Member News

Another Pay Per Click advertsing account win for Bigfork. We are delighted to be working with Windsor Waste Management and look forward to improving their Google Ads campaigns.

Is this you? – able to relate to young people – a good listener – friendly and patient – you have a good sense of humour Break is looking for committed people who have a few hours to spare every couple of weeks to support the charity’s young service users. This includes young people in care; young people leaving care; young people with disabilities; young carers; young people in foster placements; and young parents in need of support. Find out more email: mentoring@break-charity.org or call Clare Oakley, Mentoring Co-ordinator on: 07771808619 or come along to our free mentoring information evening taking place on Thursday 4th April 6pm-9pm at Break, Diamond House, Vulcan Road North, Norwich, NR6 6AQ. Search Eventbrite or Facebook for more details. What do Break’s mentors do? Our mentors give their time to develop a relationship with a vulnerable young person to give them support and encouragement. Each young person’s needs are different, so the type of contact a mentor has with a young person will vary, but may include casual activities such as going out for lunch or walks; helping young people access local community activities; or providing support with finding employment or educational opportunities. Any volunteer must understand that mentoring for Break is a long-term commitment, due to the impact any changes could have on the young person, their carers and families. The Mentoring and Befriending Foundation states that Mentoring makes a real difference to people who find that they need the dedicated support of another person, often at a time of transition or change. A supportive relationship with a mentor – who is not family or a close friend – can encourage a young person to make positive changes in their life. Mentors are carefully recruited, going through a formal application process, training programme and interviews. We also take up references and an Enhanced Criminal Records check. Ongoing training and regular supervision is provided and Break pays expenses and mileage to mentors. Meet Tim – one of Break’s volunteer mentors: https://www.facebook.com/BreakCharity/videos/315971875659006/

With businesses increasingly competing for top talent, Corporate Social Responsibility could be the deciding factor for a potential new employee considering applying for a role in your company.

Research from Cone Communications revealed that for 58% of employees, from all generations, CSR is an important element of consideration when choosing a job, sometimes even more so than the proposed salary. Considering how important this is becoming, are you communicating enough about the values and ethics behind your business?

As well as an official CSR strategy document, other pieces of business information also reveal a lot about the socially responsible ways an organisation operates. Here are some examples which can be showcased across websites, social media, PR, marketing assets and recruitment materials. These will all help to give potential employees a better understanding of how your organisation considers the interests of its employees, customers, stakeholders and communities plus the environmental and social consequences of its business activities.

Mission statement and purpose

Your organisation’s mission statement can communicate a wider social purpose as well as business objectives, and research by Deloitte shows that ‘mission-driven’ businesses enjoy 30% more innovation and 40% more engagement from employees. As an example, Starbucks mission statement is ‘To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighbourhood at a time’. Here at Pure, we highlight our overall purpose, which is to contribute to the economic growth of our region and to make a difference to people’s lives. This reveals how our team get to go beyond just recruitment and be involved in added value initiatives and career development programmes which help businesses and candidates to thrive.

Company values and behaviours

Company values give a real sense of how an organisation conducts responsible and ethical relationships with its people, customers, suppliers and stakeholders. Virgin shares its values on the recruitment section of its website, which are: ‘We are delightfully surprising, red hot, straight up whilst maintaining an insatiable curiosity, giving a heartfelt service and creating smart disruption.’ It also goes on to share more information through a list of company ‘Behaviours’ which include ‘Supportive: We are a family of friendly and inclusive people who pull together and openly help each other’. At Pure, we are also driven by our commitment to deliver against our strong company values of teamwork, quality, innovation, reward, support and delivering the best results. These are at the heart of everything we do, helping us to create a great place to work in which our staff are happy, supported, rewarded and motivated to go the extra mile for our customers.

Employee development and welfare

Sharing details of how your organisation looks after its staff including through physical and mental health support, inclusive career development opportunities and fair, transparent pay, highlights your organisation as a business which cares about its workers. Social media is a great platform to share real-life examples of the ‘human’ side of your business. For example, Grant Thornton posts a case study examples of employees whose day-to-day lives have really benefitted from being able to effectively juggle work and home because of the organisation’s agile workplace culture. These posts generate lots of likes, positive comments and enquiries about joining the organisation. For us, we highlight details of our employee wellbeing policy which includes mindfulness courses, counselling, lifestyle and fitness guidance plus a trained Mental Health First Aider who works with managers to support their teams. Soon we will also be able to update people on our initiative to train a team of employees to become Mental Health Champions. They will offer support to employees struggling with mental ill-health and raise awareness of mental health across Pure.

Environmental impact

A responsible business looks to minimise the impact it has on the environment by reducing its carbon footprint and using green practices. Depending on the nature of the business this could include anything from the use of sustainable materials and local produce through to reduced waste, and energy saving. Here at Pure, our offices focus on recycling as much as possible from paper and batteries through to printer cartridges. To help reduce the combined carbon footprint of our team, as well as supporting physical wellbeing, we also offer a Cycle to Work scheme for our employees. Writing a dedicated environmental policy to be shared externally and internally will highlight how your business has considered its environmental impact across all of its operations. It will also remind both current and future employees of their own individual responsibilities and the role they can play in helping the organisation to meet and exceed its green commitments. Don’t forget to also display and promote any relevant code of practices the organisation follows, whether formal or voluntary, plus any specific industry standards it meets and any environmentally friendly focussed awards or accreditations. 

Community impact

Today’s socially conscious generation are looking to work for businesses that give something back and which support them to do the same. As well as fundraising and donations, look to provide hands-on opportunities for employees to take on volunteer activities. Statistics from Employee Volunteering reveal that 76% of volunteers felt the opportunity had a positive influence on how they felt about their employer. We have seen this first hand here at Pure through our commitment to actively encouraging our colleagues to work together and give back to their local communities. We support our team with paid time off to complete charity challenges, fundraising and volunteering. Our team’s recent activities include donating time to wrap Christmas presents for Lighthouse Women’s Aid, raising money to put together packages of clothing and food to take to homeless charity The Bus Shelter Ipswich, spending a day painting and decorating with Inspire Suffolk and taking on the accumulator fundraising challenge for Arthur Rank Hospice Charity. When sharing stories about your organisation’s community support, also highlight the reason why that particular charity or group was chosen. Was it chosen by employees because it had particular importance to them? Does it align with your business own social values? Or, as with our examples, are they directly within the communities you operate in?

At our latest Charity Leaders Group event, organised in partnership with PEM, we welcomed Samantha Loveday from East Anglian Children’s Hospices (EACH) and Alison Taylor of Conscious Communications, as our guest speakers.

This was our first Charity Leaders Group event of 2019. Held at Arthur Rank Hospice in Cambridge it provided a forum for local charity leaders to discuss issues related to the charity and not-for-profit sector. The theme was ‘How to Stand Out’ and it was run as an explorative session looking at how charities can stand out from the crowd when it comes to fundraising, employer brand and public identity.

Samantha Loveday gave an overview of the current fundraising landscape and the challenges faced by the charity sector; including the uncertainty around Brexit and the impact of GDPR regulations. Samantha also revealed that while there has been a positive uptrend in donations from individuals over the last ten years, a key challenge faced by charities is finding ways to stand out amongst millennials. Older people are becoming more charitable with money, as they are in a better position to do so, whereas younger people tend to give time. Charities need to find innovative ways to engage new generations in providing financial support, both now and in the future.

As Samantha talked through potential strategies to build brand awareness and engage new audiences within a crowded market place, we noticed how many of these also correlated with the advice our Director David Culley gave in his session on employer brand. The ways in which charities can stand out to potential donors will also help them stand out to prospective high-calibre employees; helping them to attract and retain the talented teams needed to shape and implement strategies for the future.

One of the considerations discussed was sharing clear messages about a charity’s need for support and providing more emphasis on the direct impact of donations, so that people can really see the difference they have, or could, make. These communications will also help potential employees understand how they could make a difference every day if they were to work for the organisation. While charities and not-for-profit organisations may be concerned about competing for talent based on salaries and benefits, they can compete when it comes to offering a sense of purpose. This is becoming increasingly attractive to new generations entering the workplace. LinkedIn’s latest Workplace Culture report revealed that nine out of ten millennials would consider taking a pay cut to work at a company whose mission and values aligned with their own.

Alison Taylor of Conscious Communications looked at ways charities can manage their reputation at a time when public trust and confidence in charities has dipped due to negative stories. This echoed Samantha’s advice on creating a greater level of transparency to gain confidence in supporting and donating to a charity. In turn, transparency about the culture of an organisation including its values and behaviours will also help to attract the right employees in the first place. David stressed the importance of embedding a consistent culture in the organisation and the need to be constant in all communications and actions. He also advised that employers should never compromise on cultural fit when recruiting, as skills can be developed but natural behaviours cannot.

With the challenge of new generations moving increasingly towards a digital focussed and a potentially cashless society, Samantha also discussed looking at innovative ways to increase the use of online and digital platforms. EACH has continued to find ways to generate support in a virtual world. For example, it has successfully launched a new online retail outlet through its eBay store and also used the online platform to auction off clothes donated by ambassador Ed Sheeran. Increasing social media engagement and the use of digital platforms will raise brand awareness of the charity to new generations; not only as an organisation to support but also as a potential place to work.

Ultimately, the investment charities make to reach new audiences and stand out from the crowd should also have a positive impact on the employer brand. Sharing clear messages about the purpose, impact and culture of the organisation will showcase the charity as an employer of choice and a place where employees can make a difference and have a clear purpose.

The Charity Leaders Group is a unique opportunity for charity executives in the eastern region to hear presentations on topical subjects and to have a sounding board for challenges they may face.

For more information about future events contact David Culley on david.culley@prs.uk.com  and join our Charity Leaders Group on LinkedIn

We’re very proud of this new website we’ve designed for the leading agricultural equipment manufacturer, Richard Western. You can read the full case study here https://www.bigfork.co.uk/our-work/richard-western/

Bigfork Ltd

Intelligent Website Design

City centre youth charity, OPEN Youth Trust (OPEN), is pleased to announce Paige George as their first business ambassador.

Paige who went to Neatherd High School, and now works as a Private Client Executive for Cozens-Hardy solicitors, is the charity’s latest ambassador, joining fellow ambassadors, Joe Crowley, Alfie Hewitt, Vicky Williamson, Sophie Wright and Iona Lake.

From the age of 11, Paige had always aspired to pursue a career in law and was determined to work hard to fulfil this.  Paige started working for Cozens-Hardy solicitors in 2012 as a Business and Administration Apprentice, very much working from the bottom of the career ladder to her current position as Executive. Paige has been shortlisted as a finalist for the National Paralegal Awards as ‘Paralegal of the Year 2019’.  Paige also enjoys being involved as social secretary for the Norwich and Norfolk Junior Lawyers Division and for the NewGen Committee.

Paige actively engages in the local community and enjoys meeting people from all walks of life. In her spare time, she is pursuing a passion for motivating individuals such as friends and family and also helping her clients overcome their emotional hardships and always tries to remain positive. 

Her ultimate life goal is to encourage, motivate and inspire people to achieve their dreams no matter what their circumstances are or what background they are from.

Paige, from Norwich, said: “I’m excited to become OPEN’s first business ambassador and help spread the word in the community of the fantastic work the charity does.  I’m really looking forward to making a difference and helping the younger generation, who feel as though life isn’t going their way, realise that there is someone who cares and has walked a similar path and managed to achieve their goals.

John Gordon-Saker, Chief Executive of OPEN said: “From the first time of meeting Paige I was impressed by her journey and the drive she has undertaken to get where she is today.  We are all really excited to have Paige on board as our latest ambassador, she will be a great inspiration to other young people and living proof that hard work and determination does pay off.   We look forward to working alongside Paige in helping younger children with their educational skills and behavioural issues by encouraging them to succeed and achieve their goals.”

Photo credit:  Paige George

Pure Executive are delighted to have introduced two outstanding Non-Executive Directors to Treatt plc in Bury St Edmunds, one of our region’s most successful companies.

Treatt is a FTSE listed, fast growth Best Employers Eastern Region platinum accredited and award-winning company, whose culture and values are core to its business strategy. This was critical in attracting the two individuals, both highly regarded in their respective fields, to join the Board and support the next phase of transformative growth. It was important for Treatt to achieve balance and diversity of thinking on its Board, as well as attracting international business experience to help drive their worldwide expansion.

Treatt has confirmed that Yetunde Hofmann will join the Board with effect from 20th March and Lynne Weedall with effect from 6th April 2019.

Yetunde has worked extensively across many Asian countries, the US and Europe with strategic, commercial and operational transformation skills developed through her experience at Allied Domecq, Unilever, Imperial Brands and Northern Foods. She is a Non-Executive Director of the CIPD, Education Development Trust, Tomorrow’s Company and is a visiting fellow of Henley Business School.

Yetunde commented: “I am delighted to have the opportunity to support the culture and business transformation of an organisation that has people and people engagement at the heart of its business strategy.”

Lynne Weedall has extensive strategy, change management and M&A experience gained from Board positions as Group HR Director with Whitbread Plc, Dixons Carphone Plc and most recently the Selfridges Group.

Lynne, who is also a Non-Executive Director of Greene King, commented: “I am looking forward to working with the Board at Treatt to build on its success and to be part of its interesting international growth strategy. The people and also the opportunity that lie ahead at Treatt were too good to pass up.”

Treatt Plc chairman Tim Jones said: “I would like to welcome Yetunde and Lynne to Treatt. Their experience and knowledge further strengthen the Board’s skillset as the company pushes forward its strategy for progressive global growth over coming years. We were delighted to have the support of Lynn and the team at Pure Executive who have delivered such outstanding candidates.”   

Yetunde added: “Pure Executive took the time to understand my skills, experience and values to see how I could best contribute to the success of this next phase of development in Treatt’s growth strategy as a member of their Board. I experienced them as refreshing and collaborative and was impressed by their industry and sector knowledge.”  

Treatt is an impressive Suffolk business which will commence a £35million capital investment project to build a new manufacturing and head office site on the Suffolk Business Park this year.

Lynn Walters, Executive Director of Pure Executive, said: “I am very proud that Treatt has appointed two such inspirational women who share the company values and will be strong role models for other women in this region. At Pure Executive we are committed to placing people who are genuinely aligned to our client’s culture, vision and purpose. We work hard to ensure the region has a more balanced representation at Board level and through our Women’s Leadership Programme we actively encourage more women to reach Board positions. I have the greatest respect for both Lynne and Yetunde and working with both of them to secure these roles with Treatt has been a privilege.”

Founded in 1886, Treatt is a cutting-edge flavour and fragrance manufacturer and solutions provider to the food, drink and consumer goods market with its focus being beverages.

Read Treatt’s announcement to the stock exchange on Wednesday 6th February.

Hyperlinked to https://www.treatt.com/content/5-investor-relations/5-regulatory-news/20190206-board-appointments/2019.01.02-board-appointments.pdf

Pure Executive is delighted to have introduced two outstanding Non-Executive Directors to Treatt plc in Bury St Edmunds, one of the region’s most successful companies.

Treatt is a FTSE listed, fast growth Best Employers Eastern Region platinum accredited and award-winning company, whose culture and values are core to its business strategy. This was critical in attracting the two individuals, both highly regarded in their respective fields, to join the Board and support the next phase of transformative growth. It was important for Treatt to achieve balance and diversity of thinking on its Board, as well as attracting international business experience to help drive their worldwide expansion.

Treatt has confirmed that Yetunde Hofmann will join the Board with effect from 20th March and Lynne Weedall with effect from 6th April 2019.

Yetunde has worked extensively across many Asian countries, the US and Europe with strategic, commercial and operational transformation skills developed through her experience at Allied Domecq, Unilever, Imperial Brands and Northern Foods. She is a Non-Executive Director of the CIPD, Education Development Trust, Tomorrow’s Company and is a visiting fellow of Henley Business School.

Yetunde commented: “I am delighted to have the opportunity to support the culture and business transformation of an organisation that has people and people engagement at the heart of its business strategy.”

Lynne Weedall has extensive strategy, change management and M&A experience gained from Board positions as Group HR Director with Whitbread Plc, Dixons Carphone Plc and most recently the Selfridges Group.

Lynne, who is also a Non-Executive Director of Greene King, commented: “I am looking forward to working with the Board at Treatt to build on its success and to be part of its interesting international growth strategy. The people and also the opportunity that lie ahead at Treatt were too good to pass up.”

Treatt Plc chairman Tim Jones said: “I would like to welcome Yetunde and Lynne to Treatt. Their experience and knowledge further strengthen the Board’s skillset as the company pushes forward its strategy for progressive global growth over coming years. We were delighted to have the support of Lynn and the team at Pure Executive who have delivered such outstanding candidates.”   

Yetunde added: “Pure Executive took the time to understand my skills, experience and values to see how I could best contribute to the success of this next phase of development in Treatt’s growth strategy as a member of their Board. I experienced them as refreshing and collaborative and was impressed by their industry and sector knowledge.” 

Treatt is an impressive Suffolk business which will commence a £35million capital investment project to build a new manufacturing and head office site on the Suffolk Business Park this year.

Lynn Walters, Executive Director of Pure Executive, said: “I am very proud that Treatt has appointed two such inspirational women who share the company values and will be strong role models for other women in this region. At Pure Executive we are committed to placing people who are genuinely aligned to our client’s culture, vision and purpose. We work hard to ensure the region has a more balanced representation at Board level and through our Women’s Leadership Programme we actively encourage more women to reach Board positions. I have the greatest respect for both Lynne and Yetunde and working with both of them to secure these roles with Treatt has been a privilege.”

Founded in 1886, Treatt is a cutting-edge flavour and fragrance manufacturer and solutions provider to the food, drink and consumer goods market with its focus being beverages.

Read Treatt’s announcement to the stock exchange on Wednesday 6th February here.

The Maids Head Hotel in Tombland, Norwich, has completed work on its latest suite, which has been named Catherine of Aragon.  Louise Norfolk won a competition on the hotel’s Facebook page to name the suite and suggested Catherine of Aragon. Her prize is a night’s stay in the suite.

Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536) was the first wife of Henry VIII. She visited Norwich in 1520 and stayed with the Prior of the Benedictine Monastery (Norwich Cathedral). During her stay, she was entertained at the Maids Head Inn.

Washroom management has the potential to be very time consuming and expensive. From general cleanliness to ordering and maintaining stock levels of consumables, it’s labour intensive and not the best use of your company’s resources, particularly if you have several bathrooms in your building. Here are our top five reasons for outsourcing washroom supplies:

Getting to the bottom of washroom supplies

Procurement isn’t going to thank you for adding bathroom essentials such as paper towels and toilet rolls to the list of items that they have to price research and purchase on a regular basis. When you add soap, moisturisers, alcohol gels, sanitary products and all the other restroom must-haves, it makes sense to outsource to a company you can rely on to provide quality products at reasonable prices.

Stay one step ahead of the germs

We all know that bathrooms are havens for germs and nasties, including MRSA, salmonella, and norovirus, so it’s imperative that you have a rigorous cleaning schedule in place. If you can keep these contaminants at bay, just think how much money you can save from avoided sick absences! It’s not just about cleaning though, ensuring there is always soap available and paper towels for hand drying, or better, still an automatic hand dryer will encourage better hygiene. By outsourcing the supply of these items, you will be free to get on with what you do best.

Keep it green

Outsourcing to a company which cares about the environment allows you to maintain your high CSR standards. At Monthind, we have specifically selected a range of paper and soap products which are user-friendly and give a quality image to your premises. Our carefully sourced paper products are made from at least 90% recycled fibre, and our soap products are fully water soluble and degradable.

Hand over the maintenance

If you have soap dispensers, sanitary product dispensers or similar equipment make sure you outsource the maintenance too. From checking stock levels and refilling to replacing broken items, you shouldn’t have to give it a moment’s thought.  Monthind can supply and fit product dispensers in your premises, as well as ensuring prompt replacement of any broken or damaged dispensers.  Our cleaning staff will replenish your dispensers as part of their cleaning duties and ensure regular stock supplies are ordered. Monthind is also able to supply all types of washroom paper products, hand-cleaners and soaps, alcohol gels, detergents, dishwashing products, refuse sacks, bin liners and vending cups.

Adding those special touches to give a good impression

You may be surprised how much weight people put on the cleanliness of a bathroom. From choosing a restaurant to eat at or a company to give your business to, dirty washrooms with poor facilities and supplies are often an instant turn-off. Whether it’s the latest paper towel dispenser, quality toilet paper, or the pleasant aroma from an automated air freshener, it doesn’t take much to give a good impression of your organisation.   

To find out more about our services and how we can help you, call us on 01206 215300.     

Tiger Eye, a Norwich based IT consultancy firm, have announced ‘Tiger Trek’, their new three-day summer charity fundraising event.

The team at Tiger Eye are inviting local businesses to ‘take a walk on the wild side’ and join them in raising funds for The Benjamin Foundation through ‘netwalking’ across the Norfolk Coast, from Hunstanton to Cromer.

Tiger Trek, which is taking place from the 17th to 19th May, aims to combine Tiger Eye’s award-winning employee wellbeing scheme “PAWS for health” with the company’s charity volunteering scheme.

With corporate teams of up to four participants welcome from each company, Tiger Eye are inviting businesses to ‘walk the walk and talk the talk’ with them, for either one, two or three days of their 3-day trek.

Tiger Eye hopes that the event will inspire local businesses to stretch their legs and restart their fitness regimes, as part of a unique opportunity to network, discuss and engage with local businesses every step of the way.

The firm, which offers Document and Email Management to the professional services sector, hopes that their team will be joined by businesses from all walks of life, to create a networking event that’s just as diverse as the range of clientele their business works with.

As winners of a Gold Accreditation at the Best Employer Eastern Region awards 2018, Tiger Eye recognised that physical exercise and teambuilding were important for their employees’ wellbeing and decided that the walk would be a great way to promote mental and physical health within their own team, as well as the local community.

With community engagement in mind, Tiger Eye decided that all the proceeds from Tiger Trek will be donated to The Benjamin Foundation, who carry out vital work in the community, helping children and young adults deal with many of the challenges that life throws at them. Tiger Trek will feature as part of a number of events and fundraising activities that are being carried out this year to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the charity. As well as offering accommodation centres for homeless young people, the charity also provides help and support to help them get their lives back on track.

David Bullock, Director of Client Services at Tiger Eye, said: “We are delighted to announce this exciting event, continuing our longstanding policy of nurturing employee wellbeing as well as increasing our engagement with the local community. We hope that local businesses will join us in recognising the benefits of Tiger Trek for personal wellbeing and mindfulness, as well as raising vital funds for such an important cause.”

‘The Norfolk Coast Path is excited to welcome the Tiger Eye Team, and everyone involved in Tiger Trek, for a weekend of sand dunes, salt marsh and sea air. Along the way, we hope that Trekkers can enjoy the great local produce available from the fantastic cafes, pubs and delis that line the path.’ – Jack Davidson, Trail Officer for the Norfolk Coast Path.

Chris Elliott, Marketing Manager at The Benjamin Foundation stated: “We are delighted that Tiger Eye staff have chosen to support our charity in 2019, which is our 25th anniversary year. With their three-day walk they are truly going the extra mile and the funds raised will help us make a positive difference to many more local young people.” 

For more details or to take part, please visit https://tigereye.eventbrite.co.uk/?s=91030977. Alternatively, you can support Tiger Eye and those walking the path by visiting the following page: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/TigerEye

The network of over 200 small business specialist accountants now services over 71,000 clients across the UK

The TaxAssist Accountants Support Centre in Norwich is proud to reveal over 1,440 new business leads were provided to its network of accountants during a very busy January tax season following the roll out of a range of new marketing initiatives.

“I’m pleased to report another very successful January for TaxAssist Accountants which is our strongest month for winning tax return work, newly formed business clients and established businesses who are not well looked after by their previous accountant”, comments James Mattam, Group Business Development Director.

“Last year, we launched our first national TV advertising campaign and rolled out a number of new online and offline marketing initiatives which combined, have contributed to a record-breaking year for lead numbers with 9,178 qualified inbound leads delivered to the network at the end of December 2018.” 

The TaxAssist Accountants Support Centre has a dedicated Business Development Team of 14 sales and marketing professionals working hard to drive thousands of new leads to its network of accountants to win more business.  James added: “We look forward to delivering even better results for the network in 2019 and have an exciting opportunity ahead of us from our unique position on the high street, accompanied by our digital accounting solutions such as Receipt Bank and QuickBooks.

“We’ve witnessed one of the Top 4 accounting firms pull out of the small business market this month as they attempted to offer remote services which simply don’t work as promised.  Business owners want to meet with their local accountant to better understand the financial details and gain trusted advice.  Digital solutions to help our clients are very important but a good solid relationship remains key to delivering a high quality service.”