Most people have probably heard of Investors in People, (IIP), but not necessarily know exactly what it is. Set up in 1991, It was a department of employment initiative, to improve performance, by helping business achieve their objectives through the management and development of their people. Six generations on its probably fair to say that it’s come a long way from the tick box approach which critics accused it off with some justification in the early days.

The emphasis now is Leading: Supporting and Improving which is measured by 9 key performance indicators.  Centre-West has been accredited by IIP, since 2003. We have seen it evolve and improve in its approach and relevance and that’s why we are still using it as a tool to guide our development as an organisation. After a context meeting, the assessment takes the form of interviews by an accredited IIP assessor with staff and board members.  

The interviews are confidential and aim to figure out at what level employers are aware of the overall purpose of the organisation and that what they are motivated to do matches the organisations desired outcomes. Following our latest assessment, we were delighted when in May this year we achieved the highest score we have ever achieved. Part of the assessment is benchmarking performance against the average IIP score and for your industrial sector; our is Charities. Centre-West is performing above average for both.

While it’s great to get a positive assessment and such a high score. “For all areas they would rate Centre-West at least a 9 out of 10”. We are not complacent and there’s still lots of room for improvement. Not least in these difficult days to ensure we are generating the income we need to achieve our charitable objectives regenerating the City and parts of Gateshead through, the Beacon, Hat-Trick, CHEFF and with our many communities, partners and stakeholders."

If you or your organisation is considering if IIP may be useful for your organisational development. Get in touch. We here at Centre-West would be happy to share our experience in some more detail and share whatever documentation we have, to enable you to make an informed decision.