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UK’S BEST
WORKPLACES
GREAT PLACE TO WORK® SPECIAL REPORT MAY 2010                   www.greatplacetowork.co.uk


                                                          Baringa Partners: The
                                                          Best Workplace in the UK
                                                          Trust: Driving loyalty and
                                                          growth in tough times
                                                          The Upturn: How Best
                                                          Workplaces are preparing




                                                                            th
                                                                                       y
                                                                                   on r
                                                                                iti rsa
                                                                          10




The views and comments in this publication are those of
                                                                             Ed ive




the Great Place to Work®Institute UK and are not backed
                                                                                n




or in any way endorsed by The Financial Times Limited.
                                                                             An
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
BEST WORKPLACES 2010



CONTENTS
    4  16                                                Preparing for the                  The Trends            24       The Experts
                                                    Upturn                          Professional services         This year, the Great Place
                                                    As we emerge from the           and consulting is one         to Work® Institute UK, has
                                                    recession, business has a       of the best performing        introduced a new Special
                                                    rare chance to become           sectors in this year’s Best   Category Excellence
                                                    more competitive by             Workplaces Programme.         Award – for learning and
                                                    focusing on employees,          We examine the other          development. We outline
                                                    says Nic Paton                  trends that have              the winners of this and the
4                                                                                   emerged in the UK and         rest of the awards


                                                    6
                                                                                    Europe
                                                         The Winner
                                                    A culture emphasising
                                                                                    18       European Top 100
                                                                                                                  26
                                                                                                                  divide
                                                                                                                           Generational
                                                    communication and
                                                                                    The Best Workplaces           With generational diversity
                                                    trust has helped Baringa
                                                                                    Programme in Europe           being such a hot topic in
                                                    Partners to scoop the top
                                                                                    covers the top 50 small and   today’s workplace, how do
                                                    award of best workplace
                                                                                    medium-sized workplaces       Best Workplaces manage
                                                    in the UK. Widget Finn
                                                                                    across the continent          different age groups?
                                                    explains how
                                                                                                                  Andy Allen finds out

                                                                                    20
22


                                                    8    A healthy approach
                                                    Growing numbers
                                                                                             Small and
                                                                                    perfectly formed
                                                                                    With rock solid
                                                                                                                  28       A common good
                                                                                                                  Organisations can no
                                                    of businesses are
                                                                                    retention rates and staff     longer afford to ignore
                                                    recognising the
                                                                                    encouraged to contribute      corporate responsibility
                                                    importance of health and
                                                                                    suggestions at any            issues, especially the
                                                    wellbeing, particularly the
                                                                                    time, it’s not surprising     environment. But it is in
                                                    Best Workplaces. Kate
                                                                                    Centor Insurance and          the truly great places to
                                                    Hilpern explains
                                                                                    Risk Management have          work that responsible


                                                    10
28                                                                                  won the Best Small            business practices are part
                                                                                    Workplaces Award 2010,        of the DNA, writes Hannah
                                                            Word from the
EDITOR                                                                              says Widget Finn              Prevett
Anna Scott
                                                    top


                                                                                                                  30
                                                    What are the key assets


                                                                                    22
DESIGN                                              an organisation holds that
Redactive Media Group
                                                    make it a Best Workplace?
                                                                                            Trust: the smallest   Hall of Fame
PUBLICATION DIRECTOR                                We asked the people at
Williams Johnson                                                                    word that makes the           For the first time in
                                                    the top
                                                                                    biggest difference            the history of the Best


                                                    12
PROJECT COORDINATION
Paula Melo
                                                                                    It drives loyalty and         Workplaces Programme in
Vijay Mistry                                                                        growth and can help           Europe, two organisations
                                                             UK Top 50
                                                                                    organisations survive in      have received the Great
PEER REVIEW                                         From biotechnology
Richard Widdowson                                                                   tough times. Liz Hollis       Place to Work Masters
                                                    to social services and
                                                                                    looks at why a culture        trophy for achieving a
RESEARCH AND ASSESSMENT                             government, this year’s
                                                                                    of trust is essential for a   place in the UK ranking for
Great Place to Work® Institute UK                   50 Best Workplaces in the
                                                                                    great workplace               10 consecutive years
                                                    UK covers a wide range of
PUBLISHED BY
Redactive Publishing Ltd, 17-18 Britton Street,     sectors
London, EC1M 5TP, Tel +44 (0)20 7880 6200

DISTRIBUTED BY
The Guardian
The Financial Times
                                                    15      UK Best Small
                                                    This year, for the first time,
Business Life Magazine
                                                    we highlight the top 10
FRONT COVER                                         best small workplaces in
MEESON/hitandrunmedia.com                           the UK




          Transforming society by creating better workplaces
BEST WORKPLACES 2010


                             FOREWORD
                          This year we celebrate the 10th        A key element of our                but it is what they do on a daily
                          edition of the Best Workplaces       mission is to create role model       basis to earn and sustain the
                          Programme. Since its inception       workplaces. In a year in which        trust and respect of their people.
                          in the UK, the initiative has        role models have seemed to            Leaders of Best Workplaces have
                          been welcomed and employed           be few and far between in             long understood that progressive
                          by some of the largest and most      both business and political           people management practices
                          respected organisations in the       arenas evidenced by the many          and generous bene its could only
                          country.                             scandals that were constantly         get them so far in this journey
Tom O’Byrne                   In this period, we have          in our media headlines, we feel       and unless they are backed up
Chief executive officer,    recognised more than 500            a renewed sense of purpose            with real meaning and substance
Great Place to Work®
Institute UK
                           exemplary UK workplaces             from awarding the Institute’s         these ingredients won’t equate to
                           and over 4,000 workplaces in        Masters Award, for the irst time      a great workplace culture. In this
                           Europe across our 17 national       in the history of the programme       10th anniversary, let’s celebrate
                           Best Workplaces initiatives. But,   in Europe, to two outstanding         the examples of these workplaces
                           it’s not all about recognition.     workplaces. Wragge & Co and           and their leaders who so clearly
                           We have worked with these           Admiral Group have received           demonstrate that leadership is
                           organisations and their leaders     this life-time award after 10         not just about commanding trust
                           to measure their workplace          consecutive years of success in       and respect but giving it and
                           climate and give them metrics       our rankings.                         setting the example.
                           and intelligence to assess            So     what      makes     these
                           how they were doing in their        workplaces and their leaders          Tom O’Byrne
                           journey to create their own         role models? It’s certainly not the   Chief executive of icer, Great
                           great workplace cultures.           fact that they won this accolade      Place to Work® Institute UK



                          We all know it when we
                          come across it, even if we
                          lack a common language to            WHAT MAKES THEM
                          describe it. It’s that buzz,
                          that something. That X factor.       ROLE MODELS IS WHAT
                          If those organisations and
                          workplaces that have it could
                                                               THEY DO ON A DAILY
                          bottle it up and sell it, they       BASIS TO SUSTAIN TRUST
                          could diversify into a sure-fire
Will Hutton
Executive, vice chair,    winning product. But instead,        AND RESPECT
The Work Foundation       as we all know, it takes years of
                          subtle application, wrong turns
                          and downright hard work to           developing     the     practices,     is it so rare? Is it weak incentives,
                          get right.                           structures and (whisper it)           ignorance, inertia, a conscious
                            So what is it? It is easy to       terms and conditions that help        decision to keep trundling on
                          overdo the mystery. Thanks           people feel valued and well           the low road?
                          to the efforts of researchers,       treated and facilitate their             Both policy and business
                          we know much that we didn’t          participation in the life and         worlds are right to worry
                          in previous generations about        objectives of organisations.          away at the problem. In the
                          what makes for good work               But knowing the recipe does         meantime,          however,     let’s
                          and good workplaces. It is           not mean we can all make the          celebrate (and study) the
                          in the mix of performance,           dish. One of the conundrums of        stellar examples that are
                          engagement and fairness:             the modern workplace is why           showing the way.
                          a steely commitment to               “high performance” or “people
                          excellence and quality; a sense      centred” management is so             Will Hutton
                          of integrity and high trust in       patchy. Some do it brilliantly.       Executive, vice chair,
                          working relationships; and           Most don’t. But if it works, why      The Work Foundation



                                                                                                         www.greatplacetowork.co.uk      3
15.4%
                                                                                                                BEST WORKPLACES’ AVERAGE
                                                                                                                REVENUE GROWTH IN THE PAST
BEST WORKPLACES 2010                                                                                            YEAR




PREPARING FOR                                                                                                          Appetising offer:
                                                                                                                       a hospitality
                                                                                                                       apprenticeship has




THE UPTURN
                                                                                                                       helped McDonald’s




As we emerge from                                                           however well you deal with it. We
the recession, those                                                        had never made redundancies
businesses that have                                                        before, so it was a massive culture
been focusing on                                                            shock,” she says.
their employees are                                                             Yet the irm went to great
likely to prove more                                                        pains to ensure there was not
competitive, writes                                                         a communication vacuum into
Nic Paton                                                                   which morale-damaging gossip,
                                                                            rumour and intrigue could rush.
Unemployment may inally be            hiring new people over the next       Initiatives included posting up an
on a downward trend but, as           few months. Even in irms where        extensive question-and-answer
workers and businesses begin          the outlook remains uncertain,        document on the company
to feel more con ident again, so      there are signs of growing            intranet. Every question posed
employers face the return of an       con idence among workers.             through the staff council or directly
old, pre-recessionary challenge       While two in ive workers in a         on to the site was answered and
– retention of staff. Not only are    poll earlier this year by the Keep    then added to it. “It was a massive
we starting to see signs of hiring    Britain Working campaign said         commitment but it meant if one
again in some industries as order     they anticipated being asked to       person asked a question – which
books slowly pick up, but workers     reapply for their jobs because        perhaps 10 others had wanted to
who have perhaps stayed put           of    continuing      recessionary    ask but had not wanted to raise
for longer than they might have       pressures, nearly two in three also   their head above the parapet – it
done otherwise because of the         said they would now be prepared       got answered,” says Ms Bellis.
uncertain climate are becoming        to take their chances rather than         In a second round of
more prepared to dip their toes       do so.                                redundancies in the summer of last      agrees Jez Langhorn, head of
back into the jobs market.                What all this indicates is        year the company ensured senior         talent and education at McDonald’s
   In March, a poll of almost 400     that the irms that may have the       partners also got closely involved      in the UK.
managers by recruitment irm           competitive edge as we go into the    and that the emphasis on honest,            “Almost       everyone        has
StepStone Solutions found that        new business climate are those        open communication continued.           experienced some sort of effect
one-third expected to lose key        that have gone out of their way to    “People do not want it dressed up       from the recession, whether it is in
people as the recovery gathered       look after their workers during       or spun. We have intelligent and        their family life or in their income.
pace, while four out of 10 chief      this recession, and managed to        highly skilled people here, and they    So it is important that companies
executives in a poll by consultancy   maintain rather than erode trust,     just want to be treated as adults,”     make every effort to engage with
PricewaterhouseCoopers           in   loyalty and engagement – in other     adds Ms Bellis.                         their people and provide additional
February said they expected to be     words, those irms that appear             Teams were asked to come            support,” he advises.
                                      on the Great Place to Work®           up with their own solutions. The            Recent initiatives at the fast-
“If one person                        Institute’s latest list of the UK’s
                                      Best Workplaces.
                                                                            process led to 86 staff members
                                                                            temporarily moving on to more
                                                                                                                    food chain, which employs 80,000
                                                                                                                    staff and runs 1,200 restaurants in
asked a                                   This recession has been a
                                      bruising experience for many,
                                                                             lexible working patterns in, says
                                                                            Ms Bellis, almost 86 different ways.
                                                                                                                    the UK, have included the launch
                                                                                                                    in January last year of a hospitality
question –                            says Linda Bellis, HR director at     “It might have been, from the HR        apprenticeship scheme, offering
which perhaps                         law irm Wragge & Co, one of two
                                      organisations that has achieved a
                                                                            point of view, a bit of a nightmare
                                                                            to manage, but it did make people
                                                                                                                    staff the chance to gain the
                                                                                                                    equivalent of ive GCSEs.
10 others                             place in the ranking 10 consecutive
                                      times. The irm, which employs just
                                                                            feel they were more in control of
                                                                            their destinies.”
                                                                                                                        “The average crew member
                                                                                                                    stays with us for about three
had wanted                            over 1,000 people, was forced to          Even in irms that have had          years, while managers stay on
to ask – it got                       make 97 people redundant during
                                      the downturn, 42 of them through
                                                                            a relatively “good” recession, how
                                                                            people have been treated and
                                                                                                                    average for 15 years. Our turnover
                                                                                                                    has never been lower than it is
answered”                             compulsory lay-offs.
                                          “People still feel wounded,
                                                                            managed is vital when it comes
                                                                            to preparing for the upturn,
                                                                                                                    now,” says Mr Langhorn.
                                                                                                                        “People do value it when an

         Transforming society by creating better workplaces
2.2%
AVERAGE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER
                                                   6,000
                                                    NUMBER OF JOB APPLICATIONS
OF EMPLOYEES IN EUROPEAN BEST                       BEST WORKPLACE WL GORE
WORKPLACES, DESPITE THE RECESSION                   RECEIVED IN THE PAST YEAR                                       THE UPTURN
                                                                                                                    KEY LESSONS:

                                                                                                                    ■ Firms that have managed
                                                                                                                    to maintain trust, loyalty and
                                                                                                                    engagement may have the
                                                                                                                    competitive edge in the new
                                                                                                                    business climate
                                                                                                                    ■ Open and honest
                                                                                                                    communication with
                                                                                                                    employees is essential
                                                                                                                    ■ How staff are treated and
                                                                                                                    managed is vital when it
                                                                                                                    comes to preparing for the
                                                                                                                    upturn


                                                                                                                        “In our business, clients come to
                                                                                                                    us because of our people; because
                                                                                                                    they want to work with our people.
                                                                                                                    So their ability to manage their
                                                                                                                    contacts and those relations, and
                                                                                                                    the enthusiasm and engagement
                                                                                                                    they project in the process, are
                                                                                                                    important. We have been fortunate
                                                                                                                    to pick up some of our biggest
                                                                                                                    clients during this recession,” adds
                                                                                                                    Ms Theobald.
                                                                                                                        For Wragge & Co, which
                                                                                                                    opened a new of ice in Paris
                                                                                                                    in April, things have certainly
                                                                                                                    begun to pick up. And Ms Bellis is
                                                                                                                    hoping the company’s hard work
                                                                                                                    in maintaining morale and trust
                                                                                                                    during the tough times should
                                                                                                                    put it in a stronger position for
                                     1,100 people.                            the key,” says Sam Theobald, HR       the future.
“We made                                The company, for example, has
                                     over the past 18 months developed
                                                                              manager at brand communication
                                                                              company IncrediBull, which
                                                                                                                        “You are never going to get
                                                                                                                    rave reviews from handling
a point of                           a new L&Q Leadership Academy             employs 25 people. “We, for           redundancies. But when you
sharing                              for managers, with around 170
                                     managers so far having gone
                                                                              example, made a point of sharing
                                                                              information, including why we
                                                                                                                    look at some of the disastrous
                                                                                                                    reviews other law irms have got,
information,                         through its three-day residential
                                     programme.
                                                                              were not able to hire anyone
                                                                              extra, or why people might have
                                                                                                                    I think the things we did, and the
                                                                                                                    reputation we have generally
including why                           “It is about developing               been having to work longer hours.     towards our people, will help us
people might                         leadership skills, but also looking
                                     at our culture and how we can
                                                                              But it is also important to be true
                                                                              to your words.”
                                                                                                                    with recruitment and retention,”
                                                                                                                    she says.
have to work                         work more collaboratively,” says
                                     Mr Nicholls.
longer hours”                           The company has also developed
                                     a new bonus scheme linked to               THE BEST FOR
investment is made in them, even
in a recession. When the economy
                                     resident satisfaction, launched in
                                     April last year, whereby staff receive
                                                                                QUALITY OF LIFE
does turn the corner, those people   a bonus of up to 5% of salary that         When asked the following statement: “People are encouraged
will be more loyal,” he adds.        comes out of any additional pro it         to balance their work life and their personal life.”
    Honesty and openness are         made as a result.
essential if you want to maintain       “It has been more important             Rank      Company
trust and therefore build            than ever to be able to demonstrate         1        Impact International
momentum going into the recovery,    to people that we are prepared              2        Tandberg
                                                                                 3        Taff Housing
says Tom Nicholls, group HR          to listen and respond,” says Mr
                                                                                 4        Total Jobs Group
director of London and Quadrant      Nicholls.                                   5        McDonald’s Restaurants UK
Housing Trust, which employs            “Open communications are

                                                                                                                       www.greatplacetowork.co.uk      5
PAST WINNERS

                                                                                                    2009             2008          2007               2006

BEST WORKPLACES 2010                                                                               DANONE           GOOGLE        BEAVERBROOKS BAIN & CO




THE WINNER
Baringa Partners
Head Office: London
Website: www.baringa.com



A culture that emphasises                                                        to have someone to answer simple        archy, which encourages a free low
communication and trust                                                          questions such as ‘how do I do my       of information around the organi-
has helped Baringa Partners                                                      timesheet?’ or ‘where are company       sation. Senior management is
scoop the top award of best                                                      meetings?’ – the sort of thing you      committed to being frank and open
workplace in Britain. Widget                                                     don’t want to bother your manager       about bad news as well as good
Finn explains how                                                                with, but which are vital to getting    tidings, says Jim Hayward, senior
                                                                                 up and running straight away.”          partner with responsibility for
                                                                                     All staff members, as part of       HR. “E-mails are sent to everyone
                                                                                 their induction, are also assigned a    applauding signi icant individual
                                                                                 career advisor who acts as a mentor     efforts and congratulating people
“I love this place and I love the job I   large consultancy, he found Barin-     throughout the individual’s time at     who have been promoted. Updates
do.” So says one of the employees at      ga’s recruitment process “friendly     Baringa, providing guidance, iden-      and summaries of the latest client
the winning company of this year’s        and amiable. After the irst round of   tifying opportunities and training,     engagements are circulated.
Best Workplaces award, Baringa            interviews, candidates are encour-     and evaluating career progress.         E-mails inform all employees of
Partners. “I believe we are all excep-    aged to talk to someone who is at a        Communication and trust are         individual resignations, personally
tionally proud to work for such a         similar level in the company to ind    essential to Baringa’s success,         written by a director and detail-
unique, encouraging and fair com-         out what it’s like to work here.”      claims Mr Mansour. “We have no big      ing the employee’s successes and
pany,” another staff member adds.             Successful candidates are sent     central of ice where everyone gets      conveying the company’s thanks.
    Baringa, a management con-            a bottle of champagne, and their       together round the coffee machine.      We also strive to give honest expla-
sultancy that specialises in the          arrival is announced to the whole      Our consultants spend most of their     nations when we have to request
energy and utilities markets and          company via email. At their irst       time at client sites, so we use regu-   short-term extra efforts and longer
the inancial services industry, has       company meeting, they’re pre-          lar company meetings every six          hours, so that everyone under-
a company culture that focuses on         sented with a company t-shirt to       weeks to catch up with colleagues,      stands the reasons.”
supporting and growing talented           show they’ve joined the team.          meet new joiners, get up to date            Celebrating success is a key way
and motivated staff, says managing            As a new joiner, Mr Munton was     with strategy and achievements,         to motivate people. Baringa gives
partner Mohamed Mansour. “All             paired with a “buddy” for his irst     and give everyone an opportunity        a quarterly award of £500 to an
our senior people are involved in         year. “Everyone has a buddy who        to have their say.” The meetings        individual who has demonstrated
every recruiting decision we make.        can provide advice and unof icial      contribute to the open, honest and      an exceptional contribution to
We use personal networks, select-         help. I received a phone call from     consistent communication needed         the company’s core values, with
ing the best people we have worked        my buddy on my irst day in the         to build trust.                         annual awards for Team of the Year,
with, alongside more traditional          of ice to welcome me. It was great         The meetings are followed by        the Star Player, One to Watch and
methods of inding new talent.”                                                   more casual interaction, adds Mr        Cheerleader. Teams hitting mile-
Recruiting in this way makes a dif-                                              Mansour. “After the of icial meet-      stones mark the achievement with
ference to the psychological contract     ‘Everyone                              ing, there are informal drinks to       drinks and dinners, company away
Baringa has with its employees: the                                              which partners are invited. We hold     weekends celebrate successes
emphasisis is not just on ensuring        is open,                               the events in London or a country       with families, and, importantly,
staff are suitable for the organisa-
tion, but also that the organisation
                                          honest and                             hotel, and later this year the whole
                                                                                 company plus partners are meeting
                                                                                                                         promotions are based on skills and
                                                                                                                         contribution, not time served.
is suitable for staff. The company        approachable                           in Sorrento, Italy.”                        Management consultancy is a
provides a budget for all new pro-                                                   One employee says: “Everyone        male-dominated profession, with
spective employees to be taken out        with a can-do                          is open, honest and approachable,       women accounting for only around
socially to understand more about
the company.
                                          attitude to                            with a can-do attitude to getting
                                                                                 things done as a team. Nobody is
                                                                                                                         25% of staff. The Baringa Women’s
                                                                                                                         Forum is a support network for
    Guy Munton, who joined                getting things                         left to do things on their own, which   the 33 women in the company.
Baringa in 2008, is in charge of                                                 is excellent and a vast improvement     Pentony O’Hagan at Baringa sees
recruitment within the inancial           done’                                  on previous places I have worked.”      it as a forum for discussing and
services practice. Coming from a                                                     Baringa Partners has a lat hier-    monitoring women’s issues in

          Transforming society by creating better workplaces
2005            2004       2003               2002             2001

?WHAT IF!      ?WHAT IF!         ASDA          ASDA        CISCO SYSTEMS                                             WINNER PROFILE




                                                                                                                                     The company’s CSR programme
                                                                                                                                 started with a “last day pro its
                                                                                                                                 donation” says Nicola Salmon, who
                                                                                                                                 is responsible for the charity pro-
                                                                                                                                 gramme. “The day’s pro its for the
                                                                                                                                 last day of the inancial year goes
                                                                                                                                 to four charities,” she says. “We’re
                                                                                                                                 now getting staff involved in volun-
                                                                                                                                 teering schemes. A group went to a
                                                                                                                                 local primary school to do a garden
                                                                                                 Pride and
                                                                                                 camaraderie: two                makeover, turning a concrete area
                                                                                                 members of the                  into a play area. It was a good team-
                                                                                                 Baringa ‘family’
                                                                                                                                 building day, giving us a chance to
                                                                                                                                 get out of the of ice.”
                                                                                                                                     And it’s not just management
                                                                                                                                 that sees the CSR programme as
                                                                                                                                 a source of pride and engagement
                                                                                                                                 for employees. One employee says:
                                                                                                                                 “I think the company has worked
                                                                                                                                 hard to improve its impact on wider
                                                                                                                                 society, implementing the CSR ini-
                                                                                                                                 tiative and exploring opportunities
       KEY LESSONS:                           nity package is in its inal draft. It’s   start, you are guided and accepted       to take part in the carbon agenda.”
                                              great to see something that the           into the Baringa ‘family’. There are         What’s more, Baringa Partners
       ■ A friendly and amicable              Women’s Forum has identi ied and          ups and downs in any business;           has continued to grow its business
       recruitment process                    changed.”                                 however, everyone from the senior        despite the recent recession. “Our
       helps new starters with a                  Mansour believes that: “Being         management to lower levels, sticks       success has been built on the qual-
       “buddy” for the first year              a successful company and creating         together and makes the best of the       ity of our people and the culture
       and a careers advisor                  an enjoyable working environ-             situation. This gives the feeling that   they’ve developed,” says Mr Man-
       ■ A flat hierarchy                      ment are intrinsically linked. The        you are never alone in any of the        sour. “I’m proud to see our staff’s
       encourages a free flow of               combination creates a GPTW cul-           challenges you face in your work-        careers grow in a workplace that
       information                            ture and motivated staff who have         ing – and personal – life, since you     gives them the opportunity to real-
                                              a high impact on clients. We ind          have the Baringa support crew.”          ise their full potential.”
       ■ A sustainability
       programme gives a source               that our corporate social respon-
       of engagement and pride                sibility (CSR) programme, where
                                              individuals and teams take part in
                                              voluntary work and charity events,          THE MOST SOUGHT AFTER
       the workplace. “For example, we        is a great way of having fun. People
       looked at our recruitment statistics   enjoy giving something back to the          How many people applied for jobs in the past year
                                                                                          (excluding current employees)?
       and saw that women were more           community.”
       successful as candidates, but there        Baringa exempli ies two of the          Rank    Company                                            Applicants
       were fewer female applicants. We       key characteristics of best work-            1      McDonald Restaurants Ltd                           350,000
       identi ied that our maternity policy   places identi ied by the Great Place         2      KFC UK and Ireland                                 100,000
       wasn’t offering the best options       to Work® Institute – pride and               3      Maybourne Hotel group                              26,000
       – and for many women the mater-        camaraderie. One employee says:              4      British Gas                                        17,000
       nity package is more important         “This company has a true family              5      Beaverbrooks the Jewellers Ltd                     14,000
       than remuneration. A new mater-        feeling where, from the day you

                                                                                                                                    www.greatplacetowork.co.uk      7
76%
                                                                                                                          OF BEST WORKPLACES
                                                                                                                          PROVIDE MENTAL HEALTH CARE
BEST WORKPLACES 2010                                                                                                      UNDER THEIR HEALTH BENEFITS




A HEALTHY
APPROACH
                                                                                                                                 Health kick: many
                                                                                                                                 Best Workplaces provide
                                                                                                                                 free fruit to staff




Growing numbers
of business leaders
are recognising how
important health
and wellbeing are                                                                lexible working has meant an
as business issues,                                                             extended service to clients. Happy
particularly those                                                              is also experiencing a lower turno-
from organisations in                                                           ver of staff, a more committed and
the Best Workplaces                                                             engaged workforce, and a reputa-
ranking. Kate Hilpern                                                           tion that means higher numbers
explains                                                                        of quality candidates apply when
                                                                                new positions come up. The Happy
At Happy Ltd, you’re more likely to      physiological but psychological        brand has, in short, excelled owing
hear the word “wellness” than “sick-     too,” says Mr Stewart. “In fact, we    to its holistic focus on health and
ness.” Having decided to switch the      go one step further, recognising       wellbeing.
focus as part of its health and well-    that family is often at the heart of       Around 170 million working
being strategy ive years ago, the        people’s wellbeing. To that end,       days are lost to sickness absence
training company has since experi-       we offer 100% of our people the        every year, according to the latest
enced a 75% drop in the effects of       right to choose to work lexibly. We    CBI/AXA Absence Survey. It’s a
staff sickness, as measured by the       accept that things such as childcare   problem that the Chartered Insti-
Bradford Factor – a bespoke tool         arrangements can sometimes go          tute of Personnel and Development
that recognises that a person taking     pear-shaped, in which case children    reports as costing UK plc £692 per
two weeks off for an operation has       are welcome to come to the of ice.     employee per year – and in the
less impact on the business than         We also recognise that people typi-    thick of the recession, probably
someone taking one or two days           cally leave their manager, not their   more. Indeed, recent research by           of those who do acknowledge their
off every month.                         job, and we therefore enable people    mental health charity MIND found           existence, many don’t think they are
    Happy’s irst move was to give        to choose who manages them. Staff      that one in 10 people have visited         prevalent. Even employers who do
all staff a £100 wellness budget         can even change their manager at       their GP for mental health support         realise there’s a problem often act
every year. “They spend it on what-      anytime if they want to.”              as a result of recession-induced           half-heartedly, focusing on getting
ever they feel will help keep them           Happy’s philosophy is simple       stress. Mental health problems             bottoms on seats. According to
healthy. Examples so far include a       but effective. Last year alone, it     alone cost British businesses £26bn        the Health and Safety Executive, in
 light to Venice, a massage, a Wii Fit   saved the equivalent of 4% of          a year, says the charity, whose new        2008/09 1.2 million people who
board and game and some vitamin          pro its. Meanwhile, the focus on       campaign “Taking Care of Business”         worked were suffering from an
tablets,” says chief executive Henry                                            aims to tackle this problem. After all,    illness they believed was caused
Stewart.                                                                        this sum equates to 70 million lost        or made worse by their current or
    Happy then set about giving
every employee their birthday off
                                         “Strategies and                        workdays each year – more than
                                                                                that caused by heart disease and
                                                                                                                           past work.
                                                                                                                               It is not all doom and gloom,
if they’ve scored well in their indi-    policies are                           stroke combined, and three times           however. Growing numbers of
vidual Bradford Factor. Meetings
and emails were set up to keep           usually easy                           more than that caused by cancer.
                                                                                Obesity is another major problem
                                                                                                                           business leaders are, like Happy,
                                                                                                                           recognising this is an important
staff abreast of health and well-
being issues and annual appraisals
                                         to replicate                           – costing 18 million sick days and
                                                                                about £1bn a year.
                                                                                                                           business issue, with 81% of FTSE
                                                                                                                           100 companies now reporting
started being used as an opportu-        and don’t                                  Perhaps even more worry-               publicly on employee health and
nity to ask the question: “How does
Happy help you achieve a good life       necessarily                            ing than the igures themselves is
                                                                                employers’ attitude. Forty- ive per
                                                                                                                           wellbeing, according to Business
                                                                                                                           in the Community (BiTC) research
balance?” with results being meas-
ured. “We see wellness not just as
                                         cost much.”                            cent of employers believe there are
                                                                                no mental health issues at work and
                                                                                                                           from 2007. Employees are wising
                                                                                                                           up, too, with 6 in 10 workers

          Transforming society by creating better workplaces
1.2m
NUMBER OF PEOPLE WITH
                                         68%
                                         OF BEST WORKPLACES COVER
AN ILLNESS THEY BELIEVE WAS              ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS SUCH
CAUSED BY WORK IN 2008/09                AS ACUPUNCTURE                            HEALTH AND WELLBEING

                                                                                THE BEST FOR
                                                                                LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT
                                                                                Responses when asked: “On average, how many hours per
                                                                                year do the employees of the largest occupational group
                                                                                receive formal job training?”

                                                                                Company name                                       Hours of training
                                                                                FactSet Europe LTD                                        180
                                                                                DIAGEO GB                                                 125
                                                                                British Gas                                               125
                                                                                Bright Horizons Family Solutions                          124
                                                                                UKFast                                                    120



                                                                              these companies, sickness absence       state, with follow-up support if
                                                                              is 30% lower than the national          required. “That’s about taking the
                                                                              average,” says Mr Johnson. “That’s      stigma away from stress, as much
                                                                              at least a saving of £20,760 in a       as anything else,” she says.
                                                                              company of 100 people, and if you           As with many Best Workplaces,
                                                                              take a company like The Co-oper-        Novo Nordisk regularly surveys
                                                                              ative Group, which has 120,000          staff on the issue of health and well-
                                                                              employees, that is a saving of over     being. “We use external auditors to
                                                                              £24m. These are massive igures          see what’s working and what isn’t,
                                                                              that can be achieved just by look-      and we always take action where
                                                                              ing after employees better.”            gaps are identi ied,” says Ms Tait.
                                                                                  Even better news for employ-            A focus on health and wellbe-
                                                                              ers, says Kirsty Tait, director of      ing doesn’t have to mean people
                                                                              corporate affairs at Novo Nordisk,      work less hard, insists Samantha
                                                                              is that the strategies and policies     Carey, head of business develop-
                                                                              employed by the Best Workplaces         ment at Impact International.
                                                                              are usually easy to replicate and       “Our consultants’ working time
                                                                              don’t necessarily cost much. “For       is 60% of others in our sector
                                                                              example, when we have meetings,         on average, and we offer unpaid
                                                                              there’s always an exercise element.     leave and lexible contracts to
 saying they would consider leaving     employees report that their expec-    Recently at a sales conference, we      everyone on an individually
 employers who failed to promote        tations on health and wellbeing are   did a Strictly Come Dancing Exer-       assessed basis. We offer lexibil-
 health and wellbeing and 8 in 10       met. “It is no coincidence that in    cise. It’s not seen as, ‘Now we’ll do   ity with appointments too – even
 considering employers’ attitudes                                             the health bit’ because it’s part of    for the hairdressers. We also have
 towards health a signi icant factor                                          our ethos.”                             a massive emphasis on enabling
 when making job decisions.             KEY LESSONS:                              Other winning initiatives at        staff to complete projects in the
     “We are living in a stakeholder,                                         the company include offering staff      community. The impact of all
                                        ■ Companies   that have
 not a shareholder, world and just      a health and wellbeing                the chance to work remotely and         this is very positive. If people are
 like other stakeholders, employ-       strategy often report an              providing generous maternity and        happy, healthy and engaged in
 ees expect certain things, not just    increase in profits and                paternity leave. There is a staff       their work, they perform at their
 a salary from their employer,”         lower staff turnover                  restaurant where employees have         best.”
 explains Jennifer Simnet, director                                           free healthy food and drinks on             Louise Aston, director of Busi-
                                        ■ 81% of FTSE 100
 of workplace transformation for                                              offer, along with dedicated coffee      ness Action on Health, believes
                                        companies now publicly
 the Great Place to Work® Institute.    report to shareholders                break areas on each loor, encour-       that employers instinctively know
 “They want to feel they can iden-      on employee health and                aging them to take regular breaks.      this. “There is so much evidence
 tify with the company. This is good    wellbeing                             Employees can also sign up to a         linking a healthy, happy workforce
 news for employers, too, because                                             smoking cessation programme and         to higher productivity, but there is
                                        ■ Occupational   health,
 the staff members can then be                                                get free 30-minute health checks        often a lack of integration between
                                        health and safety and
 ambassadors for the company and        HR departments must                   to measure things such as BMI and       occupational health, health and
 that ‘feelgood factor’ can permeate                                          blood pressure. In addition, Ms Tait    safety and HR. They operate in silos.
                                                                                                                                                               PHOTO: ISTOCK




                                        be fully integrated
 out to others – notably customers.”    within an organisation                points to the irm’s online stress       Without a link between the three,
     Among the organisations in the                                           toolbox, which enables employees        the best strategies in the world
 Best Workplaces ranking, 79% of                                              to test their own psychological         simply won’t work.”

                                                                                                                         www.greatplacetowork.co.uk       9
45%
                                                                                                            AVERAGE PROPORTION OF
                                                                                                            WOMEN ON THE MANAGEMENT TEAM
BEST WORKPLACES 2010                                                                                        OF BEST WORKPLACES




WORD FROM THE
   Luca Mignini                                          Fiona Thorn                                          Adam Grant
   SC Johnson                                            Fishburn Hedges                                      Danone Waters UK & Ireland
   Senior VP, Europe, ANZ, Japan                         Managing Director                                    Chief Executive Officer
   “It’s gratifying to know our people come              “We know that treats, such as chocolate              “We’re proud of our open, encouraging
   in each day and enjoy their workplace.                fountains, help create a good of ice                 culture where at all levels we work
   Meeting the needs of the site’s diverse               atmosphere. But a great workplace, as                to help each other reach our targets.
   population is a critical focus at SC                  opposed to just a fun one, inspires and              Rewarding exceptional work and
   Johnson. I’m happy to see our people                  challenges in equal measure. It provides             recognising those who go ‘above and
   being recognised for creating an inclusive            employees with the freedom and support               beyond’ is an important part of our
   workplace that’s supportive and                       to give their best while continually                 employee engagement approach.”
   effective.”                                           developing their skills and experience.”




SCOTLAND WELCOMES BEST
WORKPLACES INITIATIVE
                                         performing workplaces. That’s            the employee so nowadays it’s         which is now the largest sector
                                         why the Institute has partnered          often the talented individual who     in Scotland. Therefore, the ability
                                         with Skills Development Scotland         chooses his/her workplace rather      of Scotland to attract and retain
                                         and the Scottish Council for             than being chosen. So, countries      talent will be key to Scotland’s
                                         Development and Industry                 and organisations have to become      future growth and we believe
                                         to create a Best Workplace               better at developing their employer   the Best Workplaces initiative
Williams Johnson                         Programme for Scotland.                  brand.                                will make a difference.
Managing Director
Great Place to Work® Institute UK           The success of Great Place to            Scotland has a thriving                “Scotland’s Best Workplaces is
                                         Work® programmes and rankings            economy, being a world leader in      a valuable innovation to Scotland’s
Since its foundation in 2000, the        all over the world re lects the          manufacturing and shipbuilding.       business landscape,” says Dr Lesley
UK’s Best Workplaces Programme           competitive nature of labour             But, like most other advanced         Sawers, chief executive, SCDI. “A time
has been welcomed and employed           markets in today’s globalised            industrialised         economies,     of economic uncertainty sharpens
by some of the largest and most          economy. Emerging modern                 Scotland has seen a decline in        the focus on the importance of
respected companies in Britain.          economies such as Singapore,             the importance of manufacturing       creating cultures of productivity
    Despite the undeniable success       United Arab Emirates and the             and a rise in the service sector,     and value for all in the workplace.”
of the initiative, the vast majority     BRIC countries are working hard to
of programme participants are
England-based organisations. The
                                         create the right conditions to attract
                                         global talent and retain their own,
                                                                                  “The Best Workplace initiative
Institute believes that workplaces       fuelling the war on talent.              shares our aims of continuous
and business leaders in other
parts of Britain could greatly
                                            But, it’s not easy. People are what
                                         set businesses and labour markets        employee improvement and
bene it from the knowledge and
tools the programme can give
                                         apart from competitors. Yet, the
                                         globalization of the economy shifted
                                                                                  growing the economy”
them to create their own high-           the power from the employer to           Mr Willie Row, chairman, Skills Development Scotland
            Transforming society by creating better workplaces
1 in10
FTSE BOARD DIRECTORS
                                                    Norway
                                                    THE FIRST COUNTRY TO INTRODUCE A 40%
ARE WOMEN                                           QUOTA OF WOMEN ON CORPORATE BOARDS                                       CEOS


TOP
 Camilla Soenderby                                    Carole Edmond                              Martin Shuker
 Abbott UK                                            Bright Horizons Family Solutions           KFC UK & Ireland
 General Manager                                      Managing Director, UK                      Managing Director
 “Abbott continues to invest in training              “We have a talented team of people,        “We are proud of our distinctly
 and development, lexible bene its                    each bringing something unique to          supportive and friendly team culture.
 and work, and health and wellness                    Bright Horizons. We know that we           One of the things that makes KFC a
 programmes, which provide the best                   play a part every day in making a real     great place to work is our core value
 environment for our people to build                  difference to children and families. We    of ‘belief in all people’ which makes
 varied and ful illing careers.”                      all care passionately about what we do     us passionate about celebrating and
                                                      and support each other, encouraging        challenging our people, to help them
                                                      professionalism, growth and diversity. “   realise their true potential.”




  WE ARE
  SEARCHING FOR
  SCOTLAND’S
  BEST WORKPLACES



  In strategic partnership with            Published by




  REGISTRATIONS ARE NOW OPEN
  For further details
  scotland@greatplacetowork.co.uk
  +44 (0)870 608 8780
Professional Development (%)

                                                                                                                                                       Quality of Life (%)

                                                                                                                                                       Job security (%)

BEST WORKPLACES 2010                                                                                                                                   Pay & Benefits (%)


                                Top 10 Ranked Organisations                Employees UK           Turnover                               No. of         What Employees Feel
                                Headquarters (UK Sites) Website            (Outside UK)           Industry Sector                       Previous        Most Positive About
                                                                           Minorities | Women                                           Awards
                                1 Baringa Partners                         130 (0)                21.6m (£)                                            26       23        26   25
                                Esher (01) baringa.com                     22% | 26%              Professional Services


                                2 Danone Ltd                               96 (31,200)            219m (£)                                             26       23        31   21
                                London (01) danone.co.uk                   undisclosed | 56%      Manufacturing & Production

                                3 Impact International                     103 (143)              10.2m (£)                                       cc




                                                                                                                                                       19       27        29   24
                                Windermere (02) impactinternational.com    19% | 49%              Professional Services


                                4 Microsoft Ltd                            2,573 (88,905) undisclosed                                             cc




                                                                                                                                                       27       24        24   24
                                Reading (09) microsoft.com/uk              undisclosed | 29%      Information Technology


                                5 Novo Nordisk Ltd                         492 (29,329)           270m (£)                                             26       23        26   26
                                Crawley (01) novonordisk.co.uk             undisclosed | 65%      Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals


                                6 NetApp UK Ltd                            300 (8,000)            38m (£)                                              26       24        27   24
                                Middlesex (05) netapp.com                  undisclosed | 20%      Information Technology

                                7 DIAGEO GB                                598 (22,000)           835m (£)                                             29       23        25   24
                                London (04) diageo.com                     undisclosed | 39%      Manufacturing & Production
TOP 10




                                8 General Mills UK                         160 (29,500)           234m (£)                                             23       26        29   22
                                Uxbridge (01) generalmills.co.uk           12% | 57%              Manufacturing & Production


                                9 Danone Waters (UK & Ire.) Ltd            106 (33,000)           136.6m (£)                                           27       25        28   20
                                London (01) danone.co.uk                    undisclosed/43%       Manufacturing & Production


                                10 Admiral Group                           2,957 (3,743)          1.08bn (£)                                 cc




                                                                                                                                                       27       23        28   22
                                Cardiff (06) admiralgroup.co.uk            2% | 50%               Financial Services & Insurance




                                The rest of the Top 50 Organisations          Employees UK            Turnover                           No. of             What Employees Feel
                                Headquarters (UK Sites) Website               (Outside UK)            Industry Sector                   Previous            Most Positive About
                                                                              Minorities | Women                                        Awards
                                Abbott                                        1,199 (83,000)          381m (£)
                                Maidenhead (04) abbott.co.uk                  undisclosed | 59%       Healthcare                                       25       22        28   24

                                ALMAC GROUP                                   1,726 (2,727)           120m (£)                          New entry
                                Craigavon (04) almacgroup.com                 undisclosed | 42%       Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals                  25       21        32   23

                                ApaTech                                       83 (145)                2.9m (£)                          New entry
                                Elstree (01) apatech.com                      22% | 43%               Health Care                                      27       21        28   24

                                Beaverbrooks the Jewellers                    790 (0)                 undisclosed
                                St Annes-on-Sea (66) beaverbrooks.co.uk       undisclosed | 83%       Retail                                           25       23        27   24

                                bigmouthmedia                                 110 (200)               48m (£)                                          27       25        28   21
                                Edinburgh (02) bigmouthmedia.com              20% | 38%               Media


                                Bright Horizons Family Solutions              2,352 (19,000)          65m (£)                                          27       26        29   18
                                Rushden (142) brighthorizons.co.uk            30% | 96%               Education and Training


                                British Gas                                   25422 (0)               12.56bn (£)                                      25       23        24   28
                                Staines (25) britishgas.co.uk                 19% | 30%               Utilities
 N.B. ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY




                                Cadbury UK (Head Office)                       4,958 (44,958)          1.16bn (£)                                       26       24        25   26
                                Uxbridge (09) cadbury.co.uk                   19% | 39%               Manufacturing


                                Chiswick Park Enjoy-Work                      100 (0)                 10.6m (£)                                        27       22        25   26
                                Undisclosed (01) enjoy-work.com               80% | 38%               Construction & Real Estate


                                Chubb Insurance Co. of Europe SE              664 (10,200)            395m (£)                          New entry
                                                                                                                                                       26       27        27   21
                                London (09) chubb.com/uk                      undisclosed | 45%       Financial Services & Insurance

                                Cisco Systems                                 2,122 (59,133)          undisclosed                                      25       23        29   22
                                Feltham (05) cisco.com/uk                     undisclosed | 23%       Information Technology


                                Coca-Cola Great Britain                       133 (92,400)            undisclosed                                      23       24        26   27
                                London (01) coca-cola.co.uk                   10% | 68%               Advertising & Marketing


                                DAIICHI SANKYO UK Ltd                         128 (15,000)            20m (£)
                                Gerrards Cross (01) daiichi-sankyo.co.uk      29% | 52%               Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals                  27       18        29   25



                                  Transforming society by creating better workplaces
FactSet Europe Ltd                       294 (2,962)         undisclosed




                                                                                                                                                     N.B. ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY
London (02) factset.com                  undisclosed | 41%   Information Technology                               23    24      30       22

Fishburn Hedges Group                    161 (0)             22.7m (£)
London (01) fishburn-hedges.co.uk         4% | 60%            Advertising & Marketing                              23    23      31       23

Grünenthal Ltd                           104 (5,200)         20.2m (£)                               New entry
                                         undisclosed | 62%   Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals                      28    22      27       23
Stokenchurch (01) grunenthal.co.uk

Huxley Associates Ltd                    124 (194)           undisclosed
                                         undisclosed | 34%   Professional Services                                28    17      28       27
London (04) huxley.com

Kellogg’s                                632 (14,835)        580m (£)
                                         15% | 55%           Manufacturing and Production                         26    24      24       26
Manchester (03) kelloggs.co.uk

Ketchum Pleon                            166 (2,000)         15.8m (£)
                                         31% | 73%           Professional Services                                26    23      29       23
London (01) ketchum.com

KFC UK and Ireland                       10,163 (1.3m)       333m (£)                                New entry
                                         undisclosed | 40%   Hospitality                                          28    25      27       20
Woking (784) kfc.co.uk

Lansons Communications LLP               99 (0)              11.2m (£)                                            29    22      26       24
London (01) lansons.com                  14% | 76%           Public Relations


Leaseplan UK Ltd                         525 (6,400)         476m (£)                                New entry
                                                             Financial Services & Insurance                       26    19      29       25
Slough (04) leaseplan.co.uk              31% | 50%

Liberty Information Technology Ltd 260 (261)                 17.5m (£)                               New entry
Belfast (01) liberty-it.co.uk                                Information Technology                               25    27      26       22
                                         undisclosed | 26%


L&Q                                      1,082 (0)           306m (£)                                             24    20      34       22
                                         35% | 61%           Construction & Real Estate; Housing
London (22) lqgroup.org.uk

Maybourne Hotel Group                    1,000 (1,000)       105m (£)                                             27    22      27       24
London (04) maybourne.com                undisclosed | 41%   Hospitality


McDonald’s Restaurants UK                80,000 (1.5m)       933m (£)                                             26    24      26       24
London (485) mcdonalds.co.uk             undisclosed | 45%   Hospitality


National Instruments                     80 (5,000)          undisclosed                                          23    22      31       23
Newbury (01) ni.com                      undisclosed | 35%   Manufacturing & Production


Novozymes Biopharma UK Ltd               100 (5,000)         16.5m (£)                               New entry
                                                             Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals
                                                                                                                  26    27      27       21
Nottingham (01) novozymes.com            undisclosed | 40%


PepsiCo UK & Ireland                     5,000 (285,000) 1.2bn (£)                                   New entry
                                                             Manufacturing & Production
                                                                                                                  25    22      29       25
Reading (12) pepsico.co.uk               13% | 23%

Quintiles Ltd                            1,652 (23,000)      405m (£)                                New entry
                                                             Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals
                                                                                                                  25    24      29       23
Bracknell (03) quintiles.com             undisclosed | 67%


Rackspace Hosting                        501 (2,774)         100m (£)                                             26    23      29       22
Uxbridge (04) rackspace.co.uk            24% | 26%           Information Technology


Sapient                                  284 (7,052)         72m (£)                                              28    22      29       22
London (02) sapient.com                  undisclosed | 28%   Professional Services


SC Johnson                               450 (12,000)        191.6m (£)                                           22    24      30       25
Surrey (01) scjohnson.co.uk              undisclosed | 38%   Manufacturing & Production


Taff Housing Association                 144 (0)             8.2m (£)                                             25    26      28       21
Cardiff (06) taffhousing.co.uk           13% | 65%           Social Services & Government Agencies


TANDBERG UK                              263 (1,628)         50.1m (£)                                New entry
                                                                                                                  22    26      27       25
Staines (03) tandberg.com                undisclosed | 18%   Telecommunications


The Children’s Trust                     540 (0)             22m (£)                                  New entry
                                                                                                                  28    23      29       20
Tadworth (01) thechildrenstrust.org.uk   2.6% | 86%          Health Care


The Co-operative Group                   103,000 (0)         11.6bn (£)                                           26    24      29       21
Manchester (5,986) co-operative.coop     undisclosed | 62%   Retail


The Totaljobs Group                      312 (314)           undisclosed                                          23    26      28       22
London (07) totaljobsgroup.com           undisclosed | 34%   Staffing and Recruitment


UKFast                                   98 (0)              9.2m (£)                                 New entry
                                                                                                                  27    26      25       23
Manchester (03) ukfast.co.uk             undisclosed | 24%   Information Technology


Wragge & Co LLP                          1,010 (5)           103.4m (£)                                           30    22      28       20
Birmingham (02) wragge.com               10.7% | 67%         Professional Services


                                                                                                                   www.greatplacetowork.co.uk   13
BEST WORKPLACES 2010


WORD FROM THE TOP

 Tony Langham                                       Quentin Poole                                 Sanjay Guha
 Lansons Communications                             Wragge & Co                                   Coca-Cola Great Britain
 Chief Executive                                    Senior Partner                                Business Unit President
 “We have great people, with pride in the           “Our workplace culture thrives because        “It’s our wide range of initiatives that help
 business, who care about each others’              we support each other as a single team.       associates enjoy a good work-life balance.
 wellbeing and about doing fantastic work.          Get that right and everything else            Our lexible working arrangements and
 We communicate honestly about where                follows – people enjoy what they do,          annual learning allowance, which employees
 the company’s going, and strive to be a            and our clients get the best service.”        are allowed to spend on any area of personal
 good citizen in our communities. Keeping                                                         development that interests them, all
 a fresh outlook is important.”                                                                   contribute to making this a Best Workplace.”




                            Dr Simon Clough                                                       Did you know....
                            DAIICHI SANKYO UK Ltd                                                 ■ On average, 46% of the UK’s Best
                                                                                                  Workplaces are composed of women.
                            Managing Director
                                                                                                  This is reflected across Europe’s Best
                            “The performance-driven culture at Daiichi Sankyo has been
                                                                                                  Workplaces with an average of 44%.
                            integral to the success of our business for many years. We set high
                            standards, work hard, have fun and treat people as individuals.
                            This culture is delivered with a high degree of accountability and    ■ 12.2% of directors in FTSE
                            transparency which is measured across the company.”                   100 companies are women; the
                                                                                                  equivalent is 24.3% in the UK’s Best
                                                                                                  Workplaces.
“OUR SUCCESS IS BUILT                                                                             Government Equalities Office: Factsheet
                                                                                                  (2010); www.equalities.gov.uk


ON HIRING AND RETAINING                                                                           ■ European champion Norway jumped
THE BEST TALENT IN THE                                                                            to having 44.2% women on boards
                                                                                                  as a result of quota legislation. This
INDUSTRY. WE WORK HARD                                                                            clearly demonstrates that quotas are
                                                                                                  an effective way to accelerate growth
TO CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT                                                                          of female representation on boards.
                                                                                                  http://www.europeanpwn.net
WHERE PEOPLE CAN DO
THEIR BEST WORK.”                                                                                 ■ Gordon Brown has called the lack of
                                                                                                  women in UK boardrooms “completely
Gordon Frazer, Microsoft Ltd, UK Managing Director                                                unacceptable”. Under new proposals,
                                                                                                  companies may be required to report
                                                                                                  on their progress in this area



       Transforming society by creating better workplaces
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report
Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report

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Great Place To Work 2010 UK Report

  • 1. UK’S BEST WORKPLACES GREAT PLACE TO WORK® SPECIAL REPORT MAY 2010 www.greatplacetowork.co.uk Baringa Partners: The Best Workplace in the UK Trust: Driving loyalty and growth in tough times The Upturn: How Best Workplaces are preparing th y on r iti rsa 10 The views and comments in this publication are those of Ed ive the Great Place to Work®Institute UK and are not backed n or in any way endorsed by The Financial Times Limited. An
  • 3. BEST WORKPLACES 2010 CONTENTS 4 16 Preparing for the The Trends 24 The Experts Upturn Professional services This year, the Great Place As we emerge from the and consulting is one to Work® Institute UK, has recession, business has a of the best performing introduced a new Special rare chance to become sectors in this year’s Best Category Excellence more competitive by Workplaces Programme. Award – for learning and focusing on employees, We examine the other development. We outline says Nic Paton trends that have the winners of this and the 4 emerged in the UK and rest of the awards 6 Europe The Winner A culture emphasising 18 European Top 100 26 divide Generational communication and The Best Workplaces With generational diversity trust has helped Baringa Programme in Europe being such a hot topic in Partners to scoop the top covers the top 50 small and today’s workplace, how do award of best workplace medium-sized workplaces Best Workplaces manage in the UK. Widget Finn across the continent different age groups? explains how Andy Allen finds out 20 22 8 A healthy approach Growing numbers Small and perfectly formed With rock solid 28 A common good Organisations can no of businesses are retention rates and staff longer afford to ignore recognising the encouraged to contribute corporate responsibility importance of health and suggestions at any issues, especially the wellbeing, particularly the time, it’s not surprising environment. But it is in Best Workplaces. Kate Centor Insurance and the truly great places to Hilpern explains Risk Management have work that responsible 10 28 won the Best Small business practices are part Workplaces Award 2010, of the DNA, writes Hannah Word from the EDITOR says Widget Finn Prevett Anna Scott top 30 What are the key assets 22 DESIGN an organisation holds that Redactive Media Group make it a Best Workplace? Trust: the smallest Hall of Fame PUBLICATION DIRECTOR We asked the people at Williams Johnson word that makes the For the first time in the top biggest difference the history of the Best 12 PROJECT COORDINATION Paula Melo It drives loyalty and Workplaces Programme in Vijay Mistry growth and can help Europe, two organisations UK Top 50 organisations survive in have received the Great PEER REVIEW From biotechnology Richard Widdowson tough times. Liz Hollis Place to Work Masters to social services and looks at why a culture trophy for achieving a RESEARCH AND ASSESSMENT government, this year’s of trust is essential for a place in the UK ranking for Great Place to Work® Institute UK 50 Best Workplaces in the great workplace 10 consecutive years UK covers a wide range of PUBLISHED BY Redactive Publishing Ltd, 17-18 Britton Street, sectors London, EC1M 5TP, Tel +44 (0)20 7880 6200 DISTRIBUTED BY The Guardian The Financial Times 15 UK Best Small This year, for the first time, Business Life Magazine we highlight the top 10 FRONT COVER best small workplaces in MEESON/hitandrunmedia.com the UK Transforming society by creating better workplaces
  • 4. BEST WORKPLACES 2010 FOREWORD This year we celebrate the 10th A key element of our but it is what they do on a daily edition of the Best Workplaces mission is to create role model basis to earn and sustain the Programme. Since its inception workplaces. In a year in which trust and respect of their people. in the UK, the initiative has role models have seemed to Leaders of Best Workplaces have been welcomed and employed be few and far between in long understood that progressive by some of the largest and most both business and political people management practices respected organisations in the arenas evidenced by the many and generous bene its could only country. scandals that were constantly get them so far in this journey Tom O’Byrne In this period, we have in our media headlines, we feel and unless they are backed up Chief executive officer, recognised more than 500 a renewed sense of purpose with real meaning and substance Great Place to Work® Institute UK exemplary UK workplaces from awarding the Institute’s these ingredients won’t equate to and over 4,000 workplaces in Masters Award, for the irst time a great workplace culture. In this Europe across our 17 national in the history of the programme 10th anniversary, let’s celebrate Best Workplaces initiatives. But, in Europe, to two outstanding the examples of these workplaces it’s not all about recognition. workplaces. Wragge & Co and and their leaders who so clearly We have worked with these Admiral Group have received demonstrate that leadership is organisations and their leaders this life-time award after 10 not just about commanding trust to measure their workplace consecutive years of success in and respect but giving it and climate and give them metrics our rankings. setting the example. and intelligence to assess So what makes these how they were doing in their workplaces and their leaders Tom O’Byrne journey to create their own role models? It’s certainly not the Chief executive of icer, Great great workplace cultures. fact that they won this accolade Place to Work® Institute UK We all know it when we come across it, even if we lack a common language to WHAT MAKES THEM describe it. It’s that buzz, that something. That X factor. ROLE MODELS IS WHAT If those organisations and workplaces that have it could THEY DO ON A DAILY bottle it up and sell it, they BASIS TO SUSTAIN TRUST could diversify into a sure-fire Will Hutton Executive, vice chair, winning product. But instead, AND RESPECT The Work Foundation as we all know, it takes years of subtle application, wrong turns and downright hard work to developing the practices, is it so rare? Is it weak incentives, get right. structures and (whisper it) ignorance, inertia, a conscious So what is it? It is easy to terms and conditions that help decision to keep trundling on overdo the mystery. Thanks people feel valued and well the low road? to the efforts of researchers, treated and facilitate their Both policy and business we know much that we didn’t participation in the life and worlds are right to worry in previous generations about objectives of organisations. away at the problem. In the what makes for good work But knowing the recipe does meantime, however, let’s and good workplaces. It is not mean we can all make the celebrate (and study) the in the mix of performance, dish. One of the conundrums of stellar examples that are engagement and fairness: the modern workplace is why showing the way. a steely commitment to “high performance” or “people excellence and quality; a sense centred” management is so Will Hutton of integrity and high trust in patchy. Some do it brilliantly. Executive, vice chair, working relationships; and Most don’t. But if it works, why The Work Foundation www.greatplacetowork.co.uk 3
  • 5. 15.4% BEST WORKPLACES’ AVERAGE REVENUE GROWTH IN THE PAST BEST WORKPLACES 2010 YEAR PREPARING FOR Appetising offer: a hospitality apprenticeship has THE UPTURN helped McDonald’s As we emerge from however well you deal with it. We the recession, those had never made redundancies businesses that have before, so it was a massive culture been focusing on shock,” she says. their employees are Yet the irm went to great likely to prove more pains to ensure there was not competitive, writes a communication vacuum into Nic Paton which morale-damaging gossip, rumour and intrigue could rush. Unemployment may inally be hiring new people over the next Initiatives included posting up an on a downward trend but, as few months. Even in irms where extensive question-and-answer workers and businesses begin the outlook remains uncertain, document on the company to feel more con ident again, so there are signs of growing intranet. Every question posed employers face the return of an con idence among workers. through the staff council or directly old, pre-recessionary challenge While two in ive workers in a on to the site was answered and – retention of staff. Not only are poll earlier this year by the Keep then added to it. “It was a massive we starting to see signs of hiring Britain Working campaign said commitment but it meant if one again in some industries as order they anticipated being asked to person asked a question – which books slowly pick up, but workers reapply for their jobs because perhaps 10 others had wanted to who have perhaps stayed put of continuing recessionary ask but had not wanted to raise for longer than they might have pressures, nearly two in three also their head above the parapet – it done otherwise because of the said they would now be prepared got answered,” says Ms Bellis. uncertain climate are becoming to take their chances rather than In a second round of more prepared to dip their toes do so. redundancies in the summer of last agrees Jez Langhorn, head of back into the jobs market. What all this indicates is year the company ensured senior talent and education at McDonald’s In March, a poll of almost 400 that the irms that may have the partners also got closely involved in the UK. managers by recruitment irm competitive edge as we go into the and that the emphasis on honest, “Almost everyone has StepStone Solutions found that new business climate are those open communication continued. experienced some sort of effect one-third expected to lose key that have gone out of their way to “People do not want it dressed up from the recession, whether it is in people as the recovery gathered look after their workers during or spun. We have intelligent and their family life or in their income. pace, while four out of 10 chief this recession, and managed to highly skilled people here, and they So it is important that companies executives in a poll by consultancy maintain rather than erode trust, just want to be treated as adults,” make every effort to engage with PricewaterhouseCoopers in loyalty and engagement – in other adds Ms Bellis. their people and provide additional February said they expected to be words, those irms that appear Teams were asked to come support,” he advises. on the Great Place to Work® up with their own solutions. The Recent initiatives at the fast- “If one person Institute’s latest list of the UK’s Best Workplaces. process led to 86 staff members temporarily moving on to more food chain, which employs 80,000 staff and runs 1,200 restaurants in asked a This recession has been a bruising experience for many, lexible working patterns in, says Ms Bellis, almost 86 different ways. the UK, have included the launch in January last year of a hospitality question – says Linda Bellis, HR director at “It might have been, from the HR apprenticeship scheme, offering which perhaps law irm Wragge & Co, one of two organisations that has achieved a point of view, a bit of a nightmare to manage, but it did make people staff the chance to gain the equivalent of ive GCSEs. 10 others place in the ranking 10 consecutive times. The irm, which employs just feel they were more in control of their destinies.” “The average crew member stays with us for about three had wanted over 1,000 people, was forced to Even in irms that have had years, while managers stay on to ask – it got make 97 people redundant during the downturn, 42 of them through a relatively “good” recession, how people have been treated and average for 15 years. Our turnover has never been lower than it is answered” compulsory lay-offs. “People still feel wounded, managed is vital when it comes to preparing for the upturn, now,” says Mr Langhorn. “People do value it when an Transforming society by creating better workplaces
  • 6. 2.2% AVERAGE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER 6,000 NUMBER OF JOB APPLICATIONS OF EMPLOYEES IN EUROPEAN BEST BEST WORKPLACE WL GORE WORKPLACES, DESPITE THE RECESSION RECEIVED IN THE PAST YEAR THE UPTURN KEY LESSONS: ■ Firms that have managed to maintain trust, loyalty and engagement may have the competitive edge in the new business climate ■ Open and honest communication with employees is essential ■ How staff are treated and managed is vital when it comes to preparing for the upturn “In our business, clients come to us because of our people; because they want to work with our people. So their ability to manage their contacts and those relations, and the enthusiasm and engagement they project in the process, are important. We have been fortunate to pick up some of our biggest clients during this recession,” adds Ms Theobald. For Wragge & Co, which opened a new of ice in Paris in April, things have certainly begun to pick up. And Ms Bellis is hoping the company’s hard work in maintaining morale and trust during the tough times should put it in a stronger position for 1,100 people. the key,” says Sam Theobald, HR the future. “We made The company, for example, has over the past 18 months developed manager at brand communication company IncrediBull, which “You are never going to get rave reviews from handling a point of a new L&Q Leadership Academy employs 25 people. “We, for redundancies. But when you sharing for managers, with around 170 managers so far having gone example, made a point of sharing information, including why we look at some of the disastrous reviews other law irms have got, information, through its three-day residential programme. were not able to hire anyone extra, or why people might have I think the things we did, and the reputation we have generally including why “It is about developing been having to work longer hours. towards our people, will help us people might leadership skills, but also looking at our culture and how we can But it is also important to be true to your words.” with recruitment and retention,” she says. have to work work more collaboratively,” says Mr Nicholls. longer hours” The company has also developed a new bonus scheme linked to THE BEST FOR investment is made in them, even in a recession. When the economy resident satisfaction, launched in April last year, whereby staff receive QUALITY OF LIFE does turn the corner, those people a bonus of up to 5% of salary that When asked the following statement: “People are encouraged will be more loyal,” he adds. comes out of any additional pro it to balance their work life and their personal life.” Honesty and openness are made as a result. essential if you want to maintain “It has been more important Rank Company trust and therefore build than ever to be able to demonstrate 1 Impact International momentum going into the recovery, to people that we are prepared 2 Tandberg 3 Taff Housing says Tom Nicholls, group HR to listen and respond,” says Mr 4 Total Jobs Group director of London and Quadrant Nicholls. 5 McDonald’s Restaurants UK Housing Trust, which employs “Open communications are www.greatplacetowork.co.uk 5
  • 7. PAST WINNERS 2009 2008 2007 2006 BEST WORKPLACES 2010 DANONE GOOGLE BEAVERBROOKS BAIN & CO THE WINNER Baringa Partners Head Office: London Website: www.baringa.com A culture that emphasises to have someone to answer simple archy, which encourages a free low communication and trust questions such as ‘how do I do my of information around the organi- has helped Baringa Partners timesheet?’ or ‘where are company sation. Senior management is scoop the top award of best meetings?’ – the sort of thing you committed to being frank and open workplace in Britain. Widget don’t want to bother your manager about bad news as well as good Finn explains how with, but which are vital to getting tidings, says Jim Hayward, senior up and running straight away.” partner with responsibility for All staff members, as part of HR. “E-mails are sent to everyone their induction, are also assigned a applauding signi icant individual career advisor who acts as a mentor efforts and congratulating people “I love this place and I love the job I large consultancy, he found Barin- throughout the individual’s time at who have been promoted. Updates do.” So says one of the employees at ga’s recruitment process “friendly Baringa, providing guidance, iden- and summaries of the latest client the winning company of this year’s and amiable. After the irst round of tifying opportunities and training, engagements are circulated. Best Workplaces award, Baringa interviews, candidates are encour- and evaluating career progress. E-mails inform all employees of Partners. “I believe we are all excep- aged to talk to someone who is at a Communication and trust are individual resignations, personally tionally proud to work for such a similar level in the company to ind essential to Baringa’s success, written by a director and detail- unique, encouraging and fair com- out what it’s like to work here.” claims Mr Mansour. “We have no big ing the employee’s successes and pany,” another staff member adds. Successful candidates are sent central of ice where everyone gets conveying the company’s thanks. Baringa, a management con- a bottle of champagne, and their together round the coffee machine. We also strive to give honest expla- sultancy that specialises in the arrival is announced to the whole Our consultants spend most of their nations when we have to request energy and utilities markets and company via email. At their irst time at client sites, so we use regu- short-term extra efforts and longer the inancial services industry, has company meeting, they’re pre- lar company meetings every six hours, so that everyone under- a company culture that focuses on sented with a company t-shirt to weeks to catch up with colleagues, stands the reasons.” supporting and growing talented show they’ve joined the team. meet new joiners, get up to date Celebrating success is a key way and motivated staff, says managing As a new joiner, Mr Munton was with strategy and achievements, to motivate people. Baringa gives partner Mohamed Mansour. “All paired with a “buddy” for his irst and give everyone an opportunity a quarterly award of £500 to an our senior people are involved in year. “Everyone has a buddy who to have their say.” The meetings individual who has demonstrated every recruiting decision we make. can provide advice and unof icial contribute to the open, honest and an exceptional contribution to We use personal networks, select- help. I received a phone call from consistent communication needed the company’s core values, with ing the best people we have worked my buddy on my irst day in the to build trust. annual awards for Team of the Year, with, alongside more traditional of ice to welcome me. It was great The meetings are followed by the Star Player, One to Watch and methods of inding new talent.” more casual interaction, adds Mr Cheerleader. Teams hitting mile- Recruiting in this way makes a dif- Mansour. “After the of icial meet- stones mark the achievement with ference to the psychological contract ‘Everyone ing, there are informal drinks to drinks and dinners, company away Baringa has with its employees: the which partners are invited. We hold weekends celebrate successes emphasisis is not just on ensuring is open, the events in London or a country with families, and, importantly, staff are suitable for the organisa- tion, but also that the organisation honest and hotel, and later this year the whole company plus partners are meeting promotions are based on skills and contribution, not time served. is suitable for staff. The company approachable in Sorrento, Italy.” Management consultancy is a provides a budget for all new pro- One employee says: “Everyone male-dominated profession, with spective employees to be taken out with a can-do is open, honest and approachable, women accounting for only around socially to understand more about the company. attitude to with a can-do attitude to getting things done as a team. Nobody is 25% of staff. The Baringa Women’s Forum is a support network for Guy Munton, who joined getting things left to do things on their own, which the 33 women in the company. Baringa in 2008, is in charge of is excellent and a vast improvement Pentony O’Hagan at Baringa sees recruitment within the inancial done’ on previous places I have worked.” it as a forum for discussing and services practice. Coming from a Baringa Partners has a lat hier- monitoring women’s issues in Transforming society by creating better workplaces
  • 8. 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 ?WHAT IF! ?WHAT IF! ASDA ASDA CISCO SYSTEMS WINNER PROFILE The company’s CSR programme started with a “last day pro its donation” says Nicola Salmon, who is responsible for the charity pro- gramme. “The day’s pro its for the last day of the inancial year goes to four charities,” she says. “We’re now getting staff involved in volun- teering schemes. A group went to a local primary school to do a garden Pride and camaraderie: two makeover, turning a concrete area members of the into a play area. It was a good team- Baringa ‘family’ building day, giving us a chance to get out of the of ice.” And it’s not just management that sees the CSR programme as a source of pride and engagement for employees. One employee says: “I think the company has worked hard to improve its impact on wider society, implementing the CSR ini- tiative and exploring opportunities KEY LESSONS: nity package is in its inal draft. It’s start, you are guided and accepted to take part in the carbon agenda.” great to see something that the into the Baringa ‘family’. There are What’s more, Baringa Partners ■ A friendly and amicable Women’s Forum has identi ied and ups and downs in any business; has continued to grow its business recruitment process changed.” however, everyone from the senior despite the recent recession. “Our helps new starters with a Mansour believes that: “Being management to lower levels, sticks success has been built on the qual- “buddy” for the first year a successful company and creating together and makes the best of the ity of our people and the culture and a careers advisor an enjoyable working environ- situation. This gives the feeling that they’ve developed,” says Mr Man- ■ A flat hierarchy ment are intrinsically linked. The you are never alone in any of the sour. “I’m proud to see our staff’s encourages a free flow of combination creates a GPTW cul- challenges you face in your work- careers grow in a workplace that information ture and motivated staff who have ing – and personal – life, since you gives them the opportunity to real- a high impact on clients. We ind have the Baringa support crew.” ise their full potential.” ■ A sustainability programme gives a source that our corporate social respon- of engagement and pride sibility (CSR) programme, where individuals and teams take part in voluntary work and charity events, THE MOST SOUGHT AFTER the workplace. “For example, we is a great way of having fun. People looked at our recruitment statistics enjoy giving something back to the How many people applied for jobs in the past year (excluding current employees)? and saw that women were more community.” successful as candidates, but there Baringa exempli ies two of the Rank Company Applicants were fewer female applicants. We key characteristics of best work- 1 McDonald Restaurants Ltd 350,000 identi ied that our maternity policy places identi ied by the Great Place 2 KFC UK and Ireland 100,000 wasn’t offering the best options to Work® Institute – pride and 3 Maybourne Hotel group 26,000 – and for many women the mater- camaraderie. One employee says: 4 British Gas 17,000 nity package is more important “This company has a true family 5 Beaverbrooks the Jewellers Ltd 14,000 than remuneration. A new mater- feeling where, from the day you www.greatplacetowork.co.uk 7
  • 9. 76% OF BEST WORKPLACES PROVIDE MENTAL HEALTH CARE BEST WORKPLACES 2010 UNDER THEIR HEALTH BENEFITS A HEALTHY APPROACH Health kick: many Best Workplaces provide free fruit to staff Growing numbers of business leaders are recognising how important health and wellbeing are lexible working has meant an as business issues, extended service to clients. Happy particularly those is also experiencing a lower turno- from organisations in ver of staff, a more committed and the Best Workplaces engaged workforce, and a reputa- ranking. Kate Hilpern tion that means higher numbers explains of quality candidates apply when new positions come up. The Happy At Happy Ltd, you’re more likely to physiological but psychological brand has, in short, excelled owing hear the word “wellness” than “sick- too,” says Mr Stewart. “In fact, we to its holistic focus on health and ness.” Having decided to switch the go one step further, recognising wellbeing. focus as part of its health and well- that family is often at the heart of Around 170 million working being strategy ive years ago, the people’s wellbeing. To that end, days are lost to sickness absence training company has since experi- we offer 100% of our people the every year, according to the latest enced a 75% drop in the effects of right to choose to work lexibly. We CBI/AXA Absence Survey. It’s a staff sickness, as measured by the accept that things such as childcare problem that the Chartered Insti- Bradford Factor – a bespoke tool arrangements can sometimes go tute of Personnel and Development that recognises that a person taking pear-shaped, in which case children reports as costing UK plc £692 per two weeks off for an operation has are welcome to come to the of ice. employee per year – and in the less impact on the business than We also recognise that people typi- thick of the recession, probably someone taking one or two days cally leave their manager, not their more. Indeed, recent research by of those who do acknowledge their off every month. job, and we therefore enable people mental health charity MIND found existence, many don’t think they are Happy’s irst move was to give to choose who manages them. Staff that one in 10 people have visited prevalent. Even employers who do all staff a £100 wellness budget can even change their manager at their GP for mental health support realise there’s a problem often act every year. “They spend it on what- anytime if they want to.” as a result of recession-induced half-heartedly, focusing on getting ever they feel will help keep them Happy’s philosophy is simple stress. Mental health problems bottoms on seats. According to healthy. Examples so far include a but effective. Last year alone, it alone cost British businesses £26bn the Health and Safety Executive, in light to Venice, a massage, a Wii Fit saved the equivalent of 4% of a year, says the charity, whose new 2008/09 1.2 million people who board and game and some vitamin pro its. Meanwhile, the focus on campaign “Taking Care of Business” worked were suffering from an tablets,” says chief executive Henry aims to tackle this problem. After all, illness they believed was caused Stewart. this sum equates to 70 million lost or made worse by their current or Happy then set about giving every employee their birthday off “Strategies and workdays each year – more than that caused by heart disease and past work. It is not all doom and gloom, if they’ve scored well in their indi- policies are stroke combined, and three times however. Growing numbers of vidual Bradford Factor. Meetings and emails were set up to keep usually easy more than that caused by cancer. Obesity is another major problem business leaders are, like Happy, recognising this is an important staff abreast of health and well- being issues and annual appraisals to replicate – costing 18 million sick days and about £1bn a year. business issue, with 81% of FTSE 100 companies now reporting started being used as an opportu- and don’t Perhaps even more worry- publicly on employee health and nity to ask the question: “How does Happy help you achieve a good life necessarily ing than the igures themselves is employers’ attitude. Forty- ive per wellbeing, according to Business in the Community (BiTC) research balance?” with results being meas- ured. “We see wellness not just as cost much.” cent of employers believe there are no mental health issues at work and from 2007. Employees are wising up, too, with 6 in 10 workers Transforming society by creating better workplaces
  • 10. 1.2m NUMBER OF PEOPLE WITH 68% OF BEST WORKPLACES COVER AN ILLNESS THEY BELIEVE WAS ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS SUCH CAUSED BY WORK IN 2008/09 AS ACUPUNCTURE HEALTH AND WELLBEING THE BEST FOR LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT Responses when asked: “On average, how many hours per year do the employees of the largest occupational group receive formal job training?” Company name Hours of training FactSet Europe LTD 180 DIAGEO GB 125 British Gas 125 Bright Horizons Family Solutions 124 UKFast 120 these companies, sickness absence state, with follow-up support if is 30% lower than the national required. “That’s about taking the average,” says Mr Johnson. “That’s stigma away from stress, as much at least a saving of £20,760 in a as anything else,” she says. company of 100 people, and if you As with many Best Workplaces, take a company like The Co-oper- Novo Nordisk regularly surveys ative Group, which has 120,000 staff on the issue of health and well- employees, that is a saving of over being. “We use external auditors to £24m. These are massive igures see what’s working and what isn’t, that can be achieved just by look- and we always take action where ing after employees better.” gaps are identi ied,” says Ms Tait. Even better news for employ- A focus on health and wellbe- ers, says Kirsty Tait, director of ing doesn’t have to mean people corporate affairs at Novo Nordisk, work less hard, insists Samantha is that the strategies and policies Carey, head of business develop- employed by the Best Workplaces ment at Impact International. are usually easy to replicate and “Our consultants’ working time don’t necessarily cost much. “For is 60% of others in our sector example, when we have meetings, on average, and we offer unpaid there’s always an exercise element. leave and lexible contracts to saying they would consider leaving employees report that their expec- Recently at a sales conference, we everyone on an individually employers who failed to promote tations on health and wellbeing are did a Strictly Come Dancing Exer- assessed basis. We offer lexibil- health and wellbeing and 8 in 10 met. “It is no coincidence that in cise. It’s not seen as, ‘Now we’ll do ity with appointments too – even considering employers’ attitudes the health bit’ because it’s part of for the hairdressers. We also have towards health a signi icant factor our ethos.” a massive emphasis on enabling when making job decisions. KEY LESSONS: Other winning initiatives at staff to complete projects in the “We are living in a stakeholder, the company include offering staff community. The impact of all ■ Companies that have not a shareholder, world and just a health and wellbeing the chance to work remotely and this is very positive. If people are like other stakeholders, employ- strategy often report an providing generous maternity and happy, healthy and engaged in ees expect certain things, not just increase in profits and paternity leave. There is a staff their work, they perform at their a salary from their employer,” lower staff turnover restaurant where employees have best.” explains Jennifer Simnet, director free healthy food and drinks on Louise Aston, director of Busi- ■ 81% of FTSE 100 of workplace transformation for offer, along with dedicated coffee ness Action on Health, believes companies now publicly the Great Place to Work® Institute. report to shareholders break areas on each loor, encour- that employers instinctively know “They want to feel they can iden- on employee health and aging them to take regular breaks. this. “There is so much evidence tify with the company. This is good wellbeing Employees can also sign up to a linking a healthy, happy workforce news for employers, too, because smoking cessation programme and to higher productivity, but there is ■ Occupational health, the staff members can then be get free 30-minute health checks often a lack of integration between health and safety and ambassadors for the company and HR departments must to measure things such as BMI and occupational health, health and that ‘feelgood factor’ can permeate blood pressure. In addition, Ms Tait safety and HR. They operate in silos. PHOTO: ISTOCK be fully integrated out to others – notably customers.” within an organisation points to the irm’s online stress Without a link between the three, Among the organisations in the toolbox, which enables employees the best strategies in the world Best Workplaces ranking, 79% of to test their own psychological simply won’t work.” www.greatplacetowork.co.uk 9
  • 11. 45% AVERAGE PROPORTION OF WOMEN ON THE MANAGEMENT TEAM BEST WORKPLACES 2010 OF BEST WORKPLACES WORD FROM THE Luca Mignini Fiona Thorn Adam Grant SC Johnson Fishburn Hedges Danone Waters UK & Ireland Senior VP, Europe, ANZ, Japan Managing Director Chief Executive Officer “It’s gratifying to know our people come “We know that treats, such as chocolate “We’re proud of our open, encouraging in each day and enjoy their workplace. fountains, help create a good of ice culture where at all levels we work Meeting the needs of the site’s diverse atmosphere. But a great workplace, as to help each other reach our targets. population is a critical focus at SC opposed to just a fun one, inspires and Rewarding exceptional work and Johnson. I’m happy to see our people challenges in equal measure. It provides recognising those who go ‘above and being recognised for creating an inclusive employees with the freedom and support beyond’ is an important part of our workplace that’s supportive and to give their best while continually employee engagement approach.” effective.” developing their skills and experience.” SCOTLAND WELCOMES BEST WORKPLACES INITIATIVE performing workplaces. That’s the employee so nowadays it’s which is now the largest sector why the Institute has partnered often the talented individual who in Scotland. Therefore, the ability with Skills Development Scotland chooses his/her workplace rather of Scotland to attract and retain and the Scottish Council for than being chosen. So, countries talent will be key to Scotland’s Development and Industry and organisations have to become future growth and we believe to create a Best Workplace better at developing their employer the Best Workplaces initiative Williams Johnson Programme for Scotland. brand. will make a difference. Managing Director Great Place to Work® Institute UK The success of Great Place to Scotland has a thriving “Scotland’s Best Workplaces is Work® programmes and rankings economy, being a world leader in a valuable innovation to Scotland’s Since its foundation in 2000, the all over the world re lects the manufacturing and shipbuilding. business landscape,” says Dr Lesley UK’s Best Workplaces Programme competitive nature of labour But, like most other advanced Sawers, chief executive, SCDI. “A time has been welcomed and employed markets in today’s globalised industrialised economies, of economic uncertainty sharpens by some of the largest and most economy. Emerging modern Scotland has seen a decline in the focus on the importance of respected companies in Britain. economies such as Singapore, the importance of manufacturing creating cultures of productivity Despite the undeniable success United Arab Emirates and the and a rise in the service sector, and value for all in the workplace.” of the initiative, the vast majority BRIC countries are working hard to of programme participants are England-based organisations. The create the right conditions to attract global talent and retain their own, “The Best Workplace initiative Institute believes that workplaces fuelling the war on talent. shares our aims of continuous and business leaders in other parts of Britain could greatly But, it’s not easy. People are what set businesses and labour markets employee improvement and bene it from the knowledge and tools the programme can give apart from competitors. Yet, the globalization of the economy shifted growing the economy” them to create their own high- the power from the employer to Mr Willie Row, chairman, Skills Development Scotland Transforming society by creating better workplaces
  • 12. 1 in10 FTSE BOARD DIRECTORS Norway THE FIRST COUNTRY TO INTRODUCE A 40% ARE WOMEN QUOTA OF WOMEN ON CORPORATE BOARDS CEOS TOP Camilla Soenderby Carole Edmond Martin Shuker Abbott UK Bright Horizons Family Solutions KFC UK & Ireland General Manager Managing Director, UK Managing Director “Abbott continues to invest in training “We have a talented team of people, “We are proud of our distinctly and development, lexible bene its each bringing something unique to supportive and friendly team culture. and work, and health and wellness Bright Horizons. We know that we One of the things that makes KFC a programmes, which provide the best play a part every day in making a real great place to work is our core value environment for our people to build difference to children and families. We of ‘belief in all people’ which makes varied and ful illing careers.” all care passionately about what we do us passionate about celebrating and and support each other, encouraging challenging our people, to help them professionalism, growth and diversity. “ realise their true potential.” WE ARE SEARCHING FOR SCOTLAND’S BEST WORKPLACES In strategic partnership with Published by REGISTRATIONS ARE NOW OPEN For further details scotland@greatplacetowork.co.uk +44 (0)870 608 8780
  • 13. Professional Development (%) Quality of Life (%) Job security (%) BEST WORKPLACES 2010 Pay & Benefits (%) Top 10 Ranked Organisations Employees UK Turnover No. of What Employees Feel Headquarters (UK Sites) Website (Outside UK) Industry Sector Previous Most Positive About Minorities | Women Awards 1 Baringa Partners 130 (0) 21.6m (£) 26 23 26 25 Esher (01) baringa.com 22% | 26% Professional Services 2 Danone Ltd 96 (31,200) 219m (£) 26 23 31 21 London (01) danone.co.uk undisclosed | 56% Manufacturing & Production 3 Impact International 103 (143) 10.2m (£) cc 19 27 29 24 Windermere (02) impactinternational.com 19% | 49% Professional Services 4 Microsoft Ltd 2,573 (88,905) undisclosed cc 27 24 24 24 Reading (09) microsoft.com/uk undisclosed | 29% Information Technology 5 Novo Nordisk Ltd 492 (29,329) 270m (£) 26 23 26 26 Crawley (01) novonordisk.co.uk undisclosed | 65% Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals 6 NetApp UK Ltd 300 (8,000) 38m (£) 26 24 27 24 Middlesex (05) netapp.com undisclosed | 20% Information Technology 7 DIAGEO GB 598 (22,000) 835m (£) 29 23 25 24 London (04) diageo.com undisclosed | 39% Manufacturing & Production TOP 10 8 General Mills UK 160 (29,500) 234m (£) 23 26 29 22 Uxbridge (01) generalmills.co.uk 12% | 57% Manufacturing & Production 9 Danone Waters (UK & Ire.) Ltd 106 (33,000) 136.6m (£) 27 25 28 20 London (01) danone.co.uk undisclosed/43% Manufacturing & Production 10 Admiral Group 2,957 (3,743) 1.08bn (£) cc 27 23 28 22 Cardiff (06) admiralgroup.co.uk 2% | 50% Financial Services & Insurance The rest of the Top 50 Organisations Employees UK Turnover No. of What Employees Feel Headquarters (UK Sites) Website (Outside UK) Industry Sector Previous Most Positive About Minorities | Women Awards Abbott 1,199 (83,000) 381m (£) Maidenhead (04) abbott.co.uk undisclosed | 59% Healthcare 25 22 28 24 ALMAC GROUP 1,726 (2,727) 120m (£) New entry Craigavon (04) almacgroup.com undisclosed | 42% Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals 25 21 32 23 ApaTech 83 (145) 2.9m (£) New entry Elstree (01) apatech.com 22% | 43% Health Care 27 21 28 24 Beaverbrooks the Jewellers 790 (0) undisclosed St Annes-on-Sea (66) beaverbrooks.co.uk undisclosed | 83% Retail 25 23 27 24 bigmouthmedia 110 (200) 48m (£) 27 25 28 21 Edinburgh (02) bigmouthmedia.com 20% | 38% Media Bright Horizons Family Solutions 2,352 (19,000) 65m (£) 27 26 29 18 Rushden (142) brighthorizons.co.uk 30% | 96% Education and Training British Gas 25422 (0) 12.56bn (£) 25 23 24 28 Staines (25) britishgas.co.uk 19% | 30% Utilities N.B. ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY Cadbury UK (Head Office) 4,958 (44,958) 1.16bn (£) 26 24 25 26 Uxbridge (09) cadbury.co.uk 19% | 39% Manufacturing Chiswick Park Enjoy-Work 100 (0) 10.6m (£) 27 22 25 26 Undisclosed (01) enjoy-work.com 80% | 38% Construction & Real Estate Chubb Insurance Co. of Europe SE 664 (10,200) 395m (£) New entry 26 27 27 21 London (09) chubb.com/uk undisclosed | 45% Financial Services & Insurance Cisco Systems 2,122 (59,133) undisclosed 25 23 29 22 Feltham (05) cisco.com/uk undisclosed | 23% Information Technology Coca-Cola Great Britain 133 (92,400) undisclosed 23 24 26 27 London (01) coca-cola.co.uk 10% | 68% Advertising & Marketing DAIICHI SANKYO UK Ltd 128 (15,000) 20m (£) Gerrards Cross (01) daiichi-sankyo.co.uk 29% | 52% Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals 27 18 29 25 Transforming society by creating better workplaces
  • 14. FactSet Europe Ltd 294 (2,962) undisclosed N.B. ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY London (02) factset.com undisclosed | 41% Information Technology 23 24 30 22 Fishburn Hedges Group 161 (0) 22.7m (£) London (01) fishburn-hedges.co.uk 4% | 60% Advertising & Marketing 23 23 31 23 Grünenthal Ltd 104 (5,200) 20.2m (£) New entry undisclosed | 62% Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals 28 22 27 23 Stokenchurch (01) grunenthal.co.uk Huxley Associates Ltd 124 (194) undisclosed undisclosed | 34% Professional Services 28 17 28 27 London (04) huxley.com Kellogg’s 632 (14,835) 580m (£) 15% | 55% Manufacturing and Production 26 24 24 26 Manchester (03) kelloggs.co.uk Ketchum Pleon 166 (2,000) 15.8m (£) 31% | 73% Professional Services 26 23 29 23 London (01) ketchum.com KFC UK and Ireland 10,163 (1.3m) 333m (£) New entry undisclosed | 40% Hospitality 28 25 27 20 Woking (784) kfc.co.uk Lansons Communications LLP 99 (0) 11.2m (£) 29 22 26 24 London (01) lansons.com 14% | 76% Public Relations Leaseplan UK Ltd 525 (6,400) 476m (£) New entry Financial Services & Insurance 26 19 29 25 Slough (04) leaseplan.co.uk 31% | 50% Liberty Information Technology Ltd 260 (261) 17.5m (£) New entry Belfast (01) liberty-it.co.uk Information Technology 25 27 26 22 undisclosed | 26% L&Q 1,082 (0) 306m (£) 24 20 34 22 35% | 61% Construction & Real Estate; Housing London (22) lqgroup.org.uk Maybourne Hotel Group 1,000 (1,000) 105m (£) 27 22 27 24 London (04) maybourne.com undisclosed | 41% Hospitality McDonald’s Restaurants UK 80,000 (1.5m) 933m (£) 26 24 26 24 London (485) mcdonalds.co.uk undisclosed | 45% Hospitality National Instruments 80 (5,000) undisclosed 23 22 31 23 Newbury (01) ni.com undisclosed | 35% Manufacturing & Production Novozymes Biopharma UK Ltd 100 (5,000) 16.5m (£) New entry Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals 26 27 27 21 Nottingham (01) novozymes.com undisclosed | 40% PepsiCo UK & Ireland 5,000 (285,000) 1.2bn (£) New entry Manufacturing & Production 25 22 29 25 Reading (12) pepsico.co.uk 13% | 23% Quintiles Ltd 1,652 (23,000) 405m (£) New entry Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals 25 24 29 23 Bracknell (03) quintiles.com undisclosed | 67% Rackspace Hosting 501 (2,774) 100m (£) 26 23 29 22 Uxbridge (04) rackspace.co.uk 24% | 26% Information Technology Sapient 284 (7,052) 72m (£) 28 22 29 22 London (02) sapient.com undisclosed | 28% Professional Services SC Johnson 450 (12,000) 191.6m (£) 22 24 30 25 Surrey (01) scjohnson.co.uk undisclosed | 38% Manufacturing & Production Taff Housing Association 144 (0) 8.2m (£) 25 26 28 21 Cardiff (06) taffhousing.co.uk 13% | 65% Social Services & Government Agencies TANDBERG UK 263 (1,628) 50.1m (£) New entry 22 26 27 25 Staines (03) tandberg.com undisclosed | 18% Telecommunications The Children’s Trust 540 (0) 22m (£) New entry 28 23 29 20 Tadworth (01) thechildrenstrust.org.uk 2.6% | 86% Health Care The Co-operative Group 103,000 (0) 11.6bn (£) 26 24 29 21 Manchester (5,986) co-operative.coop undisclosed | 62% Retail The Totaljobs Group 312 (314) undisclosed 23 26 28 22 London (07) totaljobsgroup.com undisclosed | 34% Staffing and Recruitment UKFast 98 (0) 9.2m (£) New entry 27 26 25 23 Manchester (03) ukfast.co.uk undisclosed | 24% Information Technology Wragge & Co LLP 1,010 (5) 103.4m (£) 30 22 28 20 Birmingham (02) wragge.com 10.7% | 67% Professional Services www.greatplacetowork.co.uk 13
  • 15. BEST WORKPLACES 2010 WORD FROM THE TOP Tony Langham Quentin Poole Sanjay Guha Lansons Communications Wragge & Co Coca-Cola Great Britain Chief Executive Senior Partner Business Unit President “We have great people, with pride in the “Our workplace culture thrives because “It’s our wide range of initiatives that help business, who care about each others’ we support each other as a single team. associates enjoy a good work-life balance. wellbeing and about doing fantastic work. Get that right and everything else Our lexible working arrangements and We communicate honestly about where follows – people enjoy what they do, annual learning allowance, which employees the company’s going, and strive to be a and our clients get the best service.” are allowed to spend on any area of personal good citizen in our communities. Keeping development that interests them, all a fresh outlook is important.” contribute to making this a Best Workplace.” Dr Simon Clough Did you know.... DAIICHI SANKYO UK Ltd ■ On average, 46% of the UK’s Best Workplaces are composed of women. Managing Director This is reflected across Europe’s Best “The performance-driven culture at Daiichi Sankyo has been Workplaces with an average of 44%. integral to the success of our business for many years. We set high standards, work hard, have fun and treat people as individuals. This culture is delivered with a high degree of accountability and ■ 12.2% of directors in FTSE transparency which is measured across the company.” 100 companies are women; the equivalent is 24.3% in the UK’s Best Workplaces. “OUR SUCCESS IS BUILT Government Equalities Office: Factsheet (2010); www.equalities.gov.uk ON HIRING AND RETAINING ■ European champion Norway jumped THE BEST TALENT IN THE to having 44.2% women on boards as a result of quota legislation. This INDUSTRY. WE WORK HARD clearly demonstrates that quotas are an effective way to accelerate growth TO CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT of female representation on boards. http://www.europeanpwn.net WHERE PEOPLE CAN DO THEIR BEST WORK.” ■ Gordon Brown has called the lack of women in UK boardrooms “completely Gordon Frazer, Microsoft Ltd, UK Managing Director unacceptable”. Under new proposals, companies may be required to report on their progress in this area Transforming society by creating better workplaces