Investors in People

We are delighted to announce that, following an independent analysis and assessment of Sonic Megastore, we were awarded the “Investors in People” standard. The IIP standard is the leading people management benchmark of business improvement and we are very proud of this fantastic achievement. A 17 page report was compiled and we set out in full its Executive Summary below. We hope that this objective appraisal clearly demonstrates our total commitment to delivering a supreme level of customer service and reinvesting in our Sonic teams.

Executive Summary

"From information gained during the Assessment Planning Meeting and expanded on during the site interviews, it was clear that the senior management team running this business are seasoned professionals in this retail industry. Their past work experience and understanding in the retail of brown and white goods shines through in all that they have developed, applied and implemented within this relatively new organisation. Similarly, their sales teams and their support teams have been cherry picked, each for their past successful experience as high performers in this particular retail industry. Collectively, they make up a formidable sales machine with an exceptionally well presented range of merchandise in a high quality store based close to the centre of Bradford. Easy access and extensive free parking encourages customers from far and wide to shop at this store.

The company’s market positioning in what would appear to be already over crowded with strong competition from several blue chip company’s and in the face of a financial recession could be considered a dangerous venture. That is unless you have an edge and the Sonic Megastore clearly does. Their edge is provided by the capability of their personnel in campaigning total commitment to Exceptional Customer Service. This high level of service clearly runs straight through the organisation from top to bottom and is underpinned by the staff’s extensive range and depth of product knowledge across a wide range of white goods and brown goods provided by the sales and delivery teams.

Witnessed during interviews with personnel from across the organisation is the culture and ethos promulgated by the senior management team as open, honest, engaging and supportive of their staff, encouraging and gaining a high level of commitment from everyone that they manage. Their leadership and management abilities are the driving factors towards ensuring good attitudes, staff motivation and commitment. As previously mentioned, this is a family owned and run business and as such people feel that their exists a partnership approach to people involvement encouraging and gaining high levels of individual performance in the job. High performers are the norm in this organisation with encouragement and facilitation to higher levels provided by the management team on an ongoing basis.

As a result of the company directors past knowledge and experience, the organisation has quickly developed and implemented its Vision, its Aims and it’s Objectives through effective business planning and has communicated these with a good level of understanding across the whole organisation. They have developed a Staff Handbook setting out and detailing their range of operating policies and procedures for all to see. The circulation of these policies and procedures is reinforced through briefings and induction sessions as appropriate. Specific of note in this manual is the ‘Sonic Charter’ as applied to:

- Our Customers

- Our Staff

- Our Suppliers

- Our directors

- Our shared goods

Also of note is the establishment of Management Standards, describing the capabilities of managers to effectively ‘live the values’ and a section ‘My Customer – My Responsibility’ (MCMR) This development is directed towards facilitating high sales volume and is underpinned by Exceptional Customer Service.

All staff are encouraged to contribute to the success of the business in many ways including suggesting good promotional ideas, managing their own activities and taking total responsibility for their actions. The whole store is divided into discrete sections of merchandise with groups from the sales team each having responsibility for specified sections. The intention is that each section is kept fresh, clean, tidy and up to date. This also encourages a degree of internal competition between groups and individuals each vying for sales supremacy. All areas of the store are regularly assessed by management against a range of set performance criteria which is understood by all staff. The standards are high. The performance rating is to be not less than 80% achievement.

The management team is highly competent and inspirational and as such they lead, manage and develop their staff effectively and by example. Their people management style is open, encouraging, facilitating and they are always ready to listen. Every employee is subject to a performance appraisal review on average twice each year and each has a personal development plan, developed through agreement, which is led by their appraisal.

A range of established core values support the company’s intended purpose and vision and a range of metrics in the form of KPI’s measure and assess all aspects of organisational and business performance against targets. Clearly, this organisation is a good example of an Investor in People in their culture and their actions."

1 June 2010