Employee recognition is very important to us here at WPG. Along with helping our talented team feel valued, it motivates individuals to continue doing such a great job and ensures no achievements (no matter how big or small) are missed.
Which is why, each year we bring everyone together for our annual WPG Awards. The all-important accolades give us an opportunity to reflect, celebrate and recognise all the special contributions the team has made over the past 365 days.
Trio of awards
Each year there are three awards up for grabs and these are given out for stand out behaviours and actions specifically linked to our values. From innovation and trust to participation and collaboration, our core values guide us in everything we do like making key business decisions in addition to our day-to-day activities.
Any individual can be nominated for these awards by their colleagues.
On the day, Professor Fiona Patterson, Founding Director, awarded the esteemed prizes to our consultants Jordan Buxton, Melissa Washbrook and Charley Bond. Fiona said: “Congratulations to our trio of winners. This recognition is a well-deserved reflection of all the hard work Jordan, Mel and Charley do in their day-to-day role, as well as in the wider team. The trio go above and beyond to live and breathe our core values and all their hard work doesn’t go unseen.”
‘Goes out of her way to share her expertise’
Jordan was our first winner, who was awarded the accolade for Participation & Collaboration, Courage, Innovation and Learning.
Jordan takes charge of our workplace wellbeing innovative, the WPG Olympics. The Olympics give the team an opportunity to bond, get together and participate in activities we might not have otherwise tried.
Putting Jordan forward for the award, one colleague said she does a ‘great job’ at bringing the team together even though we all work remotely and are spread across the county.
Jordan also held a talk at last year’s 50th Association for Medical Education in Europe conference (AMEE). Commenting on this, one colleague declared Jordan’s first in-person speech as the ‘best comms of them all’. The colleague added: “It was a privilege to watch Jordan deliver a brilliant, engaging talk, which she took it all in her stride.”
‘Supports the team with resourcing-related issues’
Next up was Mel, who won the prize for Courage, and Adaptability and Trust.
One team member threw Mel’s name into the nominations hat for her ability to make sure that ‘everybody feels supported’. The colleague said Mel always goes out of her way to adapt her schedule and communication style to make sure she gets the job done and in a timely manner, too.
Mel also showed a great deal of courage at the AMEE conference where she put herself out there and presented and participated in the conference.
Shortly after joining WPG, Mel has since taken on a role in resourcing. One colleague mentioned that not only does Mel do this role ‘well’, but she goes out of her way to check in with individual members of the team to ensure they are managing with their workload, while taking a human approach throughout. The team member added: “She has built trust with members of the team who feel confident to go to her whenever we feel overwhelmed, and Mel takes ownership to help find a solution.”
‘Has really great attention to detail’
Our third consultant, Charley, scooped the final prize for Courage, Results Focus and Learning.
Since Charley joined WPG, she has shown a continuous commitment to learning. One colleague said Charley is ‘naturally inquisitive’ and when she is unsure about something she’ll always ask questions. The colleague said this continuous self-reflective practice is shown through any new day-to-day tasks and when she’s working on the latest projects. The colleague added: “It is clear that Charley invests in every opportunity to learn and then goes on to apply these learnings to other projects and tasks.”
Charley was also congratulated for her ability to create ‘consistently high-quality work’. The colleague described Charley as being ‘extremely organised and efficient’ and often leaves things ‘better than how she finds them’.
Another work mate highlighted Charley’s ‘positive and proactive attitude’. They added: “She approaches any uncertain situations positively and proactively, with a rational and level-headed attitude.” The colleague said Charley is ‘always’ a pleasure to work with and you know that when you leave a task with her, it’s in ‘good hands’.
Nominations are already open for the next annual awards and we’re already seeing some great examples of the WPG values across the team.
