Platform People Blaze a Trail in Business Professionalism

Platform People are delighted to announce that they have been awarded both the Investors in People Gold Standard and ISO 9001, the first company in the UK ever to earn both at their first assessment and within a record-breaking four month period.

Platform People, a recruitment & business consultancy firm that specialises in working with the Investment Platform market has achieved IIP Gold & ISO 9001 at first assessment and from start to finish in only four months – an achievement that has never been done before.

Chris Hitchens, Managing Director at Platform People commented on receiving the awards; “We were told it would be virtually impossible to get both IIP and ISO at the same time, never mind IIP Gold status, but as I always say if you’re going to go for something you go for the top. While the business was already running at this level, gaining both the IIP Gold and ISO 9001 show our peers and the marketplace that we are an exemplary business to work with, and as a business consultancy firm we wouldn’t be very effective if we didn’t show that our own house was in order first, would we?”

Being awarded IIP Gold status represents achievement of world-class best practise. It shows a truly cutting-edge organisation operating at the very highest levels of people management practice.

John Martin, Business Support Adviser at idg the Investors in People Centre for the North of England said “This is a fantastic achievement for Platform People and I would like to congratulate the team there on their commitment to continuous improvement. As the Investors in People Centre for the North of England, idg is committed to working with organisations to help them improve, develop and grow and by offering a flexible, practical and easy to use framework, Investors in People is designed to help organisations and their people enhance performance and meet goals. By achieving Gold recognition especially at their first assessment, Platform People are certainly working to do this.”

Hitchens continued; “I am really proud of everyone at Platform People for all the hard work they have contributed to earning these awards. As a fairly new business it was important for us to get our structure and team right at the beginning and I think we can say we have definitely done this.”

Only 1% of Investors in People organisations nationally achieve Gold recognition and as at 31 March 2011 there were approx. 293 Gold recognised organisations nationally.

Notes to editors:

1. Established in 2010, Platform People is a business with a single primary objective but with two distinct facets that work in harmony to achieve the primary objective, which is to help and support the UK Investment Platform industry to allow them to take to market and support the best services available. To deliver this primary objective Platform People have approached the challenge from to very distinct but complimentary sides, they provide expert business consultancy services to the platform providers. Placing the right consultant; for the right challenge; at exactly the right point in the platforms life-cycle. They also provide expert, high-end recruitment services tailor-made for the platforms industry. Knowing who the right people are; how to get these people and matching them with the perfect role in this highly specialised field.
2. Investors-in-People is a people management standard that was launched in 1991. There are four different levels achievable – Gold, silver, bronze and standard. Being an Investor in People demonstrates a commitment to the development and success of the people in the business and a desire for the business and its people to improve and grow. http://www.investorsinpeople.co.uk
3. ISO 9001 is a quality management standard which is awarded by The British Assessment Bureau. It helps organisations be more structured and organised. Many UK companies require providers to be ISO 9001 certified to allow them to tender for business or achieve preferred supplier status. http://www.british-assessment.co.uk

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