June 2017
THE HIGHLIGHTS:
‘GREAT DAYS AT WORK SPECIAL’ WHAT HELPS YOU HAVE GREAT DAYS AT WORK? Earlier this year we launched our first Great Days at Work commitment survey across Restaurant Associates. The purpose of the survey was to find out what we are doing well and to celebrate those things but to also identify and focus on areas that needed some improvement. We are so pleased that 2,548 (91%) of you took the time to complete the survey and we are delighted to report that we achieved an average commitment score of 79%. This is a really positive result for us, however we have been working hard to understand the scores for RA overall as well as for each unit, so we look at opportunities for improvement and training ahead of the next survey.
WHAT HAS HAPPENED SINCE THE RESULTS CAME IN? Since the results came in we have been busy reviewing them; talking to our teams about them and taking small steps to create even better days at work. Your managers will have discussed the results for your unit with you and you should now be focusing on one or two focus areas which are important to your specific unit. If you have not seen the results for your unit then please speak to your manager as your views and feedback are very important. Across Restaurant Associates we scored highly with our teams feeling that they knew what was going on and you told us that you were proud to tell people where you work. However, the survey also highlighted the importance for continued career development, to ensure our work place is friendly and helpful and for our managers to explore how they can continue to make our teams feel cared about. These will be our focus areas over the coming months. Additionally, we are very pleased to confirm that we have undertaken a review of our learning and development offer and with our new Training and Engagement Manager; we will be launching a new identify for our training portfolio, offering some topics, sharing clearly defined career pathways and an improved way of navigating and booking everything that is available. Some of this will be launched at the Innovation Expo and will be shared with you in the coming weeks. We have also recruited a new recruiter to focus on all of our frontline roles and apprentice recruitment. See page 3 for more information. The next few pages are a celebration of the activities some of our units have taken following the Great Days at Works survey. We hope you enjoy reading them!
91% Completion
79% Engagement
168 personalised manager reports
YOU SAID:
I’m Paid accurately and on time 95%
I know what I need to do my Job 98%
I have the tools and uniform to do my job 90%
I feel like my health and safety is taken seriously 92%
Our Talent is the Future
RECOGNITION AT BNP PARIBAS
Following recent feedback from the GDAW survey we have taken the opportunity to recognise the great efforts our teams go to on a daily basis. We have reviewed our recognition process and focused on two areas, Employee of the Month and Be A Star. Advertising our teams to our clients has also stepped up a gear. This has created interest amongst our customers and our teams involvement in client sponsored CSR events such as International Women’s Week that received amazing feedback from senior management Our team has also become more involved in the 6th floor garden which is expanding at a rapid rate. This year we have taken over a small previously neglected garden on the 5th floor and have begun growing crops. This wouldn’t be possible without the help of our teams. A further garden is now being planned for our City operation based at 5 Aldermanbury Sq. We have also made efforts to improve our communication to our teams with better signage, notice boards and fun videos.
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EVERYDAY IS A GREAT DAY AT WORK GOOGLE CSG The team at Google CSG really got on board with the ‘Great Days At Work’ survey and loved that they had a chance to make change happen. Since the survey, we set up department ‘Meets with the GM’ to give the junior team a chance to air their concerns (if any) to the GM directly without their line managers present. After each meeting an action plan is created with deadlines for the managers/GM. The action plan then goes onto the wall of the department so that the junior team have full visibility of the progress.
The meetings were so successful that we will be continuing these bi-monthly to ensure the team always have their say and that their concerns are dealt with in a timely manner before they get a chance to fester. At the last front of house meeting the team said they were so happy could we use the time to talk about training & development which is a real turn-around from last year when the feedback was less positive and definitely no mention of wanting more training and development.
Our Talent is the Future
MUSIC FEEDS YOUR SOUL
HEAD OF OPERATIONS VIEW — MATT WOOD
Great Days at Work brought quite an unexpected request for us. We have a staff dining restaurant and sometimes, especially during non service times, it can get a little quiet especially when everyone is beavering away and getting ready for the next service. Filling out the Great Days at Work form one of our guys got an energy flash….. how about us bringing music to the restaurant, Great Music at Work, all day and all of the night!! Lets put this to the client, great idea and a real winner for all in East Central (White and Case). To my disbelief Mr Client was really into the giving EC a teenage kick, a better atmosphere and bringing music to our customers ears. Every picture tells a story, these tell their own, and for our customers…….we're now getting requests!!
ONE TEAM AT UNIVERSAL Our focus and key takeaway as a result of the "Great days at work survey" was to truly create a well informed one team culture. At our first hospitality showcase at Universal Music we embraced this and every employee had a part to play. The showcase was a huge success! We had a great turn out with over 50 of our customers attending and taking part. It was a food filled afternoon showing the great dishes our chefs produce and giving everyone a chance to sample some delicious treats. Our team even hosted an espresso martini masterclass which had us all laughing!
It is refreshing to have access to real time data on our employees, which enables us to react with haste and to work towards improving work life for our associates. On a personal note, whilst the survey indicated that my team were actively engaged and generally very happy at work, there was clear consensus that they didn’t always feel listened to or fully informed. My commitment is simple, and that is to ensure that all of my direct reports have an informal 1 to 1 meeting with me on a monthly basis. This will provide a structured opportunity to discuss how they getting on and will allow me opportunity to discuss/review business and associated central initiatives. Where colleagues have concerns this will also provide us opportunity to agree a way forward.
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Our Talent is the Future GREAT DAYS AT GOOGLE 6PS The Google 6PS team identified three key areas for improvement and worked on an action plan to come up with ideas to further improve our great score. One of the areas where we’ve had most success is how we manage our “allhands” team meetings. Previously we just told the team where and when it was being held and the management team would organise the agenda and do most of the talking. Following the survey we’ve changed the format to make it more inclusive for the team and an open, trusting environment to encourage them to participate more. What changes did we make? The agenda is advertised and staff are encouraged to add questions either anonymously or by name which are read out at the meeting.
A FAMILY GATHERING The Hospitality team at Clifford Chance scored below the RA average on two questions in the Great Days at Work survey which focused on feeling that your Manager cares about you and it being a nice place to work. After discussing this result with the team, it was decided to organise a team summer BBQ for colleagues and their families. This has been very well received and is creating quite a bit of excitement amongst the team. Update and photos of the day to follow in August.
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Spotlight on a team member - Every month one star team member is nominated by the management team and awarded Supercheques in front of the rest of our team. They are also invited to do a little presentation on best practice in their area The kitchen team are asked to bring one innovation to the meeting, last week was coffee flour chocolate brownies for the team to sample. This gets the team talking about innovation and they also have a lovely little treat that will be launched the following month. Lastly, once a quarter the meeting is held at 15:30 on a Friday and the team are offered a beer, wine or soft drink which is served by the management team. This significantly loosens the tongues of our teams and gets them contributing more than ever, can’t imagine why!!
Our Talent is the Future
DEVELOPING SKILLS AND CAREERS AT CITI FRONTLINE RECRUITMENT — WELCOME DAISY
Following the Great Days at Work survey; one of the three areas that the team at Citi identified to improve was ‘I have the opportunity to develop my skills and career’. Since the survey, we have worked hard to give the catering and Rapport team more regular training on product knowledge, food and wine pairing and have also looked at how we communicate training opportunities to the team.
AVIVA’S GREAT DAYS At Aviva Norwich, the team have been looking at ways to help improve our service relating to our staff needs by looking at staff efficiencies, time, customer service, menu availability and wellbeing by introducing a proposed new oven. The new oven will help reduce the time to complete basic cooking tasks allowing more capacity, and also has a hot hold feature to ensure we are able to store our food safely. At Aviva York, applying the same "Great Days At Work" principles of ensuring our teams have the right equipment, we also purchased new knives for John & he's now able to improve the way his does his job!
Whilst sourcing new equipment worked for our teams in Norwich & York, in Eastleigh we looked at team dynamics & with the help of the GDAW E-Learning, our unit manager has changed the way the team interact & we hope to see many more great days at work as a result!
Coming from a family of event organisers and chefs I know the industry pretty well and I wouldn’t change it for anything. I love all things food, I would be lost if I wasn’t talking about it or telling you why you should work in the industry. I am a keen photographer along with my main passion skiing!! My role as Frontline Recruitment varies in many ways, it’s very demanding and comes with many challenges as you would expect recruiting for all roles under the Frontline bracket. My main aim is to provide sites with the highest calibre of staff, this is achieved not only by skill sets but also very importantly finding the best fit for both chefs, front of house and employers.
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Our Talent is the Future 6PS BARISTA BAR The 6PS Barista Bar, C++ is renowned across the London Google community being one of the go to hot spots for Googlers to engage not just with other, but with our simply wonderful team of baristas. We as managers hear about these great comments through the power of the Google Food online forum, Foodback. A site designed especially for Google employees to post feedback on the Google Food Program. But how do our teams get to hear these outstanding reviews and how do we continue to develop and harness this awesome behaviour from our front line teams? Following the GDAW survey results, we aimed to further boost morale and create a feeling of ownership from our teams. After all, we want our team to come to work skipping and smiling! Once a week, the team host a ‘shout out’ meeting. An informal and upbeat catch up, which offers our team an opportunity for each one of them to thank their peers for something that helped them that week. We also use this time to share any Foodbacks that have been updated that week, and believe me, there is always one or two! With some upbeat songs playing in the background; it’s a moment of togetherness, sharing great work, great feedback and great moments. You certainly walk away with an extra spring in your step. Here’s one or two of our favourite comments from a Googler so far: ‘Just wanted to leave some foodback about our amazing C++ cafe and especially the staff who make it so great (personal shoutout to Greta, Szilvia, and Robson, whom I see most often in the cafe). C++ is a great experience, both to get a daily dose of perfectly made coffees, and an amazing adventure for guests, mainly thanks to our friendly, chatty, and smiling baristas. Thanks guys!’ ‘I just want to congratulate Greta, Robson and Szilvia for being amazing baristas (and friends). Coffee time is officially my favourite time of the day!’ Empowering our team with knowledge and confidence allows for that sense of ownership. Offering specialist training with a variety of key suppliers brings that knowledge to fruition. But we like to go above and beyond. Giving the team the opportunity to bring their ideas to the table, driving innovation and passion. Our C++ team continue to impress and leave smiles on the faces of those who are served. We aim to continue to do the same for them by harnessing this great approach to work.
ROUNDTABLES AT KPMG The team at KPMG set up a roundtable discussion with its managers recently to review the feedback obtained through the Great Days at Work survey. As a whole, the KPMG estate which employs circa 360 RA employees, had a participation rate of 90% with an overall score of 80%. As the contract spreads across 22 sites, the team were keen to tap into the results for each of their regional patches to really understand their staffs views and concerns. There was a good range of areas which the team identified as areas to focus on as these varied greatly across the estate. Once the information is filtered and assessed, the central management team will hold roadshows across the account as required to feed this back to the teams as well as advise on the action plans to improve on these areas to ensure all our staff are having Great Days at Work’’