MITIE Group PLC is delighted to announce it has today been named one of The Times Top 50 Employers for Women. 

The FTSE250 strategic outsourcer places huge importance on delivering a supportive and inclusive environment for its staff and has worked hard to attract more female employees. 

Led by Ruby McGregor-Smith, the first Asian woman to head a FTSE250 company, MITIE has introduced a series of initiatives to improve its culture for women in recent years, including: 

• Flexible working hours and a flexi-leave system 
• Home working and a compressed working fortnight option 
• Childcare vouchers Additional annual leave purchase schemes

It is also running programmes to encourage women to return to work after taking maternity leave and to support flexible working to help women maintain a career. It has also established a graduate scheme to attract the best talent available. 

Mrs McGregor-Smith, who has set up and remains involved in a mentoring circle for black, Asian and minority ethnic female staff, said: “We are delighted to have been recognised by The Times for our commitment to making MITIE the very best it can be for our female staff. 

“MITIE is a fast-growing and ambitious company and will only reach its potential if it makes the most of all the talent within the company, including women. By making sure that we have the right environment and support for our female staff we will succeed together as a company.” 

Other recent initiatives MITIE has introduced include: a Diversity Week;, a mentoring programme for female rising stars;, and a twice-yearly Employee Forum which discusses gender achievements, progress and initiatives. 

The Times Top 50 Employers for Women list has been developed by Opportunity Now, a workplace gender equality campaign and part of Business in the Community. 

Helen Wells, director of Opportunity Now, said: “The business imperative of equality and diversity has never been stronger nor the need greater. MITIE should be congratulated for its commitment, dedication and tenacity to creating a work culture which is inclusive and diverse.

“Being one of The Times Top 50 Employers for Women is testament to how seriously the company has looked to address the recruitment, retention and progression of women through its organisation. 

“I firmly believe that creating workplaces which tap into the talents of both men and women is vital for competitive advantage. At MITIE it is clearly seen as a commercial priority not a women’s issue.”

Notes for editors 

The process
Opportunity Now managed The Times Top 50 Employers for Women list and judging process. Entry was by self nomination and open to any employer with a UK presence. Employers needed to supply detailed information on what their organisation was doing internally as a top employer for women as well as what it was doing externally to promote gender equality, diversity and inclusion and to create opportunities for women in a wider context. 

Organisations were also required to supply two case study stories of specific initiatives/programmes which demonstrated the work they were doing to create culture change. All the 4,500 word entry forms were stringently marked against a framework of best practice. The entries were assessed on an anonymous basis by a team of gender experts within Opportunity Now. 

About Opportunity Now
Opportunity Now is a membership organisation for employers who want to accelerate change for women in the workplace because it makes good business sense. It works with employers, from the private, public and education sectors to offer tailored, practical and pragmatic advice on gender issues in the workplace. 

Founded in 1991, the original aim of Opportunity Now was to maximise the potential of female employees and improve their recruitment and retention prior to the start of the new millennium. Nearly 20 years on the need for the work of Opportunity Now is just as strong. Opportunity Now is part of Business in the Community, a charity which stands for responsible business

Notes for editors

What is MITIE?
We’re the strategic outsourcing company. What does that mean in practice? We manage facilities, properties and assets for our clients across the UK and beyond.

We work with our clients in three ways; some take full advantage of our whole range of expertise, others may only need one aspect of what we do:

Strategy and consultancy
+ Facilities and project management
+ Service delivery

Our strategic input can add value at the highest level by helping clients to manage their assets, while our practical management expertise can save customers money and reduce their carbon emissions. We work with a vast number of clients in every industry across both the public and private sectors and deliver the broadest range of services that can be found in one place: from integrated facilities management to engineering maintenance to lifecycle energy management and much more.

There’s a lot more to MITIE than you probably think. We’re a big company with big ambitions – a leading FTSE 250 support services business, with more than 56,000 people, revenues in excess of £1.7bn, and a reputation for being the best.

Visit us at www.mitie.com