Independent UK caterer Blue Apple has been reaccredited by Investors in People (IIP) for the fifth consecutive time, demonstrating its commitment to continuous improvement across the business - particularly where its team members are concerned. A dedicated IIP assessor commented that there were many improvements in the business since the last assessment and 'people practises, with a focus on innovation, had been embedded into the business'.

All team members at Blue Apple were surveyed online and the IIP assessor then used the findings to conduct interviews with a large cross section of people from across the business. She also toured a number of Blue Apple sites and reviewed people policies and practises. The company's new induction process was deemed to be 'professional and supported new people into the business' and it was also noted that the company has 'robust people policies that are enablers not blockers in the business'.

Brian Allanson, CEO at Blue Apple, commented: "We are proud of retaining our IIP accreditation, particularly given that we scored above the IIP average on the 'delivering continuous improvement' indicator - as well as leading and inspiring people, empowering and involving people and recognising high performance. These scores, we believe, are a reflection of our open and informal culture, where we encourage people to take accountability for their own roles and drive creativity and innovation.

"When asked what is great about working at Blue Apple, our team members commented that 'it is a really great company to work for and we know the leaders of the business are proud of the people at the coal face doing the hard work'. It was frequently said that Blue Apple is a great place to work and that our team members would recommend it to their family and friends. For myself, and the senior management team, there can be no higher praise than that."

The IIP assessment rated Blue Apple (through survey responses) against nine factors:

• Leading and inspiring people
• Living the organisation's values and behaviours
• Empowering and involving people
• Managing performance
• Recognising and rewarding high performance
• Structuring work
• Building capability
• Delivering continuous improvement
• Creating sustainable success

As a business, Blue Apple is proud of its values and the majority of the team agreed that those values are clear in how it conducts its activities. Indeed, the IIP assessor commented that she 'could see that people are clearly living the values in Blue Apple'.

The IIP journey continues with a continual review of what's working well and what can be improved and the company is very proud to hold the award for another three years.