It is the only contract caterer to reach the list, positioning it as a leader in the hospitality industry and the UK employment market as a whole.
Tim Hammond, chief executive, Elior UK said: “This award is the UK’s definitive survey on satisfaction in the workplace and our ranking is testament to our commitment to investing in our people and making sure we have a strong, positive culture.
“We’re very committed to training and we invest in our people’s skills to deliver great customer experiences. To do this, we have developed eXperience, the award-winning customer service training programme.”
Employees at each of the 650 UK sites select a peer who they feel delivers a great customer experience to become a Service Champion. These Service Champions deliver the eXperience training to colleagues in 19 short, interactive sessions using a series of games, cartoons and practical tasks that bring the modules to life.
Arran McDowell, HR director, Elior UK, commented: “There’s a definite benefit to having eXperience delivered by a member of the team. It makes people feel that they are in charge of their own personal development and creates a less formal atmosphere that allows everyone to relax and speak their minds.”
Employees are also given the opportunity to develop their skills further through a formal NVQ qualification in customer service.
Hammond continued: “The eXperience programme and our emphasis on two-way communication gives our employees a sense of inclusion and is a huge part of our culture. We may be a big organisation but every employee has an identity, is referred to by name and impacts the customer experience through their daily roles.
"Any organisation can copy another’s ways of working, but you can’t copy their culture and what makes people feel proud. And, it might sound simple but happy employees equals happy customers.”