Banner Blog

"If you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room"

- Read our interviews with our Banner apprentices and see how they are Blazing a Trail for National Apprenticeship week

It’s National Apprenticeship week, and Banner are celebrating the 20 apprentices they have welcomed into the business in the last few years; from those who were already employees at Banner and wanted to learn a new skill, to a brand-new selection of team members, as apprentices who have been welcomed into the company.

We’ve interviewed a selection of apprentices from across the business and here’s what they had to say:

Follow our simple steps on how to plan a great meeting
There’s a lot more to a business meeting than just getting the relevant people into a room and waiting for the magic and ingenuity to happen.  As with anything, it requires good planning.

CPC host PAG meeting at Banner Head Office

It was a real privilege to welcome members of the Procurement Advisory Group (PAG), from Yorkshire and Humberside, to our Banner head office in Normanton for their monthly meeting recently. 

Banner celebrates National Apprenticeship Week #NAW2019

National Apprenticeship Week (#NAW2019) is here and, at Banner, we’re showing our support by celebrating how our apprentices have #BlazedATrail.

At Banner we go beyond our amazing products.

We encourage our people to achieve great things by giving their time to worthwhile causes. Here are some of the employees who have been giving something back.

We interview Craig Varey, Managing Director at Banner, as he takes a look back on 2018 and into 2019

"I'm pleased to say 2018 was a success for Banner as we continued to invest and develop the business to add value to our customers. This was substantiated by the achievement of strong business growth and more customers entrusted Banner to support their business supplies and needs during the last 12 months.

We moved more towards partnership-based relationships with our customers, gaining insights and a deeper understanding of their evolving needs and requirements along the way. Our customer partnerships have informed many of the investments and developments that were made during 2018 and have enabled us to set strong foundations for the future.

Here are a few examples:

Several heads are often better than one

Collaboration is the route to innovation, growth and happier people, yet not every organisation is embracing it as readily as they could.

In the workplace, collaboration, involves setting up processes that help teams to work together, improve practices, make decisions and innovate. Although the technology to help colleagues collaborate effectively, wherever they are, is here, many companies are still to exploit it.

Research has revealed that while a fifth of UK organisations have some form of collaborative technology in place, only 9% of employees are actively using it to full effect.

Here are six reasons why we should all make collaboration a priority for 2019:

We're extremely proud of Camille Kendall, a Key Account Manager at Banner, who went out with the Homeless Hampers volunteers recently to help distribute warm clothes, hot food, drinks, blankets and sleeping bags to the homeless in the Yorkshire region. 

With freezing temperatures and bitterly cold nights, Homeless Hampers provides an essential role in protecting and supporting the homeless in Yorkshire with the help of volunteers like Camille.

Claire Hobbs, Health & Wellbeing Coordinator and Flu Lead, Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Following on from part one of our interview in B Procurement, Claire tells us what brought her into health and wellbeing and what drives her:

Claire Hobbs, Health & Wellbeing Coordinator and Flu Lead, Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

From encouraging uptake of the flu vaccine among the 4,500 staff at Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, to try and challenge mental stigma, Claire Hobbs' role as Heath and Wellbeing coordinator is a busy one.

In her interview with B Procurement, Claire explains the Trust's drive to encourage people to look after themselves: