Monthly: February 2012

Jason Le Ray, RBS International, reflects on winning Excellence in Training

It has taken the best part of two years to reinvigorate the development options available to RBS International staff and to implement a real Guernsey specific focus to the way the Bank approaches its people strategy.  Winning the Excellence in Training Award at this year’s Awards for Achievement evening is fantastic recognition of the journey that our employees have embraced and all that has been accomplished in the past two years.

Driving the ongoing campaign has been the knowledge that RBS International’s greatest asset, as a service business, is its staff.  We are fully committed to offering the best possible customer service and recognise this is only possible when staff are motivated and confident to support the local community.

Throughout the organisation, the investment in training and education has been welcomed and is playing an important role in helping our business meet our customers’ needs and the demands of an ever changing commercial environment.  If every member of staff does their bit to adapt, then the bank will be better placed to adjust and meet these evolving challenges.

We will of course take some time to celebrate winning this award, but there is a clear sense within the bank that we cannot rest on our laurels.  This Award will inspire greater momentum to ensure we continue to adapt because the banking industry will continue to face on going changes and challenges in the coming years.

In the immediate future, we will be looking to further develop the Learning Hub which has proved to be a major benefit.  The local aspect of this educational facility has been invaluable in helping employees understand local matters and local market nuances, both of which are vital when operating in a small, close-knit environment.  We will also continue to encourage staff to develop their leadership and communication skills by delivering more of our MoneySense sessions to Guernsey schools.

This award is testament to the willingness of RBS International employees to take personal ownership of their ongoing learning requirements.   I would like to thank all staff and line managers for the important role they have played in helping RBS International position itself as a business which is adaptable and responsive to customers’ needs.

Jason Le Ray
Relationship Director, Institutional Banking
RBS International

CCD Architects take top honours

Local architects CCD received the top accolade at last night’s Guernsey Awards for Achievement when they were crowned the Commerce & Employment Guernsey Business of the Year.  The other main business winners of the night were Two Degrees North who took home the NatWest Best Small Business award and BDO who lifted the Healthspan Best Large Business trophy.  RBS International won the NP Silver Salver for Excellence in Training.

CCD Architects were in the running for the main award when they first took to the stage to collect the BWCI Best Medium Business Award in front of a 780 strong audience made up of local dignitaries and business men and women. They saw off weighty competition from Aztec Group and Clydesdale Bank International.

At the end of the Awards gala evening they were named as  overall winners of the night when they were presented with the Commerce & Employment Guernsey Business of the Year Award by the Lieutenant Governor, Air Marshal Peter Walker, who was attending his first Guernsey Awards for Achievement evening.

Chairman of the judging panel, Deputy Robert Sillars, said CCD Architects were outstanding and extremely worthy of the title, Guernsey Business of the Year.

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Kim Marquis voted your Unsung Hero

Charity superwoman Kim Marquis was last night crowned the 2011 Specsavers Unsung Hero after receiving nearly a third of the 800 votes cast.

This was the third year that the public were invited to vote online as well as by post for their favourite nominee – someone who works tirelessly for the local community and the service of others. Mrs Marquis was the outright winner, with votes spread evenly among the remaining shortlisted nominees.

Mrs Marquis, 45, is involved in several charities, including The Pink Ladies, Wigwam, Guernsey Deaf Children’s Society and is also an active participant in an initiative that supports British troops on deployment in Afghanistan.

A mother of four children, including one of whom has Down’s Syndrome, she undertakes all her charity work on a volunteer basis and in the little spare time she has is learning sign language so that she can communicate more easily with the children she works with at the Deaf Society.

Debi Troth, who nominated Mrs Marquis, said: ‘Kim is remarkable, she is always keen to help others and puts everyone else first, she never has any time for herself.’

Another voter said that ‘Kim is a very special lady and so deserves this award. She is truly an unsung hero; there is so much she does that people are unaware of’.

Specsavers founder Dame Mary Perkins, said: ‘This award has become the voice of the Guernsey people and they have shouted out their chosen winner. We were so pleased to see how many votes were cast this year, as well as the number of initial nominations. It really is a lovely award to be involved with.’

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Roger Allsopp swims his way to Ambassador of the Year

Roger Allsopp, the Guinness World Record Holder for the oldest person to swim the Channel, founder of Hope for Guernsey and charity fund raiser extraordinaire was named Guiton Group Ambassador of the Year 2011 at the Guernsey Awards for Achievement Gala Evening held at Beau Sejour, St. Peter Port, Guernsey on Thursday 9 February 2012.

30th August 2011 was the day that local Guernsey man and retired breast cancer surgeon, Roger Allsopp created a new Guinness World Record when he became the oldest man to swim the English Channel at the age of 70 years and 115 days.

His achievement, made even more inspiring by the fact that it was the second time that Roger had completed the infamous Channel swim, was covered comprehensively by local media, UK media and much further afield including Thailand and Australia.  His swimming feats are what have recently propelled Roger to the top of local, regional and international media headlines, but it is his tireless work and commitment to Hope For Guernsey and Wessex Medical Research that provides the real motivation in his life.  The objective of Roger’s 2011 Channel swim was to raise £750,000 to buy a mass spectrometer for Southampton University that will help with early diagnosis of cancer.

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And the winners are….

The winners of the 2011 Awards for Achievement are:

Commerce and Employment Business of the Year….CCD Architects

NatWest Best Small Business…..Two Degrees North

BWCI Best Medium Business…..CCD Architects

Healthspan Best Large Business…..BDO

NP Group – IOD – GTA University Centre Excellence in Training…..RBS International

Specsavers Unsung Hero…..Kim Marquis

Guiton Group Ambassador of the Year…..Roger Allsopp

Preparation’s are underway…

Preparations for the largest event in Guernsey’s business calendar are underway.  The annual Guernsey Awards for Achievement will take place tomorrow (Thursday) night, when 780 guests including dignitaries and the island’s top business men and women will gather to celebrate those who have excelled during 2011.

Since Tuesday morning a host of local suppliers have been hard at work transforming the Sir John Loveridge Hall at Beau Sejour into a stunning gala evening, where seven trophies will be presented to those businesses and individuals who have had an outstanding year.

The two and a half day build will be overseen by the organisers of the Awards, The Guernsey Event Company and is the culmination of almost a year’s work in planning.  They will be joined by other local companies including Joy’s, Sueco, Regency Events, Tussie Mussie and Eventure, each using their specific skills to ensure the Awards evening is one of the most prestigious in Guernsey.

A full afternoon of rehearsals will take place on Thursday afternoon before the evening begins with a Champagne reception, sponsored by Rothschild.  Internationally renowned architect Robert Adam is being brought over by the Garenne Group to be this year’s keynote speaker and following a three-course meal, the seven trophies will then be awarded.