The Sum of Our Parts
It’s no secret that 2018 was one of the best years yet for Bede and there’s no way it could’ve happened without the wonderful people who make up our workforce.
So we thought we’d take the opportunity to look back at 2018 and give you a snapshot into our makeup and what the everyday world of staff at Bede looks like.
A Sneaky Peek into Bede 2018
We Give Up Our Time
As a general rule, Beders like to give back. Whether it be mentoring students, championing tech or teaching skills, our people give up a lot of their time to things that are important to them. So as a company we like to make sure our staff are given the right environment to be themselves and enjoy what they do, whether that’s working hard or playing hard.
Last year, as well as hosting three hackathons, two awesome parties and numerous socials, we also made sure we supported an array of local charities and causes close to our hearts. We help young athletes work towards their dreams of being world champions through Sport Newcastle and over the course of the year we raised over £3000 from our tuck shop sales, and our seasonal initiatives such as St Paddy’s Day, Easter, Back 2 School and Christmas fun saw us add a whopping £2500 to that total.
None of this could have happened without our staff giving up their time and knowledge so a big thank you to all at Bede for eating cakes, quizzing and supporting these fantastic causes.
We Love To Eat
It seems without our snacks we might not be where we are today… over the course of the year, over both offices we’ve been fuelled by:
6,700 bananas
3,500 apples
5,600 pints of milk
30,000 tea bags
175 kg of coffee beans
We Love Our Stash
700 Bede Stickers
600 Rubber Ducks
125 Backpacks
183 Water bottles
453 T-shirts
We Love Bede
50% of 81 hires from direct applications
3 offices and 11 nationalities
70 different technologies.
95% recommendation rating on Glassdoor
And if you’re not based in one of our offices then you certainly won’t miss out. To make sure remote workers know that out of sight certainly doesn’t mean out of mind, they receive a monthly care package – filled with seasonal treats, swag and beer!
Not ones to rest on our laurels, we have a lot things planned in 2019 for all Beders to enjoy so keep your eyes peeled – new year, new opportunities!
So, 2019, what else is in store?
Bede Lotto
We’re refurbing our peer-to-peer recognition reward scheme! This year we’re introducing the Bede Lotto. Same principle to our previous reward practices but new drawing system. Each month, employees are nominated by their peers for going above and beyond, and entered into our lottery, giving them the chance to win some huge prizes. The rewards for excellent work and extreme efforts range from top of the range headphones to holiday vouchers to Bede socks (yes, they exist!)
Benefits
New year, new you? As well as top quality hardware devices for work, we also have some great health and wellbeing benefits at Bede, for all to take advantage of.
There are a fantastic range of socials to look forward to, from the theatre, to escape rooms to Halloween fright paths and even Bongo’s Bingo. We’ll also be keeping you fuelled with snacks throughout the working day and even throw in a free lunch every now and again!
Our flexible working policy ensures we are supporting you to perform at your best, whether you’re working from home or a desert island! And with our expanding list of international clients and offices, there are opportunities to travel to Bulgaria, Canada, Spain, South Africa and beyond!
Health & Wellbeing
Our focus on health & wellbeing remains paramount at Bede, and we’re continuously cultivating an open and supportive environment. In the last year, we’ve put a real focus on gambling awareness, not just for our industry, but also for the welfare of our staff – our workforce is made up by a majority of 18-35 year olds (74%), the highest risk group for problem gambling so it’s important to us to ensure all staff can work safely and know the signs, as well as who to talk to, should they need to.
Problem gambling and mental health are intrinsically linked so we also continue to develop a really open, supportive and understanding culture regarding Mental Health. Providing training for all our staff to better equip them on recognising signs of problems, and creating a health and wellbeing committee to cultivate collaboration on initiatives. It’s become a key part of our culture at Bede, not just an HR initiative, all managers take part in mental health training and actively normalise it throughout their teams. It’s a collaborative effort from all of us.
All our staff are provided with private healthcare, which can be extended to family members. We also offer discounted gym memberships and in-house sports teams (which get highly competitive!)
The BU Programme
You’ll be hearing a lot more about our new initiative, the BU Programme, over the next few months. This exciting concept encapsulates all of our opportunities for young people and career switchers. Launched on 24th January, the BU programme offers bespoke and diverse opportunities for those with the drive and determination to succeed at any stage of their career – keep your eyes peeled!
Industry Awards
To top it off, we’re thrilled to have won the ‘Best Place to Work Award’ at the International Gaming Awards in February. This is a fantastic achievement for us as both as an employer and as staff members, who all take responsibility for making Bede a great place to work.
We hope you’ll join us this year as we continue to work towards an even better 2019! Keep in touch.
