In February, colleagues from across the country came together for Medequip's Annual Big Thank You Day event at Chesford Grange Hotel in Warwickshire. The event is a yearly reminder of how much each member of staff means to the company, with people nominated by their peers for the work they do, in recognition of their skills and abilities. This was the first time the event has taken place ’live’ rather than virtually since the pandemic, which made this year’s BTYD an even more special occasion.
Identifying our top 3.5%!
To recognise and celebrate individual and team achievements across the organisation, the committee in charge of choosing the final nominees and eventual winners had a harder time than ever, picking through a record 348 nominations. Event Host and Business Development Lead, Andy Phillips started as usual with the maths, stating that Medequip has 1,200 staff members across the country, meaning that if your nomination was shortlisted, you ranked amongst the top 3.5% of the company. If you win, you count amongst the top 1%.
With a wider range of submissions than ever, demonstrating the simply amazing feats that nominees and winners this year had achieved within their job roles, so many of our colleagues have gone above and beyond expectations and deserve acknowledgement.
Championing Partnership and Engagement
New to this year's awards, the Partnership and Engagement Award went to Marketing's Joe Woodvine, who worked on setting up 'Community Independence Champions'. This project takes guidance from professionals, creating a co-designed structure for Medequip's approach to the voluntary sector, and shows support and better information sharing with organisations helping our demographic. Runners-up were Andrea Clifton and the Ipswich Depot, for their hard work in co-production and community engagement.
Living the Medequip Values
The Living Medequip Values award was rightfully claimed by Lee Charles and Laura Croome from our Alfreton depot, who went above and beyond whilst out on a delivery when they found the client unwell and his distressed wife waiting for an ambulance. Not only did they offer support, but they undertook CPR until help arrived, and then supported the client's wife in what was a most traumatic time for her. Leyland depot's John Gannon and Woolwich's Samantha Smith were both also nominated in the category for their commitment to taking on further responsibilities beyond their daily tasks, ensuring that their respective depots thrive through the hard work and dedication that they put in each and every day.
All about Teamwork
In a Big Thank You Day first, there was a tie in the Team of the Year award, with our Brighouse depot sharing the spoils with the SHEQ & Training team. Despite a challenging year including a change in depot manager, the team at the Brighouse depot kept the service going to a very high standard, passing audits with ease along the way, highlighting the resilience, dedication and teamwork they display every day. Equally worthy, the SHEQ & Training team made continual improvements within the business for external accreditations, not only keeping the business risk-free but also keeping our Medequip workforce safe. Also nominated was the hard-working Stafford warehouse team who achieved great things last year supporting Manage At Home.
Recognising and Celebrating Long Service
As well as the 13 allocated awards presented, Long Service Awards were also celebrated, naming a total of 17 colleagues who have been working in the business for more than 10 years and four for more than 15 years. Heathrow's Cliff Bridger was this year's only 20 years recipient, whereas Claire Field received a notable 25 years award.
Congratulations to all our winners, our runners up and those who were nominated this year!