2014 Cateys: Best Employer Award

Best Employer Award

Sponsored by Tröika Recruitment

2014 Winner: De Vere Village Urban Resorts and De Vere Hotels

With a view to gaining advantage over its competitors, De Vere Village Urban Resorts and De Vere Hotels has focused on providing personalised service, supported by increased employee engagement. The result has been a turnaround in the company's people policy with tangible results: a 15% increase in employee engagement and a 80% drop in recruitment costs, together with a direct link to improved hotel performance and customer satisfaction.

It was this impressive combination that propelled the judges into awarding the De Vere Group the inaugural Best Employer Catey. Greater engagement of employees since the merger of De Vere's two brands in 2012 has come about through the creation of a People Plan, headed by director of people development Mike Williams.

By creating an employer brand that says vhappy people = vhappy customers, the 5,000-strong team has a real sense of belonging and an identity with the group's service standards. Central to the People Plan is the service ethos, Going the Extra Inch, and five performance behaviours: vinspirational, vreliant, vdriven, vcommercial and vdetailed.

Employees are measured and reviewed against these values to ensure consistency across the workplace and a benchmark for them to aspire to.

The behaviours are encouraged through regular coaching and mentoring, as well as being rewarded and recognised through Excellence Awards.

Employee Appreciation Weeks, held twice a year, provide an opportunity for general managers to say thank you to their teams through a series of fun activities, including sports days, picnics and parties. In some cases the employees have organised general manager appreciation days in return.

Some regular corporate accounts have even been willing to pay up to £15 more on room rate, compared with competitors, because of the improved service now offered.

Attracting the right kind of people to fit into the company's new ethos begins prior to interview with prospective employees directed to the Vhappypeople website to enable them to be fully versed on the engagement results for their prospective hotel. Meanwhile, all managers undertaking interviews are provided with Hire the Best interview scripts, which focus on the five performance behaviours to ensure the culture and values are instilled from the beginning of an employee's career journey with De Vere.

What the judges said "The first ever winner of the Best Employer Catey is a shining example of what it takes to be a great place to work. In just three years, the people development director's visionary approach to engaging people at every stage of their career journey and can only be classed as inspiring. With reduced labour turnover, increased employee engagement, a strong internal talent pipeline and significant bottom-line cost savings, it's obvious that
adopting a people-centric approach in all that they do has ensured for sustainable success."
Emily Perry