Fresh insights

CBRE set up its junior board in 2013 to give junior members a voice and ensure that business leaders consider different perspectives on important matters. The junior board typically represents those who are associate director and below level at CBRE.

The junior board is an effective means of hearing a range of opinions and perspectives by considering views of different levels and generations – a must for diversity and inclusion. Junior members of a company may often have a better grasp of a certain topic/issue than senior members.

For organisations wanting to leverage the power of a junior board, here’s what you should consider.

Board benefits

The junior board has been instrumental in shaping and developing CBRE’s culture and creates cohesion at a service line level. It also plays a key role in helping CBRE raise money for its charity partners. In the past year alone, CBRE’s junior boards have rolled out the following initiatives: ● Buddy scheme for new joiners to settle in; ● Skills school to upskill in key areas; ● Lunch & Learns or Research brunches to educate employees about relevant topics; ● Creating the Real Estate Finance Young Professional Forum, which invited clients in real estate finance to learn, develop and network; ● Work experience programme to create a standard template for new joiners; ● A Swap & Share programme to learn about other areas of the business; and

THE MAKE-UP OF THE JUNIOR BOARD

● Roughly 30 members from CBRE’s service lines and geographies; ● The UK junior board chair communicates business priorities and challenges to the junior population and provides different perspectives to senior leadership; ● Each member of the junior board is chair of their departmental or regional junior board to be representative of all junior voices in the business; ● The board meets monthly to discuss priorities and initiatives, share ideas, brainstorm challenges and learn from one another; ● Board members apply to join the board, with tenure ranging between one and two years; ● Each board decides on individual priorities, in the context of the UK board and CBRE’s strategic objectives, and each board has an executive sponsor for the department’s/region’s executive committ ee to support initiatives.

● Recognition awards for individuals that have gone above and beyond.

The organisation benefits from a junior board but so do board members through: ● Increased networking opportunities; ● Better insight of the business, leadership and management experience; ● Gaining confidence and public speaking skills; and ● Having the opportunity to action the change you want to see within the business and make a genuine difference.

INCLUSIVE MANAGEMENT

Fresh insights

Junior boards can bring diversity of thought and communicate issues to senior leadership, says Ellie Kennedy

Board challenges

While the benefits are numerous, challenges with junior boards do arise, primarily with members juggling board responsibilities with workloads. Planning for initiatives can be demanding so time management is key.

Selecting applicants can be tricky, as boards are often oversubscribed. You want to select proactive members who will drive momentum throughout the year. They need to be responsive to changes, focused on objectives whilst remaining agile, and adapt strategies to reflect the current environment and any constraints.

How to set up a junior board

1 Make sure your board is representative of your population and members are clear on their role and expectations; 2 Set clear objectives and measurable KPIs so you can demonstrate the junior board’s value, and ensure regular communication so these objectives are publicised; and 3 Ensure genuine buy-in from senior leaders.

ELLIE KENNEDY is associate director, capital advisors, CBRE UK

YorPower 01977 688155 yorpower.com PPSPower 0345 200 9888 ppspower.com Sharing the vision

As ever, Steve is ensuring the consultations are a two-way dialogue so that his staff also know what makes him feel valued – such as people popping in to see him and seek his opinion. “People should never say, ‘Sorry to bother you.’ I want my staff to have their say in the direction our company is taking. We are a family, and we should be able to thrash out our differences and come through the other side stronger. We don’t have problems; we have opportunities for improvement!

“I am a people person and I have always treated my colleagues as our greatest asset. It is essential that everyone shares the same vision and is part of defining that. I very rarely feel the need to tell anyone what to do, I include them in where I feel we need to go and agree together on the actions required to achieve our aims. I want to be the back-up power company everyone wants to work for.”

PRESENTING OUR NEXT GROWTH PLAN PHASE

In 2022, Stephen Peal (above) became group managing director of YorPower, PPSPower and Glenace, his ‘one family’ approach proving an efficient way of capitalising on the individual strengths and growth of each company.

PPSPower (now a trading division of YorPower Ltd) is best known for providing reliable maintenance solutions for both generators and UPS units. YorPower manufacture, installs and commissions generators to provide back-up and prime power solutions for its wide-ranging customers.

All areas of the business now work together from the company headquarters in West Yorkshire. However, to ensure the entire workforce of YorPower Ltd is fully embracing the new business structure, group MD Steve has consulted throughout the company, presenting a shared vision, and discussing this with employees one to one and through small groups.

As a qualified mental health first aider, Steve has a highly developed understanding of how his staff are performing, what motivates them and any factors that may be inhibiting them from delivering optimum performance. The aim is to engage everyone in the new way of working under a single brand – rather than a collection of independent companies. Supplementing the consultations will be a company-wide survey to find out what people think are the company’s strengths and weaknesses. Achieving net zero

YorPower Ltd is also taking a proactive approach to its carbon footprint. In 2022, Steve entered discussions with Neutral Carbon Zone, which helps organisations take an expert look at their sustainability agendas to see how they can slash their carbon footprint in ways they may not have expected. Increasingly, customers and employees want to work with companies that demonstrate a commitment to becoming carbon neutral. It’s early days in this project but YorPower will aim to move from Bronze, up to Silver and Gold and finally Platinum – at which point it will be among the select few organisations leading the way on sustainable working practices.

As 2023 begins, YorPower Ltd can look back upon a productive 2022 in which the group of companies were restructured into one limited entity, under which all individuals and brands now work efficiently to offer a full back-up power solution. The next few months will build on this progress, and we look forward to keeping Facilitate readers informed.