Round here we're not fans of waffle, so in this handy booklet you'll find all our company policies and procedures but you won't need a law degree to understand them - all the important stuff straight up with no BS. There's also some useful info about your first few weeks with us to get you off to a flying start.
And hey, if there's anything else you'd like to know just ask, we're all friends now.
We spend more time in the four walls of our office than we do our home, we spend more time with our colleagues than we do with our families and friends and so it's our job to make your time here as fun and rewarding as possible. As a leadership team we can set the tone and create the environment and yet great culture comes from everyone.
We don’t want rules as we trust you, you wouldn’t be here if we didn’t.
A lack of rules can freak some people out, so this book is here to provide a couple of nudges or guidelines to make sure we are all on the same page.
It’s simple really... be nice, be respectful, look after each other, look after the workspace, talk about what’s working and what’s not, if it works we will do more of it, if it’s not working we will do less. Please bring energy and smiles as they multiply. If you need a rest, take it, if you are struggling with anything work or personnel tell us ..we are a team and we can help.
How cool and simple is that.
Colin Lawson, FounderAlways do the right thing
Making wealthy people wealthier is part of what we do, but it’s not our purpose.
"Our purpose is a simple one: making people’s lives better. This applies to our staff, our clients, our community and anyone that we interact with."
2009 Applewood became Equilibrium
1995
Founded by Colin as Applewood Financial
2017
We launched our Cautious, Balanced & Adventurous investment funds
2010
The Equilibrium Foundation was created
2020
Reached £1bn assets under management
£4bn assets under management and £4m donated to charity
After your initial training period you'll be free to ulitise our flexible framework. Our framework gives us the freedom to work in a way that suits us. We are a client facing business so the needs of our clients and Equilibrium must be at the very forefront of all our decision making.
We ask that you consider your clients and team mates when organising your working week. We are an office based business that offers flexibility. You’ll need to be available when it counts, however beyond this, you’re free to manage your working week as you see fit.
Flexible working comes down to one key element and that’s trust. We trust that:
Everyone will do their hours.
We will all be available when it matters.
We will work in a way that means we can do our best work.
Our clients come first.
We will be mindful of our and other people’s work life balance.
We will communicate so colleagues know when we will and won’t be available.
We will speak up when we need something or are stuck.
We will use and not abuse the trust given.
The big day is here. The first day at the best job you've ever had. Even better, you don't start until 10am. Winner!
First things first, we'll give you a tour of the office, introduce you to the team and show you where you can get a cuppa.
You'll then have a chance to settle in at your desk* and familiarise yourself with some of our systems.
When lunchtime comes round your buddy and your manager will whisk you off to the local for a pub lunch - on us.
In the afternoon you will watch some of our welcome videos and complete your new starter paperwork (rock and roll).
*Feel free to bring a family picture and a plant.
As part of your 'first day tour' you'll be introduced to everyone in the office. Don't fret, we don't expect you to memorise everyone's name - feel free to just smile and wave.
That's where the 'Staff Directory' comes into it's own. You'll receive a copy on your first day and it's the who's who of EQ. The directory has a picture of everyone who works here, their name, their job title and their department. There might even be a face you recognise in there!
During your first couple of weeks you will also have 'department overviews'. You'll get to spend time with someone from each department who will do a short presentation about what their department does and you'll have a chance to ask any questions.
As a professional firm we have a reputation to uphold. We provide excellence to our clients and should look the part as well as being the part.
We have a 'dress for your day' policy - if you have a client meeting or professional engagement you'll need to dress smartly and represent Equilibrium to the very best of your ability. This means looking well turned out, groomed and wearing business attire i.e. shirts, blouses, trousers and shoes etc.
Whilst dressing for your day, the reality is that your day is within a professional environment. We don’t work in the creative industry; we aren’t a tech company so there is an expectation from our clients that we look smart and well turned out. So, although we're not asking for top hat and tails we do ask that everyone looks professional, is crease free and dirt free and if that means a polo shirt, jeans and trainers then so be it!
We’re a friendly team and we want to make sure it stays that way. You can perform your job to the best standard we’ve ever seen, but if you're not a team player, you won’t last long at Equilibrium.
Here are some of the general principles we stick to and the attitudes we strive for:
We do what we say we’re going to do, finish what we start, say please and thank you and generally respect each other.
We never stop learning – we push ourselves out of our comfort zones with our team around us, always supporting us.
We don’t dwell on mistakes. It’s okay to make them, it’s how we deal with them that matters.
We celebrate success, even the little things.
We challenge each other with respect and never settle for mediocrity.
We don’t waffle.
Feedback is a two-way gift – never take it personally.
We clean up after ourselves and respect our communal areas.
We care – about our clients, our colleagues and ourselves.
Our holiday year runs from 1st January to 31st December. You can request leave via PeopleHR or on the app if you’re out and about (don't worry we'll tell you all about PeopleHR - it's fab!). It will notify your manager of the request and they can approve or deny it at the click of a button. Please book your holiday with plenty of notice and remember to wait for your request to be approved before you book that cruise round the Med.
If you wake up in the morning and you're just not feeling work that day, feel free to take a days' holiday if your workload allows. We all have off days, just check with your manager.
For each complete year that you work at Equilibrium (Jan - Dec) you'll receive an extra days holiday up to 38 days. Public holidays are in addition to and are not included your allowance - bonus!
We offer enhanced sick pay (buckle up all the info on that is coming your way next) however there will be times in our lives when we need to take time off for reasons outside sickness and trips away. For example, if you need to take time off to care for someone, if your child has a stay in hospital or you have a bereavement, we will work with you to arrange time away from work and offer any additional support you may need.
We will support anyone who would like to sit as a magistrate by offering time off on full pay. We would need to discuss what time off you'd need and how that would work alongside your role, but that's all detail, if you want to be a magistrate just talk to us! If you'd like to join the reservists, we can help with leave during training and/or mobilisation.
If you feel sick and need to take time off give your manager a call. Please call as early as possible. We’re all poorly from time to time, it’s better to take time off and get yourself right than to suffer in silence (and bring germs into the office).
Time off isn't limited to coughs and sneezes, if you need to take time off for your mental health just speak to your manager.
If you're off due to illness, you'll still receive your full pay for up to four weeks. If you have a long-term sickness, our health assurance will kick in after 4 weeks absence and you will then receive 66.7% of your salary.
Balancing work and family life can be a tricky challenge, by day you're the polished professional absolutely bossing it at work and by evening you're facing a dressing down because you allowed the peas to touch the sausages. It's tough, that's why we'll try to help wherever we can.
Family life extends well beyond the newborn bubble however all the info on what to expect when you're expecting can be found below. If you'd like the full low down on our family leave policy, including things such as unpaid parental leave, you'll be able to find this on PeopleHR or you can ask your manager who will be happy to help!
All mums-to-be, regardless of length of service can take up to 52 weeks Maternity Leave and we offer Enhanced Maternity Pay (after 12 months service) which means you'll be paid 90% of your basic salary for the first 26 week of your maternity leave.
If you're eligible for Paternity Leave new dads can take 2 weeks at full pay.
We also offer Enhanced Adoption pay too.
You will be paid on or before the 28th of every month and you can claim back any expenses via the PeopleHR app (all the T&C's can be found on PeopleHR).
Growth is one of our core values and as part of our commitment to your development we will arrange reviews to discuss your progression. This is scheduled time in the diary to talk about where you'd like to go and how we can get you there, however the conversation isn't limited to formal reviews so if there's a project you'd like to get involved with or a training course you'd like to do please just let us know!
Although the reviews are focused on your development, there will also be an opportunity to discuss your salary expectations. Any increase will always be based on performance and attitude and we regularly compare our salaries across the industry to ensure everyone receives a fair wage.
We're a fast-paced business that can pivot on a dime, this can often create lots of opportunities and open up new roles. Any pay increases that happen alongside a role change or a change in responsibilities will be discussed with you at the time.
Overall, we want to create an environment where you are the driver of your own development and growth. Equilibrium's not a place to rest on your laurels, we'll support you in any way we can, but you'll need to be the one who takes the opportunities on offer and runs with them.
As a financial planning firm, we hope it goes without saying that we strongly recommend that you pay (at least) a little into your pension pot each month.
We automatically enrol everyone into the pension scheme and we will match your contribution up to 5% however you can choose to increase your contributions beyond this if you wish. You can also opt-out at any time however please spare a thought for the future you and the type of retirement you'd like to have before you do.
We run our pension scheme on a salary sacrifice basis, this saves on your National Insurance Contributions, and will therefore increase your take-home pay - so present day you and future you both benefit!
Our pension scheme is currently run through Royal London who will regularly contact you with updates on your nest egg.
The clue is in the name...if we reach our target, we will share a portion of our profits with you.
You'll be given details of our target and the potential profit share on offer once it's been agreed, however it's usually set as a percentage of your salary.
The difference between a profit share and a bonus scheme is that we ask for you to be actively involved with how we maximise our profit. Whether that means you come up with an ace idea to make a process more efficient or you deliver service so exceptional that clients rave about us to all their pals, everything we do every day has the ability to influence the profit we make.
If there's something we do that is just a total waste of time or money speak up - it's potential profit share that's being frittered away!
If you would like to take up study in a subject relevant to your role we will support you by covering the cost of all study materials and exam fees. You can also take a days' study leave as well as a paid day off when you sit your exam.
You can have a subscription to the Calm app on us! The app is filled with guided meditation sessions, sleep stories and lots more!
We will cover the cost of your eye test (every two years) and we'll even give you £50 towards a new set of specs. You can claim this back via the expenses section on the PeopleHR app.
We provide free parking when working at Ascot House.
After two years' service you will be added to our private medical insurance. Once you've been added you'll receive all the details of what your policy covers.
We will cover the cost of subscriptions to professional bodies such as the CII.
We will pay x4 your pensionable salary in the unfortunate event that you die whilst employed by Equilibrium.
Everyone has access to Perkbox who offer discounts from loads of retailers. There are also work out and meditation sessions on the app. As you use it you build up points which can be exchanged for Tesco and Amazon vouchers.
With the Cycle to Work Scheme you can purchase a bike up to a value of £1500 and pay it back over a 12 month period via your wages plus it's salary sacrifice!
Everyone can take three paid days per year away from work to help and support a charity. You can organise your own day volunteering however, we arrange plenty of charity days which can be anything from painting fences to counting donations.
If you're working from Ascot breakfast is on us. The cupboards are well stocked with bakery items, we also have cereals, yogurts and just about every jam flavour you can name, after all it is the most important meal of the day!
What's GAYE I hear you say? It means give as you earn, which pretty much does what it says on the tin. It's a way to donate to charity pre-tax every month without needing to lift a finger. Well, you have to pick a charity and fill in a form, but after that it's smooth sailing.
You can pick any registered charity you like, and any amount from £5 and just to sweeten the deal, The Equilibrium Foundation will make a one off donation of £100 to your chosen charity every year.
What's not to love, your charity receives some cash, you receive a bit of tax relief - everyone's a winner!
We all have a responsibility to keep ourselves and others safe. We'll do everything we can to keep you safe and well whilst at work however, you need to do your part too. Our best friend when it comes to safety is common sense so if it doesn't feel quite right, it probably isn't. Our health and safety, manual handling and fire evacuation policies are on PeopleHR so please take some time to familiarise yourself with them.
We have a well stocked first aid box at reception and the list of our first aiders are on the notice boards.
Security within the office is important for many reasons so we ask you to take it as seriously as you would your own home. If you open a window, it's your responsibility to close it. Do not let anyone into the building unless you know who they are. Please make sure your valuables are out of sight or locked away during the day and do not leave them in the office overnight.
As we work within a regulated industry we need to comply with FCA rules as well as mitigate any potential risks. All team members need to complete regular credit checks, they're usually every two years. If you are authorised to give advice you'll also need to complete periodic DBS checks.
1) Don't panic!
2) Don't stop to collect personal belongings.
3) Make your way outside the building and go straight to the fire assembly point at Arkle Avenue.
4) Check in with the fire marshal - you'll be able to spot them as they'll be looking awesome in a high vis tabard.
5) We will inform you when it is safe to re-enter the building.
1) Still no panicking please!
2) Find and activate the nearest fire alarm. These are the small, square boxes on the walls, you can find them by the front doors and around the office.
3) Inform your nearest fire marshal.
4) If it's safe to do so, use the appropriate fire extinguisher. If you don't know which one to use or how to use the fire extinguisher then don't, you could make it worse.
We are an open and supportive bunch so if you need to talk just reach out. We have trained Mental Health First Aiders if you ever feel you need support or maybe just a brew and a chat.
If you feel that you would benefit from counselling we will cover the cost of 6 sessions up to the value of £360. Just speak to your manager or the Culture Team and they can help you set this up.
And remember that...
It's okay to... say ''i don't know'' feel anxious take time off when you feel ill binge the full season feel like you need a break then take one sigh, occasionally feel overwhelmed call someone just for a chat eat the whole packet of biscuits
Turn your laptop off at the end of the day make mistakes ask for help feel stuck have off-days have days off feel lonely be yourself enjoy the little things look after yourself and others
We run annual competitions for House Teams (think Harry Potter but less dangerous) everyone is a part of a team and it’s all a bit of healthy competition!
Our house teams are:
Elephants
Giraffe
Hippos
Leopards
Lions
Meerkats
Monkeys
Rhinos
You can earn points for your house through a variety of events – pumpkin carving, pancake tossing, quizzes, all leading to an epic race to the podium at our end of year do!
The sorting hat will place you in your house and your house captain will lead team events.
The house captains are also part of our Spirit Team. They then lead their individual house teams to make sure they are winning plenty of points in the various competitions held and most of all just getting involved and having fun!
The Spirit Team organise lots of the events we have.
They have regular meetings that tend to be a big brainstorming exercise which helps to get an understanding of what the whole company would enjoy - so not just the opinion of one or two. This usually ends with plenty of weird and wonderful activities and events to really bring the whole team together.
Feedback, as the famous saying goes, is a gift (although when done wrong it doesn't feel that way). You'll have regular, structured reviews and informal meetings with your manager as and when.
Feedback is a two way street and as much as we'll be open and honest with you, we ask for the same back.
The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
You'll get the chance to share your thoughts and opinions via our End of Year Survey and we welcome feedback, face to face or otherwise, all year round.
If you have a suggestion you can submit it to the SLT via the virtual in-trays on Teams at any time.
We’re all human and we all make mistakes – it’s how you deal with it that counts. Tell someone, get help, make it right.
Asking questions and learning is part of what we do everyday...we'd rather people say "I don't know" than try to fudge the answer.
One of our values is integrity, so when we screw up, we do our best to make it right.
You’ve made a huge decision. You’ve taken the leap. You’ve started a new job, at a new business, with a whole host of new people and a bunch of systems you’ve probably never used before. It’s a big change and change can be a bumpy ride. Sometimes you might feel frustrated or overwhelmed, or even doubt that this was the right step to take, but rest assured that we’ve all been there. Everyone around you has had the same first day nerves and the same worry that they’re just not 'getting it'.
Ask questions, speak up if you need help but most of all believe us when we say those feelings are all part of the journey towards your ‘new normal’.
We’re always on the lookout for amazing new people to join the team, and who better to ask than our already-amazing team!? There’s a little cash incentive too…
Option one: Send your friend’s CV tocareers@equilibrium.co.ukor ask your friend to send their CV, mentioning your name, along with any information that may be relevant. If we go on to offer that person a position and theyjointhebusiness,you will berewarded with a ‘CV Referral Fee’ of £1000. Imagine all the chocolate and sweets you could buy with that!
Option two: What do you do if you know of someone you think would be great for the role, but you don’t know them well enough tosuggest the role and you don’t want to come across like a stalker? Simply givetheir name and any contact details you haveto Sarah Warburton or Kelly Eyton-Jonesandtheywill contact them directly. If we go on to offer that person a positionand they join thebusiness,then you will be rewarded with a ‘NameReferralFee’ of £250.
The referral fee is paid at the of the referral’s probationary period. Not that we don’t trust you, but we do have to make sure your friend is a good fit for the team. If your friend is already known to the business, then we’re sorry but we can’t reward you (that would be cheating!). Graduate referrals will depend on the salary of the role. This will be agreed on an ad-hoc basis.
If you plan on leaving us you'll need to submit your notice in writing. Your notice period will be in your contract but you can also find it in the employment section of PeopleHR.
Before you leave you'll be invited to attend an exit interview where we will ask you to share your thoughts about your journey at Equilibrium.
Your final salary will be paid as part of our usual schedule, which is on or around the 28th of the month. If you have any outstanding accrued holiday it will included in your final pay. If you've taken more holiday than you've accrued the balance will be deducted from your final salary.
The cost of any external study courses taken in the 12 months before your leave date or any outstanding subscriptions will be reclaimed, although this will be discussed with you before you leave.
Your P45 will be forwarded to you once it's been issued by our payroll peeps.
Well there's one last thing...
What's listed in this document is non-contractual and may be changed at any time.