Best HR initiative

For an HR initiative involving innovative people strategies that has created a committed, happy and effective workforce and improved financial results.

2003 WINNER

The Eversheds team

Law firm Eversheds’ initiative “Lifestyle” is one of the best in this area we have seen. They involved people at all levels in putting it together, in order to understand what would make a difference. People wanted time flexibility without a risk to career growth.

Keeping always in mind the desire to service client’s needs, an attractive booklet explains twelve options and the application for them is seriously about work-life balance – people have to say how their client work will be managed if they choose the preferred options.

The take up at all levels has been very encouraging – the initiative has substantially increased their employer image, reduced turnover and increased morale and productivity.

RUNNER UP

One of the key issues for HR is how to get people-related measures (after all they are a firm’s most important asset) given equal weighting to other performance measures. Often lip service is paid through the balanced scorecard and some token measures are inserted international he people box that fail to excite senior managers. PWC have created a People Scorecard, whose core source of data is a survey (“YouMatter”) that is real time and takes 10 minutes to complete. It tracks “a common sense of purpose” and “attracting and recognising diversity”. Some 52% of PWC employees have been responding quarterly.

Management effort is focused on these key issues through having data to track and targets to set, along with other elements of the business scorecard such as clients and profits. This initiative is advanced in the HR field and would be the envy of many an organisation that knows it needs to achieve similar ends.

3RD PLACE

Keogh’s deserves an award not particularly because of any outstanding single initiative but because of the environment of valuing people that they have created. Ranked 49th in the Sunday Times League of Best Companies to Work For confirms the appreciation staff have of the supportive environment in Keoghs, despite currently difficult times.

Amongst their programmes they have a regular opinion surveys with high targets for satisfaction levels, a variety of “well-being” programmes, a web-based performance review and learning planning system and strongly embedded values and related KPI’s. They have a defined and published People and Organisation Strategy, positioned to support the Vision and Business Goals. The Chief Executive is highly visible and meets all new employees, expounding the Keogh’s way of life and aspirations. They received awards in 2002 for their focus on safety in the workplace.

Their goal is to be “employer of Choice” in their field and they are dedicated to achieving it.

2003 FINALISTS

Runner up

Third place

Shortlisted

2003 SPONSOR

Friedlander Sachs

Friedlander Sachs is a talent management consultancy to multi-national firms. Other Spherion UK branded businesses include Crone Corkill (Office/Administrative – temporary and permanent recruitment) and FSS Financial (Professional financial / accountancy recruitment).