Greater Manchester-based business technology solutions provider, Brother UK, has successfully retained its Investors in People Platinum status – the most prestigious accolade in people management.
Having first achieved the internationally-recognised accreditation three years ago, Brother UK was reassessed this month. This involved rigorous rounds of employee interviews and surveys, and the provision of substantial evidence to support the reviews.
The business improved against all nine indicators of the Investors in People Standard, which include empowering and involving people, recognising and rewarding high performance, and creating sustainable success.
Achieving Investors in People Platinum status for the second time is the latest achievement in a series of high-profile accolades secured by Brother UK, which, in the last 12 months, also includes winning a second Queen’s Award for Sustainable Development and a second Princess Royal Training Award. Brother UK now has Investors in People Platinum status until 2022.
Phil Jones MBE, managing director of Brother UK, said: “People are at the heart of our sustained business success and are our most important asset – that’s why this recognition means so much to us.
“Our position as a leading technology solutions provider is intrinsically linked to our status as a top employer, and the innovative approaches we take to both products and people. We know that it’s working because our employees stay with us on average for an industry-leading 13 years, which means there’s a huge amount of knowledge, expertise and loyalty within our workforce.”
To blend years of employee experience with fresh new ideas and perspectives, Brother UK actively recruits young people via its industry-leading apprenticeship programme. The 10 apprentices in the business account for five per cent of the workforce, with plans to grow this to six per cent by the end of the year.
All employees undertake learning and development appropriate to their role, to develop a great depth of knowledge in specific areas alongside a range of broader skills and experience. To help foster goodwill at all levels, colleagues are encouraged to donate a certain number of working hours to local community engagement causes and can nominate other colleagues for rewards via the Personal Responsibility in Delivering Excellence (PRIDE) scheme.
Phil Jones continued: “By making the people and businesses we work with more successful, more quickly, we’ve made our own organisation sustainable and adaptable over five decades. We will carry on striving to be the best employer we can be over the next fifty years and beyond, not just in our sector and our region, but across the whole of the UK.”
Paul Devoy, head of Investors in People, said: “We estimate that only 0.5% of organisations could achieve Platinum status – huge congratulations to Brother UK not only on achieving it in the first place, but on retaining it after reassessment. This is the sign of a great employer with a clear commitment to success, and an outstanding place to work for years to come. Everyone at Brother UK should be extremely proud for setting the bar so high.”
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