“Our people are genuinely excited about the synergies between the two parts of our new business and the direction we are taking together. They are rapidly leaving behind the language of the past and looking forward to new opportunities.” David Whiting, Vice President, HR and Administration, Serco North America.

The transfer and integration of staff from our most recent acquisitions ITNET (now Serco Solutions) and RCI (now Serco Inc.) continued throughout 2005. This was always going to be a challenging task. Uniting contrasting cultures within a single management framework is rarely straightforward. Aligning their administrative procedures and processes is equally complex.

By the end of the year, the intensive investment of time and resources had paid dividends. Furthermore, the integration of both workforces has been achieved without a significant loss of staff to other employers.

One of the most welcome elements of ITNET's integration into Serco Solutions has been the success of the workplace charters. This charter initiative, born from an idea of the existing management team and then developed by the change champion network, has proven to be an effective tool to help us integrate as one team. Implementing these charters has helped us to debate how we want to work at our 80 UK sites, agree a consistent approach and then embed within the site. Drawn up with the full involvement of every employee in each workplace, these charters detail the type of environment that staff aspire to work in. According to Christian Morgan-Jones, Serco Solution's Change Director: “Drawing up the charters was an exercise in trust and respect. They have been instrumental in bringing us all together into a single, focused entity.”

The charters were produced as part of a comprehensive plan to involve and engage Serco Solutions staff at every level of the business. Christian says “The programme was driven by local change champions who were chosen for the role because they eat, breathe and sleep Serco's governing principles.”

The UK initiative was mirrored by similar initiatives across the Atlantic, where staff from RCI are now fully engaged with Serco Inc. and our values.