Tourism NI awarded gold for investing in its workforce

An international organisation, IiP takes notice of businesses who value their people and found, that at Tourism NI, “efforts are made to get the best out of” its employees.

The IiP accreditation provides assurance that an organisation is investing heavily in the development, progression and performance of its workforce.

Over the last 30 years IiP have accredited more than 50,000 organisations and the `We invest in people’ accreditation is recognised in 66 countries, which makes it the global benchmark when it comes to people management.

When awarding gold accreditations, IiP looks at what companies are doing to invest in people.

Awarding the gold accreditation, IiP found, that at Tourism NI, the “approach to communications helps staff see the connection between their jobs and the organisation’s aims and objectives”.

It added that the organisation encourages “upward feedback” and provides “opportunities for discussion and engagement”.

In addition, it was also noted that at TNI “people are encouraged to perform well” adding that this is achieved by employees receiving and utilising feedback which `supports’ them in their roles and `enhances’ their performance.

IiP added: “This comes from genuine interest in doing a good job and making a meaningful contribution through their work.

“There is a passion for delivering and striving to exceed. Your people are proud of what they do and believe that they really make a difference to Northern Ireland communities”.

Furthermore, IiP also found that the hybrid ways of working implemented by TNI supports its employees “to be more flexible and agile in how and where they work.

It added that TNI’s approach “balances the needs of the individual, team, and organisation. People truly value the increased trust, autonomy and flexibility they now have”.

TNI was also praised for getting “the best out of people by providing clear structures within which they can operate”.

An IiP survey of TNI staff concluded that 91% of employees agree it is “a great place to work”.

Staff comments included: “It’s an amazing place to work overall”, “I just love everything about tourism … I go home from work feeling happy”, and “People speak about this organisation with pride … I love it. I’m proud to work here”.

Paul Devoy, CEO of IiP, said: “We’d like to congratulate Tourism NI.

“Gold accreditation on `We invest in people’ is a fantastic effort for any organisation, and places Tourism NI in fine company with a host of organisations that understand the value of people”.

Louise Fitzsimons, Head of People & Organisational Development at Tourism NI, said: “I am delighted that Tourism Northern Ireland has been recognised as a gold standard place to work.

“Achieving `We invest in people’, gold accreditation was one of our key objectives for the year and it has been made possible by the passion of the amazing team here in Tourism NI,” she said.

“It is an outstanding achievement and reflects our culture which puts our people at the heart of everything we do”.

She added: “Only a small percentage of organisations with IiP achieve the gold standard and we’re thrilled to have joined the club”.

Caption:

John McGrillen, CEO of Tourism NI and Louise Fitzsimons, Head of People & Organisational Development at Tourism NI, pictured with the organisation’s gold `Investors in People’ award