Capita was awarded the 10 years TV Licensing contract by the BBC, with service commencing in July 2002. In the five-month period between appointment and contract start, we planned and executed all aspects of the transfer of staff and operations from the previous contractor. Our transition team transferred 1,500 staff to Capita under TUPE arrangements.
Communications began immediately through a Staff Support Team, a dedicated Staff Transition Manager, a confidential ‘helpline’ service, and one-to-one consultation sessions and presentations. We introduced a monthly newsletter, TVL News, and prepared four issues prior to transition. In addition, we published a series of TVL Bulletins in which we answered questions from staff, introduced the new management, and explained arrangements for the hand-over.
Day one
On the day of the transfer colleagues arriving for work were welcomed to Capita by the Contract Director. Meanwhile, at six sites across the country, our regional-office staff moved into new premises where they received a visit from a member of the new Capita management team. Day one proceeded smoothly and the transition – the biggest in Capita’s history – was completed without any major hitch.
Ongoing communications
From the early stages of the contract we made sure that all staff were kept up to speed with regular progress updates. We continued to publish TVL News and TVL Bulletins, held regular staff discussions around targets and plans and encouraged staff to get more involved in decision making.
The TV Licensing communications team introduced TVL Net, an intranet site which gives office-based staff quick access to reference material, including the telephone list, copies of TVL Bulletins and TVL News, training updates, news on current legislation, evasion statistics and improvements to the contract.
We have a number of staff incentive schemes and social events including family fun days in Darwen and Bristol which help to build team spirit and bond teams together.
Klay Taylor, Contact Centre Team Leader, said, "I was on maternity leave when I first heard I was being TUPE transferred to Capita and I was very worried about the future. As it turned out, I needn’t have worried. I soon discovered that I now had an employer who listened to me and empowered me to solve problems for myself. Within seven months of taking over, Capita solved a recurring system problem that my previous employer had said was impossible to fix!
"The new Capita managers understood I had a very small baby at home and made balancing work and home life far easier than I could have hoped for. What I have now is job security – something every parent needs."
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