Priorities:
1) Act on the findings of the staff survey
2) Increase emphasis on appraisals, giving feedback and managing poor performance
3) Improve transparency around pay, reward and career progression
4) Align training with business needs
5) Develop a more inclusive workplace

Introduction
People and change

Staff survey
In many ways the latest company-wide staff survey shows that Guardian News & Media is living up to the high ideal set by the Manchester Guardian's editor of 57 years, CP Scott.

Union view
Matt Seaton and Helene Mulholland, joint father/mother of chapel of the Guardian NUJ These are challenging times for staff, management and unions.

People strategy
The people department, which manages our HR activities, has been working hard to address the concerns that staff raised in our first employee survey three years ago.

Staff engagement
Whatever direction the company moves in, Webster says it is vital to engage staff more.

Pay and reward
Lack of transparency over pay continues to be a source of unhappiness to staff and the people department has been taking a two-pronged approach to resolving this.

Career development
As well as the career pathways model, the people department has also launched a new section on the staff intranet that encourages individuals to take more ownership of their careers.

Diversity
Diversity and inclusiveness are key concerns for any company seeking to take its responsibility to society seriously.

Health, safety & wellbeing
Thanks to a new system in place, we are able this year to report accurately on absences for the first time. An average of 4.4 days per employee is lost due to sickness, compared to a private sector average of six days.