Hobson Prior recognised as excellent investors in people

Hobson Prior recognised as an excellent investors in people

Investors in People (IIP) has once again recognised Hobson Prior for achieving excellent standards of training, leadership and employee engagement. We have held the prestigious IIP accreditation – a mark of high performance through people – since 2009.

After interviewing staff at our Tunbridge Wells and London offices, IIP reported impressive feedback and a significant shift towards a more flexible, quality focused culture within the business. IIP highlighted three key areas in which Hobson Prior improved the most:

Training and progression

IIP praised Hobson Prior’s training for being “tailored, specific and joined up”. It noted that employees are given a clear progression pathway, and the organisation is open to different development routes that allow individual personalities to shine.

The report quoted one employee as saying: “I’ve been given opportunities I might never have got in another organisation.” 

Leadership

During the interviews, employees described Hobson Prior’s leaders as “supportive, challenging, appreciative, honest and collaborative”. IIP observed that “people clearly trust leaders and have confidence in their capabilities”.

One member of staff explained that leaders are proactive in addressing Best Companies feedback. Last year this suggested the company was too numbers-driven, and as a result, monthly reviews now focus more on quality than statistics. IIP also highlighted the introduction of the High Performance trip, which rewards over-achievement of personal targets rather than billing.

Employee engagement

Over the past 12 months, Hobson Prior’s employees have been heavily involved in agreeing the organisation’s new branding and set shared values. Moving towards a more open and engaging culture has clearly made a great impression on staff. As one interviewee said, “everyone genuinely feels empowered”.

“Hobson Prior has a loyal, enthusiastic and committed workforce,” says IIP’s report. “And it is clear that people genuinely enjoy working for the organisation.”

Moving forward, the organisation is now exploring how its shared values will inform its framework for learning, development and performance management.

Hobson Prior’s Operations Director, Jake Thomas, commented: “Investment in our employees is at the heart of Hobson Prior’s approach to growing and developing our business. The professional, dedicated and talented people within our company are the driving force behind our expansion.

We’re proud of our IIP accreditation, which recognises our efforts to listen and attend to the needs of our employees. We’ll continue to invest in the development of all our people and strive to deliver an even better service to our customers.”

ICS Group

Hobson Prior is part of the ICS group which includes Pulse jobs, specialists in providing nursing jobs to the NHS, psychological therapists, social workers, midwives and  ICS Digital Therapies, a pioneering new services which provides online IAPT services, ICS Diagnostics, which provides remote echocardiography services and A&E Agency, a specialist A&E doctor recruitment agency.