The Organisation

Rollasons Solicitors, based in Northamptonshire, are a well established firm of Solicitors founded in 1994 by two of the existing three partners. The firm has grown steadily since then and provides a comprehensive range of legal services covering Commercial and Residential Property, Family, Litigation, Employment, Wills and Probate law.

The firm was pleased to receive "Investor in People" status in October 2002 and have successfully continued to achieve the Standard every review since. This year they are not only celebrating 15 years in business but also their 3rd and most successful Investors in People Review.

"Throughout our relationship Investors in People has continually demonstrated the benefits for the company, keeping us focused on client care and staff motivation, which is paramount at all times. The new framework allows us as a business to put ourselves to the test and not be complacent. It has also been instrumental in helping us through some difficult decisions due to redundancies but thanks to Investors in People and new choices our business is still strong.”

The Challenges

The Investors in People standards expected to be reached by firms have continued to evolve year on year, to achieve this award significantly higher levels had been set by really stretching businesses potential. Rollasons were invited by the West Midlands Quality Centre to trial the newly revised framework which proved to be completely different to the previous Standard.

The new framework coupled with the doom and gloom of the recession was very challenging and required full staff involvement. They also needed to produce strong evidence of client care procedures. New rules and standards put them at the forefront of the changes which made it a really exciting time to be involved and a challenge from their previous success.

Other challenges for the company included the difficult current economic climate though Investors in People can help steer a company by managing change.

Rollasons has historically had exceptional staff retention and engagement and the decision to make 2 redundancies was not easy for them. However they can attribute the way it was handled and subsequently dealt with directly to Investors in People. Damage limitation with remaining staff was kept to a minimum and they endeavour to help the redundant staff pursue other opportunities. Managing change is a massive obstacle for any company and Investors in People gives businesses the tools to navigate through such times and make the best of potentially negative situations.

“Everyone is thrilled to receive such a glowing report as Investors in People is something that we as a company are proud to be associated with. Our "Whole Team Approach‟ really works, and its imperative we continue to strive for excellence which Investors in People has assisted us with"

The results

Their review was in November 2008 and they prepared with their assessor Nikki Hoyte in July. The fantastic relationship built up with Nikki ensured there was no reluctance to engage with her as they had seen the impact of Investors in People throughout the years With the new framework they were delighted to find that their practices were still pioneering and they were in line with the standard even though the new review was a lot tougher.

To test them further, and to get a real indicator of the company‟s synergy, they conducted the swot analysis with no managers or partners present just junior staff. Subsequently the Managers and Partners had their individual swot analysis and what was astonishing was they came back demonstrating how aligned they all were to the business plan regardless of rank.

Rollasons requested that the assessor look specifically at Business Planning and used their Business planning process to help them pull together to drive their way through the economic crisis.

The business plan is a direct result of the involvement they have had over the last 6 years with Investors in People. The plan had become a little static and they were not gaining maximum benefits from it. Therefore, to rejuvenate it they got each team to build a management plan and integrated it into the company business plan for the year. This helped to clarify the firm‟s business strategy and vision giving them long term direction whilst involving everyone.

The company do not tire of improving and do not want to become in any way stagnant so the new framework gave them an impetus to demonstrate this. They wanted to inspire and motivate staff and over the last 3 years since the last review they had kept this ethos.

The team meeting every month is a forum to discuss issues and review the business plan, which due to Investors in People remains flexible and open to debate. They have managed to stay confident and buoyant in these tough times due to their reinforced business acumen. The tougher, tighter framework brought in has highlighted how they continue to thrive in business and internally with Investors in People providing a robust indicator.

“Rollasons core values are embedded in the culture of the Practice and therefore, people feel valued and reassured that their jobs are safer than they would be elsewhere. The team spirit generated by completing Investors in People has undoubtedly contributed to the continued success of this practice in difficult times"

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