From Virgin to M&S – here's how some of Britain's biggest businesses are boosting employee morale

We speak to RTG Corporate founder Natasha Dwyer

THE NEED-TO-KNOW

What problem are you trying to solve?

Employee motivation, loyalty and inspiration. It’s a huge opportunity for progressive teams who want to give as much as they can to their team and who recognise that’s the most effective way to get the best in return.

How big is the market – and how much of it do you think you can own?

The Corporate wellbeing market in the UK is worth £465m. To date it’s been reactive – measuring illness, understanding the cost to the business of why people leave and over 50% of the amount above is attributed to Health Assessments and EAPs. However employers are turning the above on it’s head and investigating how to make people stay – not why they leave. That’s where we come in – a company culture that promotes the value it places in its workforce and their desire to make it a great place to be is already one step ahead.

How do you make money?

The therapists, trainers and teachers on the RTG team pay us to work for them as their agents. We choose carefully who we want to work for and once they’ve proved themselves we work our hardest to place them in companies in which they will thrive.

For RTG Growth is steady and they are growing their team steadily and solidly. Their corporate wellness turnover has grown 70% on 2015, which grew 40%on 2014. This is a growing market – ripe for expansion. From Virgin to AKQA, KMPG to Marks and Spencer – they have solidly grown their client list delivering a service that is valued, deemed great value and key to employee wellness.  

Who’s on your team that makes you think you can do this? 

A company such as ours is only about one thing – the expert therapists and a devoted corporate service team.  

Who’s bankrolling you?

Thankfully we’re bankrolling ourselves. There are a lot of players coming into the market with a lot of funding but feedback from the corporates is that it’s the service that counts in this arena.   When we launched we had seven angel investors who have followed us and we are unspeakably grateful to.

What do you believe the key to growing this business is?

Honestly – a steady honest reputable brand that has a team that are proud to work with us.

What metrics do you look at every day?

In our business it’s all about delighted clients and repeat bookings. If we’re really satisfying our clients the repeat is strong and everything else follows.

What’s been the most unexpectedly valuable lesson you’ve learnt so far? 

Personally I wish I had learnt faster that I am not best placed to do so many things and that there are so many gifted people out there who can.  It’s a very comforting lesson to learn.

What’s been your biggest mistake so far? 

Spending far too much on technology and not understanding the value it was going to return.

What do you think is on the horizon for your industry in the year ahead? 
It’s not only going to be a great year but a great decade for the corporate wellness industry.  In the short term companies are becoming more aware and proactive but as the millennial’s increasingly arrive into the workplace they will demand a different way of working. There is a lot to indicate that they are motivated by far more than monetary remuneration alone – they are looking for satisfaction at work – to buy into company’s values and they to be really valued and to integrate all their needs into work. We predict this will increase the demand for wellness as a form of tangible appreciation as well as productivity being delivered into companies.

Which London start-up/s are you watching, and why?

We’re actually watching two US start-ups coming to London – Zeel and Soothe. Both are coming to the UK and we are waiting to see what will happen to their model here.  Things jump so fast from NY to London that you’ve got to keep your interests wide!