Exciting challenges, good training and attractive pay and benefits have been designed into the job at engineering firm Ramboll Whitbybird. Employees gain valuable experience for their future, according to our survey, earning the company an 84% positive score, a top five result for that question, and the job is good for their own personal growth (83%, a top 10 score). Eighty per cent of the employees are engineers, all of whom are working towards or have achieved chartership while at the firm, which spends 3% of its annual turnover on training. Staff think the opportunities in this job are of great benefit to them personally (72%) and believe that they can learn and grow (71%), especially as 90% of promotions are made internally. High scores on questions about Personal Growth place the company 10th overall in this category. Ramboll Whitbybird, holder of the Queen's Award for Enterprise in the innovation category, is responsible for some of the world's most original and distinctive buildings, from the Copenhagen Opera House to the British embassy in Berlin and the African aviary at London Zoo. Current projects include the new stadium for Liverpool football club. All this makes for stimulating work (76%) and pride in the company (81%) especially as employees believe it makes a positive difference to the world (75%). The organisation was established in 1983 as Whitby & Bird, merged in 2007 with Ramboll of Denmark and now employs 584 people in the UK at 12 different sites. The relatively flat management structure, open-plan offices and a relaxed dress code mean everyone is approachable. And they're sociable too. There is a wide range of events from charity fundraisers to a series of internal design challenges and monthly team socials. Employees have fun with their colleagues (81%) who care a lot about each other (82%) and feel a strong sense of family in their team (75%). Fromthis year staff get flexible benefits to suit their requirements. They include annual leave starting at 23 days, 12 weeks' maternity leave and one week's paternity leave on full pay, profit-related pay, a share option scheme, critical illness cover and a non-contributory pension scheme. Employees, more than three-quarters of whom earn at least £25,000, enjoy their job, which is an important part of their life (77%). Staff think Ramboll Whitbybird is doing enough to protect the environment (77%), that the company is not driven by profit or budget concerns only (72%) and that managers are excellent role models (70%).
