What are companies doing with regards to 'My Manager'

Being very proactive in supporting company-wide events, for example the Jelf Sales Conference and Central Services Conferences. The conferences give employees the chance to meet and network with their colleagues, sharing ideas, opinions and best practice.In 2014 these events also gave employees the opportunity to put forward suggestions to improve various practices within the company through a "Dragon's Den" workshop. As a result there is a clear action plan of initiatives sponsored by the Group Executive Board, many of which have already been implemented.

The International Tennis Federation's culture encourages a healthy work/life balance with flexibility offered around sickness and recovery periods, working time flexibility if needed and support from managers at all levels around physical activities, particularly taking part in lunchtime sporting activities. A daily lunch allowance is provided to all employees for use at on site restaurant facilities or a sandwich ordering service which encourages healthy eating, with a wide variety of both hot and cold food options plus other healthy options such as fruit available. Sports facilities are available onsite, some free and some subsidised, and include use of tennis courts, gym, swimming pool and fitness classes. Their location also encourages activities as they are a few minutes from Richmond Park. Employee safety and wellbeing is taken extremely seriously and a taxi is provided to transport employees to the nearest mainline station at the end of each working day, which is particularly helpful during the darker winter months. 24-hour security is provided around the office which is reassuring for those working or visiting out of standard office hours, a common occurrence within an international organisation. The International Tennis Federation also offer a free employee assistance prorgamme, full medical checks - at some levels and they have in the past paid separately for private counselling or therapy for team members.

As one of our core values is to be human, they ensure that the way in which they live the values is done so in a human way too. All new team members attend induction sessions from departments across the agency, allowing them to meet the wider team and get a better understanding as to how the agency runs day-to-day. They run a new starters lunch that also includes a long serving team member, with their CEO and CFO so that new team members can meet the senior team members in a relaxed, yet exciting venue. They get together as a whole agency every quarter to spend time together and hold quarterly company meetings as well as regular team meetings with their direct team. One such event was their Momentum roadshow lead by their global president where teams worked on various client problems alongside team members they never usually work together day to day.

Hitachi have recently implemented visual performance boards. These help teams plan their workload, share their vision/mission, cross train and celebrate success. They have enabled workload to be levelled across team reducing pressures and enabling them to deliver a better customer experience. Other new working practices include Qbuster, refreshed Star awards, incentives, call evaluations, career progression structure and functional plan sharing.

All Senior Management staff have shared their own motivations for working at Groundwork as part of their “Little Green Book” guide, with some motivated by the concepts of sustainability and others by social justice.

GB Group carried out an innovation workshop as part of the business year kick off staff conference. GB staff take part in a physically gruelling challenge to raise money for charity. This is called the GB Challenge and this year it was a 26 mile hike across the Shropshire Way.

Firefish have an annual company team-building event, known as Fireflung. This year's event took place on Osea Island, a former wartime base just off the coast of Essex, which is connected to land by a causeway that disappears as the tide comes in. In the build-up they kept the location secret and created a huge amount of intrigue by giving the event a wartime / 1940's theme. On arrival they spent the morning firstly delivering an update on their progress since the last Fireflung, and then results from the staff survey. Firefish then worked together as a group on a couple of key issues for the business - maintaining growth in their client list and creating more time for people to focus on their primary tasks. This process included splitting out into smaller groups defined by different levels of the business, ensuring that ideas from more junior members of the team were given as much 'airtime' as those of more senior colleagues. Following lunch, they then ran a team-building game where 8 teams competed against each other to defuse bombs hidden all over the island! This involved much running around, pedaling down country lanes on bone-shaker bikes, a few gin and tonics and an almighty bundle to grab the last 'bomb'. The evening was then a 1940's themed dinner and party. Firefish all revelled under the stars and by campfires till the small hours and then those with most stamina kept going until dawn in one of the various cottages.

Energy & Utility Skills' staff play a vital role in contributing to the overall success of the EU Skills Group, delivering objectives as an organisation, as a team and as individuals. Their Performance and Development Review process places importance on ensuring that everyone who works at the EU Skills Group understands how the work they do contributes to the overall delivery of their Vision, their Business Plan and their business success. They want their staff to share the success of the organisation. Alongside the Annual Review Process, their Performance-related Bonus Scheme recognises and regards employees' collective contribution to the delivery of the EU Skills Group's financial and business objectives by providing the opportunity for them to earn a personal bonus.

Managers at Elmhurst support the wellbeing of employees by giving paid time off for medical and dental appointments, working from home to support domestic challenges, and paid time off for funerals and bereavements. The company also offers its premises for weekly yoga classes.

Linked to Elior's multi-award winning eXperience programme, Training Journal and Personnel Today, the “You Made a Difference” recognition scheme was introduced in the spring of 2012. Its goal was to move the spotlight from the negative to positive and designed to reinforce and encourage positive behaviours, recognising progress being made by their colleagues by thanking them each time a job is well done. Noticing, and thanking their colleagues for doing jobs well and with a warm, friendly and genuine attitude creates job confidence and satisfaction, colleague engagement and commitment to Elior UK. This in turn drives positive results for all. When an Elior colleague is seen to be “Making a Difference”, and demonstrating something exceptional, they are immediately recognised with a ‘thank you' and issued by their Manager with a ‘You Made a Difference' thank you cheque. The Manager then records the entry on their internal extranet giving the colleague an opportunity to win one of 40 gift vouchers each month. This scheme has been so successful and well received by the business, that it has been incorporated as a distinctive category in its own right at the annual awards ceremony where those individuals who have made a unique difference are recognised. Last year's winner introduced a healthy eating ‘points mean prizes' initiative which was so successful at site, that it was replicated across other operating sites.