Operator of The Globe, Warwick and Beech House, Solihull retains top 20 position
Published on Monday, 26 February 2018
26th February 2018:
One of the UK’s fastest growing pub groups, Oakman Inns & Restaurants
Ltd, operator of The Globe, Warwick and The Beech House, Solihull,
has again been voted by their own team as one of the top employers in the UK,
coming 17th in The Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For.
The 2018 Best Companies
list which “celebrates and showcases the very best in workplace engagement”
were revealed at an awards ceremony held at the Battersea Evolution venue in
London’s Battersea Park last Thursday, February 22nd.
Oakman Inns, which
currently employs just over 750 people across its 20 pubs, inns and restaurants
– seven of which double as small boutique hotels (see below) - has also secured
a Best Companies 3 Star “extraordinary” accreditation, which recognises
the highest standard of workplace engagement and represents organisations that
excel. This is the third year that Oakman’s team culture has been given this
accolade.
Headquartered in Tring,
the company, which was founded in 2007 by CEO, Peter Borg-Neal, has redefined
the concept of the modern public house, successfully transforming both historic
coaching inns and modern buildings into all day contemporary spaces with a
strong sense of identity and integration within their local communities.
Their first venture was
The Akeman in Tring, Hertfordshire, which set the standard with a wide choice
of drinks, imaginative Mediterranean-inspired and modern British food menus.
All their dishes are freshly prepared in an open theatre-style kitchen using a
charcoal grill and wood-fired oven, with an emphasis on freshness, quality,
sustainability and taste.
The Best Companies survey
examines company life and reveals how employees really perceive their working
environment. The research looks at a total of eight engagement factors such as
working conditions, company values, employees’ opinion of their managers and
how valued they feel.
Oakman’s Operations
Director, Alex Ford, said: “The entire process is about as
objective as it can get, and the score is based upon what our people say about
where and how they work, as well as engagement experts examining how the entire
HR process from training to pastoral care is undertaken. This is so important
for us because we’re a people business, and good customer contact and relations
are born out of confident, happy, well-trained staff, who are always engaged in
trying to be the best they can be.”
Oakman has already won two
other HR awards over the past four months, recognising the efforts of their HR
team led by HR Director, Jill Scatchard:
Jill said: “We were one of
40 UK companies recognised by The Princess Royal Training Award for training
excellence last November and also won the British Institute of Innkeepers’
National Innovation in Training Award (NITA) for Best Casual Dining Training
Programme. Much of the effort is actually taken by our team when they use our
interactive training software, Oakmanology. We developed it over two years and
launched it in late 2016 and it has revolutionised our teams’ training. We can
give them new skills, new responsibilities and fully developed careers as a
result of our growth and their training success.”
Peter Borg-Neal, Oakman
Inns CEO, added: “We are delighted to be in the top 50 for the
fourth year running and to have achieved the maximum Three Star accreditation
for the third time. We see the achievement of high levels of employee
engagement as key to the success of our business.”