Caledonia’s ‘Agile for Everyone’ approach was a long-standing business aim which was accelerated during the Covid pandemic, when the organisation identified that working practices and behaviours had to be redefined to drive continued success.

Barry Johnstone, director of people at Caledonia Housing Association, said: “Our people are our biggest strength. They are key to what we do and our ability to make a difference to the lives of our tenants. Agile for Everyone has become an integral part of the Caledonia culture and we are seeing significant business benefits. A lot of time, effort and reflection was involved in designing and developing a model that is right for Caledonia and I am delighted that the value of this work has been recognised by the cHeRries Awards.”

Caledonia Housing Association provides over 5,500 social rented homes across eight local authority areas, with nearly 200 staff across Scotland. Its ‘Agile for Everyone’ project launched in late 2022 with six key design principles:

• Enhance the customer experience
• Make it easy for people to do their best work.
• Strengthen employee engagement
• Enhance performance and productivity
• Reduce our carbon footprint
• Reduce business overheads and enhance value for money.

The project has seen significant and positive impact across key areas including customer satisfaction, increased employee engagement and a strategic review of the office estate reduced overheads and carbon emissions.