05.07.2019

Five ways to improve workplace engagement – best practice from the best companies to work for in 2019

Using information compiled from organisations on this year’s The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work for lists, Best Companies has put together five real-life examples of excellent workplace engagement in action

Employee engagement specialist Best Companies has drawn up a list of five best practice examples for increasing workplace engagement, inspired by organisations that made the much-coveted The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For lists this year.

Best Companies works with hundreds of leading UK organisations across all sectors; helping to measure, recognise and improve great workplace engagement.

Its annual lists, which are published by The Sunday Times, are compiled through an academically rigorous methodology that involves a comprehensive 70-statement survey.

The data is analysed annually using a set of statistical techniques to identify patterns which can assist organisations with improving their levels of workplace engagement.

Glenn Dimelow, Head of Research and Compliance at Best Companies said: “Workplace engagement has always been an important topic and organisations listed on ‘The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For’ lists this year are leading the way when it comes to demonstrating fantastic employee engagement strategies.

“Measuring true workplace engagement is complex and a number of different aspects have to be taken into consideration, but the methodology we’ve created and evolved over the last 20 years is robust and delivers results that are meaningful and can offer suggestions for improvements.

“By looking into the results from some of the highest-scoring companies we’ve worked with this year, we’ve produced a list of five best practice examples from five different

organisations to help inspire workplace engagement initiatives for others. These are all great examples of employee engagement in action, which has helped these companies achieve some outstanding scores in our 2019 lists.”

The five best practice examples have been published on Best Companies’ Insight Hub as part of a larger report with additional information regarding each organisation mentioned. It’s available to read here: www.b.co.uk/insighthub/best-practice-in-workplace-engagement-2019/ and the five examples are as follows:

1. This year, Insurance specialist Admiral placed 1st in The Sunday Times Best Big Companies to Work for list, thanks to a strong leadership approach. Admiral CEO David Stevens is a genuine champion of the customer, he places a great deal of emphasis on both he and his senior managers understanding what the frontline staff experience day-to-day. This includes regularly monitoring calls and he will personally deal with customer complaints once a month.

2. The New World Trade Company, a major hospitality chain with over 26 UK sites, was listed 5th in the 100 Best Companies to Work for List 2019. The organisation has a clear ethos of ‘finding and developing like-minded people to create unrivalled customer experiences.’ Organisational clarity is a key ingredient for employee engagement and this passionate statement clearly describes what the organisation wants to achieve and it is also regularly tested as part of the on-boarding process for their new employees.

3. Clarasys, which came 3rd in The Sunday Times Best Small Companies to Work for List 2019, is a London-based management consultancy. The organisation has clearly embedded managerial excellence into the organisation by implementing an on-boarding programme for new managers (or ‘Coaches’, as referred to internally). Following an initial kick-off session to confirm how the on-boarding process works, each new manager is assigned a Coach and Coaching Buddy, who offer support and opportunities for shadowing in their new role.

4. Stockport Homes is passionate about supporting the growth and development of its employees. The Not for Profit organisation, which was listed 3rd on the Best Not for Profit Organisations 2019, manage and develop housing on behalf of Stockport Council. The team has implemented an in-house training tool called ‘Facilitators Pathway’, with the aim of providing career development opportunities and becoming more sustainable as a result of a more highly-trained workforce.

5. Connect Catering, a catering service solutions provider, has put in place a number of initiatives to support employee’s wellbeing. The organisation, which topped The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work for List, purchase memberships for each of their employees to Hospitality Action, which provides specialist and confidential advice, support and assistance all hours of the day, every day. In addition to this, the company offers a range of financial support initiatives under its 'Connect Helping Hand' benefit.

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