Career Advice
Anglian Water CEO: “We Look For People Whose Behaviours Align To Our Culture”
Glassdoor Team
Glassdoor Team | Author & Career Expert at Glassdoor | 5 Dec 2018
Anglian Water is the UK’s #1 Best Place To Work in 2019, beating the likes of Google, Apple, SAP and J.P. Morgan. So, how does a company that supplies water in the East of England beat global tech, consumer goods and investment banks when it comes to keeping employees happy? Here we speak to Anglian Water’s CEO, Peter Simpson – himself a Top CEO in both 2018 (#12) and 2017 (#1) – to find out how this progressive company has become the newly crowned #1 Best Place to Work in 2019.
What does it mean to have your employees honour the company as #1 Best Place to Work?
It’s fantastic that Anglian Water has been awarded the top spot in this year’s Glassdoor awards, after coming second last year – I am extremely proud. It’s especially significant because it’s based on feedback left by our own employees.
I would like to thank all our employees who make Anglian Water such a great place to work every single day - somewhere I love working too.
What are two or three steps your company has taken within the last year to double down on company culture, employee engagement and employee feedback that may have led to this win?
We work hard on encouraging employee wellbeing and creating a culture driven by happier, healthier and safer staff. Looking after our employees is at the heart of delivering great customer service, alongside the enthusiasm and dedication our staff have for their jobs.
Over the last year, we’ve undertaken even more work to understand and develop the positive culture across the organisation so we can continue to build on our success and support our staff in the best possible way.
This award speaks volumes about the company but also signals to job seekers that this is an amazing place to work. Why should job seekers apply for an open role at Anglian Water? What are two to three benefits, practices or traditions that are unique to your company?
Our staff are proud to work for Anglian Water. There is a real sense of care and support across the organisation, whatever area you work in. Our employees get a true sense of purpose from providing safe clean drinking water, sewage services and protecting the environment for the wider communities we serve.There’s always the opportunity for our staff to improve, develop their skills and try new things. Over a quarter of our external hires are through employee referrals and we don’t financially incentivise them to refer their family or friends, which speaks volumes about how happy our people are to work here.
What kinds of roles are your company prioritising right now? What types of innovation are you investing in within that specific department?
We have just had a big drive on recruiting leakage experts to help us continue on our journey as industry leaders at slashing our leakage levels. It’s a huge issue for our industry and our customers, so we’re looking for the best people with new ideas and a passion for innovation to help us take on the challenge. Our aim is to have world leading levels of low leakage by 2025.
We recently won an award for our work on innovation and leakage at the World Water Congress in Tokyo. It was a very special honour to be picked from entries from 45 countries around the world.
Glassdoor is all about transparency and helping people everywhere find a job and company they love. What insights can you share about the interview process at Anglian Water? What types of questions do you ask?
We don’t just look for the required skills in our future employees, but also their experience and knowledge too. Just as importantly, we look for people whose behaviours align to our culture and who share the same values as we do as an organisation.
How are you using Glassdoor to attract the types of candidates you’re looking for?
We encourage our staff to leave authentic reviews to demonstrate what it’s really like to work for us. We also advertise many of our exciting career opportunities on Glassdoor, so both aspects go hand in hand. People can see what our staff have to say and hopefully be inspired to apply for a career with us.
What keeps you at the company for the long haul? What advice would you give to companies focused on retention?
A sense of pride in what we do and achieve as a business. I believe it’s so important to create an open culture, where our people are the experts at what they do and they’re given the freedom to do what’s right for our customers.
How can job seekers get prepared for the future of work in your industry?
Our industry moves at a fast pace. We’re always looking for people with new ideas and transferable skills, who aren’t afraid to take on a challenge.
Apply for jobs at Anglian Water today!
Glassdoor Team
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