The Business Awards for Wales are an initiative of the IWA and the Western Mail, in association with PwC
The Royal Mint, John Lewis Cardiff and electronic systems business Kigg have been named as finalists at the IWA Western Mail 2011 Business Awards.
The three businesses have been listed in the Training & Development Staff Award category, sponsored by University of Glamorgan Commercial Services.
The category seeks to recognise a company which is committed to developing talent through career progression. The judges will also be looking at how the training and development of staff has contributed positively to the performance of the business.
The Royal Mint in Llantrisant is one of Wales best-known employers – producing everything from coins to Olympic medals. It became a limited company last year.
The Mint has invested in leadership development, creating tailored plans to develop its team leaders. It has also introduced an engineering apprenticeship scheme, with its first apprentices graduating this year.
John Lewis Cardiff believes that when staff are allowed to develop themselves it translates into better customer service and better sales performance.
It has invested in specialist training for baristas and warehousing staff and employs three full-time learning and development coaches.
The retailer has also developed a bespoke management development programme for members of staff who aspire to leadership positions in the partnership.
Kigg, based at Sully in the Vale of Glamorgan, is a designer, developer and manufacturer of electrical systems for power utilities and industry.
More than three-quarters of the company’s employees have received training or are currently receiving training since joining the company. That training ranges from typing courses to PhDs.
The company has a workforce retention rate of 86% and is investing a large proportion of its budget into training.
The category winner will be announced at the awards dinner on Friday of this week.
Joanne Hill, ACIM marketing manager, said the university was delighted to be the category sponsor.
“The University of Glamorgan is proud to be sponsoring this year’s award for Training & Developing Staff at the IWA/Western Mail Business Awards.
“The ethos of the category, to be awarded to a company wholly committed to developing talent through career progression is an approach, as an organisation, that we wholeheartedly support and adopt with our clients across all sectors. Training is best undertaken in the context of meeting organisational goals and to addressing the needs of both the workplace and the individual.
“We look forward to meeting the nominees and the eventual winner on awards night.”
Overall awards sponsor, PwC’s chairman for Wales and the south-west of England, Rob Lewis, said:
“PwC feels that there has never been a better time to run a national business award scheme for Wales. It is essential in the current climate that we identify and recognise the success stories within the Welsh economy.”
