Recognising the value of people-first workplaces, we believe that a strong and engaging employee culture is fundamental to building resilient, high-performing businesses. We believe that our role as investors is to empower our portfolio companies to foster workplaces where people feel valued, heard and supported – environments in which employees can thrive and contribute meaningfully to business success.

In 2024, 74% of our portfolio companies conducted employee engagement surveys, with an average response rate of 62%. These insights help leadership teams better understand employee sentiment and take meaningful action to improve workplace experience. In 2024, we continued to offer our investments access to a free, easy-to-use engagement measurement tool, however participation is not mandated. We recognise and support that some portfolio companies choose to run in-house surveys or adopt alternative approaches. Our priority is to enable companies to create spaces where employees have a voice and leadership listens.

Beyond direct engagement, we are seeing an increasing emphasis across our portfolio on employee development opportunities. Companies are implementing structured Continuing Professional Development hours and launching innovative initiatives such as Alessi’s cross-functional ‘day-in-the-life’ experiences that promote collaboration and career mobility. Supporting employee growth is essential not only for retaining top talent, but also for building the capability businesses need to adapt and grow.

While the nature of our portfolio – largely office-based businesses – means health and safety risks are typically lower than in more industrial settings, over 71% of companies have nonetheless implemented comprehensive health & safety policies, with many also introducing regular training and incident response plans. Many of our portfolio companies also go further, offering dedicated wellbeing programmes, including counselling services and flexible working arrangements.

Through Oakley’s ongoing portfolio engagement, we understand that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to building a positive employee workplace culture. Every company has its own values, workforce dynamics and operational context. In response to this, we intend to redesign our approach in 2025 to offer more flexible and scalable support that better aligns with each company’s unique needs.

As our portfolio continues to grow globally across regions and sectors, we remain committed to sharing actionable insights, highlighting best practices, and supporting initiatives that contribute to more engagement, healthy and high-performing workplaces.