People Managers Matter

UKAR is committed to the development of their colleagues. Staff well-being is one of four elements which make up their corporate social responsibility charter, alongside their customers, their communities and the environment. They run numerous health and lifestyle initiatives including a comprehensive employee assistance programme; free financial planning advice; slimming groups; gym discounts; Zumba classes; Boxercise classes; and one aspect of colleague wellbeing they are particularly proud of is their close relationship with Heart Research UK. As a result of their focus upon healthy lifestyles , they were delighted when they were awarded Heart Research UK's bronze and silver award as part of the Healthy Heart Mark Employer programme, which was launched via Health Awareness days and almost 500 colleagues had lifestyle checks. They are proud to have received Gold Award accreditation from Heart Research UK following a recent assessment of their healthy lifestyle policies and initiatives. UKAR colleagues have also chosen Heart Research UK as their corporate charity of the year for 2013.

UKAR utilise the expertise of their colleagues by working with the Young Enterprise organisation to have a positive impact on young people in the local communities by sharing financial knowledge and experience through the delivery of the Young Enterprise Programme in local schools. UKAR are working with Young Enterprise to deliver the Personal Economics Programme which aims to inspire young people with the confidence, ability and ambition to succeed in a challenging and changing economy. At each stage, pupils and students work directly with UKAR people and through 'life map living' students are asked to consider money management, employment and their own financial futures.

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.

Trustmarque structure their annual appraisals to ensure that development and support needs are identified, and these are followed up by the Learning & Development team. Guidance on the completion of appraisals and the format of one-to-one is provided. The organisation have rolled out 360 feedback for their sales team this year to support them in understanding where they are doing well, and where they need more development. Managers do not ask employees to do anything they are not prepared to do themselves; this gives a good understanding of the pressures faced by employees.
Managers assist employees in identifying individual development plans, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. They adapt their approach according to personal circumstances.

The managers are the people who manage the performance management process for their teams and they are instrumental in keeping this process alive and effective. They have regular catch-ups with their teams outside of performance reviews – this allows them to have an in-depth understanding of what support their team members require. They have absolute discretion in working with their teams to develop their own team culture based on what works for them as individuals and meeting operational requirements of the business. As an organisation, they have a strong culture of personal communication, they have no one manager managing more than 10 people, therefore the personal touch and knowing what is going on their teams is very strong at Trayport. Their office environment has been designed to encourage open communication throughout all teams with space for break-outs, scrums, stand-ups. They are empowered to reward by giving ad hoc thank yous to their team in the form of team dinners, drinks and Amazon vouchers etc.

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.

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.

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.

Managers monitor the hours that employees work and ensure that workloads are manageable. Managers accommodate requests to work flexibly where possible. Managers participate in preparing the business plan. A job evaluation scheme has been introduced.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Sutton Housing Partnership offers all staff and their family members the ability to access a free employee assistance service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This is a confidential service offering advice, counselling and support to staff and/or their family members. SHP has recently introduced a healthcare cash plan whereby staff can reclaim costs of a range of health care activities from optical and dental appointments/treatment to physiotherapy, health screening and scans. Staff membership of the plan is fully funded by SHP.

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 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.

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 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.

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 .

In order to build a capable, engaged and motivated workforce Story Homes believe they need to speak and listen to all colleagues at all levels. This is something they have built on since their first employee survey in 2010. The Aspire Performance and Development framework provides a robust foundation to build on and deliver throughout their workforce.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Earlier in the year Save Britain Money's CEO challenged a member of staff to organise a memorable event in a brewery. The night was superb with over 80 members of staff attending and some of their in-house DJs were on hand to provide the entertainment. With beer on tap, plenty of food and the token karaoke machine, the night was a great success.

Save Britain Money have a Green 12 scheme, which is a performance management scheme which sets benchmarks for their new starters over a 12 week period. The aim is to allow staff to develop within the organisation and provides tailored support and 1-2-1 coaching for those in need. They have an improved retention rate and they feel that this is a direct result of this scheme.

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.

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.

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.

In April 2013, Redcats announced to all employees that they wanted to ‘make a difference to employees' and to ‘thank them' for their hard work so they developed a challenge. If they could beat last years turnover in sales (between April and June 2013) they would close the business for one day and take every employee to Alton Towers for a day out. The finance team developed a dashboard so everyone could track business progress as well as weekly verbal updates by line managers. Employees got involved and excitement grew as the weeks got nearer the provisional date in July. Two weeks prior to the provisional date they were able to announce they had reached the target and were able to have a day off work to have a treat and go to Alton Towers for the day. The fun team got on with organising the details of the day. Transport was organised via coaches, bingo games were held and football cards (monies raised for company charity) on the bus as well provided bacon or egg butties. When they reached their destination they received ‘fast track' tickets so no queuing on certain rides. Everyone could have a go on any ride they wished or do whatever they they wanted during the day. A private markee was arranged for lunch where there was an extensive buffet with hot and cold food. The weather was kind to them so sitting outside in the sun was a great option. The feedback was fantastic, everyone had a great day out, thoroughly enjoyed it all and didn't spend a penny!

In April 2013, Redcats announced to all employees that they wanted to ‘make a difference to employees' and to ‘thank them' for their hard work so they developed a challenge. If they could beat last years turnover in sales (between April and June 2013) they would close the business for one day and take every employee to Alton Towers for a day out. The finance team developed a dashboard so everyone could track business progress as well as weekly verbal updates by line managers. Employees got involved and excitement grew as the weeks got nearer the provisional date in July. Two weeks prior to the provisional date they were able to announce they had reached the target and were able to have a day off work to have a treat and go to Alton Towers for the day. The fun team got on with organising the details of the day. Transport was organised via coaches, bingo games were held and football cards (monies raised for company charity) on the bus as well provided bacon or egg butties. When they reached their destination they received ‘fast track' tickets so no queuing on certain rides. Everyone could have a go on any ride they wished or do whatever they they wanted during the day. A private markee was arranged for lunch where there was an extensive buffet with hot and cold food. The weather was kind to them so sitting outside in the sun was a great option. The feedback was fantastic, everyone had a great day out, thoroughly enjoyed it all and didn't spend a penny!

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.

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.

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.

At Posturite, they practice what they preach. Every single one of their employees is given thorough training on DSE regulations and the benefits of using ergonomics in their everyday lives – it's what they do. They are all positively encouraged to test and sample the products they sell – it helps all staff to have an understanding of what they do and why they do it. This is the case for both office and home based staff. Every member of staff is equipped with a sit /stand desk and a variety of the very best ergonomic equipment helping them understand musculoskeletal disorders. Every single member of their staff understands what they do and why they do it. A large proportion (60%+)of their staff are either sports science graduates or healthcare professionals (e.g. Physiotherapists) – they advise companies on how to care for the health and wellbeing of their employees and this has a knock on effect on them too. Posturite encourage participation in sports too – they were the winners of the 2012 corporate Football World Cup – they beat Google in the final at Anfield! Additionally, they support grass roots cricket in Sussex, the home county of Posturite by sponsoring the youth teams in the east area cricket league.

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.

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.