John Lewis employees will spend more than 30,000 hours helping out at the Olympic Games in London, the department store chain has said.
A dozen workers have already been seconded to The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) in the first phase of John Lewis’ pledge to commit thousands of hours of employees’ time before the Games begin in July next year.
John Lewis is seconding a number of employees on long-term placements at LOCOG to allow them to use their knowledge and experience in warehousing, recruitment and logistics. They will work on London 2012 projects for up to 18 months before returning to the department store.
Selling operations director Nat Wakely said: “As the official department store provider to London 2012 we are delighted to be able to utilise the experience and knowledge of our Partners to provide a tangible benefit to LOCOG in the run up the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
“We hope that secondees will be able to develop their skills and gain new experiences which they can then bring back to their roles at John Lewis.”
Annisha Ogiliviy has held a number of management roles at John Lewis’ stores in London’s Oxford Street and Southampton. She is currently on secondment with LOCOG, working as a staffing administration and event services coordinator.
Ogiliviy said: “From a career development point of view, the breadth of experience and skills I have gained so far has been invaluable and will definitely help my career progression once I return to my job at John Lewis.
“Since January, I have worked with so many different people, across a range of departments. Working to meet the needs of each of them has at times been challenging but ultimately it’s a fantastic learning platform. It is great that John Lewis is so focused on the progression of its Partners and developing their transferable skills.”
John Lewis is also helping to furnish the reception and lounge areas at Games venues as part of its London 2012 sponsorship commitments.
Its shop on Oxford Street and the newly-opened Westfield Stratford City store next to the Olympic Park will be used as retail outlets for official Games merchandise. Net profits on all London 2012 goods will be given back to LOCOG.
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