HIGH VOLTAGE EMPLOYEE engagement makes the connection for employees at Centrica Energy, the power generating sister company to British Gas. The organisation, a Best Companies new entry, has proven to be a persuasive combination of great pay and benefits, interesting work with good career prospects and careful environmental management. At a total of 13 sites across Britain employees do everything energy production-related from operating power stations, wind farms and oil and gas fields to running energy trading desks. Only 26 organisations scored higher than the company's 75% positive for staff finding work stimulating. There is plenty of training (30 hours a year on average, at a cost of £2,000 per head) not only to maintain necessary skills but also to develop people's careers and bond teams. Inductions take place monthly and include lunch with managing director Mark Hanafin. Offshore workers have to escape from a submerged simulated helicopter at a nautical college to prepare for the potential hazards of their commute to work and Killingholme power station has a mock control room to coach employees under lifelike conditions. When Centrica Energy bought a 20% share in British Energy in 2009, including a stake in their nuclear station portfolio, the company built an interactive walkway to take staff through the nuclear industry's past, present and future via a quiz on safety, a virtual tour through a nuclear power plant and a view inside a reactor. The organisation also has a well-established apprenticeship scheme. Since 2003 Centrica Energy has reduced the energy it uses by about 40% and driven down its British internal carbon footprint by about 15%. It conducts waste audits at every UK office and has ambitious reductions targets in place. People say the experience they gain at Centrica Energy is good for their future (77%, 36th) and that their work, which is an important part of their lives (79%), is not boring (73%) — with both these results ranking 41st. The company comes 21st (76%) for staff thinking it does enough to protect the environment and 32nd (72%) for employees believing it makes a difference to the world. But what people are most pleased of all about are the financial terms of their employment; happiness with pay and benefits ranks 33rd in the survey with a score of 67% and Fair Deal is Centrica Energy's top factor in the employee survey (61%, ranking 52nd). Engineers earn £31,000 and a wide range of favourable tax-effective share option schemes mean staff can own solid stock market-performing shares and also take ownership in the company they work for. centrica.com
