EMPLOYERS2012

Barbados'

APPLICATION BOOKLET

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Barbados’ Best Employers award

Barbados’ Best Employers Award is the first to recognise and honour organisations operating in Barbados with exemplary human resource practices, policies and programmes. This prestigious biennial programme was conceptualised by Caribbean Catalyst Inc. in 2010. Once again, in partnership with the Barbados Business Authority and The Nation Publishing Co. Limited, the 2012 programme is being rolled out. The programme is open to locally based public and private sector organisations of all sizes.

Purpose

In recent years, there has been a concerted focus on increasing national productivity. This has been demonstrated by a renewed emphasis on the importance of an organisation’s most critical resource and its source of competitive advantage – its people. It is imperative, therefore, that organisations continue to understand the elements that best motivate their people toward productivity and excellence.

The Barbados’ Best Employers Award focuses on the human resource practices and climate of organisations and showcases organisations that demonstrate a commitment to their human resources through the adoption of progressive employment strategies.

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Compelling reasons to participate in 2012 …

1. A full staff survey which seeks to gauge the level of satisfaction and engagement of your people. Participation in at least two (2) consecutive BBE programmes would provide information on how your Company has progressed in the areas surveyed.

2. Comparative information showing how your company was rated in its category and against all other participating companies.

3. All participants who successfully meet the organisational survey requirements will be debriefed by Caribbean Catalyst Inc. During the debrief, organisations receive recommendations based on our observations and focused on the areas that will have the most impact on their business results going forward.

4. All finalists will be provided with the Barbados’ Best Employers (BBE) logo to be used for promotions and branding and they will be publicly recognised at the awards ceremony.

5. Finalists who share their HR Best Practices in the biennial publication and other fora are often viewed as employers of choice which should enhance their ability to recruit and retain staff.

Criteria

An award will be presented in each of the following Categories: Small, Medium and Large, which are defined as follows: Small – Up to 25 employees Medium – Between 26 – 150 employees Large – 151 employees or greater

Participating companies will be assessed on the following areas: Business Strategy Human Resource Strategy Culture Employee Communications Performance Management/ Recognition Work Environment Work Life Balance

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Community InvolvementDevelopment & Career Opportunities Compensation & Benefits

The Selection Process/ Methodology

Organisations may apply directly or be nominated for inclusion in the selection process. All participants must complete the Application Form to be eligible for consideration.

All applications will be acknowledged and applicants notified of their status regarding the selection criteria. Interviews will be conducted with designated management representatives from the companies selected for the Second Stage.Augmenting the results from the management interviews will be an organisational survey. At least 60% of the employee population must participate in order for the organisation to be considered eligible for the Third Stage. The survey, in the form of a questionnaire, focuses on the following topics:

This section will assess the company’s leadership style, the level of genuine collaboration and employee engagement.Employee CommunicationsThis section will assess the frequency and effectiveness of communications in the company.Work Environment This section will assess the extent to which the company’s environment and policies are conducive to productivity.Work Life BalanceThis area will seek to ascertain the existence of factors that purposefully support work-life balance.Community InvolvementThis section will seek to determine the company’s awareness of and commitment to its social responsibility.Performance Management/ RecognitionThis area will seek to measure the effectiveness of mechanisms for monitoring, enabling and rewarding performance.

Culture

Second Stage

First Stage

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Development & Career Opportunities This section will focus on the recognition of avenues for continuous development and career advancement.Compensation & BenefitsThis section will assess the extent to which the company’s compensation and benefits programmes are in alignment with employees’ expectations.

Third StageA team of human resource analysts will evaluate the findings from the Second Stage.A Review Panel of well experienced and reputable human resource professionals and business leaders will determine the finalists and winners in each category.

Fourth StageThe finalists from each category will be notified prior to the Awards Ceremony.Feedback reports will be compiled for all Second Stage participants including an Employee Engagement Index which describes the employees’ emotional and intellectual commitment to the company and its success.

Rules of Entry

Obtaining Application FormsApplication forms may be obtained from the websites: www.caribbeancatalyst.com and www.nationnews.com; the offices of Caribbean Catalyst Inc., River Road, Bridgetown or The Nation Publishing Co. Ltd., Nation House, Fontabelle, St. Michael.

Any individual may nominate his/her own company.Completing forms

Application forms must be completed thoroughly and accurately.

Submitting formsForms may be submitted on-line.Forms may be mailed or delivered to Caribbean Catalyst Inc., River Road, Bridgetown.