Silver Accreditation acknowledges BIU’s investment in people through lockdown

BiU, based in St Annes, has been awarded the coveted Silver Investors in People (IIP) accreditation, only achieved by 20% businesses assessed, this recognises the commitment that the energy consultant has in leading, improving and supporting the team that power the company.

The team at BIU are delighted to earn silver status, putting the company within the top 33% of those accredited overall. The silver level acknowledges the company has all the right principles in place to lead, improve and support its people, as well as having the right structure in place to maintain a silver level of accreditation.

Victoria Zawistowicz, HR Manager of BIU, said: “We’re thrilled to be awarded silver recognising all the work the company has done over the last few years to change its approach to people management from the top down, as well as the continuous investment in leading, supporting and developing the people that power BIU.”

Paul Devoy, CEO of Investors in People, said: “We’d like to congratulate BIU. Silver accreditation on We invest in people is a remarkable effort for any organisation, and places BIU in fine company with a host of organisations that understand the value of people.”

Accreditation is not a simple box ticking exercise. The 27 different elements assessed in a rigorous framework starts with an online survey of the entire workforce through to face to face interviews with random team members for feedback to the IIP assessment panel.

Results showed that an overwhelming majority shared the principal values underlying the everyday of BIU to be ‘Be Responsible’, ‘Be Together’, ‘Be Bold’ and ‘Be Imaginative’ as well as acknowledging the company has a plan for growth of the business and team.

Michael Abbott, CEO of BIU, commented: “We started 2020 with Best Companies ‘Outstanding Place to Work’ accreditation, as well being awarded as one of the ‘Top 100 Small Companies to Work For’ by the Sunday Times. And within 12 months we have received Silver IIP – what a great way to start 2021.

“BIU has always strived to lead in the industry by looking after their people properly – from supporting the team with balancing home-work life in 2020 and beyond, through to several years of continuous and sustainable organisational improvements so we can lead by example.

Michael continued. “I’ve never been prouder than I have been in the last 10 months to work with such skilled and spirited people that have grown our business and continue to endure Coronavirus crisis. People power BIU, and I’m delighted it’s been recognised with the IIP silver accreditation on our first-ever application to Investors in People.”