The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 7: Spring 2018 | Page 21

BATH’S TOP COMPANIES TO WORK FOR
Key statistics
BUSINESS WEST
No. 85 in the Best Not-For-Profit Organisations to Work For List 2018
What they do
Business West is the largest business
membership organisation in the region and
the UK’s largest Chamber of Commerce,
running the Chambers for Bath, Bristol,
Gloucestershire and the Swindon &
Wiltshire Initiative.
The organisation represents and works
with over 21,000 businesses providing a
range of advice and support services, from
how to start and grow your business, right
through to how to export. They also lobby
to make our region a better place to live
and work. We talked to Marketing Director
Mary Martin and Phil Smith, Managing
Director of Business West about receiving
the accolade.
What makes Business West
such a great place to work
Mary?
I love the buzz of working for a company
who firmly believes in the importance of
wealth creation on the one hand, (we have
tough targets to help businesses to start,
grow, innovate and export) and on the
other hand where it also believes in being
civic minded - clearly appreciating that
business does not operate in isolation but
alongside the wider society in which it sits.
For me this dual role that Business West
plays and its huge investment in all aspects
of civic society eg education, culture,
homelessness via partnerships with charities
and local authorities, is a key reason why I
have worked here for 25 years.
How does Business West
engage employees?
Giving Thanks
Business West flies its own branded hot
air balloon. We use it mostly as a publicity
vehicle to further our leadership aims,
flying customers, key stakeholders and
influential commentators. Occasionally
when staff members have gone above and
beyond the call of duty we offer them and
their family a flight in the balloon. In 2017
we continued for a third year to give all
staff their birthday day off as a big thank
you.
Offering Choice
Business West offers a flexible approach
to working practices. With a large number
of part time staff and condensed hour
contracts we feel we are able to balance
service delivery with individual needs. We
offer flexible working to our employees’
location, allowing staff to work from home,
the office, a local hub or a coffee shop
when needed.
Using Social Media
We use ‘Jive’ a social media intranet. We
moved to this system from our previous
staid, information-retrieval-only system in
order to help employees engage with each
other. We have a number of employees
who work remotely, so it is important
to us to ensure that they can connect to
the company and to each other whether
they’re in the office or not. We use the
site to communicate messages from the
company, but also to recreate the feel of
staff days and kitchen conversations, where
members of staff have the opportunity to
catch up with colleagues. Our system is
accessible by mobile and tablet for people
who are on the go. We have a corporate
blog, Our Voice, for company updates,
which has been opened out to all members
of staff to use if they have a message
that they want to get out company-wide.
We have over 80% of our staff regularly
active on the site, with about half of those
contributing significantly to the content
on it.
Giving Back
Business West undertakes a multitude
of activities within the South West from
supporting younger and older people, to
tackling homelessness issues, promoting
ethical business and partnering with sports
organisations to encourage businesses to
think about the health and wellbeing of
their staff.
Phil, what does it mean to be
in the Sunday Times Not-For-
Profit organisations list for the
third year in a row?
As a not-for-profit company with 200 staff,
we aim to make this area the best place
to live and work. 21,000 businesses trust
us to help them start, grow, innovate and
trade internationally - as well as lobby
No. 62 in the Best Mid Companies to Work For List 2018
Royds Withy King is one of the leading and
fastest-expanding law firms in the south
and M4 corridor. They act for individuals,
charities and owner-managed businesses
across a variety of sectors.
Although established in 1873, Royds Withy
King pride themselves on a modern service,
eschewing jargon and putting their clients
and staff first. Today, they employ over 470
people in London, Bath, Oxfordshire and
Wiltshire.
We asked Royds Withy King’s HR Director,
Amanda Dow about being recognised in
The Times list.
What makes Royds Withy King
such a great place to work?
Quite simply, our people. We have a diverse
workforce, full of great ideas and actively
involved in life inside and outside the
firm, which means that no two days are
the same. It’s our business to listen and
respond to our clients’ needs and likewise,
we invest in giving our employees a voice,
so we can make sure our firm continues to
be the place they want to grow.
Do you have any feedback
from The Sunday Times team
as to what really stood out
about Royds Withy King?
The Sunday Times team highlighted that
our firm is particularly strong in three areas
– out of the top 100 businesses listed, we
ranked 35th for giving something back to
our communities, 40th for personal growth
and development and 58th for
staff wellbeing.
Do you help employees to
achieve a work/life balance?
62% of our employees have flexible
working arrangements and are in charge
of their work life balance. We work hard to
support our employees – whether that’s to
government on their behalf, so it is vital
that our people feel valued and that they
do the right thing.
The dedication and commitment shown by
Business Westers to ensuring the prosperity
and success of the region is an endless
source of inspiration, and I am immensely
proud of the civically minded culture that
we have here, which is infectious.
I joined the forebear to Business West in
1991, became managing director in 2005,
and I’ve been here ever since.
Had I not been lucky enough to work with
suc h an inspirational group of people over
the years, I cannot say for certain that I
would still be here and there are many
others like me.
It’s a cliché I know, but people really are an
organisation’s most valuable asset. If you
treat people well and help them to fulfil
their true potential, as a leader or manager
you will achieve just rewards.
Key statistics
ROYDS WITHY KING
What they do
Staff: 185
Staff Turnover: 7%
Male/Female Ratio: 39% male 61% female
Staff: 460
Staff Turnover: 15%
Male/Female Ratio: 27% male 73% female
help them fulfil their caring responsibilities
or to pursue the things that are important
to them. And we don’t follow a ‘one-size-
fits’ all approach. Our people are more than
a policy.
What does it mean to be
recognised in this way?
Achieving a ranking in the Sunday Times
Top 100 for the fifth consecutive year is
a fantastic achievement, thanks to our
people and our culture. While the ‘Sunday
Times’ recognition is great, we most value
the voice it gives our staff and the lessons
we can learn from their feedback. The
survey generates a significant amount of
valuable information which helps us to
develop, respond and build sustainable
engagement across our firm as a whole.
Clients are at the heart of our business; it
is essential that our people are happy and
motivated.
THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2018
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