The Best Employers Eastern Region Conference and Awards 2016 took place at Hengrave Hall in Bury St Edmunds and was attended by more than 100 members of the region’s business community.
The morning was dedicated to sharing ideas and inspiration on employee engagement and discussing its impact on business performance. The guest speakers at the event were Chantal Misquitta from AstraZeneca, Daemmon Reeve from Treatt plc, Norman Pickavance and James Brown from Grant Thornton, and business transformation consultant Steve Turpie. These five high profile business leaders, all from very different organisations, shared their journeys to creating great places to work. Key themes included authentic leadership, the challenge of maintaining employee engagement in a growing organisation and the benefits of a people-focussed approach.
Lynn Walters, alongside Margaret Burnside, Director of People Development at eras ltd, also led discussions on the latest employee engagement trends and shared the key findings from this year’s Best Employers Eastern Region survey. The results of the employee survey also determined this year’s award winners, with accolades being presented to the organisations with the highest scores, based on their own employee feedback.
This year the award for the region’s Best Overall Large Employer award has been sponsored by East of England law firm Birketts. Jeanette Wheeler, partner and head of employment law, presented the award to Amara, and also presented the award for the region’s Best Overall Small Employer to Pound Gates. This is the second time Ipswich-based Pound Gates has been honoured with a Best Employers Eastern Region award, having previously received the same accolade at the inaugural awards event in 2012.
