STRATEGIC REPORT
41
PROUD TO WORK AT JUST We want all of our employees to feel proud to work at Just and our focus has remained on engaging colleagues and ensuring that Just is a great place to work. During October and November we once again took part in the Sunday Times best companies to work for survey. 81% of employees shared their views and we were delighted to have achieved our highest level of employee engagement since becoming Just Group. We are particularly proud of the improvements we have seen in our scores relating to “leadership”, “my manager” and “giving something back” which have been areas of increased focus. Overall, we have strengthened our accreditation as “one to watch” and continue to have good levels of employee engagement. Throughout the year we have shared the specific and tangible actions we have taken in these key areas via an email newsletter called Just Action! and our Company intranet, HQ. OUR CULTURE Our culture is at the heart of how we “get things done” and we understand the importance of leaders setting, communicating and challenging the Company’s culture. We want to enable our people to do even better things and work in a way that builds good culture and good conduct. Our aim is to have a healthy culture that makes working at Just a positive experience, enhances our reputation, attracts and retains the right talent and promotes innovation. This approach has been underpinned by a new executive team charter focused on how the team can create an environment for success which clears the way so that employees can deliver. Building on the success of sessions we held with employees and Board members in 2018, during 2019 Steve Melcher, one of our Non-Executive Directors, assumed responsibility for engaging with employees and bringing their voice into the boardroom. To foster regular, meaningful, dialogue, Steve held four face-to-face sessions with employees. Branded as “conversations with the Board,” they took place in Reigate, London and Belfast. Conversations were framed around topics on the Board’s agenda and employees could ask questions and provide feedback on these and other matters relating to the business. The sessions were interactive and positive, with many of the questions aligned to the areas of strategy, performance and regulation (see page 50 “colleague engagement” on how employee feedback has been considered in Board decision making). A highlights video from one of the sessions was also produced which was shared with all employees on our Company intranet. Executive team communication and engagement Following the appointment of David Richardson as the Company’s permanent CEO in September, David launched a programme of quarterly town halls with all colleagues, discussing the Company’s priorities, successes and challenges. The first sessions took place during October and were a great opportunity for employees to ask questions on topics that were important to them. In addition to these face-to-face sessions, during the year the broader executive team held regular engagement sessions, branded “lean coffees”, for groups of colleagues, blogged on topical issues, and emailed business updates aligned to achieving our organisational priorities. Following the success of our Company-wide “Just be proud” events last year, which focused on the things that make our organisation special, we held “Just be proud 2”. Approximately 770 employees attended the sessions, which highlighted the importance of innovating to transform the Group’s businesses to become more efficient and effective in delivering services to our customers and business partners. Our CEO, David Richardson, is also our executive sponsor for diversity and inclusion and has driven initiatives to build a truly inclusive culture at Just (outlined in our diversity and inclusion policy). We recognise and embrace the benefits of a diverse workforce across all aspects of diversity, including gender, race, sexuality, skills, knowledge, experience, education, age, personality and work style. We know that having a diverse, talented workforce with people from different WELL LED Conversations with the Board WELL MANAGED A commitment to diversity and inclusion
Having a motivated and engaged team is essential to equip the Group with the talent required to meets its ambitious goals
Powered by FlippingBook