and bring along family members, where they can get to know each other on a more personal level. This promotes trust between each other and stronger working relationships and it's also a way for the company to thank the nearest and dearest of their employees from who they take so much time.

ReachLocal have regular speakers who come in and talk to their employees, most recently they had a speech on perception and how that influences the way they work. They like to encourage employees to look at how they can do things differently so that they can continue to achieve within the business.

Randstad consultants are most inspired and engagement when they can work in partnership with the leadership team; both putting their ideas forward and learning from their role models. The high performance camps channelled this, inviting feedback and acting as ambassadors for consultants. Employees' invitation to a two-day event had already created interest and heightened project awareness and engagement levels. To maximise engagement, the event was attended by Randstad UK's CEO and Randstad business support's managing director. In their employees' eyes, this really added value to the event. Firstly, it actively demonstrated how important the event was. Secondly, it gave employees direct access to senior team members in an informal, fun and inspirational environment. Mark Bull and Ruth Jacobs were actively involved in physical and mental challenges. Their people enjoyed ‘getting their hands dirty' in the team-building events alongside some of Randstad's most senior leaders.

Randstad hosts numerous team building days; these range from more formal training days to inspirational ‘directors day', which are always eagerly anticipated. In 2013, one of Randstad's most successful team building events was delivered within their Randstad Care business line. As opposed to being a tactical team building event – the bespoke and strategic event was created in direct response to external market research report and internal employee feedback. Firstly, the Randstad Care team surveyed both existing current clients and prospective clients. This gave the team valuable feedback on both business perceptions and experiences and helping identify where they were already successful and where improvements could be made. Once the findings were in place, all employees were invited to two-day events to combine the learning obtained from the research and to further build team morale and communication. The engaging agenda ranged from practical workshops to outward bound courses, culminating in a sensational and aspirational Randstad Talent evening. The event offered a superb blend of business benefits and social activation. This activity received exceptional feedback as it gave teams valuable insight into their market and gave them an opportunity to shape what the future of their business would look like. Employees recognised that in addition to the fun team-building element, this unique event also really helped them to further succeed in their jobs and supported their career development.

Over the past year, Raglan have introduced new benefits including holiday trading and cycle to work, which help staff to make the most of their free time and work life balance. A series of workshops in all the offices have publicised the many wellbeing services available from their employee assistance providers, including an online health and wellbeing portal called Vitality. Their occupational health providers give them access to a vast range of online health information. The new intranet features 4 pages dedicated to staff's wellbeing which are regularly updated. They recently spent the first day of a 2 day conference for their top 45 managers focusing on wellbeing and resilience issues and will be discussing with them how they cascase this down to team level. They are also currently offering free flu jabs for all staff.

In Spring 2013, Raglan introduced a new staff recognition scheme. Devised by a focus group of staff representatives, it comprised 5 elements. These are: Thank you cards (online and paper) for staff to use a public recognition forum on the intranet for staff to acknowledge other's contributions a suggestion box on the intranet for good ideas, innovations, money-saving suggestions, etc. A staff awards scheme with the postings on the recognition forum and the suggestion box forming the nominations managers' budgets for recognition, to be spend on team lunches, coffee and cake, small gifts, etc. The scheme has been really well received by staff and the managers' budgets in particular are having an impact on staff perception of how their efforts are recognised and the confidence of managers to acknowledge a good job well done. They will be formally assessing the impact of the scheme after the first 6 months and the first staff awards at Christmas 2013.

In addition to its paid employees, the Hospice is supported by over 1,000 volunteers both at the Hospice itself, and in its retail outlets. The social capital created by these volunteering opportunities makes a huge contribution to the local community. Research by the Charity Retail Association highlights the very positive impact that charity shops have in their local community.

As a charity their ability to use money as a reward is restricted, however they seek to celebrate success and additional effort by publicly thanking staff in their weekly all staff newsletter. In addition, their chief executive personally thanks staff who have gone the extra mile. They are keen to establish an employee reward and recognition scheme but want to do it in a way that is valued by all their staff so are planning to consult with staff so that they have a better sense of what would be meaningful to them.

An action from Posturite's summer 2013 conference was to hold a series of workshops hosted by their sales director Geoff Thompson. These workshops helped them in the development of a new business strategy. They have learnt how to talk to the right people at the right level, expand existing accounts and get to the stage where they are in an enviable position of being able to more or less hand pick their new customers. They are obviously helped by the fact that they are clear market leaders and they have a strong level of brand awareness but the process helped them to focus – this entire process was stimulated and driven by their summer sales conference which the whole company attended.

An action from Posturite's summer 2013 conference was to hold a series of workshops hosted by their sales director Geoff Thompson. These workshops helped them in the development of a new business strategy. They have learnt how to talk to the right people at the right level, expand existing accounts and get to the stage where they are in an enviable position of being able to more or less hand pick their new customers. They are obviously helped by the fact that they are clear market leaders and they have a strong level of brand awareness but the process helped them to focus – this entire process was stimulated and driven by their summer sales conference which the whole company attended.

PhotoBox are constantly trying to improve the working environment for their people. Office moves, soft areas for rest and play during the working day and improved canteen facilities have been made in the last 12 months all as a result of feedback. Free fruit is always available and valued by everyone.

A shift in PhotoBox's marketing mix during 2013 has seen the PhotoBox brand advertise on TV for the first time. While clearly aligned with their objective of engaging customers and driving sales this change has contributed enormously to the sense of significance, pride and engagement of employees. There's no doubting the positive effect this has had on their business internally, providing evidence that included in the mix of levers of engagement is a belief in the vision/brand of their company.

Pharmalink Consulting Ltd set SMART objectives. With these they allow a timely consistent follow up and development opportunities from both internal and external sources.

Pharmalink Consulting Ltd's company charity is a strong and firm foundation of their company, their employees are very supportive of their events and always attend as volunteers if possible.

The company has recruited an HR manager to help managers with employee engagement.

The company has recruited an HR manager to help managers with employee engagement.

Pagan Osbourne provide the framework and training but it is their managers who bring everything to life. They work closely with their team so that they are aware of exactly what's going on so are perfectly placed to give timely praise and recognise a job well done. Every year, new objectives are set in conjunction with the individual and every month the manager holds a 1-1 meeting where they review progress, and can help alleviate pressure points if and when they appear. Their annual Personal Development Review (PDR) records the person's overall performance and their rating influences pay awards, as exceptional performance is given above average pay increases (when the business is able to do so). As managers are aware of progress and regularly check client feedback and commendations, they personally recognise achievements and make sure that their director also knows of any key successes. In turn, the management board then recognise successes by sending cards to high achievers on a monthly basis and praising top performers in their monthly blog.

Pagan Osbourne provide the framework and training but it is their managers who bring everything to life. They work closely with their team so that they are aware of exactly what's going on so are perfectly placed to give timely praise and recognise a job well done. Every year, new objectives are set in conjunction with the individual and every month the manager holds a 1-1 meeting where they review progress, and can help alleviate pressure points if and when they appear. Their annual Personal Development Review (PDR) records the person's overall performance and their rating influences pay awards, as exceptional performance is given above average pay increases (when the business is able to do so). As managers are aware of progress and regularly check client feedback and commendations, they personally recognise achievements and make sure that their director also knows of any key successes. In turn, the management board then recognise successes by sending cards to high achievers on a monthly basis and praising top performers in their monthly blog.

In October 2013, the senior management team at Octopus were searching for ways to bridge any perception of distance between themselves and the rest of the company as a result of their significant growth. They decided to don the aprons and chef's hats and cooked a Jamaican-themed lunch of goat curry (complete with side dishes, vege options and pudding) for the entire company. This was achieved with the help of just one trained chef to help guide them – they arrived at 6am to help set up a temporary kitchen and worked solidly until the middle of the afternoon in order to cover all aspects of service. All staff were invited to 6 different sittings and were sat randomly in order to create a mixed environment in a relaxed setting where employees mingled between teams and all levels of seniority/tenure in the company. The event was such a success in building positive levels of engagement that two more “cook offs” were planned for November and December 2013 and there are more on the agenda for 2014.

All staff are invited, twice a year, to a fun day – in which they join with a random selection of their colleagues (numbering 25-30) in a half day fun event of their own design. The emphasis is on team building and networking in a fun (usually competitive!) environment. Recent examples have included: go-carting, Crystal Maze-type challenges, cocktail and pizza making, walking history tours, table football/ping pong competitions, pub quizzes, attending greyhound racing, crazy bingo, a murder mystery, and amateur magician classes. In addition, they have a company-wide team building and fun event that takes place around midsummer's day, each year. Previous examples include a company values-themed fashion show (swapping a donation to Age Concern for a variety of vintage clothing as base materials!) and this year all staff went to Pineapple Dance Studios where they were separated in to random teams, paired with professional choreographers and entered in to a team dance-off, on stage at the Lyric Theatre in London's West End. Each team is invited to host a monthly drinks and social party of their own theming. A budget is provided to cover the cost of drinks, food and entertainment props. Recent examples include a “Casino Royale” evening, a kids-themed party (e.g. with pass-the-parcel and musical chairs), a US-style “Frat” party complete with party games, and a New Zealand wine-tasting evening.

The very nature of Ochre House means an environment of mobility and communication. As new clients are won it is vital to the health of the business that the best possible account teams are put together. Whilst this may mean some external recruitment and in some cases a TOP transfer of existing client teams, the organisation seeks to promote internal opportunity as a necessity. Quick fixes don't work – the right people must be in the right place and only by understanding people's individual; ambitions and goals can this be done effectively and to mutual benefit. In 2013 Ochre House formally appointed an Occupational Health partner to advise on employee health and welfare. In response to survey outputs and with their partner's guidance, the organisation have implemented onsite massage and wellness clinic sessions.

One of the key tenets of the ‘way of working' at Ochre House is empowerment through personal responsibility. One of their development mantras is ‘see it, mean it, lead it' and through this the organisation urge colleagues to run with any idea they truly believe can make a difference. They support this through "Passport". The organisation believe that there is no better way to hear what people are saying, and to benefit from their ideas and feedback, than to encourage and enable them to join virtual teams and projects that operate outside their day to day role. In this way the company benefits from hearing a wide range of different ideas and the individuals benefit from working with new colleagues and leaders and evidencing their determination to develop themselves. The company also encourage subject experts within Ochre House to blog and these blogs are then shared on social media sites and within the company. This gives colleagues a chance to showcase their expertise, thinking, and opinion.

The company has retained the key principles that have been so crucial to its ongoing success. They continue to operate within a fun and vibrant working environment where people can reach their full potential and enjoy the processes in getting there. ARK proves it is a great workplace because it views everybody as a valuable asset.

The company has retained the key principles that have been so crucial to its ongoing success. They continue to operate within a fun and vibrant working environment where people can reach their full potential and enjoy the processes in getting there. ARK proves it is a great workplace because it views everybody as a valuable asset.

There is constant consultation and engagement taking place between the organisation and its people and mechanisms such as the staff and carer consultation forums are used as “temperature checks” to gauge people's views on the way in which the organisation manages and develops them. The results from the survey will initially be understood by the senior team within the organisation and then fed back to the line managers. They will then be assisted and supported in producing a presentation to present to their teams and facilitate a feedback session in order to develop local action plans which can then be co-ordinated into an organisations action plan.

Managers undertake a review of their teams and individual employees and recognise when new employees are required or when a role needs to be changed to reflect the needs of the organisation.
They continually review the role of the individuals in their teams and consider appropriate ways of ensuring that what is required is completed. They support new employees during their probationary period with reviews at 1, 3 and 6 months in order to ensure they have all the required support they need. In addition to this, all employees have 4 weekly supervision meetings which are clearly documented with their manager and approved by the manager's manager. They also hold regular team meetings with team members along with other members of the senior management teams as appropriate. In addition most employees have a regular one-to-one meeting with their manager during which any issues they have can be raised and discussed. Managers will invite feedback from employees at team meetings and one-to-one meetings which are formally recorded.

MWH seeks to reward employees for their efforts. They provide a variety of bonuses which celebrate life events (e.g. marriage or baby), performance in the form of Spot Bonus awards for outstanding work and achievement in terms of Professional Status Bonuses as well as educational sponsorship.

The wellbeing of employees is at the forefront of the Company's mind and it is in constant communication with employees. An Employee Assistance Programme is available for employees to help them through crises and without which their well-being could be compromised. The Employee Assistance Programme has well-being nurses and counsellors to assist with anxiety, stress and depression. They have introduced alcohol and drugs testing, not to be punitive, but to bring support to those that need it. Often when people are anxious, stressed or depressed they are more vulnerable and susceptible to addiction as a coping mechanism. The Company seeks to help and support those who are positive on a random test and not invoke the disciplinary procedure, but start a programme of support. They also have private medical, permanent health insurance cover and then an array of well-being items that can be purchased with disposable income through flexible benefits.

The company is moving to new premises in December of this year and the Senior Team has included everyone in the plans for the new factory. Employees have been shown the plans from an early stage and have been taken in Groups to the new factory and have had considerable input to the layout of their working area. Patrick Hurst the MD has great rapport with employees. He communicates regularly with the entire workforce and while employees are informed of serious issues; there is goodwill and light-hearted banter at these sessions. He really cares about all the employees and looks on them as extended family. He is trusted and respected by all and this is very evident when they get feedback from employees. He has an open door policy and often employees drop by for a chat with him because he is so well liked. He meets personally with all new employees.

The organisation encourages employees to take part in raising funds for charity. They normally match what they raise up to approximately £500 but in special circumstances, such as natural disasters, they have given £10 for every £1 raised by employees up to a maximum of £5000. As well as this the company would subsidise fund raising activities by way of supplying food and prizes for raffles. The company has a Charitable Trust where 10% of the company's profits go to different charities, mainly to help third world countries. They continue to support a hospital and school in Burkina Faso and a Children's Recovery Unit in the Philippines. Money is also given to support missionaries working in third world countries. The workforce are very generous and caring and are always doing collections for charity and taking part in charity events to raise money. Recently when one of their employees who was terminally ill was in hospital receiving treatment, the employees and the company raised money for the cancer ward of the hospital. They had a company BBQ which raised £1000 and with a whip round and company sponsorship the final total was nearly £2000.

Moo Print Ltd's last survey highlighted the desire and need for more training. As a result of this, they introduced a training budget of £100k and, using their employee development planners, identified training requirements based on individual needs. Employees and managers are empowered to decide what training providers, courses and conferences would be most beneficial to their development. These recommendations are put forward to, and approved, by the People Director. The process is quick and straightforward and they have seen in an uplift in engagement and enhanced skill sets as a result. Employees often share their training and conference experiences with the wider team via blog posts on their intranet.

Moo Print Ltd's last survey highlighted the desire and need for more training. As a result of this, they introduced a training budget of £100k and, using their employee development planners, identified training requirements based on individual needs. Employees and managers are empowered to decide what training providers, courses and conferences would be most beneficial to their development. These recommendations are put forward to, and approved, by the People Director. The process is quick and straightforward and they have seen in an uplift in engagement and enhanced skill sets as a result. Employees often share their training and conference experiences with the wider team via blog posts on their intranet.

Moneysupermarket.com encourage all teams to arrange team building events throughout the year. This year their marketing team (130 employees) took a day out for team building. Part of the day involved project updates and for the remainder of the day the team were able to enjoy dancing at a Salsa bar. Other team building events have included Go Ape and Go Karting.

Each year Moneysupermarket have a full well being programme as part of taking care of their employees health and well being. Each week, on a Wednesday, they have fresh fruit delivered to their offices which their employees can enjoy free of charge. Probably their most popular well being initiative is Lifestyle coaching, this is a free confidential service, they offer to their employees who are able to meet with the lifestyle coach when the feel they need a little help and support in their life. Moneysupermarket also offer employees 10 minute massages each month to help them distress.

When you consider that the stereotypical CEO of a fast growing, ambitious tech company are often aloof and sometimes downright scary, Peter Bauer strikes a very different note at Mimecast. Although the company now employs more than 500 employees globally, 253 staff in the UK and growing, Peter will know each staff member by name. Peter, together with his co-founder Neil Murray, continue to represent the DNA of the company, despite its rapid growth, and that creates a sense of togetherness and 'team' that makes the company feel small. Peter has a strong sense of personal responsibility for the future of both the company and the people he has hired to work in it. He is incredibly driven, works tirelessly, and expects the same commitment from Mimecast staff. It's not a place for a quiet life, but Peter has created an exciting, vibrant workplace where each employee feels they have a role to play in the company's future.

The Mimecast Eagles Club is an annual employee incentive program to reward Mimecasters who hit 105% of their annual sales quota. Thirty employees (and a guest) are invited to attend a three day learning and adventure experience held at a world class resort with their partners. They have annual bonus schemes and share option schemes to facilitate having variable pay and reward available for everyone. Mimecast reward milestones and behaviour in real time not just the result at the end of the year. We publicly recognise achievements in company communications so as to celebrate and perpetuate success. They have the facility for staff to openly “Recognise a Mimecaster” on their company intranet which gives employees the opportunity to give praise to their colleagues by awarding “badges” of recognition on their intranet profile. Mimecast hold regular social events for staff both formal and informal. Mimecast hosts a Summer Fun Day for all staff and their families, this year everyone attended a fun day at Chessington World of Adventures. Annual awards for outstanding achievements are aligned to their values and principles presented by Exec team to employees at the End of Year function in December.

Memex Technology Ltd believe that employees with good work-life balance are happier and healthier employees which is critical to the Company achieving its goals. In demonstrating their commitment to health and wellbeing they offer benefits that proactively encourage health and wellbeing, these are: £500 lifestyle benefit, which can be spent on enhancing any of the default benefits on offer or purchasing other benefits such as gym membership or dental cover. Should employees become unwell, they offer a free Employee Assistance Programme, which includes six free counselling sessions per year, free private medical insurance for employees with subsidised rates for dependant and family cover, life insurance, income protection and a 2nd medical opinion service through Best Doctors.

Memex Technology Ltd believe that employees with good work-life balance are happier and healthier employees which is critical to the Company achieving its goals. In demonstrating their commitment to health and wellbeing they offer benefits that proactively encourage health and wellbeing, these are: £500 lifestyle benefit, which can be spent on enhancing any of the default benefits on offer or purchasing other benefits such as gym membership or dental cover. Should employees become unwell, they offer a free Employee Assistance Programme, which includes six free counselling sessions per year, free private medical insurance for employees with subsidised rates for dependant and family cover, life insurance, income protection and a 2nd medical opinion service through Best Doctors.

Marlin Financial offer flu vaccinations and occupational health support.

Marlin Financial offer flu vaccinations and occupational health support.

Make is a 100 per cent employee-owned organisation; each member of staff shares in the profits each year. This business model engenders a genuine sense of ownership and entitlement and encourages commitment from all partners as they are guaranteed to be rewarded for their motivation and efforts. As a result, they are able to attract and keep the very best talent. Make encourages this ‘sense of ownership' to translate through into the practice operations. For example, all partners are encouraged, regardless of length of tenure or experience, to take on an active role in progressing the profile of the practice. Traditionally in architecture, it is the more senior architects that are permitted to network and to pursue new business, but at Make they actively shun this approach, instead encouraging all employees to network, attend events and to go after the clients and projects that excite and inspire them. They find that this trust pays real dividends in helping Make stand out from the crowd - both for the individuals who feel empowered and for the benefit of the company. This trust is also applied internally within the practice with broader ‘practice-wide' job roles rotated within the firm. For example, architects can volunteer to review CVs of new candidates before selecting those for interview. These roles usually rotate on an annual basis to ensure no one gets overloaded and that those interested can each get a chance to apply themselves.

Make encourages all partners to discuss their personal ambitions and where possible support them to do so. This may be by approving sabbaticals or allowing flexible working to attend a course. A number of their partners wish to give something back to the universities they attended to teach those now going through the same course. Make encourages individuals to do this and allow people to either use their holidays to give them a paid day off a week or amends contractual terms for them to do this. This is in addition to taking time to understand the types of projects individuals would like to work on through the appraisal process. Where possible they move people between projects to assist their aspirations.

Following Magenta Living's move to new premises, Partnership Building, launched `Magenta Living Team Challenge' with the emphasis on `how to make Magenta Living a better place to work' and the guidance that ideas have to benefit everyone. Each team were asked to come up with an idea that will make Magenta Living a better place to work and were given up to £1000 to make the idea a reality. It was also committed that if the winning idea was specific to Partnership Building, then £1000 was also available to purchase the same item for the new Building Services depot. Ideas were generated through discussion at team meetings and then put to a staff vote. There was a wide range of suggestions including installing a telescope in the staff area (The Observatory), to social events on a Friday, gym equipment and a pool table. The idea was effective as it brought teams together as the `Challenge' was discussed at Team Meetings and it generated team work, sharing of ideas and also created some fun and a `buzz' within the teams. Ultimately staff had ownership of the whole process from identifying the ideas to voting on the winner and helping to implement it.

At Magenta Living their unique, partnership approach brings positive benefits to the local and wider community as well as securing value for money. Through partnerships they are able to offer an extensive programme of resident training and capacity building, all of which is free to participants. Local organisations such as Wirral Met College, Lifelong Learning and Union learn work with them to provide training in a wide range of topics from dressmaking to computing to key skills such as english and maths. They are able to provide accredited training at their community properties which leads to qualifications assisting residents to become more able to access employment as well as building skills confidence and self worth. Accessing employment opportunities is important within the challenging environment many of their residents face. Their innovative partnership with Job Centre Plus through their Wow (Working on Wirral|) project sites an employment skills advisor within their team, again at no cost to residents accessing the service. Four residents have found jobs within the first month of this exciting pilot project. Their partnership with Partners Credit Union (also sited within their building) has enabled them to set up their Digital Deal scheme where they offer cheap, recycled computer equipment to residents with the option to access affordable credit. This is accomplished by budgeting training and IT qualifications to combat digital exclusion. Partnerships with social enterprises address local issues, put money into the local economy and assist in employing local people. They support a range of social enterprises including 14-19 Wirral which specialises in youth consultation. A member of Magenta Living's staff sits on its board.

As a partnership, ISIS is an employee-owned organisation. As such, growing and improving through the ideas and feedback of team members is embedded into their structure and their culture. Promotion and advancement within ISIS is explicitly linked to employees coming up with ideas and then acting on them which contributes to the overall growth and development of the organisation.

As a partnership, ISIS is an employee-owned organisation. As such, growing and improving through the ideas and feedback of team members is embedded into their structure and their culture. Promotion and advancement within ISIS is explicitly linked to employees coming up with ideas and then acting on them which contributes to the overall growth and development of the organisation.

The range of training and personal development opportunities available to staff at the college is outstanding. Leyton Sixth Form College are committed to the principle of ‘growing their own' and their approach to staff development has been recognised by their achieving the Investors in People Champion status. In the past year alone. The overwhelming majority of their 200+ staff completed a person QIP (Quality Improvement Project), 12 staff completed a Level 2 Counselling Award, 8 staff worked towards an MA in Leadership, 1 staff member completed Masters units, 2 staff worked towards their PGCE qualification, 8 staff achieved a PTLLS qualification (Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector), 1 staff member worked towards a DTLLS qualification, 1 staff member worked towards a Diploma in Marketing, 6 staff undertook an ‘Aspiring Senior Leaders' course, 1 member of staff achieved her CIPD (Personnel) professional qualification. Dozens of staff took part in teaching and learning focus groups either within college or as part of their local collaborative partnership. Dozens more became members of internal working parties addressing key issues within college.

The range of training and personal development opportunities available to staff at the college is outstanding. Leyton Sixth Form College are committed to the principle of ‘growing their own' and their approach to staff development has been recognised by their achieving the Investors in People Champion status. In the past year alone. The overwhelming majority of their 200+ staff completed a person QIP (Quality Improvement Project), 12 staff completed a Level 2 Counselling Award, 8 staff worked towards an MA in Leadership, 1 staff member completed Masters units, 2 staff worked towards their PGCE qualification, 8 staff achieved a PTLLS qualification (Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector), 1 staff member worked towards a DTLLS qualification, 1 staff member worked towards a Diploma in Marketing, 6 staff undertook an ‘Aspiring Senior Leaders' course, 1 member of staff achieved her CIPD (Personnel) professional qualification. Dozens of staff took part in teaching and learning focus groups either within college or as part of their local collaborative partnership. Dozens more became members of internal working parties addressing key issues within college.

Mike Sunley has been the driving force behind Lexington since establishing the business in 2002. His determination, positivity and motivation have ensured that the company has grown year on year both in terms of turnover and people. From the start Mike wanted to do things differently and this has enabled Lexington to develop a strong culture. It's more than Mike's tireless approach to the very best food, people and service; he's also ensured Lexington is recognised as one of the UK's leading contract caterers, with an enviable reputation as one of the best employers in their sector. In a recent Investors in People audit, where Gold standard was achieved, employees commented that Mike is 'visible, communicative, professional, fun, approachable and recognises people!' Mike was also named the 'Foodservice Caterer of the Year' at the 30th anniversary of the prestigious Catey Awards in July 2013. The Foodservice Caterer award recognises an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the catering and wider hospitality world, who has combined innovation with sound financial performance as well as demonstrating clear business achievements. Mike was praised for driving business innovations across the company and operating Lexington with strong people focused policies at the heart of the business. In a time when many companies were cutting back on investment in their people it was made clear that Mike's continued investment in training and people retention has paid dividends for the company's growth and wider business success.

Mike Sunley has been the driving force behind Lexington since establishing the business in 2002. His determination, positivity and motivation have ensured that the company has grown year on year both in terms of turnover and people. From the start Mike wanted to do things differently and this has enabled Lexington to develop a strong culture. It's more than Mike's tireless approach to the very best food, people and service; he's also ensured Lexington is recognised as one of the UK's leading contract caterers, with an enviable reputation as one of the best employers in their sector. In a recent Investors in People audit, where Gold standard was achieved, employees commented that Mike is 'visible, communicative, professional, fun, approachable and recognises people!' Mike was also named the 'Foodservice Caterer of the Year' at the 30th anniversary of the prestigious Catey Awards in July 2013. The Foodservice Caterer award recognises an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the catering and wider hospitality world, who has combined innovation with sound financial performance as well as demonstrating clear business achievements. Mike was praised for driving business innovations across the company and operating Lexington with strong people focused policies at the heart of the business. In a time when many companies were cutting back on investment in their people it was made clear that Mike's continued investment in training and people retention has paid dividends for the company's growth and wider business success.

Legal and General offer sponsorship matching and time matching requests up to £500 per person per year. Employees can mix and match to claim time and sponsorship matching throughout the year up to the value of £500. Gives those employees who don't have the chance to fundraise, but do value work volunteering on behalf of a charity the chance to claim matching. Time matching is based on £20 per hour. The company matches up to £25 of the employee's monthly 'Give as you earn' contribution.

Legal and General offer sponsorship matching and time matching requests up to £500 per person per year. Employees can mix and match to claim time and sponsorship matching throughout the year up to the value of £500. Gives those employees who don't have the chance to fundraise, but do value work volunteering on behalf of a charity the chance to claim matching. Time matching is based on £20 per hour. The company matches up to £25 of the employee's monthly 'Give as you earn' contribution.

Managers hold regular discussions with their team members regarding their day to day roles, how they would like to develop in their roles or in other areas of the business, and their future aspirations overall. These discussions are held also as part of the regular one to one meetings with employees and in a more structured way as part of the appraisals system. Managers are generally very caring and considerate of their employee's needs and endeavour to support them in any way they can. Managers will also discuss career development opportunities as project plans arise and will look for volunteers to join projects who wish to develop their skills in that area of the business.

Key Travel offer a very comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme which is highly confidential and enables employees to discuss health, financial, personal and family matters. They have also appointed an external occupational health partner who works with them to ensure anyone who is struggling in their role for health reasons is fully and appropriately supported. Finally they have partnered with a DSE assessment organisation to ensure that these assessments are undertaken by experts rather than them in house.

The family fun day is a company funded event to say thank you to all staff at ITW and their families. They hire a venue and this year it was a pleasure boat cruise along the Thames. It's a great party, always well organised and it's great for team-building. The inclusion of family members extends the thank you to husbands/wives/partners and children of all hard working and loyal staff. Their team bonus fund is based on target achievements and allocated to an event for all employees as part of continued team building and recognition.

As a consequence of the employee survey in February ITW have a team of volunteers, team ORACLE, who are working with colleagues to implement changes and areas for improvement. The survey findings recommended three areas where the company's satisfaction scores were a few % below the greater majority of the results. The ideas from ORACLE are now being rolled out so they can undertake another survey and measure the impact of the changes. ORACLE have open question and answer sessions, meet to review progress and highlight any issues affecting team members.

As an organisation, Irvine Housing Association believes employee development is extremely important. Some of the training they do, whether in-house or off-site is compulsory, but staff are encouraged to participate in any other training that they feel may benefit them or support them in the role that they are doing. All requests for training are fully considered. A new learning and development matrix has been implemented to record and highlight all training requirements for each post within the association. In addition to general training, the association supports staff that wish to undertake college courses. Several of their housing and customer services staff are currently working towards their level 4 diploma in housing. One staff member is studying towards a master's degree and another towards a marketing diploma. The association supports these staff by paying the full cost of the course, time-off to attend and also time-off to study and take exams. Some of the other courses undertaken by staff include NEBOSH, EPC assessing and talent management assessment. Staff also have the opportunity to attend appropriate conferences which include finance, CIPD, CIH housing, repairs and maintenance. Again, all costs, whether it is a day conference or overnight stay that is required is met by the association. Irvine Housing Association over the last couple of years has participated in the North Ayrshire housing careers trainee programme. New trainees undergo an extensive training programme and spend time in each department. Recently one of their trainees was successful in being appointed to a permanent full time customer services officer.

Irvine Housing Association has maintained the bronze healthy working lives award and has just recently achieved the silver award. This has involved staff members and the HWL working group identifying which areas of health they would like to receive more information on. Information sessions were then arranged to which all staff were invited. Examples of these were alcohol awareness; they sourced time clock, beer goggles etc. and this showed what sensible alcohol measures were and the time taken for alcohol to leave your system. They promoted stress management and provided staff with a link to the "steps to deal with stress" guide. They also printed off information which was displayed and available to staff. They also held a 'glitter bug' session for staff which highlighted the importance of washing hands properly. Irvine Housing Association genuinely cares about the wellbeing of their staff and actively promotes a healthy lifestyle. They have policies and procedures in place, such as supporting staff attendance. A presentation was given to managers on supporting employee absence and subsequent training was provided to staff. All the activities we do are promoted through emails, notice boards, and word-of-mouth. The Association offers private health care and also a health benefits cash plan which is run by Simply Health. The plan is paid for by the association and there is no cost to staff. This plan encourages staff to have regular check-ups at the dentist, optician, podiatric etc. and all costs are reimbursed to staff.

IRESS have a recognition award scheme that is used to recognise the outstanding achievements of employees. The award is intended for individuals who perform over and above their job description and who excel in the company's core values. It is particularly powerful in that it enables any individual to make a nomination for any other individual, team or department. It also encourages managers to reward team members via individual recognition and vouchers schemes. Company wide recognition of the individuals receiving awards and their achievements are then provided via the engagement team newsletters and their intranet. IRESS are currently reviewing the criteria of the recognition award scheme so that, alongside their valued behaviours, they can also align it to their primary purpose, winning ambition and strategy signposts.

IRESS have a recognition award scheme that is used to recognise the outstanding achievements of employees. The award is intended for individuals who perform over and above their job description and who excel in the company's core values. It is particularly powerful in that it enables any individual to make a nomination for any other individual, team or department. It also encourages managers to reward team members via individual recognition and vouchers schemes. Company wide recognition of the individuals receiving awards and their achievements are then provided via the engagement team newsletters and their intranet. IRESS are currently reviewing the criteria of the recognition award scheme so that, alongside their valued behaviours, they can also align it to their primary purpose, winning ambition and strategy signposts.

The organisation created the IHG Academy - a public:private partnership model, helping local people develop their skills and take a first step into employment. One model is sector based work academy that is delivered in partnership with JobCentrePlus and targeted towards those not in education, employment or training. The model includes a City & Guilds qualification, work experience in their hotels and an interview with the opportunity to secure employment and continued development. During 2013, 27% attendees of an IHG Academy have 'graduated' into employment in our hotels. The IHG Academy won business in the community work inspiration award for work on the academy programme across the UK&I, specifically in Leeds, for the excellent work the academy programme does in the local communities, providing learning and job opportunities. Graduates follow a robust training programme to develop their careers which is aligned to nationally recognised qualifications. Hence, the IHG Apprenticeship programme started where employees can gain an NVQ level 2 and be assessed by their line manager whilst completing daily tasks. IHG's apprenticeship scheme has been recognised at the National Apprenticeship Awards 2013. The company achieved ‘highly commended' in the ‘new employer' category for the Thames Valley Region because of their commitment to offering new apprentices and excellent career opportunities, with over 100 places offered to date. A video of candidate success stories has been produced to promote this initiative.

On 22nd February 2013 IHG held their annual recognition awards ceremony for the hotel employees in the UK and Ireland managed estate. This was held at the prestigious Intercontinental Hotel, Park Lane and everything possible was done to ensure that our nominated employees had an evening to remember, from offering assistance with outfits, providing travel to the venue, a drinks reception followed by a gala dinner, to the awards ceremony followed by dancing to the small hours and then transport back to their pre-arranged accommodation for a well-earned rest. A variety of awards were up for grabs, including ‘engagement hotel of the year', ‘aim higher' and ‘employee of the year'. Those employees nominated to attend were chosen by their managers and colleagues, most having been an ‘employee of the month' on one or more occasion previously. The perfect end to a fantastic celebration was the delivery of an OK style magazine to all employees who attended the awards which was slipped under their door ready for the next morning, giving everyone plenty to talk about over breakfast! The build up to this event runs throughout the whole year, and really backs all of their recognition programmes, as everyone wants an invite to the annual awards night. The momentum that the awards drive through the hotels is amazing and they ensure it remains on the agenda across all properties each month.

Every last Friday of the month Inferno holds a social event called ‘Love What Could Be', which gives the chance to gather the entire agency, build morale and inspire collaborative working. These varied events are organised by their ‘Love What Could Be' committee and some are seasonal, some are festive and some are completely random. Alcohol and nibbles are always a prerequisite. In the past year, an example of these are: a summer picnic and games, a pumpkin carving competition, a cocktail making class and a “guess the baby” tea party. Though not quite a team building ‘event', a “buddy system” is introduced on an employee's first days where new staff are partnered with someone on their department who is not their line manager, who will introduce them to their new home and colleagues, beyond the initial HR tour. Inferno will also pay for the buddy to host a team lunch outside the agency. Departments also have regular ‘away days' to discuss new practices and strategy, this is held at a nice and inspiring venue (such as an art gallery meeting room) and include breakfast/lunch and down-time drinks when the day is through.

Every last Friday of the month Inferno holds a social event called ‘Love What Could Be', which gives the chance to gather the entire agency, build morale and inspire collaborative working. These varied events are organised by their ‘Love What Could Be' committee and some are seasonal, some are festive and some are completely random. Alcohol and nibbles are always a prerequisite. In the past year, an example of these are: a summer picnic and games, a pumpkin carving competition, a cocktail making class and a “guess the baby” tea party. Though not quite a team building ‘event', a “buddy system” is introduced on an employee's first days where new staff are partnered with someone on their department who is not their line manager, who will introduce them to their new home and colleagues, beyond the initial HR tour. Inferno will also pay for the buddy to host a team lunch outside the agency. Departments also have regular ‘away days' to discuss new practices and strategy, this is held at a nice and inspiring venue (such as an art gallery meeting room) and include breakfast/lunch and down-time drinks when the day is through.

Due to the nature of their business many of their people work away from home, so to balance this, Impact extend social event invitations to partners/families wherever possible. Employees organise all social events, with time for organising and attending daytime events, given during work hours. In so many words they can't tell you all about their Christmas Party, the Impact Kids Christmas Party, complete with a visit from their Santa/CEO!, weekly Friday lunches, Silver Screw award or the End of Financial Year lunch but they can tell you about their Family Fun Day and Quadrathlon, reflecting the fun and inclusiveness of their social events. Their summer event is scheduled in the school holidays and they close the office for the afternoon to maximise attendance. Activities include bouncy castle, traditional games, crafts, a homemade piñata, canoeing and speedboat rides. Their CEO cooks a BBQ lunch and Impact Aid, their internal fundraising team, hosted a Great Impact Bake Off to raise money for their chosen charities. Their Quadrathlon is a four-part triathlon, including a lake-swim, cross-country run, mountain bike and canoe course. The course was designed and marshalled by their staff within their own hotel grounds. The competition was not just about fastest times, but also about the best fancy-dress outfits. Whilst there are small cash prizes the ultimate goal is personal glory!

Impact's vision is to be a great place to work, to be the best experiential learning provider on the planet and to be a model of sustainable enterprise. Being benchmarked in the marketplace as a Best Company to Work For is positive proof that they are working effectively together to make their vision reality and they are all incredibly proud of this achievement. At Impact they love to celebrate success. They have been lucky enough to be placed in the Times Top 100 List since 2005 and have attended every awards dinner. They know that their people are key to making Impact the best company to work for (even if we aren't placed number one!) To say thank you to their people they offer a number of places at the dinner to the entire organisation. They have awarded places to people who are nominated by colleagues for outstanding work, or simply by putting names in the hat. This approach is very popular with their employees as it recognises that their people have all paid a part in our success.

IGD have several charity days throughout the year which they support e.g. Children in Need, Red Nose, Eve Appeal, Macmillan Appeal, Jeans for Genes, Alzheimer's Society. Money is raised through dress down days, cake sales and raffles and IGD will match the sum collected on the day. To date in 2013 they have raised over £2,000.

IGD have several charity days throughout the year which they support e.g. Children in Need, Red Nose, Eve Appeal, Macmillan Appeal, Jeans for Genes, Alzheimer's Society. Money is raised through dress down days, cake sales and raffles and IGD will match the sum collected on the day. To date in 2013 they have raised over £2,000.

Hospice Isle of Man views learning and development as a vital part of its service provision. A life – limiting illness affects the body, the mind, the spirit, the social wellbeing, the family, and the care team. They strive to improve the skills, knowledge and attitudes of staff in all of these areas through the commitment to the theory of lifelong learning for all and work to continuously improve the quality of the services they provide. As well as providing courses internally for their staff and volunteers, they aspire to fulfil palliative care learning needs of those working in other health care settings. All staff have appraisals and this is an opportunity for them to identify training needs. Nursing staff have been supported to undertake degree qualification so that they have same qualification as new graduate nurses. This gives them the opportunity to apply for more senior positions when they arise. Everyone is actively encouraged to attend training in-house and elsewhere, they run communication skills courses, workshops related to palliative care and feedback sessions from international conferences as well as bespoke management training and mindfulness courses. This year staff have completed certificate in education, leadership and management courses, masters, counselling courses, advanced symptom management courses, palliative care conferences as well as fundraising and volunteering conferences in the UK.

Offer training, organise regular updates, regular one to one meetings. Attend educational events and provide teaching. They also carry out appraisals. Debriefing sessions are offered. One to one counselling is available and access to complementary therapies. During Children's Hospice week managers work closely with clinical teams to ensure that communication and planning all events include everyone involved so that e.g. corporate supporters alreday working with fundraising are not approached seperately and that any advertising was conveying the Hospice message.