the warranty group corporate brochure

7/27/2019 The Warranty Group Corporate Brochure

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Gloucestershire Citizen & Echo Business Awards 2013: Awards SubmissionBest Place to Work Category


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We recruit for the long term

We are The Warranty Group - the worlds largest single-source provider of extended warranty solutions. We workwith many of the UK and Irelands leading manufacturers,retailers and nancial services companies. From ourBusiness Administration Centre in Mitcheldean, wesupport our clients by delivering best in class customerservices. Through our group companies we have over 13million UK and Irish customers.

As one of the biggest employers in the Forest of Dean,we provide genuine career opportunities for local people,from school leavers and apprentices to graduates andprofessionals across a range of disciplines. Employingover 200 members of staff, we are determined to be oneof the regions rst choice employers for people seekingrewarding careers with real progression.

We chose to relocate to Mitcheldean in 2007, afterrecognising that, despite possessing a talented workforce, the region offered very few genuine careeropportunities for local people. Initially, we recruited roles inAdministration, Customer Service, Claims Management,Training, Finance and IT. However, due to the high calibreof our colleagues and their commitment to match us stepfor step to attain personal development achievements

and vocational quali cations, we have been able to addfurther roles covering Governance, Risk and AccountManagement.

We recruit for the long term. Our culture focuseson identifying individual potential and then makingopportunities available to realise it. All management rolesare lled from within and our aim is to recruit talentedpeople who are excited by the prospect of a career, not

just a job.

02 CompanyStatement...

In late 2007, The Warranty Group moved to the Forest of Dean with the clear objective of becoming one of Gloucestershiresbest places to work.

Embracing our core relocation philosophy to Recruit, Invest and Retain, our commitment to the 225 colleagues who joined us then was to deliver a culture where their best interests were at the centre of our business thinking.

Drawing on our strong heritage of developing talent from within, we have created an environment where our colleagueshave the support of an organisation that recognises the truth in the saying, a companys greatest asset is its people.

A clearly de ned trust culture, combined with personal learning programmes and bright career opportunities, givesour colleagues the empowerment and con dence to deliver exceptional customer service for our clients. This and theintense pride that we all get from being a part of the companys contribution to the strong sense of community whichexists in Gloucestershire makes The Warranty Group a great place to work.

We see every employee at The Warranty Group as an individual with their own success story to tell. Ultimately, it is theirwords overleaf that matter, not ours.

Thank you for accepting our submission for Gloucestershires Best Place to Work 2013.

Ian Kenny and Martin Scrivens

Business Operations Director and Learning & Development General Manager

01 Welcome...


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When I started I had nocon dence in my capabilities

I joined The Warranty Group in 2008, shortly after therelocation. I am the Risk Of cer for Europe, which meansI engage with the various areas of our business to nd anyrisks that may affect us, for example: operations, liquidityor credit. I undertake thorough risk assessments andensure that we have controls in place to mitigate risks.

I joined the company straight from college as technicalsupport for the Tesco Electrical Support team. My rst roleis totally different to what Im doing now. I worked my wayup from entry level with a promotion to Senior Associateand then Team Manager in the same year. I then becamethe Risk Of cer in May 2013.

I was shortlisted for Call Centre Agent of the Year at theCCF European Call Centre Awards in 2008 after just a fewmonths at The Warranty Group. I was commended for myefforts and returned a year later as Team Manager, havingbeen shortlisted for the Small Team of the Year.

The company actively support personal developmentwhich has meant that I have been able to undertake theCerti cate in Insurance quali cation; I recently passed my

rst module.

When I started I had no con dence in my capabilities andno clue about the working world, but the managers heregive coaching and support, and Im now very con dent.Ive also been nominated for three Employee Oscars andwon the management contribution award!

03 LizCoghlan...THE RISK OFFICER

We are all one big company- the senior management arent very

distinguishable from the rest ofthe team

I work in the nance department and Ive been with thecompany for four years. Before joining The WarrantyGroup I worked for Waitrose in Monmouth whilst I wascompleting my maths degree at Exeter University. I startedmy career here in Customer Services and after six months,I moved to our Claims department. Two years later, I wasgiven an opportunity to work in the nance department

and now The Warranty Group is putting me through myAAT exams. Ive been given lots of opportunities here,such as training courses in insurance and internal coursesto improve communication skills.

I applied to work here because The Warranty Group offeredthe chance to work in nance. Very few opportunitiesexist in the Forest for employment, particularly in nance,but here the company fosters career development. TheWarranty Group has such a friendly atmosphere and itsa great place to progress, particularly for the youngergeneration.

The international feel of the company is great. TheCEO gets involved over here, even though he is basedin Chicago. We are all one big company; the seniormanagement arent very distinguishable from the rest ofthe team. I could have the opportunity to work in Egham,where most of the Finance team is based, however I dontwant to live in the city so the Mitcheldean of ce is perfectfor me.

04 AndyWilliams...THE TREASURER


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The Warranty Group has provided me with theopportunities to develop the skills I need

Before I joined The Warranty Group I had itted around a number of jobs and my CV felt like it was a hundred pageslong! I worked for a large company in Gloucester for two years but I felt like there was no opportunity for progressionand the commute was very long. I joined The Warranty Group in 2008 and never looked back. I think lots of people enjoythe short commute, but I believe that most people would still choose to work here even if the of ce was further away.

I chose The Warranty Group as I had heard a lot of buzz about a new company moving to the Forest. I found their clientnames very impressive. I started in the Creditor department, managing calls from people who had claims. Whilst Iveworked here Ive held a number of positions, including a secondment in our Special Projects team and 18 months inHR (I love the variation!) but I really enjoy my current role as an Internal Account Manager for one of our biggest clients,a leading global car manufacturer. All these opportunities have given me wider business experience, which is brilliant.

The Warranty Group has provided me with the opportunities to develop the skills I need and now that Im settled withinmy current role, I plan to undertake the NVQ that has been offered to me.

05 GemmaWhite...

THE ASSESSOR

The business promotes fromwithin, which is great for my career

prospects

I relocated to Cheltenham from Finland three years agowhen I met my husband and I have been working for TheWarranty Group as a Motor Claims Advisor since March2013. Although my day-to-day tasks vary, my main roleis managing claims for our customers in Finland, Estoniaand Latvia.

The position is great as I get to use my Finnish, Swedishand English, which caught my interest as its great tospeak my rst language at work. I was attracted to thecompany due to it being global and having an establishedcompany structure. The business promotes from withinwhich is great for my career prospects.

One of the best parts of working with The Warranty Groupis the integrated nature of the company. I am in contactwith the Netherlands, France and Finland daily, whether itis one of our clients or our other of ces.

The Human Resources department has been verysupportive; we have a meeting with our of cer every sixweeks to discuss our personal development progress.They provide valuable advice and its always goodto know theres someone there to support you if youneed them.

06 EmmiAllison...THE ACCOUNT MANAGER


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The Warranty Group pay fortraining and quali cations for all

employees which shows a realinvestment in the local community.

I joined The Warranty Group in 2008; Ive lived in theForest my whole life and being able to work for a companyso close to home is ideal.

My role as Motor Claims Engineer involves dealing withclaims for a leading international car manufacturer. Before

joining The Warranty Group I was a mechanic but due to

back problems I was disappointed to have to stop work.Cars are my passion; when I was 15 I did work experienceat a local garage and from that moment I knew I wantedto work with cars as my career. I left school at age 16and decided to do an NVQ in motor vehicles, mechanicsand electricity which has been immensely helpful for mycurrent role.

The Warranty Group has given me the opportunity towork in the car industry without the physical strain thataccompanies working as a mechanic.

The best part of working here is that we have a friendlyenvironment that makes coming to work enjoyable. Iget to work with lots of people on a daily basis, the 20people in my team and many others who work in differentdepartments. We all work together which helps drive greatresults.

The Forest has a high level of unemployment, somethingThe Warranty Group is tackling. They pay for trainingand quali cations for all employees which shows a realinvestment in the local community.

07 DuncanKeyse...

THE ENGINEER

I love coming to work here

I joined The Warranty Group as an Apprentice in 2012and I have been offered a full-time permanent role in ourCustomer Service Centre now that I have completed myapprenticeship. As part of my apprenticeship, I workedin the companys Learning & Development departmentwhich meant I gained exposure to lots of areas of thebusiness.

The apprenticeships that The Warranty Group offer setit apart from other businesses in Gloucestershire. Theyreally encourage employment of locals as employment isrelatively low in the area. I am glad I chose The WarrantyGroup as the apprenticeship is really enjoyable and I lovecoming to work here. I have made lots of friends here andthe social side is great.

I did my A levels at Gloucestershire College at the Forestof Dean campus. I took Business, English Literature andSociology. Before joining The Warranty Group I workedpart-time at a bakery for ve years, with my twin sister,which gave me a great understanding of customer servicebut working in an of ce is completely new to me.

The Warranty Group has helped me achieve an NVQand a BTec quali cation in Business and Administration.I worked in the training department which meant that Icould do all the soft skill training courses, which we doat the of ce rather than going offsite. In addition to mydaily tasks, part of my role was to help organise the socialactivities that the company puts on, such as free fooddays, pub quizzes, meals out and sports competitions. Iget a lot of opportunities here; its so varied.

08 GeorginaHatton...

THE APPRENTICE


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I have the in uence and theempowerment to make

The Warranty Group a betterplace to work.

Ive been working for The Warranty Group for thepast 23 years. I manage the Special Projects teamand I have a number of responsibilities, includingmanaging business projects, compiling our qualitymanagement data and coordinating activities withour other European of ces. Theres never a dullmoment!

I joined The Warranty Group straight from collegeand have worked my way up. I began my career indata entry and six months later I had been promoted.The company promotes people from within based onattitude, work ethic and a desire to get involved inlong term career commitment.

My role has taken me all over the world, mostmemorably to China, where I was able to sharemy experience as someone who understood ourbusiness, our processes, and more importantly, ourcustomers. It was a great experience and I thrive onthese types of challenge.

There are always opportunities to improve a businessto help drive it forward. Fortunately, because of myrole and experience, I have the in uence and theempowerment to make The Warranty Group a betterplace to work.

The primary reasons that Ive stayed with TheWarranty Group for 23 years are the culture, peopleand quality of service we provide to our clients,which I think rubs off on us all. Im lucky enoughto work for a great company where the combinationof talent, commitment and hard work does createopportunities to progress your career.

09 AlisonPollecutt...

THE PROJECT

MANAGER


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Alison

The Aspen Building, Vantage Point Business Village,Mitcheldean, Gloucestershire, GL17 0AF

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