Saint-Gobain’s silver status

Eggborough-based Saint-Gobain Glass has been awarded ‘Silver’ status by Investors in People, coming very close to the ultimate ‘Gold’ status.

In assessing the company, Investors in People recognised that Saint-Gobain Glass was an established Investors in People (IiP) organisation, and that the company has a ‘history of excellence’, which has been positively recognised by other external bodies, including World Class Manufacturing, and the Times 100 Best Green Companies.

IiP highlighted two related statistics: that no permanent member of staff had lost their job in the last year, and that the company had not made a loss during any month. “These two achievements reflect the commitment of the whole team to a culture of supporting each other,” IiP said. It was also noted that employees at Saint-Gobain Glass had a realistic view of the economic climate.

In its review of people management within Saint-Gobain Glass, IiP said: “In discussions with team leaders and shift managers there were extremely positive comments about the quality and impact of the Core Leadership Training that has occurred. This was seen as having a practical approach that had led a number of individuals to review their leadership style and develop behaviours that support the company’s HR Framework.”

Dr Alan McLenaghan, Saint-Gobain Glass’s managing director, said: “We are extremely pleased with the silver award status awarded to us by Investors in People. There is always a worry that you are not getting the right feedback from your employees, but this review has proved that we are doing something right. The review also presented us with opportunities to improve the way we interact with the workforce – we will work on these for the next Investors in People review.”