ENABLING MEMBERS AND COMMUNITIES

JAMIE MACDONALD is IWFM volunteer partnerships manager

● Category judged: Wellbeing

● What most impressed you about the entries?

How entrants had aligned and embedded wellbeing in their organisation’s strategy, evaluating its impact on employees, customers, services and, in some cases, their wider communities. Organisations succeed best when they continuously evaluate outcomes – and not simply the outputs – of strategies in collaboration with employees and customers.

● What is driving best practice in this category?

Organisations are improving employee satisfaction scores and retention rates, reaping benefits for their customers and business. The Covid-19 pandemic has been a significant driver to enhance wellbeing services to support employees wherever they are working. The judging team has seen excellent examples of facilities teams leading and delivering innovations in wellbeing, and using external research and expertise to inform strategies.

I was encouraged to apply to become a support judge for the Impact on Employee Experience category by my director, Steve Gladwin, given my experience in this area. Steve was involved with the awards for many years and he spoke passionately about it being an opportunity to further professionalise our sector by promoting excellence. My application was successful and I quickly realised what a privilege it was to meet so many enthusiastic entrants. In addition to judging, I have, as a lead judge over the past five years, also been involved in agreeing categories, reviewing processes, writing judging criteria and establishing the wellbeing category.

● What has been the value to you professionally of being a judge?

The best part is being able to continuously learn about the range of work that FMs carry out and the significant impact it has on so many areas. It makes me even more proud of our profession.

ANNE KINDER is senior consultant at Nodus Solutions Ltd, immediate past chair of the IWFM Procurement and Contract Management SIG and, until 2022, a lead judge at IWFM Impact Awards

Irecently joined IWFM as the new volunteer partnerships manager, so I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to introduce myself to IWFM volunteers and members.

A little about me: I have two children, aged 17 and 14. I live in the West Midlands, where I play tennis badly, cycle and walk. I also support the Guide Dogs charity with puppy walking.

At IWFM, I ensure that the right framework is in place to support and inspire our volunteer community, to work with our volunteer groups to deliver our strategy, and to provide value to members, the institute, and the profession. IWFM simply cannot deliver its strategic objectives without the passion, expertise, and advocacy of its volunteer members.

My immediate priorities include engaging and supporting members, understanding the opportunities that enable us to deliver our strategy, being an enabler through effective relationships and providing tools and resources for the growth and development of our community groups, and increasing participation and involvement so all groups reach their full potential.

As for my background, my passion has always been community and volunteering, so after starting out in the private sector, I amassed 15 years’ experience in the charity sector, working in communities and volunteering with The Scouts, Barnardo’s, and Make-a-Wish UK.

After working in three great children’s charities, I wanted my next challenge to remain in communities and volunteering but in a different arena. IWFM appealed to me as a very different but worthwhile organisation because of how communities operate to support professional and organisational development. The power of volunteering is often undervalued, but it can create fantastic opportunities when delivered successfully. I look forward to working with our valued volunteers and grasping those opportunities together.