News & Events

Harrogate-based Welcom Software, supplier of solutions to the Retail, Finance and Accounting sectors, has achieved the accolade of being awarded the Investors in People (IiP) Work-Life Balance accreditation. This brings the company’s total to four prestigious awards from the nationally recognised body for excellence in working practice.

Aimed at helping to improve the overall performance of an organisation, the IiP standards and models are only awarded after a rigorous assessment process and with the support of significant evidence gathered from interviews and observation. The Work-Life Balance accreditation recognises businesses that have taken steps to address the balance between home and work and can demonstrate results in terms of reduced absenteeism, increased loyalty, reduced stress and improved motivation.

In addition to this new accreditation, Welcom Software has already been recognised as working to the overall IiP standard and accredited against the Recruitment and Selection and Management and Leadership models. Achieving the Work-Life Balance model is a further valuable external validation of the company’s successes in improving its processes and environment, and the tangible business results that accompany this.

Excitingly, Welcom Software is the first company in the Yorkshire and Humberside region to be accredited against all three models, a fact that really sets it apart from its competitors.

Over the past two years, under the leadership of Chief Operating Officer Nigel Corp, Welcom Software has undergone a radical culture change that reflects Nigel’s passion for people-centred business practices. The new culture is exemplified by such innovations as regular “Mind, Body and Soul” reviews for all staff, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” forms to report and suggest resolutions to any concerns and regular initiatives addressing health, fitness and happiness in the workplace.

One recent initiative was the “Everest Challenge” which encouraged staff to use the stairs to the 10 th floor offices to climb the equivalent of Mount Everest, improving their fitness and achieving the business benefits of fitter and more active personnel. The challenge was taken up enthusiastically and its influence continues to this day, with staff continuing to climb the stairs after its completion.

For a six week period commencing in July, employees have been participating in “Make Mondays Matter” a series of messages asking them to treat each Monday morning as a new start. Themes have included “Prepare- Make the most of your time”, “Get Active” and “What makes you happy?”, all geared towards making improvements for the individual and the company.

It is Welcom’s commitment to, and enthusiasm for, programmes like this which impressed the IiP assessor sufficiently to recommend the company for the Work-Life Balance accreditation.

On hearing that the accreditation had been awarded, Nigel Corp responded "We're absolutely delighted and proud to be awarded the Work-Life balance model. This is testament to the initiatives we've put in place to ensure that our staff feel the benefit from our approach and helps to cement our position as an Employer of Choice in the software industry."