Leadership and purpose continued Engaging with our employees Being a relatively small company of approximately 130 employees operating in one location, there is a high level of visibility of the Board by employees and vice versa. Given this high level of visibility, the Board has decided not to adopt any of the three specific employee engagement methods referred to in the 2018 UK Corporate Governance Code at this time. Instead, we have adopted the following employee engagement arrangements which the Board believes have operated effectively during the year to provide it with regular formal and informal employee feedback for consideration as part of the Board’s decision making process:
An audience with Vicky Jarman One of our ‘Audience with…’ sessions this year was held with Vicky Jarman, hosted by Janine Cole, our Sustainability & Social Impact Director.
– a formal programme of breakfast meetings between the Non-Executive Directors and members of the Executive Committee and senior management. These meetings have no fixed agenda and provide a useful forum to discuss what is happening in day-to-day operations and the associated challenges which might not be significant enough individually to warrant formal reporting at Board meetings; and – a Non-Executive Director, on a rotational basis, presenting to all employees in a discursive format approximately twice yearly on a particular theme, followed by a Q&A session. To facilitate these sessions we have set up an online portal for employees to raise questions, anonymously if they wish, in advance of the event. Employees are also invited to ask questions and to share their views on the day. These sessions are also designed for Board members to provide the Board’s views, as appropriate, on matters raised through employee engagement, and feedback from the sessions is reported to the Board. Our latest sessions were led by Vicky Jarman in December 2021 and by Nick Hampton in April 2022, each of which are described below.
Janine opened the session by exploring how Vicky’s career evolved into that of a Non-Executive Director, which led to an engaging discussion on diversity, equality and inclusion in the workplace, the benefits this brings and how GPE can drive further progress in this area, also learning from other industries. The feedback received has supported the development of GPE’s new People Plan and ongoing Board discussions on this subject. Vicky discussed sustainability in the property sector, the challenges this presents and the opportunities for GPE, working closely with its suppliers, to innovate and take a market lead on sustainability matters. Vicky also provided her insights on the future of the workplace, the importance of GPE’s Customer first approach and the increasing role that technology and data can play in supporting our customers and differentiating GPE from its competitors.
Vicky answered employee questions and discussed views on the benefits of hybrid working. Following subsequent feedback from separate focus group sessions, we were pleased to launch our new Hybrid Working Policy from 1 April 2022. There was an opportunity for employees to ask questions and share views across a broad range of topics that affected them, making it an engaging and interactive session. The event, which received positive feedback, was well attended by employees and a number of members of the Board.
The session with Vicky Jarman was a great opportunity for all employees to hear first-hand the views of a NED on the key challenges currently faced by GPE. Furthermore, it was inspiring to hear how Vicky, as a successful female business leader, proactively progressed her career at the same time as raising a family.” Hilary Baikie Tax Compliance Manager
92 Great Portland Estates plc Annual Report 2022