A. F. Blakemore Graduate Programme 2015 Candidate Pack

Transcription

1 A. F. Blakemore Graduate Programme 2015 Candidate Pack Prepared by: Liz Bell Community Affairs Officer A.F. Blakemore & Son Ltd Date: January 2015 Page 1 of 9

2 Content: 1. Letter from the Managing Director 2. The Company 3. Purpose and Values 4. The Graduate Programmes 5. The Candidates 6. The Rewards Page 2 of 9

3 1. Letter from the Managing Director Dear Graduate Thank you for taking an interest in our amazing business. Within this pack you will find a lot of relevant information that should help you understand our business in more detail. In addition to sharing this information with you I also wanted to take the opportunity to tell you about my personal belief in this organisation. We have been around for nearly 100 years and our objective is that we have a sustainable future as a family owned business. The Purpose and the Values that will secure this long-term success are outlined in what we refer to as The Blakemore Way: Our Purpose: To grow a family business in ways that are profitable and sustainable for the benefit of our staff, customers and community. Our Values: Maximise staff potential and their contribution to the company s success. Give great service to all our customers and add value to our trade partners. Make a significant, positive contribution to the community. Attain excellence in everything we do. Behave with honesty and integrity in all our relationships. We introduced The Blakemore Way to ensure that the identity and unique culture of the company is maintained and to empower all of our team to play a role in the future success of our business - these are not just words on a mission statement but values that you will witness in our everyday work. Thank you for taking the time to get to know us and I look forward to meeting you in due course. Peter Blakemore A.F. Blakemore Group Managing Director Page 3 of 9

4 2. The Company A.F. Blakemore & Son Ltd began life in 1917 as a single counter service food store in Wolverhampton and has grown into a grocery wholesaling, distributing and retailing company that now employs more than 7,700 people with a turnover of 1.3 billion. A.F. Blakemore has become one of the biggest and most successful family-owned enterprises in the UK, in part because of what it stands for and the way it does business. The Blakemore Way, which is the company s official values statement, outlines the company s longstanding commitment to developing a loyal and dedicated workforce that is focused on excellent customer service and behaving with integrity. The company has always emphasised the importance of building partnerships with suppliers and trade partners and never underestimates the role that it plays within the communities it serves. Peter Blakemore, the current managing director, joined the business in 1965 and in 1975 took it into the SPAR UK organisation. Since then, through organic and acquisitive growth, A.F. Blakemore has become the biggest division of SPAR UK, owning 295 SPAR stores and serving 655 others in England and Wales; it is also the largest member of Landmark Wholesale and a significant supplier of the independent grocery sector across the UK. A.F. Blakemore & Son Ltd is split into twelve divisions: Comprises 295 company-owned SPAR convenience stores and a workforce of over 5,000 people. It is the largest division within the company and leads the way in convenience retailing across England and Wales. Supports A.F. Blakemore s independent retail stores. Blakemore Trade Partners also has a number of national accounts including Bourne Leisure, Pace forecourt convenience stores, ISS foodservice providers, and leading privately-owned convenience retail groups. The company s overall distribution network spans across Wales to the east coast of England, reaching as far north as North Yorkshire and as far south as Kent and Sussex. The division operates from the ambient, chilled and frozen depots in the Walsall area, Talbot Green in South Wales and from Hastings, Sussex. Specialises in providing advice, store layout, design, project management and investment analysis for store developments to suit every budget, from the most basic works to a comprehensive, floor to ceiling refurbishment. Page 4 of 9

5 Comprises 14 cash & carry depots located in Wolverhampton, Walsall, Birmingham, Grimsby, Bangor, Barnsley, Gateshead, Middlesbrough, Newport, Killingworth, Hexham, Penrith, Cardiff and Swansea. It is the largest member of the Landmark Group. Blakemore Wholesale Distribution is one of the UK s leading delivered wholesalers. The business has a diverse range of customers across the UK, servicing multiple and independent retailers, forecourts, vending operators, fellow wholesalers plus education, leisure and hospitality sites. Distributes more than 4,000 ambient, chilled and frozen orders to catering outlets nationwide every week from two sites in Darlaston and Wakefield. Provides a one-stop-shop for traders, wholesalers, caterers, manufacturers and butchers across the UK and Europe. The depot is based in Featherstone, South Staffordshire. Is a unique distribution network that connects regional producers with their customers. The service provides high quality, local food and drink to trade buyers by consolidating orders and deliveries. Blakemore Technical Services is made up of the Finance, IT, HR and administrative teams serving the expanding Blakemore group of companies. The division employs more than 220 members of staff across its offices in Willenhall, West Midlands and Talbot Green, South Wales. Blakemore Creative Print is A.F. Blakemore's own professional print department. Based in Talbot Green, South Wales, the department provides services for all A.F. Blakemore departments and stores and is also open for external trading. Our Property division deals with site acquisitions and development and has a continuous expansion programme to acquire additional outlets within our trading area. Page 5 of 9

6 3. Purpose and Values The purpose and values of A.F. Blakemore were redefined by the Main Board in 2008 within The Blakemore Way, to ensure that its identity as a family business with a strong ethical heritage is maintained for future generations. The purpose of the company is: To grow a family business in ways that are profitable and sustainable for the benefit of our staff, customers and the community. The five core values, which are very much in evidence within the business and are integral in achieving its ambitious growth plans, are: 1. Maximise staff potential 2. Give great customer service 3. Contribute to the community 4. Attain excellence 5. Behave with honesty and integrity These values have driven A.F. Blakemore s corporate commitment to positive and friendly relations between its staff, its customers and the communities it serves. One expression of this commitment, which is unique in its application, is the Blakemore Foundation, which donates at least 2% of the company s pretax profits to a range of small, local good causes in the company s trading area. The values of the company are also captured within its corporate responsibility programme, as an increasingly recognised exponent of responsible business practice across the territory it serves. Business performance is measured through separate objectives for the workplace, marketplace, community and environment as part of this commitment to growing a sustainable business. A.F. Blakemore s sales have almost tripled from 446m in 1998, and the growth momentum has accelerated in the past two years. The family business is well funded, ambitious and well placed to continue to grow in the short, medium and long term. Page 6 of 9

7 4. The Graduate Programmes 1. Blakemore Trade Partners Commercial Programme This programme will give you an insight into a very commercial role that supports our independent SPAR retailers to develop profitable retail businesses. This programme will encompass exposure within the following roles: Trading Where you will work alongside members of the Trading team, to assist in the negotiations with key suppliers on pricing, and promotional activity. Sales You will work with the sales team to develop independent retail businesses and to grow wholesale sales for mutual benefit. Marketing You will support the team with local and national initiatives to achieve our goals of driving footfall and increasing basket spend. 2. Blakemore Wholesale Programme This programme will give you an insight into the core aspects of a Cash & Carry business. Your role will involve meaningful duties that will benefit yourself, department and wider business. You will spend time at both the Head Office function and within a Cash & Carry depot to gain a holistic view of this vibrant business. Time will be spent in the following areas: Operational Management Trading and Buying Marketing Sales Development 3. Blakemore Retail Programme This exciting programme will focus on new and existing Retail projects driving efficiencies and performances within our company-owned SPAR store estate. This programme will allow you to utilise the Blakemore project management framework to support the implementation and development of retail projects and initiatives. You will provide robust evaluation in order to maximise retail sales and profitability in accordance with the business strategy and marketplace best practice. 4. Blakemore HR People Programme This people programme will incorporate the planning, delivery and evaluation of key projects within the HR strategy plan. A senior HR manager will mentor you throughout each stage of the two-year programme, providing direction, support and guidance as appropriate. Project work will relate specifically to Operational HR, Health & Wellbeing and Learning & Development objectives, such as: Operational HR Shadow/support the HR Ops team with providing HR operational services to the business. Research, develop and launch a clearly defined, targeted and fully utilised social media recruitment platform. Health and Wellbeing Research best practice with regard to taking a strategic approach to development and implementation of employee health and wellbeing programmes. Learning and Development Support the delivery of management development courses across the group. Investigate and implement new ways to evaluate, promote and communicate the impact of learning & development programmes. Page 7 of 9

8 5. The Candidates Qualifications: Education to degree level or equivalent is preferred but not essential. Core Competencies: Achiever: Empathetic: Commercial: Communicator: Organiser: Pragmatic: Leadership: Has real drive to deliver results, is tenacious and self-motivated. Has real empathy with the issues which face A.F. Blakemore s entrepreneurial customers, all of whom depend to a greater or lesser extent on the services which A.F. Blakemore provides. Demonstrable commercial insight with very strong numeracy. An excellent communicator, with the ability to both listen well, and persuade and influence others at all levels within the organisation. Methodical and analytical. Able to get people to collaborate and work together. This is an organisation with its feet firmly on the ground looking for a likeminded individual. A realist who knows what is likely to be successful and when things are likely to be acceptable / accepted. Patient and resilient. Strong team leadership skills; ability to engage and empower high performing teams. Politically astute Knows when to challenge and when to acquiesce; has the ability to communicate at all levels, can relate to people at all levels. Takes an active interest in the business operations. Creative: A creative thinker capable of developing innovative solutions for the unique A.F. Blakemore business. Generates solutions that are distinctive and can derive commercial advantage. Seeks out best practices and shares these for the common benefit. Conversely there may be five different ways of doing things, so flexibility is essential. Page 8 of 9

9 5. The Rewards The terms and conditions to be offered will reflect the importance of this role and its potential to impact on the whole of A.F. Blakemore. Salary: Private Healthcare: 18,000 pa, increasing 500 every 6 months for 2 years to 20,000 pa (subject to satisfactory performance). Yes single AVIVA membership Pension: Contributory Money Purchase Scheme 5% Company, minimum of 2% employee contribution. Pension scheme members also attract PHI cover. 2 year qualifying period applies. Life Cover: Holidays: Voluntary Benefits: 1 x salary for non company pension scheme members and 6 x salary for company pension scheme members 26 days, plus 8 public holidays Exclusive in-store and online savings Additional benefits include: Company Sick Pay Scheme Staff Discount Scheme Long Service Awards Childcare Vouchers Cycle to Work Scheme Plus - Employee volunteering opportunities through our recognised responsible business programme. Page 9 of 9