Granby: Investors in People

Granby and Investors in People (IIP)

Our vision is for Granby to be a sustainable 3PL business from the inside out. IIP has helped us to evolve better practices in order to lead, support and develop our workforce with this in mind.

Committing to this has had very positive impacts across the board. Staff are more satisfied and engaged in their roles, allowing us to build a business founded on experience and skill, where turnover is low. This quality and stability has a positive impact on our business and the work we do for our clients.

We were most recently re-accredited in 2021. IIP accreditation lasts for 3 years. During this time, we undergo 12 and 24-month check-ins, which involve our nominated IIP practitioner as well as surveys of our staff.

In 2022, at the time of writing, we have a Standard accreditation at the Developed level, as we work towards a Silver accreditation.

IIP review feedback

We’re proud to share details of our journey as investors in our people, so we’re taken a few highlights from the annual reviews. These are abridged and, unless in direct quotes, our words and not those of IIP.

February 2023

• IIP noted how Granby has made a “significant” transition by becoming an employee owned business that has a committee structure and an annual profit share arrangement.
• We’ve continued to focus on employee well-being, including the launch of our Employee Assistance Programme. In addition, we’ve further developed our approach to diversity and inclusion by signing up to the Disability Confident Scheme.
• Anonymous employee feedback gathered for this report was very positive, including “They are very open with communication – they keep us informed” and “I think it’s a happy place – I have nothing bad to say”.
• Our strategic approach was noted as being focused on high performance, which in turn is supported by KPIs for safety, quality, finance and the environment.
• Our learning and development strategy is aligned to business imperatives (like safety and customer service) and is designed to build workforce capability and flexibility. We continue to show our commitment to talent development through Granby Academy and the employment of apprentices.
• Our focus for the next 12 months includes enhancing the skills of current and potential leaders, training additional people in Mental Health First Aid, and seeking Disability Confident Scheme Level 2 accreditation.

January 2022

• It was noted that we’ve continued to adopt a progressive approach to people management. For example, we continued to develop agile working practices and enhance our approach to generating social value.
• Anonymous feedback from our staff included statements like: “In my time here I’ve been given lots of opportunities to progress” and “The values are important to everything we do here”.
• Staff who took part in the feedback reflected high levels of positivity in relation to satisfaction, motivation and association factors. For example, they said our senior leaders are approachable and adopt a hands-on approach, and they’ve been able to engage in relevant training activities.
• It was also noted how our staff felt we’d continued to respond “very effectively to the challenges thrown up by the pandemic by ensuring business continuity and maintaining a strong focus on employee safety, wellbeing and engagement”.
• Our focus for the next 12 months included continuing to enhance the skills of current and potential leaders, and further develop our corporate social responsibility strategy.

January 2021

• It was noted that our investment in people has “yielded a range of key performance outcomes”, such as the retention of key clients across 3PL, contract packing and promotional marketing, adherence to ISO accreditations and Cyber Essentials Plus, low staff turnover and a good safety record. (We hadn’t yet officially launched Reverse Logistics and Customer Service as standalone services at this point.)
• We have continued to improve people management and have demonstrated “strengths and elements of good practice”. For example, using a suite of KPIs to drive and measure performance, and actively supporting talent development through apprenticeships and Granby Academy.
• Staff who took part in feedback said they felt we had responded “very effectively” to the pandemic, ensuring business continuity and focusing on employee safety, wellbeing and engagement.
• Anonymous feedback from our staff included statements like: “They always send out thank you emails if you’ve done a good job” and “At Granby training is really promoted”.
• We were tasked with, among other things, continuing to enhance the skills of current and potential leaders, and “embedding a deeper explicit understanding” of our core values throughout the workforce.

January 2020

• It was noted that we were developing leadership and people management capability through a leadership programme and other training.
• We had a continuing focus on high performance based on KPIs and objectives relating to factors like finance, safety and quality, as well as the environment.
• Our learning & development strategy was continuing in alignment with safety, customer service and regulatory compliance. At the same time, our structured appraisal and competency framework allowed staff to align their own objectives to our goals and priorities.
• Staff who took part in feedback sessions all thought Granby was a good place to work and, among other things, that they felt there’s a “philosophy of achieving results through teamwork and cooperation”.
• Other feedback from staff included: “It feels like they are listening to us more now” and “We have a good team – that means a lot”.
• Actions for the next 12 months included continuing to research and develop our approach to health and wellbeing, and consider utilising new colleague inductions to communicate our vision and strategic goals.