Best places to work 2018


also surveyed about their level of happiness and what might increase it. The results reveal that staff want more “exercising, relating and meaning” activities at work.


In the meantime, collaboration has been improved this year through the introduction of private networking service Yammer to help staff exchange ideas across the sites. Other initiatives to keep staff happy include parents getting the day off for their child’s first day of school, and having access to an employee assistance programme in partner- ship with Hospitality Action. To keep staff agile and focused, they are given the opportunity to shadow a colleague in a different department for one day. This not only helps employees to gain a better understanding of the business, it gives them inspiration on how to develop their career. With 82% of Just Hospitality respondents to the Best Places to Work survey saying they have a good work-life balance and more than half saying they are happy there “all the time”, it is fair to say many respondents reckon it is “a great place to work”. “Senior managers always listen to ways to improve and genuinely want to make Just Hospitality a great place to work – this is evi- dent from everyday practices,” says one.


14


ACCENT CATERING SERVICES In a nutshell Operating since 2002 to provide food services


to the business and education sectors Locations 70 contracts in the Home Counties Employees 585 Average staff turnover 18% Annual sales turnover £15m


EatDrinkSleep Needless to say, there’s a lot of investment


in the induction training – and training gen- erally. This year, the company has launched a chefs’ academy to guide ambitious kitchen staff through the new national commis chef apprenticeship qualification. Opportunities include attending masterclass sessions over- seen by food development director Paul Merry and being taught leadership skills in kitchen management. The plan was to train four apprentices, but due to the volume of talent, six have signed up for this year’s programme. To capture loyalty and ginger up motiva-


tion, Accent recognises and rewards individ- uals for outstanding service through a Shining Stars scheme. The company also recognises the hard work of staff in showcasing sites to potential new clients and even offers a £500 bonus to those who provide a lead that devel- ops into a new contract. According to the survey, more than 90%


of Accent respondents would recommend working at the company, and there are a lot of comments about joy and happiness at work, summed up by one worker, who says: “Best job I have had in 27 years of working – which I still really enjoy after two and a half years.”


15 Accent Catering


Accent aims to expand by eight to 10 contracts a year, which means it has a constant raft of new employees coming on board with TUPE protection. It also means it is particularly important to have an HR strategy in place to quickly create a connection between the new teams and the culture of the company.


42 | The Caterer | 27 April 2018


EATDRINKSLEEP In a nutshell Launched in 2000, this trio of pubs-with-rooms


is run by Charles and Edmund Inkin Locations The Old Coastguard in Mousehole, the Gurnard’s Head in St Ives, and the Felin Fach Griffin in Hay-on-Wye Employees 120 Average staff turnover Not measured Annual sales turnover £4m


Back in 2016 when co-founder Edmund Inkin entered EatDrinkSleep for the Best Places to Work competition, he said it had triggered a new approach for the company and high- lighted areas where they could improve. He conceded that while both he and his brother Charles are good at innovating and making top-down decisions for the good of the team, for the first time they had recognised that it was good to listen to their staff too.


Clearly they have been doing just that. The pair have now introduced two team-building initiatives for the two Cornish teams. The first is a social club, which involves a cultural or team-building outing, such as a cinema, gallery or even a more edgy escape rooms experience for a group of six to eight employ- ees. This is paid for by the company, but driven by senior members of the team. The second initiative is a supper club involving an even- ing meal at local restaurants, again for a group of six to eight. This one is organised by the company, but the teams pay for themselves. The team-building events are obviously going down well, with 83% saying they work well together to produce results. Staff offer some unequivocally positive comments: “I’m incredibly lucky to work for a company that feels like a family. There’s a great sense of camaraderie among the team, strengthened by monthly social events that are a lot of fun. I feel there’s plenty of opportunity for me to grow in my role, which gives me a sense of longevity within the company.” Respect for work-life balance at the


company is above the norm too, with a score of 88% against a benchmark of 68%.


16


COWORTH PARK In a nutshell A 70-bedroom, five-star country house hotel


operated by the Dorchester Collection Location Ascot, Berkshire Employees 180 Average staff turnover 42.5% Annual sales turnover Undisclosed


Employee engagement is seen as being as important as guest engagement at this luxu- rious hotel and spa. To this end, the HR team recently gave its engagement survey process a thorough shake-up to improve the response time to employee feedback and to create a more user-friendly platform.


The resulting online survey can now be accessed via mobiles, tablets and computers, and has a live dashboard allowing manag- ers to receive employee feedback immedi- ately and to take action on it. The surveys can


www.thecaterer.com


▲


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17