The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Chance to be cherry-picked for HR skills
Awards: Past winners hail benefits of entering for prestigious cHeRries
Winners of a prestigious annual event showcasing the best HR professionals and practices across the north-east have hailed the benefits of getting involved with the cHeRries Awards.
Last year two firms landed the prestigious Tremendous Training and Development Award, which recognises teams or individuals who have demonstrated a strong commitment to designing and delivering cohesive and innovative training and development programmes.
Iconic north-east food company, Baxters, andSubsea 7 were each recognised in the category, sponsored by Falck Safety Services.
Clyde Marwick, group HR director at Baxters, comments: “A core part of our HR strategy is about developing our talent for the future to support our exciting period of growth.
“Investment in training and development is at the heart of this and is vital for any business to attract and retain the best staff. Winning an award for our commitment to supporting our employees in developing their skills and learning recognises the value of these initiatives. We’d encourage fellow companies in the north-east to get involved in the cHeRries to showcase good people practice and benchmark outstanding performance.”
Colin Leyden, managing director of Falck Safety Services UK, said: “At Falck ‘People helping people’ is how we describe our business.
“This mantra r uns through every element of our company, from the training programmes we deliver to our clients, to how we train and develop our own staff. The latter is very important to us and we encourage our employees to live and breathe the Falck values by implementing and taking part in various HR initiatives.
“This year, we have chosen to sponsor the Tremendous Training & Development category, as we want to extend our support to other firms in the northeast who, like us, ensure their workforce is developed each year.
“We wish applicants and finalists all the very best and look forwardto attending the awards evening.”
Up and coming talent is also recognised with the Blossoming Award. Last year’s winner Marie Linderoth of Sodexo, won a prize of full funding for their Human Resource Management MSC from category sponsor, Aberdeen Business School at the Robert Gordon University (RGU).
Sodexo, world leader in quality of life services, was delighted when HR operations support, Ms Linderoth, wonthe2015cHeRries ‘ Blossoming Award’.
A spokeswoman for Sodexo said: “It recognised her genuine commitment to developing a career within Human Resource Management, as well as her understanding of the contribution that HR professionals bring to the organisation.
“Marie was thrilled to win, especially because it has strengthened her ability to support the Sodexo colleagues who believed in her and helped her grow.
“Marie’s caring and pro- ficient work ethic is a real asset to the organisation.”
Professor Rita Marcella, Dean of Faculty at RGU’s Aberdeen Business School, said: “Aberdeen Business School continues to support the cHeRries Awards through the Blossoming Award, as the award itself recognises the importance of early career HR practitioners as well as the value of education programmes such as the MSc in Human Resources Management.”
Organisers are also seeking nomination for the night’s biggest price – the Cherry on Top.
Nominations for the cHeRries Awards, run by the Press and Journal’s owner, DC Thomson, are now open.
Dundee- based DC Thomson is delighted to present the cHeRries, which recognise excellence in the fields of human resources, training and recruitment in the region.
Now entering its ninth year, the annual event is now free to all firms that enter. ThecHeRies features nine categories andattracts an audience of more than 500.
This year’s ceremony will on Thursday, June 2, at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre and will provide a fantastic platform for showcasing the best HR professionals and practices across the region. The entries opened on January 11, and close 4 March 4, 2016, and all entry forms andcategory criteria will be available on the website.