Barclays runs Gadbrook Park in Cheshire as a call centre operation specifically serving business customers; after achieving the Investors in People Standard in June 2004, the company participated in a pilot scheme to revise the award.

The challenge:
Call centres are almost expected to have a high staff turnover and, two years ago, Gadbrook Park was no exception. With the majority of people typically spending most of the day on the phone dealing with customer questions, issues and problems, the very nature of the work can be stressful and repetitive.

However the Barclays’ management at the site were not prepared to accept that there was nothing they could do about the situation and set about putting an action plan in place that would help to motivate and retain staff.

Samantha Eddleston, Performance Development Officer at the site, explains: “When I came to Gadbrook Park two years ago, we were losing people virtually every week and it was clear we had to do something about it or eventually the service we were offering would suffer.

“We wanted to build an atmosphere and team spirit that would encourage people to stay with the company and make them see they had a future with us, not just because it would improve the service, but because it would make this a place where people wanted to come and work.

We have used the Investors in People Standard for external validation of what we have done and to see whether there are areas in which we can improve.”

The solution:
Barclays has coined its strategy in a single phrase – ‘well being’. The management team recognised that they had to look closely at what they could do to support their people at the site, both in terms of their jobs and in their personal lives.

The philosophy recognised that if work made employees’ lives more stressful, they needed to help reduce other causes of stress, as well as helping staff to cope with their jobs.

Barclays quickly recognised that because they operate from a green field site, it was not easy for people to sort out everyday chores during their lunch hours. “We work in a beautiful location in the countryside but if you want to get your dry cleaning done, it’s not easy. For our people that meant that their weekends could be eaten into with that sort of activity when they should be relaxing and doing what they enjoy.

We took the decision to provide a concierge service at work, which carries out all those little jobs they don’t get the opportunity to do because they don’t have the time during the working day. You can make a vast difference to someone by taking away small hassles.”

In addition to the concierge service, Barclays has created a well being programme at Gadbrook Park to help their people manage all aspects of their lives. “It’s not about coaching them in their jobs. Instead we regularly bring in external expert advisers who can help them with anything from personal finance to health matters and a range of other issues that everybody has to face.

“We try to make it easy for our people to sort them out without having to leave work. We’re also helping people to give up smoking by giving them free nicotine patches, 41 of the 100 or so smokers here have signed up for the programme.”

The Investors in People Standard recognised that training and development has formed a central plank of Barclays’ strategy. In addition to an excellent general induction programme, Barclays University provides a range of training in specific job needs and ‘softer’ skills including assertiveness training and mind mapping.

“It’s up to people and their team leaders to decide what courses they go on”, adds Samantha. “But every member of staff has a personal performance development plan, which identifies their individual goal and targets, which helps to identify what training they need.

“Everyone has an annual assessment session but there are quarterly ‘health checks’ to ensure everyone is moving in the right direction. Everything is discussed and documented so that people know what they have to do and team leaders are always on hand if there are specific issues that need to be addressed.”

The benefits
The results speak for themselves. In two years, the site has seen significant improvements in morale with far lower rates of absenteeism than before.

“Gadbrook Park has become a very relaxed place to work, which is a significant achievement in a call centre environment. Our levels of sickness are almost negligible and, of the few people who do leave, there are always positive reasons for doing so rather than because they don’t like it here.

“Perhaps the greatest indicator of our success is the fact that we’ve just won the European Call Centre of the Year award. That’s a tribute to everybody who works here and their commitment to the company, which to me is the best indicator that we’re getting it right.”