HLM Architects is today taking part in its first-ever Employee Ownership Day, joining scores of other businesses across the country in marking the national celebration.
The annual event, run by the Employee Ownership Association (EOA), champions the positive impacts of employee ownership on companies by raising awareness of the benefits for both individuals and the wider business community.
In December last year, HLM transitioned to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT), which placed 100% of the shareholding into a Trust and put the practice’s future firmly in the hands of its employees.
During the pandemic, HLM has stayed connected with its employees and enhanced its wellbeing programme, as well as boosting the number of mental health first aiders in the practice on hand to support employees.
Since then, the practice has continued to introduce new initiatives to provide a flexible, supportive working environment and is currently piloting its SMARTBlend scheme, which embraces new ways of working.
In recent months, HLM has achieved numerous leading industry awards including the ‘Architect’ award at the 2021 Cardiff Property Awards, being named the AJ100 Employer of the Year 2020, and Architectural Practice of the Year in the Building Awards 2020. HLM is also ranked 3rd best Architectural Practice in the Top 100 Best Companies to work for list for 2021.
HLM Architects Chair Richard O’Neil said: “Our first Employee Ownership Day comes at a time when our practice has made every effort to ensure our people are at the heart of our business’s future success. We have enhanced our way of working to ensure an inclusive and supportive environment where all employees can thrive, while as a practice we have learned and grown from the events of the last year to help us become even more innovative and resilient. Sustainability too will continue to be a key driver as we aim to have every project we design meet the RIBA 2030 Sustainable Outcomes Guide by 2025, while we apply our knowledge of modern methods of construction and passivhaus to help push the industry towards carbon net-zero targets”
