MITIE'S REVOLUTION ACADEMY is so life-changing that clients have adopted it, too: the flagship behavioural training programme has benefited more than 1,000 employees since its inauguration and last year was also offered externally in New York and the Middle East. The four-day course, which teaches staff how to deliver five-star service, incorporates a focus on resilience (personal, mental, emotional and spiritual energy management), as well as guidance on healthy eating, exercise and weight loss. The company wins our Training and Development special award this year. MITIE Client Services also upholds one of its core principles: “Be generous, focus on the wellbeing of yourself, your team and your community”, by providing office plants (to moisturise the air), yoga balls (for posture) and vocal management skills (to prevent voices drying out). This dedication to wellbeing has resulted in a 76% positive score for realistic deadlines and work that does not interfere with duties at home (74%). The workforce of 702 clearly benefit from the advice of the academy's resilience experts, hired three years ago, as they do not feel exhausted when they get home (55%). The company, which specialises in front-of-house services, managing facilities and properties for clients across Britain and the globe, also scores highly for its charitable efforts (87%). Besides supporting London's Great Ormond Street hospital with fundraising by means of a variety of sporting events, employees volunteer at The Passage homeless shelter in Victoria, with two or three people given time off work to serve breakfast to the homeless every Monday. Staff collect warm clothing in the winter for the organisation's own “warm hugs” appeal. More than 1,750 items were delivered to hostels and charities last year. People agree that profit concerns are not the only thing driving MITIE (64%). Employees also believe that it cares about the environment, that their company is run on strong principles and that senior managers truly live its values (all three questions scoring 79%). Managing director Debra Ward and David Howorth, director of operations, incorporated the company goal of “creating exceptional, memorable experiences” last autumn, when they spent a week touring the country in a VW Beetle camper van. “Deb & Dave's excellence adventure” aimed to visit as many of the company's team members, working in banks, law firms, media companies and more, and dispersed across 117 sites, as possible, to say “thank you and well done”. This tangible commitment to engaging staff from Edinburgh to Bristol was no doubt one reason why staff feel that senior management does more listening than telling (68%).
