We recently celebrated the achievements of 15 colleagues who successfully completed the six month Springboard programme, which was recognised in a presentation ceremony in the Atrium, hosted by Chief People Officer Jo Phillips, with awards presented by President Josh Weinstein.
The 15 colleagues were: Naomi Crisp, Caroline Graham, Matt Andow, Joe Sutton, Josie Sykes, Gustav Patrick, Ben Rooke, Vicki Hart-McClaren, Jenny Swift, Diane Steadman, Francis Fred (not pictured), Emma Kenny, Stephen Whiteland, Beth Pomroy and Leona Card.
Speaking at the ceremony, Jo Phillips said “It’s an exciting time for us as a business as we continue to grow, but in order to guarantee our continued growth, it’s vital we invest in our people and identify and develop our future leaders and managers. I’m immensely proud of the journey our first Springboard participants have been on over the past six months and I’m grateful to all of the managers who have supported them on that journey”.
As part of our commitment to supporting our people to become the best versions of themselves, Springboard is a targeted early development programme for our people (levels 10-7) who’ve been identified as potential leaders for the future.
Programme lead Siobhan Calfe (Senior Manager, Talent & Performance) commented, “We couldn’t have asked for a more engaging and dedicated group of colleagues to participate in the new Springboard Programme. The programme has provided not only an opportunity to develop key leadership skills, competencies and technical know-how but importantly it has provided an opportunity for individuals to network across functions and support and coach each other to get the most out of this exciting experience.”
Reflecting on the programme, Planning and Change Manager, Bethany Pomroy said: “It feels really great to be part of the Springboard Programme. I feel quite honoured and privileged to be one of the first people to go on it. One of the biggest takeaways for me is really understanding what it’s like to be on the receiving end of ‘me’ as well as understanding how people react to things as well as understanding my personal brand and how I act and react. I’ve learnt that leadership is more than just a title or a role, it’s a set of behaviours, a vast set of skills which anyone can pick up and learn as they go.”
Reward Manager Steve Whiteland echoes these thoughts: “It’s taught us about our personal brand, our networking skills, influencing skills, verbal behavioural intelligence – all sorts of skills we can keep in our tool box and use to develop ourselves. I can use some of these tools to inform and teach my colleagues as well as better myself and hopefully become a leader of the business and lead us to new ways of thinking in the future.”
Springboard is currently available to our shore side employees, however, we’re actively looking to review the programme to enable the same or similar offer to our fleet colleagues.
If you’re a manager and know someone you think could really benefit from the Springboard programme, or if you have any questions please contact your Line Manager and HR Business Partner in the first instance to get clarification on the nomination process.