The Investors in People  (IIP) standard is a practical framework that any business can use to help ensure its people management, planning and communication processes are working together to achieve its goals and targets. IIP was launched by the Government in 1991 to help raise the productivity of businesses in the UK. Having undergone a number of revisions, we are now on version 6 – which has a clear focus on high performing organisations and reflecting on the latest workplace and leadership development.

Leading

The LEADING indicators explore how the organisation is led and managed and how leaders inspire people.

Leading and inspiring people 

Leaders clearly communicate the organisation’s objectives and inspire their teams to achieve them. They motivate and build trust throughout the organisation.

Living the Organisation’s Values and Behaviours

Both leaders and employees consistently embody the organisation’s values. They are encouraged and supported to challenge behaviours that do not align with these values.

Empowering and Involving People 

The organisation nurtures a culture of trust and responsibility, where individuals feel empowered to make decisions and take action confidently.

Supporting

The SUPPORTING indicators explore how the organisation supports people through the way jobs are designed to how people are recognised and rewarded and how performance is managed.

Managing Performance

Objectives across the organisation are aligned, with performance carefully measured and constructive feedback utilised to drive improvement.

Rewarding  and Recognising High Performance

Recognition and rewards are transparent and well-suited, fostering a culture of appreciation that motivates individuals to excel.

Structuring Work

The organisation’s structure supports its goals, with roles designed to meet objectives and provide engaging work. This approach encourages collaboration and efficient ways of working.

Improving

The IMPROVING indicators are all about how the organisation focuses on improvements, which is the bedrock of the IIP standard.

 Building Capability

The organisation actively manages and develops the skills of its people, enabling them to reach their full potential and ensuring the right talent is available at the right time for the right roles.

Delivering Continuous Improvement

A strong emphasis is placed on continuous improvement, with people drawing from both internal and external insights to generate new ideas and approaches. This is supported by a culture that champions innovation.

Creating Sustainable Success

The organisation is future-focused and adaptable to change. Leaders maintain a clear awareness of the external environment and understand its implications for the organisation’s growth and resilience.

1. We get to know you

We’ll kick things off with a meeting. You’ll talk to your practitioner and a project manager, and they’ll find out more about your organisation, your wellbeing strategy, your people, and what you’re looking to get out of this.

2. We survey your people

Next, we’ll send out a survey to all your people, to see what wellbeing programmes are in place, what’s working and what’s not. The survey’s got 25 questions, all based on your people’s wellbeing at work.

3. We spend time getting to know you

To get to know your people better, we’ll spend more time with them. We’ll interview a few people one-to-one at your offices, and sit in on some of your meetings, to get more of a feel for the approach to wellbeing within your organisation.

4. You get your report

We’ll take all our findings, and turn them into a report summing up what we found. This is where you’ll find out whether or not you’re accredited – and whether you’re silver, gold or platinum.

Your report will include plenty of views and quotes from your people, and our recommendations for what you can do next.

5. We help you take the next steps to make work better

Getting accreditation is a brilliant achievement, and a definite cause for celebration. But it’s not the end of the journey. Your accreditation will last for three years, and we’ll help you create an action plan for what changes your company’s going to make over that time.

We’ll check in with you regularly to find out how it’s going, and measure the effect your changes are having.

• Provides a national benchmark against others in your sector and other IIP organisations
• Supports recruitment and retention; particularly in sectors where there are skills gaps/challenges
• Provides the organisation with a continuous improvement plan which is reviewed annually

• Provides confidence to clients, partners and suppliers that the company is a good employer endorsed by the national people Standard
• Compliments other standards such as ISO, as it measures the outcomes of your policies and procedures and the impact these have on your people
• Some tenders will look more favourably at organisations who have the IIP standard as this shows there are clear and consistent workforce practices and generally a happier more motivated workforce