Marshall Motor Holdings has been named by Great Place to Work as one of the UK’s best workplaces in the ‘large’ category (organisations with 500+ employees) in its annual Best Workplaces list.

Ranked 26th, this is the first time Marshalls has received this honour which recognises the company as has having a “high trust, high engagement workplace culture” that attracts and retains talent and helps drive business success.

The methodology includes an employee survey and an audit on the organisation’s management and HR practices.

To be successful, participating companies must achieve a high minimum score in their employee survey which measures the levels of trust and engagement in an organisation.

The award also recognises the strength of leadership and the range of innovative, creative and effective HR policies that have created a vibrant workplace culture.

Daksh Gupta, Marshall chief executive, said: ‘’I am delighted that after Marshall Motor Holdings achieved a high ‘trust index ‘score (81%).

“In 2014 we had the opportunity to enter the Great Place to Work rankings programme to gain formal recognition by being benchmarked against the very best large UK companies.

“Following an extensive audit of our management and HR practices, in addition to our survey results, I am extremely proud that last night we were named by the Great Place to Work Institute as one of the UK’s best large workplaces.

Major UK companies take part in the  programme including Microscoft, Hilton Hotels, Admiral Group and Cisco.

“The work of these organisations is impressive,’ said Tom O’Byrne, chief executive of Great Place to Work.

“They provide an example that others can look to, to see what kind of outstanding workplace is possible and how to get from good to great, regardless of size, industry or other circumstances.

“For example, the growth that many of these organisations are experiencing is tremendous, and they are paying close attention to their culture every step of the way.

“This focus on a strong cultural foundation provides a strong competitive advantage and help pave the way for continued success as they serve their employees and their customers.

Organisations named on the Best Workplace list see many benefits that include better financial performance, lower employee turnover, higher levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty, more innovative and creative thinking, higher productivity and enhanced public perception.

To see the 2015 Best Workplaces list and to learn more about how to build a high-trust workplace culture, visit www.greatplacetowork.co.uk

Gupta was interviewed for the results of the 2015 Great Place to Work research:

What have you hoped to achieve by taking part in the programme?

Our strategy to become the employment destination of choice in our sector aligns perfectly with the Best Workplaces Programme and helps to set us apart from our competitors.

Naturally the PR opportunity was part of our motivation and helps with our employment brand to prospective new colleagues. However, for our existing colleagues who have worked so hard to create such a good culture in their businesses it is great recognition for them and something we can all be very proud of.

How have you sought to recruit the right people?

It is critical our employment brand attracts the best people. We are addressing this internally through smart recruitment advertising to attract applicants from other industries and a robust selection process which promotes our employment brand and demonstrates we are responsible recruiters.

Our Marshall Learning Academy provides first-class training especially for those joining us from other industries.

What are the three most important things you’ve learned?

It’s often the smallest things that make the biggest difference – some of the changes and new initiatives we have put in place as a result of this programme have been really simple and inexpensive, but had a huge impact. Also, internal customer feedback is invaluable – our industry spends a huge amount of time analysing external customer feedback.

We recognise the value in getting feedback from our people who actually deliver that customer service.

We also get buy-in from the top – everyone in the senior team is genuinely committed to colleague engagement and continuous improvement – these underpin our values.

How will you sustain the high levels of engagement you’ve measured?

For us this has never been just about gaining external recognition. While it’s important and helps to support our strategy to be the employment destination of choice, colleague engagement and the continuous

improvement of it is woven in to the fabric of our business.

The programme has enabled us to measure what we have always set out to achieve and make it tangible

for everyone to understand. It’s very easy to think that we’re doing a great job and that our colleagues are really

engaged, but without an external measurement against an external benchmark it’s impossible to put how

we are doing into perspective.

The Best Workplace Programme provides great structure and a platform to communicate progress

but it’s the continuous hard work throughout the year to build on what we have already achieved that will

ensure we are successful in sustaining it.

We will always aim to be better and it will always be on our agenda.