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Founded in 1999, BPL stands as a charitable trust with a remarkable journey, currently overseeing 12 venues spanning Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire, with a workforce exceeding 500 individuals.
Our autonomy has paved the way for our commercial success, allowing us to broaden our horizons, create diverse ventures, and establish distinct brands firmly rooted in our local communities.
Presently, BPL offers a wide variety of products and services including fitness facilities, swimming pools, golf courses, visitor attractions, catering services, and event hosting, displaying our commitment to holistic leisure experiences, and making our communities feel good!
Recognising the need for change, we embarked on a journey to redefine our purpose, centred around our overarching goal of ‘Helping people feel good.’
As a people-powered organisation, we understood the significance of aligning our brand strategy with this newfound purpose.
Our development into a purpose-driven business was marked by a commitment to empowering our communities and fostering a workplace culture rooted in innovation, warmth, and a deep connection to our local communities.
Creating an Employee Value Proposition (EVP) became paramount, serving as a reflection of our values and expectations for our employees.
We sought to develop an EVP that was not only distinctive but also encapsulated the essence of ‘One BPL’—a fusion of brand and culture.
This involved deep reflection, data gathering, and employee engagement to identify key themes essential for our future success and growth.
Through this process, we uncovered what was truly important to our employees and what differentiated BPL as an employer.
We aimed to articulate the benefits our organisation offers to colleagues (the ‘Get’) and what is expected of them in return (the ‘Give’).
This EVP would serve as a guiding framework, embodying our purpose, vision, and core values.
Our commitment to creating a cohesive EVP was further reinforced by a strong emphasis on internal alignment and engagement.
By creating a shared sense of purpose and belonging, we aimed to empower our employees to embody our values day in, day out, ultimately contributing to our collective success.
From our data analysis, we distilled key themes into an effective ‘give’ and ‘get’ Employee Value Proposition (EVP) model, aligned with our purpose, vision, and core brand values.
To complement this, we crafted a cohesive visual identity, featuring ‘It’s a good thing…’ monikers and iconography representing our core value pillars.
A vibrant colour palette was meticulously selected to reinforce our internal brand, accompanied by engaging photo shoots and Vox pop style interviews capturing staff sentiments. These visual elements were utilised across all touch points to amplify the EVP values to our employees.
The resounding feeling that emerged was that ‘It’s a good thing’ to work at BPL, serving as the cornerstone of our EVP.
This overarching theme flexibly extended into various aspects of our employee journey, including onboarding, training, recognition, and leadership behaviours, such as ‘It’s the start of a good thing’ for onboarding/induction, ‘It’s a skills thing’ for training, ‘It’s a thank you thing’ for recognition, ‘It’s a green thing’ for sustainability and, ‘It’s a people thing’ for leadership behaviours, among others.
Our ongoing implementation plan encompasses several key initiatives.
Firstly, we focus on attracting new talent through strategic recruitment efforts.
Secondly, we ensure seamless onboarding experiences, aligning interview and acceptance communications and offering comprehensive induction programs that embody our vision, values, and commitment to trust.
Thirdly, we prioritise learning and development, equipping leaders with the necessary tools to uphold the promises of the EVP.
Fourthly, we created a variety of internal message to increase the awareness of our sustainable commitments.
Lastly, we revamped our rewards and recognition scheme to spotlight and celebrate employees who exemplify our values, placing ‘give’ behaviours at its core.
By embedding our EVP into every facet of our organisation, we aim to foster a culture where employees feel valued, empowered, and inspired to contribute their best.
The implementation of our Employee Value Proposition (EVP) has displayed effective and positive outcomes for BPL.
In a recent engagement survey, 84.9% of respondents affirmed that BPL is a great place to work, marking a 5% improvement from the previous year’s results. Additionally, in January 2023, BPL was honoured with the ‘Investors in People Gold Award,’ achieving a 6% increase in performance compared to the prior year.
Subsequent surveys conducted in March 2023 revealed improvements in employee satisfaction and engagement.
Notably, 95% of our workforce expressed pride in working for BPL, representing an 18.75% increase from the previous survey.
Moreover, 85% reported feeling a strong sense of belonging, reflecting a substantial 26.887% improvement, while 71% felt appreciated for their contributions, marking an impressive 77.5% increase.
Since the launch of our EVP, we have successfully re-inducted 440 staff members, ensuring their alignment with our values and objectives through engaging activities and informative launch materials.
Our commitment to employee well-being and engagement has not only bolstered internal culture but also contributed to BPL’s swift recovery from the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In fact, according to Sport England’s data on community recovery rates, BPL’s progress has outpaced industry standards, reaching an impressive 120% recovery rate by April 2023, compared to the industry average of 86%.
The impact of our EVP extends beyond internal metrics. It has attracted prospective applicants by effectively communicating the benefits and sense of belonging offered by BPL.
This has been particularly crucial during a time of industry-wide challenges, enabling us to not only maintain operations but also deliver enhanced financial returns.
Our investment in staff development through the EVP has been pivotal, distinguishing BPL as a leader in the leisure sector. Despite the challenging landscape, this initiative has been instrumental in securing our future success and growth.
Winning the Best Culture Transformation Initiative award would affirm our commitment to thinking outside the box and further validate the significance of prioritising employee well-being in our industry.
