ON VALENTINE'S DAY, the 85 employees of this brand-development and marketing consultancy boarded a bus to a secret location. First stop was a business meeting, then the bus took them to Selfridges, where everybody received a £250 voucher. The firm's strongest area in our table of small companies is My Manager, with a positive score of 82%. The business, which provides marketing insights for clients such as Vodafone, Levi's and Santander, was created by two former Unilever marketing staff on 08.08.88 — “a lucky number if you're Chinese”. It became part of the WPP group in 2001 and has expanded into the global Added Value Group with 23 offices in 13 countries. The original office in Hampton Wick, Surrey, has a predominantly female team and has yet to turn down any request for flexible working. Almost half the staff work flexibly to accommodate family responsibilities or further education. All workers get a month's paid sabbatical every four years (or eight weeks on half pay). One employee says: “I now work a five-day month as I have a medical condition that many employers would be terrified by, or hideous about. Added Value came up trumps and were open to trying something that's not easy to run and was totally new, bang-on for my needs . . . brilliant.” Staff don't feel managers use intimidation to get what they want (89%). The organisation's values include openness and mutual respect, and everyone is treated fairly (81%). All staff members have performance and profit-related pay as well as share options, and roughly half the workforce has been here for more than five years. People don't need to leave to increase their experience, as the firm encourages secondments (20 last year) to offices around the world, as well as periods of six months or more in different UK teams. This ensures departments work well together (79%) and people don't feel the consultancy fails to use all their skills (67%). Added Value has a strong social conscience (88%). Most people got involved with charitable activities last year and the firm matches funds raised up to £200. Staff feel the company's contributions are not based simply on a desire for good publicity (75%) and say it cares about the environment (82%). Employees can use a £300 “mind and body allowance” to take a course or get fit, and there is a new fully-lit bike shed for those who cycle to work.
