LEGAL & GENERAL wants its staff to get up close and personal to the 50 charities it supports. This means not just fundraising, but taking time to learn about the difficulties faced by the people who benefit from each of the good causes.The financial services company works with Age UK to understand the problems of older customers, such as loneliness, and Shelter makes them aware of homelessness. Employees from Macmillan train the customer service teams on the emotional impact cancer has on people making claims, while volunteers from the Samaritans advise them on how to help claimants' families after a suicide. Staff believe that this re-entry to our big list, which last appeared in 2012, encourages charitable activities (an 86% positive score and a top-five ranking). They also say it has a strong social conscience (78%). The insurer is based in London, but the causes it supports are nominated by employees from all of its 10 sites nationwide. It matches sponsorship by up to £500 per person, and encourages its workforce of 7,449 to volunteer. Jobs are important to people's lives, and the staff are proud to be at Legal & General (both 74%). The company rewards those who give their all and an ABCD (above and beyond the call of duty) award recognises individuals for exceptional customer service or making a difference. When staff said they wanted their leaders to be more visible, some 600 employees from the general insurance (GI) teams in Birmingham, Ipswich and Belfast were invited to “GI live”, a festival-themed event that included question-and-answer sessions chaired by senior executives. Legal & General wins our special award for Innovation in Engagement Practice this year. The bosses also got involved at the first company summer fun day, held in July in the grounds of its Kingswood offices in the Surrey countryside. Legal & General Assurance Society chief executive John Pollock was one of the entertainers providing the music. The 2,000 employees who attended the fun day enjoyed themselves, consuming 3,125 ice creams, 3,526 bottles of water and more than 3,000 burgers and hot dogs. People tell us that their teams are fun to work with (71%). www.legalandgeneral.com
