The Quays shopping centre in Newry is celebrating after becoming the first shopping centre in Northern Ireland to be awarded the Investors in People (IiP) accreditation.
IiP is a business improvement tool that helps organisations of every size, type and location to compete and succeed through improved people performance.
Northern Ireland’s Employment Minister, Sir Reg Empey, presented landlord Parker Green International with the award at a ceremony at Hillsborough Castle. He said: “Experience has shown that companies that invest in the development of their people during times of economic downturn are in the strongest position to gain competitive advantage in recovery. In fact, research shows that companies that invest in the skills of their staff are two and half times more likely to survive.”
Sir Reg congratulated The Quays and added: “The uptake of IiP should serve as an example to other employers not yet capitalising on the bottom-line business benefits of IiP. We tend to forget that businesses are, in essence, people, and the importance of local businesses investing in their people is particularly relevant at this difficult time.”
Centre manager Cathal Austin concluded: “This acknowledgement for the work that goes into improving our performance at the centre is a tribute to every staff member at The Quays in making it an organisation we are proud to work for.”
