Bidvest Noonan Ireland
Ireland's leading provider of facilities services and solutions
Bidvest Noonan has been awarded the Best Diversity, Inclusion and Equity at the Fingal Business Awards 2022, held at the Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport in Santry on Friday, the 18th of November 2022.
We are very proud to be recognised for our work in this area once again. People from all across our business have played a role in this success and especially those who are part of our EDI Council. We are proud of our achievements but we are also motivated to keep improving.
Bidvest Noonan, a market-leading provider of facilities services that employs over 27,000 people across the UK and Ireland, has been named the inaugural winner of the Diversity & Inclusion in Security award at the 2022 ISIA Awards. The award was introduced this year by the Irish Security Industry Association to recognise companies in the private security industry that excel in creating an inclusive culture that encourages diversity in the workplace.
The win comes at a time when the value and importance of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace is in sharp focus across many sectors. Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion programmes seek to ensure that people are treated equally, valued and made to feel welcome regardless of their gender, ethnicity, faith, age, sexual orientation, or other differences.
In recent years, Bidvest Noonan has announced a number of investments and initiatives to improve its performance in the area of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion. In 2021, the business launched an ED&I Council with the aim of developing a more diverse workforce and a more inclusive workplace. Since its inception the council has overseen a number of new initiatives including campaigns to encourage more women to join the security industry. This year, the company was recognised by Investors in Diversity and Diversity Mark for its work to embed Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) across the organisation.
Commenting on the win, ED&I Chairperson for Ireland, Marina Goncalves said: “I’m delighted that our work in the area of ED&I was recognised at this year’s ISIA Awards. We believe supporting equality, diversity and inclusion is a moral imperative, and we know that respecting and valuing our differences makes us a stronger and more innovative business.
We want all our people to feel welcomed, valued and able to achieve their potential at Bidvest Noonan.”
Environmental, Social and Governance Director John King added:
“We are very proud of the impact our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion programmes are having, and we continuously search for new ways to make a difference. For example, we recently began collaborating with organisations across the UK and Ireland, such as Business in the Community, to help marginalised and disadvantaged groups gain employment and access opportunities for education. This approach is bringing new talent into our business and providing people with the opportunity to have a successful and rewarding career.”
Bidvest Noonan is delighted to announce that we are Gold Sponsors for the 2023 Green Awards. As part of our sponsorship deal, we will be exclusive sponsors of The Green Pharmaceutical Award category for the event.
This award recognises organisations in the pharmaceutical industry that use sustainable resources and innovative practices for development, while also prioritising the needs of the wider environment and society.
Bidvest Noonan is the trusted partner for many world-leading and best-known life sciences organisations across the UK & Ireland. Our customers include companies who produce many of the world’s most important and ground-breaking medicines and biotechnologies.
Life Sciences Lead at Bidvest Noonan, Sarah Scanlon, has said:
“We are delighted to get behind the 2023 Green Awards and support such an important category in the Green Pharmaceutical Award. I have seen first-hand some of the incredible work underway in the life sciences sector on both a sustainability and innovation front.
We take pride in supporting these institutions and the sustainable practices they undertake as well as the innovations they create to help improve the lives of everyone around the world. They trust us to look after their facilities so they can focus on their vital work.”
Bidvest Noonan provides a full range of services to our customers in the life sciences sector ranging from facilities management to cleaning and security services. We have a long and proven track record of developing outstanding contamination control programs, and service solutions for customers in the life sciences sector.
We are delighted to share that as a result of a recent fundraising event, we have donated just over €7,000 to our charity partner, Enable Ireland.
Bidvest Noonan’s ESG Director, John King, and colleagues in our Irish business organised a Golf Fundraising Event recently for Enable Ireland. The event saw people from around our business, suppliers, and customers, come together to raise funds in support of a great cause.
These funds will support the essential services Enable Ireland provides for children and young people with disabilities in Ireland. This is the first of a series of fundraising initiatives planned to support Enable Ireland by Bidvest Noonan
ESG Director, John King, has said:
“I want to thank our business, colleagues, suppliers, and customers for their generosity. We believe that Enable Ireland’s work is vital, and raising funds through these events goes a long way in supporting them to create a better future for children with disabilities, and ensuring they reach their full potential.”
National Fundraising Manager for Enable Ireland, Donal Kitt, said:
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Bidvest Noonan for their efforts on our behalf. Funds raised are going towards Enable Ireland’s Galway Services refurbishment to support 700 children and young people in Galway City and County.”
This year saw Bidvest Noonan announce Enable Ireland as its charity partner for its Irish business. This partnership will see Bidvest Noonan commit to using its resources to support Enable Ireland’s services for children and young people with disabilities.
Bidvest Noonan has signed the Menopause Workplace Pledge, developed by the charity Wellbeing of Women, and launched a new menopause support tool kit to ensure people across the group are supported and feel comfortable discussing their needs as they experience menopause.
Menopause can be a challenging time. Women usually experience menopause between the ages of 45 and 55, with the average age being 51, and symptoms can last several years. However, menopause can also occur at a younger age. The symptoms can include hot flushes, anxiety, insomnia, fatigue, headaches, muscle and joint pains, and low mood. These symptoms can be debilitating.
Menopause can also affect people from transgender, non-binary and intersex communities, and its symptoms and impact can vary among different groups. Men, especially those in their late 40s and early 50s, can also experience ‘male menopause’ which involves the development of physical and emotional symptoms.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD) states that three out of five working women between the ages of 45- 55 who are experiencing menopause symptoms say it has a negative impact on them at work. Bidvest Noonan’s new menopause support tool kit aims to make the business an inclusive place workplace. The toolkit sets out how colleagues experiencing menopause can be supported, including how reasonable adjustments can be made to working practices and working environments for affected employees to ensure their comfort and well-being.
The Menopause Workplace Pledge requires signatories to:
Mary Kealy, Managing Director, Workplace Solutions at Bidvest Noonan said “While the topic of menopause is not typically something that comes up in conversation at work, this can be where people find their symptoms most difficult to manage. We feel it is important to make it easier to talk about menopause and provide support for people experiencing challenging symptoms, therefore we have also implemented the role of Menopause Champion so our people can speak freely and feel comfortable they are supported.”
Emma Rahim, HR Director said “We feel it is important to dispel the taboo surrounding this topic. We are working to ensure our people are well informed about the menopause and enabling them to access support and resources. We want to ensure that our people see menopause as a natural phase and feel confident discussing their needs with us and how we can support them in the workplace.”
John King, Environmental, Social and Governance Director added “At Bidvest Noonan, we are committed to ensuring we are an employer of choice and making the workplace a welcoming space for all our colleagues. We want our colleagues to feel empowered and supported in any challenges they face”.
In 2021, Bidvest Noonan launched its very own Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Council, with the aim of developing a more diverse workforce and a more inclusive workplace to make its teams stronger and more creative. The council is made up of people from every corner of its business, each with their own unique background.
The business recently caught up with Marina Goncalves, the IOI Chairperson of the ED&I council. In discussion, Marina talks about the journey the ED&I council has been on so far, the council’s latest achievements and initiatives, as well as some brief plans for the year ahead.
Tell us why the Bidvest Noonan ED&I council was formed?
We established our ED&I Council to bring colleagues together from across our business from different backgrounds but with one shared goal, to create a more diverse workforce and a more inclusive workplace. We want to ensure that inclusion is part of our culture. We are making tremendous strides to achieve this. We respect each other, we care for each other, and we communicate with each other.
What has the council achieved so far?
The council has worked hard to build a foundation, setting plans and targets for the short, medium, and long term. We were recently awarded the Bronze Diversity Mark; a credit to the hard work of everyone involved with the council. I am very proud to lead the council and to have played my part in laying these foundations. It has undoubtedly made Bidvest Noonan an even more diverse and inclusive place to work. We have exciting initiatives in motion to further help us on our journey.
Tell us more about these exciting initiatives.
We have just embarked on a new ED&I Champions programme. The main purpose of this initiative is to embed ‘ED&I champions’ across our sites. These nominated champions will be trained and supported by a member of the ED&I council. Their role is to raise awareness and encourage site-based activity and engagement around ED&I. The council has developed and provided useful toolkits for the champions to use. These toolkits include ED&I event calendars, toolbox talk tips, policies, and so much more.
We will also continue to use our people data to measure the impact of our activity and to shape our future endeavours. We believe in equal opportunity for all. ED&I features on the agenda of our Group Executive Meetings, Country Executive Meetings, and Business Unit Meetings.
What other methods are the council using to improve our commitment to ED&I?
As a council we are always open to learning, seeking ways to improve policies and strategies to make real change. At a recent council meeting, an external trainer was invited to discuss the topic of “Inclusion for All”. This training focussed on different types of bias and how to be more conscious when we are making decisions. We got some fantastic insights and enjoyed some anonymous activities to encourage engagement. A key takeaway from the training is that it is important to listen to what colleagues have to say and understand how they are experiencing the culture within Bidvest Noonan.
What is planned for the year ahead?
We are excited for the year ahead and the plans we have to continue this journey. We will keep our strategy a living document, one that will continue to evolve. We plan to further improve gender balance across leadership and under-represented roles, and raise awareness across the business around LGBTQI+, disability, age, social mobility, and ethnicity.