Legal speak has no place at Keoghs, the insurance and business law specialist based in Bolton and Coventry — the buzzwords there are fairness, plain-speaking and friendliness.
Four years ago, Keoghs was a high-street law firm with six Victorian offices in Bolton and Paul Smith was a biochemist-turned-accountant at a chemical company. Then Keoghs' partners decided to invest in a new direction, recruited Smith as chief executive, even though he was not a lawyer, and commissioned new offices.
Smith's expansive business strategy and employee focus have brought steadily growing annual sales and a staff culture that only gets better — the firm has jumped from last year's number 49 to 25th in our survey.
Smith talks new recruits through the company's policies and staff feel they have a strong role to play in its success — 84% say they can make a valuable contribution to the business, the fifth-highest score for this question. More than four-fifths are proud to work there and a similar number are excited about the direction in which the firm is moving, although a relatively high 43% believe that profit is the only thing driving the company.
There is a good team spirit among employees. More than three-quarters say they love working for Keoghs, barely 17% say team members don't care for each other and 83% say they laugh a lot with colleagues.
Keoghs scored exceptionally well on its low stress levels, and although half the employees surveyed say they come home exhausted, fewer than 17% of staff suffered ill effects in the past year because of the pressure of work, the third-lowest score. This may be partly because the company offers flexible working on request, and stress and time-management courses are available.
More than three-quarters of staff say their manager supports them when they need to learn new skills, which no doubt contributes to a healthy 71% of staff saying they find their work stimulating.
The benefits package is good, with profit-related pay for all employees, private healthcare and life insurance for all and a non-contributory pension rising from 5% to 10% of salary after 10 years of service. Just under two-thirds feel fairly paid compared with others in similar positions in legal firms, and a similar number say they are fairly paid compared with their colleagues at Keoghs.
