Recent quarterly surveys from Proskills are telling us that the trading environment remains tough and that investment in skills and training is still some way down the priority list for the majority of employers as they are focused on survival. 

However, together with Proskills we are committed to helping organisations in the process manufacturing sector to access Investors in People as a solution for their business and skills issues –  especially as research confirms that employers working with the framework experience significant return on investment in areas such as: 

• Increased profitability – “Our research finds that adopting Investors in People sets up a chain of impact ending in better financial performance” Cranfield School of Management
• Increased productivity – “Both now and in the future. 73% of Captains of Industry working with Investors in People recognised organisations, believe that the framework leads to increased productivity” Captains of Industry Survey 
• Higher profits – “Employers that choose to enter the Investors in People process and are successful in gaining accreditation, generate higher gross profits per employee than would a randomly selected organisation.” Institute for Employment Studies
• Best companies to work for  – Employers who have achieved recognition with the Investors in People Standard are regularly featuring in the Top 100 Sunday Times Best companies to work for lists - from not for profit organisations, to SMEs, to large public sector bodies

idg Managing Director, Steve Burrows says:  

“The development of our partnership with Proskills will allow businesses to have a simple access point to a wider range of support tools and techniques whether sector specific or tailored around size or geography.   

We are committed to working with Proskills to ensure that we listen to what employers want and work with them to provide solutions that will support their ambitions and goals. We are delighted to be working with partners who have the same drive, commitment and passion as we do to make that difference”. 

As the official partner for Investors in People in the North of England, idg will be in touch with local process manufacturing organisations with Proskills – offering support and advice on the options in moving forward with the framework. 

If you would like to find out more about Investors in People and the Proskills project, please click here or contact us for more information. 

If you would like to find out more about Proskills click here to visit their website or download their latest newsletter here.

With that in mind, they have been busily working away on a new case study to share their story – and we are very pleased to release it on our website today. 

Explaining how they came to work with Investors in People, how they have approached it so far and also their plans for the future, you can download your copy from our case study library. 

“The [Investors in People] framework provides a range of good practice and development guidance and doesn’t restrict organisational development or innovation in its approach…

“Investors in People can really make a difference to your organisation but in order for this to happen you must be committed and open to the good practice within the framework – you need to put the effort and hard work in, then you will get the results!”

Want to read on? Click here to download the case study in full and many thanks Stockport Homes!

Leeds Trinity University College have recently achieved Investors in People Gold recognition, a prestigious accolade that represents the development of world class best practice to drive organisational performance. 

They are really proud of their Gold status (and so they should be!) and celebrated with a presentation including Professor Freda Bridge, Investors in People assessor Helen Burke and Councillor Reverend Alan Taylor, Lord Mayor of Leeds. 

Their fabulous achievement was picked up on the ITV Calendar News website and you can read about it here. Congratulations again Leeds Trinity! 

Another piece of great news was for Port of Tyne on the sector news website, DredgingToday.com 

Port of Tyne announced its best ever financial results yesterday and have seen a massive rise in the volume of cargoes, resulting in the Port’s turnover increasing by almost a third to £60 million and profit more than doubling to £9 million. 

This financial performance is the best in the Port’s history and comes on the back of a record year in terms of volumes of cargo handled, particularly in bulk cargoes, containers, car terminals and cruise and ferries. 

The Port’s Chief Executive, Andrew Moffat, credits the success to the commitment of the Port’s employees, who he said had helped transform the business into an economic driver for growth for the whole of the North East region. The Port achieved Investors in People late last year and we are really pleased that the organisation is going from strength to strength. 

If you have had some good news in the press recently related to your Investors in People or people development work, do let us know so we can spread your good news too!

“Working with Investors in People and achieving Gold recognition has been the best thing I have ever done for my practice. I can strongly recommend it. There is a financial implication but the end result is worth the expenditure many times over – for the enthusiasm and commitment it has inspired into my team, the resulting ‘buzz’ from everyone and how our patients have been thrilled on our behalf…Fantastic” said Meredyth Bell, Principal Dental Surgeon. 

Congratulations to all the team at St Helens Dental Practice on the piece, it’s a great read! If you would like to read the article in full, click here to visit The Dentist online.

Have you had the opportunity to talk about your Investors in People experiences and successes? If so, let us know!

But what is health and wellbeing? Much broader than just encouraging healthy eating and physical fitness, research has found that employers consider health and wellbeing to cover issues such as stress, security and morale.

Having a health and wellbeing programme in place can support a culture of happy and healthy employees, in turn providing improved productivity, attendance and motivation – something which the Hankinson Painting Group have experienced.

“Health and wellbeing is at the top of our priorities.  At the Hankinson Painting Group we believe that by getting this right it contributes directly to the performance of our people. To have our efforts recognised with this Award is significant and a reflection of the hard work that goes in” said Stephen Hankinson, Group Chief Executive.

So our many congratulations to the team at Hankinson Painting Group – enjoy all of that lovely fruit!

To find out more about Hankinson Painting Group’s fantastic news, click here or why not learn more about how your organisation can improve performance with workplace wellbeing? Click here for more information.

JLES Group

Describing Investors in People as “informative, resourceful, challenging, rewarding and evolutionary” the organisation started working with the framework as a way to demonstrate to their clients, both existing and potential, the commitment they place in developing and promoting best practice.

“What we do for our clients is very specialised and in order to continue providing excellent service, we recognise the need to keep our staff motivated and provide them with the right skills to fulfil their roles…

We would strongly recommend Investors in People to any organisation that is serious about the development and retention of staff as well as striving for best working practice…

Go for Investors in People if you genuinely believe in the fundamental elements of becoming a responsible and committed employer and want your business to succeed as a result.”

JLES is a group of companies that serve the UK construction industry in tackling the growing problem of un-adopted sewers, highways and public open spaces.

Founded in 2004, the business has grown organically from providing services to North West-based developers to currently dealing with developers nationwide. The organisation has also been shortlisted for the Construction News Awards 2012 – Employer of the Year Award after previously winning Contract Journal’s Best Place to Work in Construction (Professional Services category) in 2009.

The full case study for JLES Group is now available to download in our case study library under ‘Construction’.   

If you are a recognised organisation and interested in becoming a case study for the region, please get in touch. 

Platform People,

With 20 employees, the specialist provider of resource and consultancy to the investment platform arena  within the financial services sector now joins other organisations based across the North of England in promoting and supporting Investors in People through best practice activities.

To become an Investors in People Champion, all applicants must hold Investors in People Gold recognition, an accolade the organisation achieved in January 2012 – less than two years after they commenced trading in July 2010.

The Champions scheme recognises and rewards organisations who have been outstanding in promoting the values and principles of Investors in People, leading by example in the way they manage and develop their people.

By achieving Champion status, Platform People is committed to sharing and also learning from their experiences, encouraging the dissemination of good practice in people management and supporting continuous improvement.

Celebrating their achievement Quality Manager, Gary Hitchens said:

“This is a massive achievement for us and would not have been possible without the input and commitment of every member of staff and support provided by John Martin at idg.”

Chris Jones, Head of Operations at idg the Investors in People Centre for the North of England said:

“This is a fantastic achievement for Platform People and I would like to congratulate the team on their commitment to continuous improvement leading to Champion status. As the official partner for Investors in People in the North of England, idg is committed to working with organisations to improve performance through people. By offering a flexible, practical and easy to use framework, Investors in People can really mean business for organisations looking to enhance performance and meet goals. By becoming a Champion, Platform People is certainly working to do this and committed to helping other organisations realise the same benefits through their experiences.”

Platform People was founded in July 2010 by Chris Hitchens. The company supplies specialist consultancy, resource and end–to-end support to large Blue Chip organisations and specialist software houses that have built, or are building, investment platforms in readiness for the upcoming new RDR (retail distribution review) legislation that comes into force at the end of 2012. Platform People aim to continue to be the market leaders in its field as more and more investment platforms are being planned and built and existing platforms are being improved.

In the near future anyone who has investments, pensions, SIPPS or ISA’s will by law have access to a WRAP Platform, to be able to view how their investments are performing. To find out more, click here to visit the Platform People website.

To find out more about Investors in People, click here or contact us. To find out more about Investors in People Champions in the region and how they support others to explore the framework, click here.

Civica

The award recognises the Group’s continued focus on providing excellent service through the recruitment, development and support of talented and motivated individuals that are able to build mutually beneficial and lasting relationships with customers.  Civica has a successful 25-year track record in supporting customers across local government, social housing, education, healthcare, enforcement and other markets.

IIP auditors reviewed and benchmarked employee practices and management effectiveness against the best in UK practice, across all the company’s British operations, before awarding the accreditation. The accolade also recognises the particular attention the company gives to employee development policies including training programmes operated across the Civica group’s 16 offices around the UK. 

UK organisations that have achieved the IIP standard (which was launched in 1991) are proven to have achieved better profitability, greater productivity, enhanced financial performance and reduced employee turnover.

Civica chief executive Simon Downing said: “We’re delighted to gain the Investors in People accreditation. It is a testament to our people and our managers and the way they work which is supported by sustained investment in skills and development. The accolade also reinforces the standards we set to make Civica a great place to work. 

“Civica is a strong and trusted partner for our customers and we believe that it is our employees, combined with our business process and technology expertise that genuinely sets us apart in our markets.”

Civica HR director Wendy Merry commented: “For some organisations, Investors in People is a high profile but short-term initiative but we are committed to continual development of our people and managers across all our operations. The accreditation provides a strong foundation as we take forward our vision and strategy for the benefit of customers, employees and partners.”

To find out more about Investors in People and how it can mean business for your organisation, click here or contact us.