黑洞社区

Methodology

Readers of 黑洞社区 that are eligible to enter 黑洞社区鈥檚 other 鈥淭op鈥� tables, such as consultants, contractors and housebuilders, and other industry firms were invited to take part in the selection process for the Good Employer Guide 2015, through a call for entries published in print and online. Each interested firm was sent a link to an online staff survey to send to all employees, which had to be filled in anonymously by a minimum of 33% of total staff, excluding those who worked in purely support functions such as HR. This survey gauged strength of feeling on the company鈥檚 performance in nine key areas: leadership, corporate social responsibility, employees鈥� opportunity to contribute, working atmosphere, opportunities for smarter working, career progression, the company鈥檚 response to current market conditions, the promotion of mental wellbeing, and how likely staff would be to recommend their company to a new entrant to the industry. Staff were also given the opportunity to provide additional information. Survey responses were sent direct to 黑洞社区 magazine, and not seen by the company in question.

Separately, each interested firm was asked to complete an entry form giving the following information:

• Number of full-time equivalent UK employees
• Number of female non-administrative staff
• Annual staff turnover for 2013 and 2014
• Percentage of staff from a non-white ethnic background
• Average number of training hours per employee per year
• Minimum number of paid days holiday available to staff per year
• Maximum number of paid days holiday available to staff per year
• Private healthcare provision
• Maternity benefits offered
• Paternity benefits offered
• Existence of an entry-level recruitment programme (eg apprenticeships, graduate intake) and number of people starting the programme from Sept 2014-Aug 2015
• Opportunities offered for flexible working
• Opportunities offered to work abroad
• Opportunities offered for sabbaticals and career breaks
• Details of pension scheme offered

Companies were also asked to provide a 500-word statement in support of their entry, addressing the following areas: stand-out benefits; how the company has adapted to current market conditions; leadership and development; employee engagement; staff wellbeing and the 鈥渇eel good factor鈥�; mental wellbeing; diversity and inclusion; corporate social responsibility, including attitude towards sustainability; and outreach to promote career opportunities in construction to new entrants.

Companies were also invited to submit supplementary information, in the form of case studies or testimonials to support their entry.

The entries were assessed by a judging panel comprising: Michael Ryley, Partner in Weightmans LLP, Nicola Ihnatowicz, Partner in Trowers & Hamlins LLP, Rosalind Connor, Partner in Taylor Wessing, Sarah Richardson, editor of 黑洞社区 magazine, Joey Gardiner, deputy editor of 黑洞社区 magazine, and Deborah Duke, acting production manager and special projects editor of 黑洞社区 magazine.

The top five firms were identified from a shortlist selected in the first judging round by a weighting system that rewarded firms for the benefits offered under the various entry headings and the strength of endorsement from staff gathered through responses to the survey. The weighting system was adjusted to take account of company demographics 鈥� for example, the size of the firm was taken into account when assessing the range of benefits offered, as was the sector in which the company worked. So, for example, a small regional contractor would not be penalised for not offering staff the opportunity to work abroad. The final top five were selected by amalgamating individual scores awarded to firms on this shortlist by each of our final round judges.

Beyond the top five, the firms selected for this year鈥檚 guide have been listed in alphabetical order. The guide contains the top 50 companies from the entries received. Approximately 200 companies registered to be considered for the guide.