Brilliant staff ideas help Kestrel to soar

Tapping into the ideas and skills of staff has helped Kestrel soar, despite the challenges of the pandemic.

At the start of 2021, the UPVC fascia and cladding manufacturer started a widespread consultation with staff to see how they could improve all aspects of the business from operations to security, with nothing off the table.

Owen Thorogood, Kestrel sales and marketing director (above) explains: “At the beginning of 2021 we came together across departments to agree common objectives for the year. 

“We started with an ideas day, which went incredibly well, in fact staff came with 100 potential projects! We whittled that down, through scoring on impact and feasibility, to 23 projects that we took forward.

“They were a really diverse range of projects from quality such as injection moulding to tool improvements, to safety including new CCTV monitoring on site to people and development and customer focus.”

Strong focus

Despite the challenges of 2021, Kestrel kept a strong focus on the projects, backing them with investment where needed. 

The results have been impressive, with the completion of 15 projects already, four due for completion by the end of the year, while another four will move into 2022.

Owen adds: “There have been tangible benefits, for instance the injection moulding upgrade and investment in new tools increased capacity – raw materials allowing.”

“We have also seen other gains across the business, it’s cemented teams in Scunthorpe and made staff feel more valued, we have improved project management skills across departments, and increased efficiency.

“The projects have been a great step forward in developing communication between departments to create a ‘one-team feeling’.  Most of all we’ve been impressed by the ideas and engagement of staff, so much so that we will be running another ideas day and new set of projects in 2022!”

To read about a staggering Kestrel charity challenge that has raised over £1k for Macmillan, click here.