About Robin Partington & Partners

To assist in giving structure to their team members development, Robin Partington & Partners implemented a career guideline which has six levels within their Company and each level has nine grades, split equally between ‘Arrivals’, ‘Duty Free’ and ‘Departures’ . Each level has a Job Description that explains what is expected from that role. To explain the method to their madness…Arrivals is for those who have just moved into a new level and are getting used to the respective role and responsibilities, but are not yet proficient or adept and are busy finding their feet. Duty Free is for those who are comfortable in that role and are busy banking experience and expertise with Departures being for those who are ready to move up to the next level and are busy acquiring the necessary launching skills for that move. Robin Partington & Partners believe that the levels and job descriptions they have in place provide a clear and transparent structure for the practice, encouraging a strong sense of ownership of projects and the Company as a whole. They take professional development very seriously and hold performance appraisals twice annually to provide an opportunity for all their staff to review their performance from the previous year, and consider opportunities to develop and grow in the year to come, including any help, support or training that the Company can provide. Robin Partington & Partners have designed the process to help their team to think about their role using a combination of self assessment and peer feedback to encourage real, meaningful and helpful conversations….it is always good to find the time to talk. They have found that regular reality checks work for all concerned, the individual and the Company, helping to ensure that skills are recognised and individuals are valued at an appropriate level within the Company, using the job descriptions as a guide. They do their best to avoid any potential mismatch between expectation and reward. Their performance appraisals are intended to be simple, engaging and painless, but do require time and careful thought to get the most out of it. A combination of self-assessment and peer feedback encourages real, meaningful and helpful conversations, so that you know where you stand, what is expected and what to do next in order to progress.

Robin Partington & Partners have a couple of ways in which their team can feedback and influence change. The first is through the Councillors of the Board of Management, being those who have been elected by their peers, they have three on the Board. The Board meets quarterly and Councillors host drop in feedback sessions for all members of staff to ask questions, seek clarity or raise a suggestion for change or improvement. They have found their Council to be particularly successful in improving transparency about how decisions are made. The second would be through online surveys that they issue - and these are done for training feedback, performance appraisals and anything they can think of that needs to be measured to see improvement. Finally, the third would be on their blog, on the Intranet. It is used daily and by all.

In October 2013 Robin Partington & Partners introduced an employee benefit trust element into their limited company structure. Any member of staff who is with them on a permanent appointment and after one year's employment is entitled to call themselves a Partner of the firm. Once a Partner, they are eligible to receive dividends, if the Company makes profit in excess of that needed to be retained for future growth and investment. Their dividend structure is based on a points system whereby members 'earn' more points (thus a larger share of the pot) for increased salary and length of service.