How We Create the Best People in the Business
At Douglas & Gordon, a huge part of recruitment is based on a person’s attitude and belief. If someone has an amazingly positive, ‘get up and go’ attitude and has true self-belief, we know that they can learn everything else they need to through our hands-on training programme.
Investment from the Beginning
We invest a huge amount of time in our people and their development right from the word ‘go’. A new starter’s first week will see them learning all about the company, our culture and values, the different departments and some key information. They will also meet as many people as possible from around the business so that by the time they join their departments on Friday, they no longer feel new.
We have seen that providing a foundation of knowledge right from the beginning not only helps them to understand what is expected of them in their individual roles, but also helps them to feel part of the team straight away.
Learn by Doing
The best way to learn something is to do it and so our staff are encouraged to get going as soon as they join their department. Role-specific training happens regularly throughout their first few months and, as they are also getting to grips with their new job, they get to utilise their new skills straight away. The group sessions are a chance for everyone to compare notes and experiences which helps with development as well.
‘Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn’
We know that everyone learns differently, and at D&G we have the perfect business model and size to embrace that. Our sessions range from 1-1 teaching to group workshops and everything in between. If someone needs extra help or support, all they or their manager need to do is ask.
Interactivity is a key element of all our training sessions. Staff are encouraged to ask questions, given the chance to role play real life scenarios, play games and self-learn through our training platforms. The variety of training means that we can play to everyone’s strengths and, always important, keep it fun and fresh!
We also ask for honest feedback from everyone – we know that continually improving and updating our training programmes is key and who better to gauge how this is going than the trainees themselves?!
The Training Never Stops
The moment we stop learning, we will stagnate. Although the bulk of an employee’s training happens in their first three months, no one ever completes training! Refresher courses and legislation updates see even our most experienced people coming back into our training hub. Listening to new voices and mixing people with different levels of experience together is hugely beneficial for everyone involved.
We also offer our people the opportunity to gain qualifications to aid in their development. The added knowledge and confidence this will give directly impacts our clients and customers who know that they can come to D&G for a high level of competency and advice.
‘The D&G Way’
Everything we do at D&G is done with; Energy, Empathy and Expertise. The first two tend to be innate qualities that link us all together. If you add Expertise in, gained through hard work and training, you see what it means to belong to D&G.
