Elior fast-tracks new chefs with Thrive.

A purpose-powered transformation

Elior is one of the UK’s leading contract caterers and an award-winning people business. Their 10,000-strong team delivers food to 1,200 sites - including care homes, schools, workplaces and stadiums. Their purpose? 'To enrich lives, everywhere, every day.’

‍

But, they had a problem

Their traditional, face-to-face L&D approach began restricting people’s access to training as they expanded UK-wide. Busy schedules and travel times meant numbers dwindled. For those who did attend, it was difficult to retain a whole day’s learning, and the travel and accommodation costs were huge.  What’s more, managers were struggling to get the training resources they needed to support their teams. So Elior set out to overhaul their personal development and make it accessible and achievable for everyone - no matter their location, tech fluency, or commitments.

A modern, social solution

With an emphasis on connecting remote teams, creating a culture of collaborative knowledge sharing, and making learning resources available on-demand, Thrive ticked all the boxes. After the launch of Thrive@Elior in May 2021, everyone receives a personalised learning experience that suggests content to consume and colleagues to connect with - based both on the skills they already have, and those they’re looking to develop. Any time. Any place. Any device.

Unlocking the platform's potential

From food safety to Pride Month, live cooking classes to menopause, Elior introduced ‘Thrive Thursday’ notifications to signpost key content for the week and drive engagement. They’ve also used Thrive@Elior to run campaigns including gender diversity, recognition and feedback, modern slavery, Natasha’s Law, and a brilliant, company-first ‘Womentoring’ initiative.

Engagement. Impact. Everywhere.

Since launching in May 2021:

• Thrive@Elior has had over 26,000 logins, 245,205 content views, and 4,000 searches on the platform.
• ‍100,337 pieces of content have been completed, less than 1% of which are mandatory, showcasing a culture of true, self-directed learning.
• Out of 3,239 total content items, 44% are user-generated.
• There have been over 16,000 social interactions, including likes, comments, pins and shares.

Elior also used Thrive to move elements of their Chef School programme online - to brilliant effect:

• The programme went from 9 months to 6 months, saving huge costs on travel and accommodation and fast-tracking new chefs into the business;
• With pre-class content on the platform, students enter the kitchen prepared, confident, and ready to ask questions - improving food quality; and
• They’ve enrolled a much more diverse set of people, reaching new places and new learners, with some great stories around subtitled, replayable content making a world of difference to trainees with learning difficulties.

In short: Thrive@Elior has enriched lives, everywhere, every day. And long may that continue.