Volvo Construction Equipment has once again been recognised as one of the top companies to work for in the UK.
The firm, which has achieved 34th position in The Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2013, also retained its Two-Star, ‘Outstanding’ status, recognising that employees recognised strong company leadership, good employee well- being, the opportunity for personal growth and the support Volvo give to charities and the community.
Volvo’s employees clearly feel proud to work within the business and that they make a difference. There is a clear belief that the organisation is run on strong values and principles.
One respondent stated “The management team are very open and they make a point of visiting each of the locations and talking to employees while they are there. They actively encourage feedback and we can clearly see what is being done.”
Human Resources Manager Maxine Knowles commented “This year we scored highest in terms of how people felt about the company and its leadership with extremely positive responses. This is testimony to the values and ethics of the Volvo Group, which filter down within the organisation and the work we do to make our employees feel valued and engaged.”
More than 1,000 businesses take part in The Sunday Times competition each year, with in excess of 230,000 employees being surveyed. The results validate Volvo’s own internal employee attitude survey demonstrating the feeling of pride that employees have in their company.
“Our employees and our customers realise that this isn’t just PR,” says Managing Director Val Ledden. “It has highlighted some areas which are important to our staff where we could place more focus. This survey shows that the real differentiator for Volvo is the people who work here.” “Apart from the significant investment we make in our employees at all levels, it is about getting our people en- gaged, and that is the thing which reflects in our customer service.”
“In terms of the focus, Wellbeing and giving something back, are the two areas that have really been in scope this year,” says Ms Knowles.
Developing wellbeing, both corporate and individual health and welfare, has resulted in a number of activities within the business over the last 12 months. The Company enrolled in the Global Corporate Challenge (GCC) which currently works with 3,400 organisations in 105 countries, boosting health and wellbeing for more than 950,000 employees worldwide.
During 2012 147 Volvo Construction Equipment staff joined the GCC competition in 21 teams. Each team member was given a pe- dometer to log their step count into the GCC website daily over a 16 week period, with the target being to achieve 10,000 steps per day.
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As well as boosting physical health, the competition has greatly improved communication and networking across the company, as many of the teams took staff from different areas of the business. As teams could log on and see how their progress compared to others within the company, there was healthy competition, with new friendships forged throughout the organisation.
Of those employees taking part, 83% said that it had a positive effect on their feelings about exercise, with 55% reporting weight loss, on average 9lb. 86,294 miles were walked in total; equivalent to walking around the world 3 times! Congratulations went to a team from the warehouse department who took the prize internally. “Based on feedback from our staff we wanted to reduce internal barriers which we have seen historically, so it has been really positive to see a growth in cross-departmental communication,” says Mr Ledden.
The focus this year has been external as well as internal, with ‘giving something back’ high on the agenda. Having consulted with its employees and worked with an organisation called Business in the Community, Volvo established a scheme that allows employees to take paid days out of the business to help with community projects and charity work.
The company has put aside £25,000 to support this initiative but realise that it is valuable to give time, expertise and equipment to causes too, so have supported schools, charities and other community initiatives to this effect.
“We decided to kick this off locally, near to the Duxford head office site, then see where it takes us around the country,” says Mr Ledden. “We are taking small steps, but they are all forwards.” Taking part in The Sunday Times competition each year has become an increasingly important step for Volvo. There have been benefits both internally and for customers... “The competition has really raised our profile, both with customers and in terms of recruitment,” says Mr Ledden. “Internally people are very proud of the result, while externally we have something to differentiate us from our competi- tors. “Engagement is important; I want people to feel part of something. There are lots of things Volvo offer that people won’t experience at other companies. We want to be the number one employer of choice if you want to work in the construction equipment business.” Looking forwards, Volvo intend to continue to build upon its impressive results in The Sunday Times surveys.
“We were delighted to make number 46 in the Top 100 last year and achieve number 34th this year. Our aim now is to take steps to achieve 3★ status for the future” says Mr Ledden. “However, the number is not as important as what we are doing with the survey data. This is truly a fantastic place to work where employees are val- ued and have respect for one another; they work hard and enjoy it”
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