AspireAsOne.co.uk
ISSUE 17 : AUGUST 2017
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The voice of the Aspire Team - Bringing our community together
WHAT’S INSIDE
ASPIRE PLAYERS OF THE MONTH
July ‘17
See page 14 for more on the winners.
READ MORE INSIDE >>>>
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A GALAXY OF STARS COMBINING RESIDENTIAL, RETAIL AND CORPORATE LIFE TOGETHER IN HARMONY, WE MEET THE ASPIRE TEAM THAT HAS HELPED CREATE A UNIQUE RHYTHM AT NOVA VICTORIA.
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READ MORE INSIDE >>>> one team
one vision
one team
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ONE MESSAGE FROM
The Steering Committee Everything is experience THE RECENT REBRANDING OF LAND SECURITIES MARKS THE BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA FOR ASPIRE. WE ARE CURRENTLY UNDERGOING A REBRANDING PROCESS THAT WILL HAVE MAJOR EFFECTS NOT ONLY ON THE COMPANY BUT FOR ALL OF OUR SERVICE PROVIDERS AS WELL. We’re introducing Landsec, our new contemporary name, for a company that is continually moving forward. At the centre of this is the new Landsec brand, which will help to identify the group and be at the heart of everything we do. More than just a sign with a name, it is a symbol for the consistently first-rate customer experience we provide, our universal values and ambitions for the future. In keeping with the Aspire movement, our aim is for every person who sees this brand to get the most positive, constructive and rewarding experience possible. With this ideology will also come more practical changes to the working environment as well. One of the most notable changes will be taking place in the near future. Staff from all of our service partners will be undergoing uniform changes from January 2018, with a new colour scheme to match. This will help to create a new image for the entire Aspire team, a new image that will be seen by every customer, partner and member of the public across London. United under the Aspire logo, which will appear on every uniform, it will be the next step with the ‘one team, one vision’ ethos that has been championed for so long now. As the face of Aspire continues to change, we look to the many individuals who go above and beyond every day to help carry the team into the future.
David Wickens
General Manager, Landsec
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WE’RE ALL ABOUT YOU
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PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR YOU
OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS, WE’VE BEEN BUSY PLANNING COURSES AND WORKSHOPS DESIGNED TO HELP OUR MEMBERS IMPROVE. WE’RE NOW PROUD TO OFFER YOU THE CHANCE TO PICK UP A RANGE OF NEW AND VALUABLE SKILLS. ENHANCED COMMUNICATION
CARING FOR YOUR MIND
The Improve Your Basic English course put on by Aspire has only recently finished, with a great turnout from people aiming to improve their workplace language skills. Following on from the success of this, a new set of dates has been released for the course for anyone who might have missed out the first time around.
The NEBOSH Health & Wellbeing Certificate is the first qualification of its kind and is well recognised and respected by employers in all sectors. This course will give managers, supervisors and HR personnel the skills and knowledge to tackle health and wellbeing issues in the workplace.
If you are interested in participating, simply email aspire@landsec.com
dy’s Everybo welcome
If you wish to attend, courses are available 18-22th September and again between 16-20th October, to give everyone the chance to take part. To find out more about the NEBOSH Certificate, please contact Olivia Lynch, Health, Safety & Security Manager at Landsec, via email at: olivia.lynch@landsec.com
CREATING POSITIVE EMOTIONS Alongside NEBOSH, Aspire will be also running another Positivity & Mindfulness workshop, which will be held on 15th September at 100 Victoria Street. This event offers participants a range of questions and activities and aims to help individuals improve their positivity, not only at work, but in their day-to-day personal lives as well. If you are interested in participating, simply email aspire@landsec.com
National
3 PEAKS CHALLENGE 15th-17th Sept 2017
Please sponsor our team with
To make an easy donation and to see the full list of Aspire adventurers in the ‘Three Peaks’ team, be sure to visit the official fundraising page at:
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www.justgiving.com/fundraising/aspire-3peaks24
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WE’RE ALL ABOUT YOU A little rain never dampens the spirit of Toby Ruff.
A PLACE FOR
DIFFERENT
People NOVA SW1 IS A GAME CHANGING MIXED USE SCHEME, DELIVERING WORLD CLASS OFFICES, CONTEMPORARY APARTMENTS AND SOME OF LONDON’S MOST EXCITING EATERIES. WITH THE DEVELOPMENTS AT THE NOVA SITE, LANDSEC HAS TRANSFORMED THE SKYLINE OF VICTORIA AND SINCE THE SITE FIRST OPENED ITS DOORS, IT HAS ALSO BECOME HOME TO A WHOLE RANGE OF UNIQUE ASPIRE CHARACTERS.
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Landsec Academy Trainee Samantha Webster comments that the Nova Building ‘is the best place I could have gone to learn’.
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n recent months, Nova in Victoria has become a central hub of activity for Landsec and their Service Partners, becoming a site as diverse as it is architecturally impressive. Strolling from the Nova South entrance to Nova North, you would easily pass well over a dozen different establishments, with everything from cocktail bars like the Drunken Oyster to barber shops and pizzerias like Franco Manca.
Raimonda Grigaliunaite enjoys the Nova Building’s roof top views of the grounds at Buckingham Palace.
The site offers up to 170 modern, artistically designed apartments divided into Cores A-D. The team at the residential Nova Building, 79 Buckingham Palace Road, led by Senior Concierge Francesco Bubbo, is responsible for welcoming new residents, overseeing operations and tailoring their service to any preferences customers may have. This may include dealing with film choices for the private cinema, managing deliveries or even providing a certain type of sweet at the main reception desk. Concierge Raimonda Grigaliunaite comments that ‘we are really lucky with our residents, they are all very friendly’.
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David Griffin has become known for his unique character and enthusiasm for the job.
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Head Concierge Magdalena Brown is currently preparing for life with an additional member to the family.
As close as they are to their residents, what’s really striking is how well the team members interact with one another. Despite having a different role to somebody like Francesco and often working different days, Porter Toby Ruff can always be relied on for help by Front of House colleagues and fellow members of staff in other buildings. What helps is that so many of them have been there since day one, so they have had the chance to see the site develop first-hand. Even so, there’s nobody who knows the layout of the site as well as NJC Cleaner David Griffin. Despite starting each day at 5am, David actually appreciates the earlier hours, commenting that the Nova Building ‘looks great in the morning sunlight’. An avid supporter of the Aspire events, he has become a familiar face to everyone both on and off site, known for his friendly nature and unwavering enthusiasm.
David Griffin admits ‘It’s only rock and roll but I like it’.
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THIS LEVEL OF CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN ASPIRE MEMBERS IS SOMETHING THAT ALSO HELPS LANDSEC ACADEMY TRAINEES TO GAIN AS MUCH EXPOSURE AS POSSIBLE TO THE WORKING ENVIRONMENT AT NOVA.
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As everything at Nova Victoria is so close together, a different department, office or set of apartments is never more than a short walk away. The advantage of this is that it makes it much easier for Aspire members from different companies to get to know one another and gain a better understanding of all the different factors that keep the site running.
Operations Support Assistant Jasmin Byrne is in tune with the daily events at Nova.
Mentioning Francesco, Toby and the rest of the residential team to Receptionist Andrew Kerr at Nova South, he shows clear recognition despite working on the other side of the site, even commenting on their ‘bubbly, enthusiastic personalities’. This level of connectivity between Aspire members is something that also helps Landsec Academy Trainees to gain as much exposure as possible to the working environment at Nova.
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Qudus Abari’s welcoming smile can be regularly seen around Nova.
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THE NOVA BUILDING HAS BECOME A CENTRAL HUB FOR LANDSEC AND THEIR SERVICE PARTNERS, BECOMING A SITE AS DIVERSE AS IT IS ARCHITECTURALLY IMPRESSIVE.
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Nova is polished to perfection on a daily basis.
Working directly with Operations Support Assistant Jasmin Byrne, Samantha Webster has been able to gain a valuable insight into each of the different departments. As such, she has become a recognisable face from Nova North to Nova South. Although every day presents a new challenge as she is often kept busy moving all over the site, this is something she is very grateful for as she is able to learn so much in such a short amount of time; ‘it’s the best place I could have gone to’, she comments. With Nova Victoria, Landsec has established one of the most impressive developments in London. But even more impressive is how the Aspire team have brought everything closer together and created a working environment that encourages interaction between customers, residents and staff across the whole community.
Andrew Kerr loves the black and white style of Nova and how it’s been implemented across the site.
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In focus with
PORTICO, NOVA VICTORIA
Francesco Bubbo THE STAR AT THE CENTRE OF THE NOVA If you ask any member of staff about the Concierge team at the Nova Building, there’s always one name that springs to mind. As the team’s Senior Concierge, Francesco Bubbo’s constant professionalism and winning sense of humour has helped to keep the team united since day one. Spending most of his time manning the reception desk at the Nova Building, 79 Buckingham Palace Road, no task seems too much for Francesco to handle, or any request too small. Even when the rest of the Front of House team is busy, he is always able to provide the friendly, courteous service he has become known for. He possesses extensive knowledge of all onsite features and has no problem matching names and faces to specific apartments, enabling him to build close relationships with residents. As he has been an integral part of the Nova team since the beginning, Francesco has seen the various parts of Nova Victoria grow into the fantastic site that can be seen today.
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This is something he speaks about with great enthusiasm, commenting that he ‘was lucky to have the pleasure of hearing about the concepts behind the Nova estate’. Clearly, his role as Senior Concierge is more than just a job for Francesco. Being Italian, he’s a big fan of pizza and coffee, so it helps that he is based a short walk away from both the onsite Franco Manca and Source Market. Similarly, the private cinema they have available for residents several floors above also helps to satisfy Francesco’s passion for a movie and is a feature he is extremely proud of. He has a wide range of tastes when it comes to film, enjoying everything from dramas based on true stories to fantasy epics.
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When he is away from the Nova Building, Francesco dedicates much of his time to Buddhist meditation, which has become a central part of his life and has helped him, he comments; ‘to further himself as a person and to develop his calm approach to difficult situations’. Even so, he still manages to be outgoing, making special trips to art exhibitions and regularly going out for drinks with the rest of the Nova team. With his dedication to Nova Victoria and well-rounded character, it’s easy to see how Francesco has become ‘the star of the show’, as Concierge Raimonda Grigaliunaite call him. A great ambassador for Portico and the rest of the Aspire team, there’s no better person to be leading the Front of House team.
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ASPIRE STAFF RECOGNITION AWARDS
Special RECOGNITION AWARD
O F RE C O
Special
ITION
ANOTHER WET BRITISH SUMMER
E AT
GN
THIS AWARD CREATES AN OPPORTUNITY FOR IMPRESSED MEMBERS AND CUSTOMERS TO RECOGNISE EXCELLENT SERVICE BY NOMINATING ASPIRE TEAM MEMBERS VIA THE WEBSITE.
CERTIF IC
ASPIRE
ONE OF THE KEY FACTORS THAT MAKES THE ASPIRE TEAM WORK SO WELL IS HOW EFFECTIVELY THEY ARE ABLE TO HELP EACH OTHER IN DIFFICULT SITUATIONS. WITHOUT THE COMMUNICATION AND UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN MEMBERS, IT WOULD NOT BE POSSIBLE TO DEAL WITH SOME OF THE PROBLEMS STAFF MAY FACE ON A DAY-TO-DAY BASIS. This was proved over the last few months when several individuals from different service providers came together to deal with flooding problems at sites across London. NOVA Based in the heart of Victoria, Nova experienced three floods within two months. On Wednesday the 28th June, NJC staff worked alongside Jaguar to help stop the source of the leak in the basement and help with the clean-up operation. Similarly, on Wednesday 12th July, Ismail Jama, Adnaan Butt and Anthony Delaney of Ultimate Security, along with Florin Popa, Gheorge Luca and David Griffin of NJC went above the usual demands of their roles to deal with the flooding in the basement. Operations Support Assistant Jasmin Byrne commented that everyone involved ‘helped out enormously without any complaint’. The third case of flooding at Nova was perhaps the most difficult to deal with, as it happened over the weekend when less staff were available. At 08:30 on Sunday 30th July, Kevin Wilson, NJC Portfolio Manager for Nova, received an emergency phone call from a Landsec operations team. The same area from before was again subject to ‘excessive leaks’. After making several calls, Kevin was once again able to rely on Gheorghe Luca, David Griffin, Florin Popa, aided by Jorge Amagua to deal with the flooded basement, even though it was their day off. Now that’s dedication, well done team!
40 STRAND Meanwhile, at 40 Strand, there was also significant flooding after the main incoming water pipe for the building suddenly burst. As well as leaving the basement under four feet of water, it meant that the supply was cut off for the entire building. Thanks to the NG Bailey and Landsec staff onsite, however, the water was pumped and the pipes were quickly repaired, even though it was a Thames Water issue. This was a great example of the team going above and beyond to provide a great customer service, as office and retail customers were able to resume work as normal the day after. ONE NEW CHANGE One the 14th June a sprinkler head was knocked off in Mango resulting in water everywhere. Corps Security inspected the area and isolated the water to stop further damage to the shop’s stock. The Principle Cleaning team acted quickly to clear all the water leaving it safe and clean for the staff of Mango when they arrived. Wayne Linnett from NG Bailey nominated the teams involved with high praise for the great response.
It’s recent events like the Aspire Hyde Park Rounders that have enabled Kevin Wilson, NJC Portfolio Ma nager for Nova, to build essential person al relationships with other team members .
30 OLD BAILEY, LUDGATE Lawrence Merry from Ultimate Security commented ‘great work’ when nominating Hardip from NG Bailey, Toufik Bouzna from Ultimate Security and Loredana Minecan and Alina Scutariu from NJC for the great team work they showed to stop and clean up a flood on levels 1, 2 and 3 at Mizuho House, Ludgate. On the night of the 20th June the teams joined forces to stop the water spreading by pulling up tiles and wet vacuuming the area. The fact that these incidents were dealt with so quickly and with so few problems is a testament to the teamwork and dedication that every Aspire member demonstrated.
The team working hard in the basement of Nova Victoria.
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ASPIRE WHAT’S ON On Friday 4th August, Aspire members were invited to get involved in more fun and games. Hosted at the Will to Win centre in Hyde Park, the grass pitch was ideal for this outdoor event. As there were more than thirty participants, there was never a dull moment throughout the evening. A free BBQ and refreshments were also provided, meaning everyone had plenty of fuel for all the excitement. With not one but two different sporting activities, good food, drinks and so much good company, there was no better way to enjoy a summer’s evening in Hyde Park.
Hyde Park
ROUNDERS & 9 HOLE PUTTING Friday 4th August 2017
all Check out m fro the images . h ig the n t
In action with Adrienne Bodo from NJC
Francisca Cumbicus from NJC and Landsec Operations Director Ann-Marie Khan celebrate a great catch
Home run for Solomon Jackson from Bywaters
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ASPIRE WHAT’S ON
Beach B A L L
5th December 2017
THE
festive fiesta
WITH A TWIST
S M A R T C A S UA L // O P T I O N A L P I N K B E AC H W E A R
PartyAsOne # P i n k B e a c hw e a r
CONTACT For further information regarding the articles in this newsletter please contact Amanda Heppelthwaite at aspire@landsec.com Landsec, 100 Victoria Street, London SW1E 5JL T +44 (0) 20 7413 9000 E aspire@landsec.com One newsletter is keen to welcome points of view from Landsec staff and service partners. Therefore, the views expressed in this newsletter are those of the individual contributor and do not necessarily reflect the views of Landsec. We welcome contributions whether through social media, email, letters or stories. Please forward contributions to aspire@landsec.com
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