Team Cohesion = Performance

People are motivated and engaged by working with other smart people. The way managers implement this is to not compromise during recruitment, and keep a consistently high level of motivated and intelligent staff.

People are motivated and engaged by working with other smart people. The way managers implement this is to not compromise during recruitment, and keep a consistently high level of motivated and intelligent staff.

Christmas Party – it will always be top of the list. It is the event that all the staff look forward to.. We are City based and well aware of the fall in the number of companies holding Christmas parties over recent years. The MD of the company is proud to buck this trend, feeling that a party to show their appreciation, showcase success and say thank you for your efforts is not a luxury but a must. Year on year it is the most talked about event in the office with excitement building up weeks in advance. The company pays for food, drink and a DJ so all can let their hair down. In keeping with the family ethos of the company partners are also invited to come along and enjoy the festive cheer. Inevitably the budding singers who work for us provided some of the entertainment on the night which is always a highlight.

Within their organisation Career Legal have several awards which are designed to reward success, diligence, team and personal effort and going above and beyond. All employees are eligible for nomination and are designed not just for the fee earners but also those in support positions. The rewards themselves come in various forms and usually are something the winner has requested which has led to a variety of gifts including a sofa as the winner had just moved house, a golf buggy someone had always wanted and a spa day because it was a treat. Career Legal feel that the option to choose the reward makes it more personal ensuring the gift is extra special as it is something the recipient truly wants and will enjoy all the more.

Caerphilly County Borough Council recognises that its employees are its most valuable asset and as a result it is strongly behind looking after the health and well-being of its employees. This is evidenced by the fact that the Corporate Management Team (CMT) are fully behind health and well-being initiatives and receive quarterly updates on the strategy, progress and initiatives that the Council runs. An Employee Health and Well-being Group has been established to develop and progress the strategy across the whole of the Council. The representatives of this group are cross Directorate and include representatives from the Council's recognised trade unions. High level briefings have also taken place to all Senior Officers within the Council, so that they have not only been made aware of the Employee Health and Well-being strategy but have also been briefed on the Corporate Health Standard. Another initiative to show how seriously the Council believes in the employee health and well-being agenda is the fact that all employees have been given time off during working time to attend employee health and well-being events.

Caerphilly County Borough Council is leading the way in the UK by offering hundreds of young people the opportunity to join an ambitious Apprenticeship and Training programme. Over the past year alone more than 230 young people have signed up to the popular scheme as a work placement, apprenticeship or trainee, helping them get onto the career ladder and gain valuable work experience. The scheme, called the 'Caerphilly Passport Programme' offers a journey for individuals through the various tiers of development. There are 4 tiers in total ranging from unpaid placements to paid employees at a graduate level in specialist areas such as social work, environmental health, ecology or waste management. The authority is working closely with a number of providers including the Job Centre Plus to bring more people through who are unemployed to help them find sustainable employment. Caerphilly County Borough Council is keen to further develop the Passport Programme and provide potential opportunities for young people in the area to be able access quality work placements and training opportunities that can lead to positive outcomes.

Over the years, Business Stream has grown and changed in response to customers' needs and market developments. To help staff to fully engage with and understand their business strategy, they literally drew them a picture – the big picture. The big picture is a visual interpretation of their business strategy as a music festival. More specifically, its objectives are to ensure people recognise and feel valued for their contribution, break down silos, create a sustainable process for engagement, keep people in the business focused on key priorities and have some fun. The festival is all about making fans, of our staff as well as our customers, by highlighting what benefits they offer and how their teams work together internally to deliver them.

Within their learning and development programme, Business Stream put a strong focus on developing leadership skills and nurturing the talent and potential of their existing staff. Over the past three years, 58 people have been on the Talent Stream training programme and this year they introduced an eLearning portal to give even more staff access to development programmes. Business Stream also introduced a two-year management trainee programme called the Business Stream apprentice. The apprentice gives four individuals the opportunity to rotate across all the functions in their business, gaining insight into how Business Stream works from every angle. They also receive training and development, mentoring from senior management and coaching throughout.

BIU provide subsidised gym membership, free fruit, sports clubs and counselling helplines.

BIU provide subsidised gym membership, free fruit, sports clubs and counselling helplines.

Each year the company hold their annual ‘Boxwood essence awards' as part of their April Away Day to celebrate those who are outstanding role-models and are held in high esteem by their peers for their actions and/or behaviours. Whilst there are prizes for the winners, the primary purpose is to recognise and celebrate individual and team contributions over the last year and to engage all of their people in the nominations process.

June 2012 saw another of Boxwood's legendary Summer Fun Day weekends – a sociable and fun weekend to thank their employees and their families for their effort and support during the year. This year the company took over Tylney Hall in Hampshire and managed to dodge most of the rain! The highlights were: a treasure hunt in the grounds of the hotel for the children, whilst ‘grown-ups' sampled fine canapés and champagne in a fantastic walled-garden, a fantastic hog-roast and BBQ accompanied by live entertainers – a roving magician, caricaturist, Barber Shop Quartet and late-evening live music. Even the ‘little ones' were kept entertained later with their own movie room before being swept away to bed by the babysitters. On Sunday they had an event-packed day of fun including: hovercraft racing, Segways, bunjee trampolines, bouncy castles, cake decorating, canapé making, face-painting - to name but a few! After a lazy lunch and more activities, families then made their way home on the Sunday afternoon.

Long service awards - This is an annual event which rewards and recognises staff contribution through long service, loyalty and commitment. At the annual Long Service Awards Banquet, Botanic Inns recognises 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years service, through the awarding of additional holidays, presentation jewellery, holidays and cash rewards. This event is attended by staff receiving the awards, their partners and the Senior Management Team. To recognise the importance of this event and to emphasise the contribution made by staff, the Lord Mayor is invited to say a special word of thanks and to underline the part that staff play, not only toward company success but also to the community in which they work.

The company held its Annual “Celebrate Your Success” event which celebrated and recognised training achievement and individual staff development. This event was attended by over 200 staff who undertook a variety of training programmes ranging from customer services to professional cookery. Staff who attended the event were addressed by the Managing Director who personally thanked each member of staff and awarded certificates to mark their achievements. The Celebrate Your Success event was also attended by a representative of the Pubs Federation who emphasised the importance of the Companies' reputation, not only within the trade but also in the wider community in which it operates. Attendees at this event had the opportunity to meet staff from different areas of the business and to see for themselves, how they as a staff team which is responsible for the continued success of the Company. Feedback from staff in terms of the “Feel Good Factor” has been excellent and it has resulted in an increase in morale as demonstrated in this year's annual survey.

Visitors to Boots' Support Office in Nottingham are greeted by a “Hall of Fame” that extends along numerous walls. This shows the names and faces of the hundreds of their colleagues in the Stores, Support Office, Logistics teams and Opticians who have been recognised for their exceptional performance. The achievements of these individuals and teams are celebrated annually at the company ‘Best of the Best' awards and whilst not everyone in the business can attend these events, Boots make sure everyone gets to hear about their achievements through cascades and magazine articles that follow soon afterwards helping showcase the great work that goes on across their business.

In 2012 thousands of Boots' colleagues and customers all over the country took part in events to raise money and awareness for Macmillan Cancer Support. These events included climbing mountains, running marathons, a virtual cycle ride from Nottingham to Monaco on exercise bikes, walking Hadrian's Wall and the Welsh coastal path. Their ambition is to cover 290,000 miles – one mile for each person diagnosed with cancer every year in the UK. Macmillan's Big Walk at Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire on 8 September was Boots' biggest event yet. They promoted the walk through a variety of communications, including an invite from their CEO and donated £10 for every colleague who signed up. Over 1,400 people took part, including the entire Executive team. Over 50 Boots colleagues helped as volunteers.

The Club organises and facilitates many events and opportunities throughout the year, predominantly aimed at their service users who are disadvantaged children and young people. These events benefit the whole of Bolton and its many highly deprived communities and although the events require lots of hard work and additional voluntary hours from staff, they are hugely enjoyable for all. A perfect example of this was Christmas 2011, when the Club's Staff and Volunteers made Christmas Lunch for 100 disadvantaged children and their families, complete with Father Christmas and a present for each young person and also Christmas hamper for each family. It was a fantastic and overwhelmingly worthwhile day for all staff and volunteers, local business donated funds and resources free of charge, and of course the children and their families.

Bolton Lads and Girls Club have created a Staff Forum, which has a representative from each department and ensures the majority of employees have the opportunity to influence change within the Club.

BMS introduced a number of new Well Being initiatives in 2012 and these included the subsidised funding of a well being activity and an annual health assessment. The comprehensive health assessments were held on site and each employee received a personalised health report giving the overall status of their well being and advice and recommendations on appropriate individual health targets and ways to maintain or improve their health. Both options were well received and take up was higher than anticipated. The activity funding was attractive because it allows individuals to do an activity of their personal choice rather than being limited to gym-based options and the health assessment was attractive because it was convenient to schedule in a welcoming environment and only took an hour out of the employee's day.

BMS introduced a number of new Well Being initiatives in 2012 and these included the subsidised funding of a well being activity and an annual health assessment. The comprehensive health assessments were held on site and each employee received a personalised health report giving the overall status of their well being and advice and recommendations on appropriate individual health targets and ways to maintain or improve their health. Both options were well received and take up was higher than anticipated. The activity funding was attractive because it allows individuals to do an activity of their personal choice rather than being limited to gym-based options and the health assessment was attractive because it was convenient to schedule in a welcoming environment and only took an hour out of the employee's day.