The Northern Ireland Food To Go Awards, organised by the Food To Go Association, highlights the best in the local food-to-go industry. Recognising excellence in innovation and customer service, the event will be held on 19th November at the Crowne Plaza Belfast. It celebrates the contributions of businesses, from small independents to larger chains, that make Northern Ireland's food scene stand out.
The Best in People and Culture Award recognises businesses that excel in creating inclusive, supportive, and legally compliant workplace cultures. We are also delighted to be on the judging panel for this category. To help you in your submission, we have put together some top tips on what will make a standout entry...
Inclusion is key to a thriving workplace. We will look for initiatives that promote diversity and ensure every employee feels valued. Examples might include diversity training, policies supporting work-life balance, efforts to support cultural and personal needs, and team-building activities. Successful entries will provide specific examples with associated outcomes.
Employee wellbeing is crucial as it impacts attendance, loyalty, commitment, and above all, the feeling of being valued. A winning entry will show a commitment to employee wellbeing and development. This can be through wellbeing initiatives, opportunities for team members to develop, and engagement activities that boost job satisfaction and productivity. Highlighting employee testimonials or metrics that show positive impacts on staff morale and retention will strengthen your entry.
A strong entry will clearly show how you adhere to employment legislation and best practices. This includes providing contracts of employment, ensuring all employees are paid at least the National Minimum Wage, and maintaining safe working practices. Evidence of engagement with legislative changes supported by training and development of you and your team will also be highly regarded.
A successful entry will combine these elements, providing clear, evidence-based examples of how your business excels in its people practices. Our team looks forward to celebrating those who set the standard in creating outstanding workplace environment.
For more information and to enter click here!
Menopause is a natural stage of life that women experience, typically between the ages of 45 and 55. Despite its prevalence, it remains a somewhat taboo subject, especially in the workplace. At EVOLVE, as a predominantly female workplace, we aim to destigmatise menopause in the workplace. Symptoms like hot flushes, mood swings, and memory lapses can significantly impact daily work life, making it essential for employers to understand and support their staff through this transition.
For many women, menopause arrives at a pivotal point in their careers. Managing menopause symptoms can be challenging, impacting concentration, energy levels, overall comfort, and potentially affecting confidence. It’s important for workplaces to foster an environment where these challenges are acknowledged and addressed.
Creating a menopause-friendly workplace involves simple yet effective steps:
Women experiencing menopause can also take steps to manage their symptoms at work:
We believe that every workplace should be supportive and inclusive. To help you create a menopause-friendly environment, we’ve put together a comprehensive guide. For more information and to receive your free copy of our Menopause at Work guide, get in touch with us today at Hello@go-evolve.co.uk.
In today's rapidly evolving workplace, fostering an environment that celebrates diversity and promotes inclusion is not just a moral imperative but a strategic advantage. At EVOLVE, we believe in practical, actionable steps to make your workplace more diverse and inclusive. Here’s how:
We hate to bore you with the legalities, but they are there for a reason. Understanding that the legislation is here to support and protect everyone, employees, candidates, employers alike is key to ensuring you and your team act appropriately.
Creating a diverse and inclusive workplace is a journey, not a destination. At EVOLVE, we understand the unique challenges and opportunities that Northern Ireland presents. By embracing the steps outlined above, employers can not only comply with legal requirements but also enrich their workplace culture, drive innovation, and reflect the community they serve. Let's work together to create environments where everyone feels valued, heard, and empowered to achieve their full potential.
Employee benefits are the little perks that go beyond salaries. Research has shown that offering additional benefits to your team can make a big difference.
“Employee benefits are no longer seen just as a retention tool. Research finds that what makes an organisation’s employment proposition attractive depends on an employee’s individual circumstances” CIPD 2024
From health insurance to a more generous annual leave allowance there are a wide variety of options for you as an employer to keep your team happy and loyal.
We get it. The cost-of-living crisis is hitting businesses, especially SMEs hard. Responsibilities on employers are increasing, and alongside the seemingly ever escalating costs of electricity, gas and other overheads, it can seem like everything is an outgoing.
The thought of giving more on top can just seem too much.
As employers you want to pay your team well, be a competitive employee and make sure everyone is happy at their work, but you have to be realistic. Give too much and you may run the risk of being unable to sustain your business.
Think about where you are as a business and the team that you have. How long have they worked for you? What do you know about them? What do they value most?
It’s not about the money. Well not always.
Knowing that you are thinking about their welfare, challenges and also their motivation and engagement in the job goes a long way to making a good working relationship and a happier team.
To help you think about your team and what they may appreciate we have listed some employee benefits here. Some are obvious, some will require investment from you but others are free or may require a time commitment to implement.
The key point we are making is that by showing your appreciation to your team and making even small gestures to improve the employee experience, you will reap rewards of a more engaged team.
A comprehensive benefits package is key to keeping your team happy and committed. By meeting legal requirements and adding extra perks, you can make your workplace stand out. Keep your employees informed, consider their needs, and have fun with the process! Providing great benefits should be as exciting for you as it is for your employees, so don’t feel pressured to overdo it.
We're proud to share that we've been shortlisted for the Britain’s Best Supply Chain Champion Business at this year’s Small Awards. Being named one of the top eight finalists is a big deal for us—it validates our unwavering commitment and exceptional service standards.
Since kicking off in 2017, The Small Awards have become a key highlight for the UK's small business sector, celebrating the incredible achievements of often overlooked companies. We're thrilled to announce that EVOLVE has been recognized by Small Business Britain, a major advocate for small enterprises across the nation, especially after being one of the Small Biz 100 in 2022!!
“We are delighted to be in the running alongside such amazing companies, it really highlights our team’s work and commitment to supporting our clients. This recognition really spotlights the impact that small businesses like us have in pushing the industry ahead, even when the going gets tough. We're excited for the ceremony and really proud to be part of a celebration that puts the spotlight on the success of the UK’s small businesses,” shares Claire Loftus, our Managing Director.
The Small Awards spotlight the dynamism and resilience of small businesses across eleven diverse categories, from sustainability to digital innovation, and include long-standing family-run firms. This diversity underscores the significant contributions small businesses make to their sectors and communities.
“The Small Awards are all about celebrating the inspiring individuals who are the heart of the economy and their communities," states Michelle Ovens CBE, Founder of Small Business Britain. "These awards are a chance to recognize the passion and resilience of small firms, especially in the face of current challenges. Evolve is incredibly worthy of this shortlisting, and we’re eager to celebrate with them."
As the award ceremony approaches and the panel of industry experts prepares to decide on the winners, the excitement at Evolve is palpable. The winners will be unveiled at a prestigious ceremony in London on May 16th, 2024.
Claire will be heading to London this week to attend the awards! Follow us on social media to get live updates and join us on this exciting journey.
@Engagegrowevolve
EVOLVE is an HR consultancy supporting a range of clients from micro businesses to larger institutions with HR, Employee Relations and Leadership Development.
We are seeking a personable and confident HR professional to join our expanding team. At EVOLVE we take pride in delivering excellence for our clients, making sure we work closely with them to provide the level of service they need.
The ideal candidate will have a wealth of experience in HR and employment law practices. They will need to work independently taking ownership of tasks and challenges as they arise. They will be a problem solver, have excellent communication and organisations skills and be looking for an opportunity to join us as we look to expand our business into new areas.
Working from home but must be able to travel to occasional client meetings mainly across Northern Ireland with the potential of Republic of Ireland and GB.
It’s no coincidence that some of the world’s most successful companies have created environments where their staff are highly engaged.
Engagement creates a competitive edge and it has been said that a highly engaged workforce can be the difference between a company which outperforms its competitors and one which fails to grow.
However, investing in creating these environments where employees feel engaged is often seen as a nice to have, and not a need to have activity for business. But by taking this approach you are missing out on a number of benefits;
Recruitment of good people has become harder and harder, but one thing which will make it more challenging is if you have a high employee turnover and have to replace people on a regular basis.
Creating a workplace where people actually want to be there, where they feel appreciated and valued means they will become more loyal and happier therefore, decreasing the likelihood of them wanting to leave. Companies with high levels of employee engagement have actually been found to have employee turnover rates 40% lower than those who don’t.
2. Getting better productivity from your staff
Employee Engagement has been described as the ‘discretionary effort employees put into their work’, when people are engaged, they are more inclined to put in extra effort and deliver more for your business and your customers.
Research has shown that organisations in the top quartile for employee engagement have experienced up to 18% more productivity, and also seen 35% more efficiency out of their staff taking less down time.
3. Healthier people
One of the first signs of a disengaged workforce can be higher levels of absence whether this is through short term absences, health & safety related injuries or long -term sickness.
Workplaces with higher levels of disengagement have been found to have as much as 62% more workplace accidents and higher sickness levels, with engaged employees taking on average 2.7 days sickness per year versus disengaged ones taking 6.2.
4. Better customer service
There is only one of you and if you want your customers to get a great service most of the time you are relying on your people to deliver it, but if they are miserable and don’t want to be there do you really think they’ll be delivering the best experience?
Companies with higher employee engagement have been found to have, on average, 12% higher customer advocacy because employee attitude and behaviour is one of the most significant drivers of customer satisfaction.
5. Improvements on your bottom line
It makes sense that these points above will have an effect on your bottom line revenue and profits as if your staff are being more productive, efficient, taking less time off work and delivering a better service to your customers it is bound to have an impact on your profits. And it does, Companies in the top quartile for engagement have been found to have twice the annual net profit of those in the bottom quartile and their revenue growth is growing at 2.5 times greater than those in the bottom quartile.
So, with all this in mind what is really stopping you from making a start and creating a better workplace?
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