The Vale Housing Association has just received confirmation that it has achieved the Investor in People (IiP) Standard. IiP is a national standard which sets out a level of good practice for the training and development of people. It is given to organisations which achieve business goals through a planned approach to setting and communicating business objectives and providing people with the skills, experience and support to meet them.
In order to achieve this standard, the Association introduced a number of new initiatives including the introduction of suggestion boxes for employees; quarterly performance reviews; and the formalisation of a corporate training plan. Communication briefs from Senior Management Team were also introduced so that important issues get filtered down through the organisation. All line managers were given some Management Development training. This included a session on coaching, one on leadership skills and one on performance management.
Steve Russell, Finance Director said, As an organisation, we have always been keen to provide our employees with the opportunities to develop their skills and have a say in the running of the Association but we felt that by working towards and achieving the IiP standard, we were showing not only commitment to our employees but a commitment to all our customers and stakeholders. Our improved working practices mean we can provide an even better service to them.
The Association does not intend to rest on its laurels. The steering group that was set up to co-ordinate the application for the standard has decided to stay together as a driver for further improvement in the practices of the Association. It now goes by the name of the “Improvement in Practice” group thus keeping the IiP theme as a reminder of what they have achieved already.
Communication and Research Assistant
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