Leadership - How employees feel about the head of the organisation, senior management and the organisation's values and principles
Leadership has the biggest influence on how employees feel about the organisation.
Leaders need to create inspiring visions and provide clear direction to positively Impact the My Company factor.
When it comes to Wellbeing, no amount of free fruit or stress busting classes are going to address an imbalance. Employee Wellbeing is a by-product of the leadership and management culture.
If there’s pressure at the top of your organisation, it won’t take long to be felt throughout.
The company uses a platform called Fourth as a way to communicate rota and employees can check their payslips and other relevant information. It uploads any new benefits, policies and procedures, and communicates good news stories and general updates. Fourth has been used for less than a year but has been well received.
‘Time doesn’t stand still and neither do we’. This is why Rudding Park Hotels approaches talent with an emphasis on ROI - Return on Individuals. People are the key ingredient to the company; people collaborate to create timeless memories, empathise with those around them, and trust others to do what they say will do.
Rudding Park takes its social responsibility seriously and is keen to support the local community. Spa therapists undertake qualifications with the NHS Natural Health School in cancer care and work closely with The Sir Robert Ogden Centre in Harrogate, providing voluntary complementary therapies and make-up lessons to patients living with and beyond cancer treatments.
During induction with Burger & Lobster, new starters across different restaurants collaborate and work together as part of their onboarding. The organisation has designated training locations which may be different from the employee's working location, which in turn provides an opportunity for employees from different sites to interact and engage with each other.
Burger & Lobster has made strides to communicate the vision, purpose mission and strategy across the business. This has been implemented at all stages of the employee lifecycle beginning at onboarding with the company handbook, Cracking the Code. All employees also attend the company induction which covers all things Burger & Lobster in detail.
The organisation promotes the development and growth of its employees. 100% of its Head Chefs, 70% of its GMs and 50% of its Assistant Managers are internally promoted. It has in place a talent review programme where all employees have one-to-one meetings with their line managers to discuss their professional development goals.
The healthcare provider has implemented Menopause Support initiatives to raise awareness, with the hope to erase the stigma around this topic. Additionally, it has created a social and wellbeing committee to engage employees in more social activities as well as activities to promote physical health.
The company launched its Leadership Academy last year aiming to empower its junior and first-line manager cohorts to maximise their potential and bring about positive change within their departments. Additionally, it released a digital skills programme, providing comprehensive training opportunities across many subjects including Microsoft Teams, Advanced Power BI, and Project Management.
With a desire to increase the personal engagement of the Head of Departments, it equips leaders with the ability to lead change positively and recognise their role in establishing a healthy culture within their direct span of influence and beyond. This program will enable relationships between departments to strengthen and drive home company values.
It has introduced regular 1-1 meetings with each employee which gives the opportunity for each person to discuss their goals and for managers to check each person is ok. It also has a suggestion box to be raised at each SMT meeting for discussion.
Just Digital has a golden ticket reward and recognition scheme. This is peer-to-peer recognition and employees are able to award a ticket to another colleague and for that, in exchange, they receive a small gift. That ticket goes into a quarterly draw and then in turn an annual draw to receive bigger prizes.
Dedicated to giving back, the company has 0% landfill waste. Additionally, it has an ESG committee that gives tips on green living; following this, it is aiming to procure sustainable products, for example coffee and company clothing.
One way Cornelius has brought its teams together is through its giving fund (charity committee) and wellbeing events. One event held by the giving fund was Meat Free May, where everyone brought in a vegetarian meal for the team. This helped build strong working relationships.
The senior management team lives the company’s values of We Lead, We Care, We Deliver in order to drive the organisation forward together. The senior managers also ensure that all their actions reflect the values, through the complete employee lifecycle, leading effectively, and delivering the results needed to drive the business forward.
Cornelius utilises both monetary and non-monetary efforts to reward its employees uniquely and effectively. An example of this is its yearly appraisal scheme, which is used to give employees objectives and to add check-in points throughout the year. The appraisal scheme also links to the annual bonus, which financially rewards staff for their achievements.
All staff are encouraged to stay in touch with each other as much as possible though Teams calls, regular team catch up meetings, and coffee meetings. Each team has a budget they can use to come together and participate in non-work related activities of their choice. There is also coffee mornings for those learning Welsh!
To combat the cost of living crisis, the Board at Keep Wales Tidy quickly approved 4%+ pay increase across all employees, as well as an additional one-off payment to all staff. The organisation has also undertaken a salary benchmarking survey to ensure that all employee salaries remain competitive in the market.
Senior leaders commit to the values of "Bold, Responsible, Passionate, Inspiring and Together" and collaborate to ensure they are involved in, and aware of, the day-to-day running of the charity. They also work alongside team members to make sure deadlines are met. An open-door policy means they embrace honest conversations with staff.
Bringing teams together is a big part of the Quint Group ethos. Two annual company-wide events bringing everyone together are the summer BBQ and the Christmas Party. In addition to this, the organisation also hosts smaller inter-team events such as pool and table tennis competitions, a fantasy football league, a Mario Kart competition, and more.
Quint Group’s overall strategy and objectives are clearly communicated to everyone during the annual group-wide strategy update. This is further broken down from group to team and individual objectives, and OKRs are then created. These OKRs are regularly reviewed and reinforced during weekly and monthly meetings, stand-ups and performance appraisals.
Quint Group has created a Compensation Committee that is responsible for ensuring pay and reward equity across the organisation. Every year, the organisation goes through a robust salary benchmarking exercise using external and internal data to ensure that its salaries are competitive, and in line with the market and the organisation’s reward and compensation philosophy.
The company understands that quality time is crucial to overall employee wellbeing, and ensures that all staff have their birthday off every year. It shows gratitude to one star performer weekly by awarding them an all-expenses paid break at a luxury barn in the Lake District, including paid leave and £100 spending money.
To ensure that the company informs its colleagues, improvements, developments, and successes both big and small are communicated. It has an open-door policy and adopts a non-hierarchal approach to feedback. Is leadership team alternates weekly ‘Tea Trolley’ duties, providing opportunities to share ideas/feedback whilst delivering yummy treats.
It is keen to help employees develop and grow, and achieve their own professional and personal goals. Due to the nature of the service it provides, it relies on its colleagues’ strength and passion. When Health Assured was formed, demand for workplace wellbeing solutions was a shadow of what it would become.
Employees get a complimentary breakfast and fresh fruit every day. They also get longer lunch breaks so they get time to exercise without having to rush back. And each office’s ‘vibrant and contemporary feel’ is created through break-out zones and relaxing areas with activities such as table tennis and darts.
The company ensures everyone knows their role in its vision and purpose. Employees get weekly leadership round-ups that give updates and highlight performance against long-term goals. And there are team and office meetings at least three times a week to share ideas and celebrate success.
The ‘Engager of the Month’ award recognises colleagues who’ve exceeded in performance, effort and demonstrating the values. And employees who’ve gone above and beyond are treated to a meal with the directors. In addition, if sales team members hit their targets, there are vouchers, experience days and holidays for the taking.
The Board and Senior Leadership completed a course on the ‘human iceberg’, and conscious and unconscious motivators to better understand each other, improving communication and team dynamics. This has been extended to all managers in 2023. The organisation host team building events throughout the year, including BBQs, online get togethers, and Christmas celebrations.
As part of the onboarding process at Nicholas Associates Group, its three Board Members and Directors host a session for all new starters where they share information on the organisation’s history, vision and values. Its bi-monthly newsletter provides information to all employees about priorities and initiatives that are happening across different departments.
All managers at Nicholas Associates Group are provided with specialist training through its Management Academy. Modules covered include leading self, leading others, coaching and mentoring, and leading a team. It also offers online training that provides structured development pathways for managers, to support their ongoing development.
