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BIFA Awards
www.bifa.org
STAFF DEVELOPMENT AWARD
staff the fantastic opportunity to obtain a recognised qualification within the industry,” he added. “We pride ourselves on providing an environment that allows our people to thrive. By establishing defined goals and action plans for career progression, we endeavour to help our teams expand their knowledge and continue to improve the quality of their work life, which we know is essential to the success of any business.” Among Unsworth’s initiatives for boosting morale is the company’s GEM Award, which every quarter celebrates a member of staff who has ‘Gone the Extra Mile’. Noting that employees vote for their own colleagues, Hogg added: “The awards are a chance to recognise and highlight those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty, and they create a feel-good factor among our staff.” Feedback and suggestions Unsworth employees are also encouraged to provide feedback and suggestions to senior management as part of the company’s policy of open communication. “Staff can speak to us face to face or give feedback via an anonymous form, and we also hold periodic Q&A sessions to address their concerns. Where people can see that the company is listening, taking on board their views and implementing some changes, they feel that their voices are being heard.” It is through weekly feedback meetings that Unsworth took on board the suggestion to introduce a wellbeing day during the COVID-19 pandemic: an extra day of annual leave available to all staff immediately, that allows teams to take a day off work to look after their mental wellbeing. This was felt to be necessary given the challenges of COVID-19 and Brexit. Unsworth now also provides a company healthcare plan for all employees. Hogg observed: “Health and wellbeing are especially important when there is continuous supply chain disruption; people need to find a work/life balance in order to function at their peak level of performance.” Albacore believes that people are a company’s most valuable asset. That is why we are proud to sponsor the Staff Development Award once again with 2021 being the 11th year. Albacore supplies and supports efficient and reliable IT systems which ensure productive, empowered and satisfied staff.
Recent Unsworth GEM awards winners: Mario Maresse and Magdalena Krasinska
Building success by putting people first
Unsworth, winner of the 2021 BIFA Staff Development Award, prides itself on investing in its employees through training, recognition and career progression
“As an industry we need to be doing more to attract and develop staff,” said Richard Hogg, managing director at Unsworth. He feels the skills gap in logistics has been compounded by Brexit. “There is a lot of demand in the market for skilled Customs resources. The only solution is to encourage more people to join the industry and give newcomers structured learning paths and career progression.” Unsworth’s ‘onboarding’ strategies for new staff are structured plans with progressive milestones; face-to-face and online training; and reviews with the employee’s line manager and HR to identify any gaps in their knowledge and provide more support where needed. This has been especially important through Brexit, as the company has upscaled rapidly with the addition of a brand-new Customs Solution team to deal with the influx of Brexit- related Customs enquiries. “As part of our approach to staff development, we re-launched an updated in- house training course on Customs Clearance Requirements and Compliance in the UK, using our internal platform iSpring,” Hogg said.
Richard Hogg,
managing director at Unsworth
iSpring is a flexible training tool; Unsworth can configure modules and tests according to need, and the digital courses are supported with events such as visits to ports like Calais or Dublin. “Our Customs course enables staff to continue their training further using the UK Customs Academy to gain externally accredited qualifications, which is good for their career progression,” Hogg said. “The UK Customs Academy delivers training and qualifications that help our staff become either an accredited Associate Customs Practitioner or a Certified Customs Practitioner. As Unsworth is very keen to invest in our team’s professional development, we are glad to provide
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August 2022
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