The Bassadone Automotive Group is very proud to announce that after 3 days of intensive and rigorous interviews by two Assessors from the Investors in People Quality Centre, not only have they attained the Gold Standard, they have also been awarded Champion status; this means that they will be used as a benchmark for local and international companies who would like to attain the Gold Award in the future!

Bassadone Automotive Group have been described as an excellent Role Model IiP Organisation and they are also the first and only local company to have achieved this award.

The IiP Gold Award is awarded to organisations demonstrating best practice in people management and development. Of the approximate 25,000 organisations accredited by IiP, only 205 (0.8%) have achieved the Gold award to date.

The assessors were extremely impressed with the high standards of the company and its employees! They stated that the company was exceptional. They concluded by stating that by achieving the Gold, the company met the ‘Standard’ plus 130 additional evidence requirements (126 is enough for gold!).

Talent, qualifications and skills will only get you so far in business, but to really succeed you need to have a team that shares a common vision, goals and beliefs. That lives its corporate values!

The Investors in People programme recognises employers that have boosted the performance of their organisation through the way they manage excellence, their innovation and how they develop their employees.

“We are always focused on how we can improve everything we do which means that we are always changing, that can be challenging; but it’s one of the strengths of our Organisation”, one Bassadone staff member commented to B2B.

The Bassadone Group would like to thank all their employees who have so wholeheartedly embraced this concept of continuous people development. This award has been earned by every staff member who has demonstrated that the Group has a culture of trust which continuously strives to deliver increased value to our customers, our stakeholders and our people.

Barclays Wealth in Gibraltar recently took part in National Customer Service Week, which gave staff the opportunity to not only demonstrate the importance of excellent customer care, but also raise £500 for charity.

National Customer Service week which took place recently is an initiative to highlight the fact that customer service plays a vital part in making a business successful.

The Main Street branch was decorated to mark the event, which saw staff from across the branch volunteering to greet customers and highlight the alternative banking channels available to them, including the Wealth Debit Card and the online and telephone banking services, designed to enhance customer experience.

As well as ‘helping customers to help themselves’ staff took the opportunity to assist the wider community by fundraising for The Gibraltar Red Cross and were delighted by the generosity of customers who donated. Fundraising initiatives continued internally throughout the week with a pub quiz and dress auction.

The fundraising efforts raised £250 and Barclays Wealth matched this amount, meaning the branch was able to present The Gibraltar Red Cross with a cheque for £500.

Country Manager of Barclays Wealth Gibraltar, Franco Cassar was at the branch to officially start the event alongside Hon Treasurer of The Gibraltar Red Cross, Edgar Lavarello. They were joined by staff and charity volunteers.

Franco Cassar told B2B: “Barclays Wealth is delighted to have taken part in National Customer Service Week, which is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate how much we value our customers. It was fantastic that the Red Cross volunteers could join us and I’d like to thank them for their support. Thanks also to all of the customers who gave so generously.”

Gibraltar Red Cross Hon Treasurer Edgar Lavarello said: “The Society is always very grateful when local business takes up our cause and assists with fundraising events. Barclays Wealth and the staff that work there are well known for their generosity and the support that they provide to local charities. We are extremely fortunate and pleased that on this occasion they have decided to support the Red Cross. The monies raised will be used for the purchase and provision of equipment for the needy and infirm in the local community.”

Chairman of The Gibraltar Red Cross, Eddie Davies added: “The Gibraltar Red Cross is very fortunate to enjoy the support of the community in Gibraltar, and we would particularly like to thank the staff of Barclays Wealth for all their efforts in this fundraising drive.”

The Gibraltar Red Cross is an Overseas Branch of the British Red Cross Society and has been working in Gibraltar for over 60 years. Their aim is to alleviate suffering in whatever form it may occur.

Following a six day trial in October 2010 in the High Court, judgment was handed down in January 2011 detailing 32Red’s success in its trade mark action against members of the William Hill group.  As a result of that successful action, the William Hill owned 32Vegas business was held to have infringed two of 32Red’s European community trade marks. William Hill’s counterclaim that the “32Red” and “32” trade marks should be invalidated, failed. Subsequently, the judge ordered that 32Red be granted an injunction against William Hill and ordered an inquiry to assess monetary damages, which is ongoing.

William Hill appealed this decision and a hearing took place in the Court of Appeal on 5th and 6th December 2011. The Court of Appeal described William Hill’s case as a “full-scale, wide-ranging attack on the Judge’s analysis and conclusions on virtually every aspect of his judgment”. In a Judgment handed down today, the whole of William Hill’s appeal against the trial judge’s decision was dismissed.

Additionally, the Appeal court went further than the High Court and found that William Hill also infringed 32Red’s registered trade mark for “32” and held that a further reason for finding infringement was that William Hill took unfair advantage of 32Red’s well known trade marks.

In summary, and following approximately three years of argument, liability is now firmly established as follows:

The “32Red” and “32” trade marks are valid. The “32Red” marks were infringed by William Hill’s use of 32Vegas. The “32” mark was infringed by William Hill’s use of 32Vegas. The use of 32Vegas took unfair advantage of 32Red’s trade marks.

The costs associated with the Appeal, along with interest, have been awarded to 32Red and an initial sum of £75,000 is payable to 32Red. The level of damages relating to this case and the liability for costs associated with the original Hearing will be assessed in an inquiry process before the High Court, now scheduled to be heard early in 2013.

“We are delighted that the Court of Appeal has categorically dismissed William Hill’s appeal. The success of our cross-appeal is also very satisfying. Quite correctly, the Court of Appeal’s judgment also supported the view that taking advantage of a well known brand such as 32Red is not acceptable.” CEO Ed Ware, told B2B.

Google+ is the latest Social Media channel, but what can this new-kid-on-the-block do for your business that other platforms such as Facebook and Twitter can’t?

When Google launched business/brand pages on its Google+ social network it was thought by some that Google+ would never be able to compete with Facebook, but it has proved itself to be a serious contender within the Social Media marketing sphere. It is an important addition to building a brand identity online, allowing your business to share content, build links and connect with customers.

Google+ differs from Facebook in several ways. Firstly, people don’t ‘Like’ it as they do with Facebook, they +1. Secondly, with Google+ you select ‘Circles’ for people to belong to. Google can see by the person’s connections, profile information, and other data if someone could be considered a knowledgeable source on a particular subject. The potential long term value for Google is that it can use the collective votes by topic
-associated people for specific content to determine what is valuable, and theoretically help the growth of their ranking algorithms.

The +1 button is the fastest growing social recommendation widget and will soon become ubiquitous. It appears on business pages automatically. The +1 button is Google’s way of tracking everybody who is recommending and interacting with your business. Searching with the + symbol in front of a business or brand name in Google Search will automatically redirect users straight to that Google+ Page.

Google+ is the future of marketing, engaging potential customers in a more personal way and allowing you to drive them directly to your online identity. Just by setting up a profile, a business can boost its SEO ranking on Google.

If your business or brand is not on Google+ yet, you should be.

Tim Mutton, business development director at Now Health International takes a look at why international private medical insurance is a must-have insurance for many businesses in Gibraltar.

International private medical insurance (IPMI) supports companies and their employees in a variety of ways, but in some circumstances it is practically essential. For instance, IPMI steps up to the plate in countries where the standard of medical facilities is substandard or when companies want to provide employees with a higher level of cover than would typically be available from local medical insurance plans. It is also a very practical solution for an employee who spends significant time travelling to different countries.

In Gibraltar the standard of healthcare available to those who are eligible is high. The Gibraltar Health Authority invests strongly in the health of its nationals, with around £90m per annum going into the healthcare system, equating to around £3,000 per head.

In spite of these relatively high levels of investment, however, Gibraltar doesn’t have the capacity or often the demand for dealing with specialist or chronic conditions on the peninsular itself. As a result, if your staff are confronted with major medical crises – such as cancer or acute eye disease – they are unlikely to find the facilities on hand to deal with them. If they are eligible for the local medical scheme they will be covered by a variety of arrangements the Gibraltar Health Authority has with specialist units in Spain and other European countries, such as the UK. Despite this excellent additional care, however, qualifying employees are still likely to suffer from unwanted waiting times and lack of choice over the consultants they have access to.

But if you have staff working on a contract they will not have access to this specialist treatment. A situation that plays to the strengths of an international medical plan. IPMI is at its most effective in providing protection and treatment for more serious medical conditions. And the benefits extend well beyond providing the costs of the treatment…for instance, a good corporate plan allows employees to choose precisely where they are treated, even down to nominating the consultant they want to treat them. What’s more, an asthma patient, for example, can expect first-class treatment when an incident occurs and, on top of that, the cover can extend to a programme to help them manage their condition subsequently.

For businesses in Gibraltar, this can generate significant benefits and increased efficiency, with key employees returning to work much more quickly after an adverse medical event. Added to that, a first-class international medical plan provides a major incentive in attracting high-calibre staff. Building morale and a reputation for good employee relations is essential and IPMI plans can play a key part in that mix.

Not surprisingly good medical cover for businesses doesn’t come cheap and, with so many plans on the market, it’s vital to make the right choice. Fortunately Gibraltar has some excellent intermediaries who can help. Here is our top six for the region:

Award Completes Another Superb Hat-Trick of Wins for 32Red Casino

Online casino, 32Red Casino, is delighted to announce that it has once again been named Best Casino at the 2011 Casinomeister awards. This latest win for 32Red means the online group have now won this prestigious award nine times in a row – an amazing feat in such a competitive industry.

The 2011 winners list, posted by player advocate Casinomeister last week, celebrates the best (and worst) of the online casino community, and sees the independent casino watchdog impart forty separate awards to some of the world’s leading online casinos.

Bryan Bailey, owner of Casinomeister and judge for the awards, praised 32Red Casino for their consistently high performance over the years, and for incrementally improving since first winning the award back in 2003. “How do you explain a phenomenon that continues to impress and amaze both players and serious affiliates? It’s one word: 32Red. They nailed this award in 2003 and have been hammering away on what it takes to be a number one casino each and every day of the year.”

In addition to claiming the Best Global Casino award, 32Red Plc was also named Best Casino Group. However the winning did not to stop there: to finish-off another incredible hat-trick of wins, 32Red’s Pat Harrison was once again named Best Casino Manager for 2011. This latest accolade means that Harrison has now won the award an amazing four times – his second in successive years.

These three fantastic wins at the Casinomeister awards caps off a triumphant 2011 for 32Red Casino. In November the group was awarded ‘Casino Operator of the Year’ by eGaming Review Magazine.

What can you do to comprehensively analyse your own health and increase the chances of your own mortality lying in your own hands?

The current economic uncertainty has seen a surprising increase in the number of medical consults by executives who have noticed stress related exacerbation of existing conditions such as asthma, migraine, diabetes, hypertension, irritable bowel syndrome, and heart disease. Whilst many symptoms may have simple explanations self diagnosis is not advisable and serious problems may arise if individuals ignore these signs.

Although basic medical tests and a clinical examination may suffice in many, often this can leave a lot out and serious illness may be missed. I recently heard of a 49 year old runner who despite having regular “normal” medicals and being able to run 10 miles in 1hr 20 minutes was, unexpectedly found to have a completely occluded coronary artery which required urgent treatment.

External appearance is no guarantee that all is well inside one’s body and the best way to gauge and understand the inner health of your executives team and employees relies on comprehensive health checks which should include the option (if indicated) of state of the art imaging. Recent figures from the UK and US indicate that increasing numbers of executives are now volunteering for these “Well Person” checks in order to ensure their fitness to do their job.

What can a company do to ensure that its key men and women are healthy and fit enough to endure the stress and anxiety of modern day business pressures?

Executive screening packages typically begin with a lifestyle questionnaire, examination, blood and urine tests. Depending on age, medical history and gender, disease specific blood tests can be performed. If indicated an exercise ECG should be offered. Basic tests may indicate the need for further investigation which may include the option of radiation free MRI scans which take thousands of images of the body to produce images of the body in astonishing detail. Whilst there is no better example of modern day technology, these scans should only be undertaken if indicated following more simple basic investigations and discussion with your physician.

During this recession executives are enduring increased stress levels from the pressure of succeeding in challenging markets and fear of unemployment. These conditions are fertile grounds for heart attacks, strokes and even cancers. By ensuring that your health and that of your workforce is good offers a real benefit to any director.

A business is only as healthy as its workforce but company directors can be so focussed on the health of their business that they risk neglecting this point. Why is it therefore, that we willingly invest money and time on the maintenance and performance of our cars and other chattels, yet rarely invest the same time or effort into monitoring the well being and condition of most important asset – our bodies?

St Michaels Cave provides an iconic setting for any event, however the recent Gibraltar Philharmonic concert featuring Alexei Ogrintchouk and the Seville Baroque Orchestra proved to be something special indeed.

Alexei Ogrintchouk is one of the most outstanding oboists performing today. Originally from Moscow and a graduate of the Gnessin School of Music and the Paris Conservatoire, Alexei was already performing all over Russia, Europe and Japan from the age of 13. He was the winner of the prestigious CIEM International Competition in Geneva at the age of 19 and also the winner of the European Juventus Prize in 1999, two “Victoires de la Musique Classique” Prizes in France in 2002, the Triumph Prize in Russia in 2005 and Borletti Buitini Trust Award winner in 2007. Alexei has performed concertos under the baton of some of the world’s finest conductors in some of the world’s finest venues as well as performing at a number of festivals such as the BBC Proms. Alexei was joined on this occasion by The Orquesta Barroca de Sevilla, one of the foremost Spanish ensembles known for specialising in the performance of music in the old period style.

The captivating musical experience was enhanced by the unique staging of the cave, which involved replacing the seating, shipping in a number of fully-grown topiary trees, special lighting arrangements and providing a covered bar. Renowned for quality and attention to detail Credit Suisse went to great lengths to ensure that the event reflected this.

Credit Suisse are sponsors of the Gibraltar Philharmonic Society along with The New York Philharmonic, The Sydney Symphony, Salzburg Festival’s Young Singers Project, The Sydney Symphony Fellowship & Associate Conductor Program, The Davos Festival, The Orchestra Academy at the Zurich Opera House, The Bolshoi Theatre, The Beijing Music Festival, The Hong Kong Arts Festival, The Salzburger Festival and the Swiss Young Musicians’ Competition to name but a few. Credit Suisse plays a very active role in the promotion of young talent through the Credit Suisse Foundation Jubliee Award, The Credit Suisse Young Artist Award and the Prix Credit Suisse Jeunes Solistes.

Speaking about the evening Yan Delagdo from Credit Suisse said “A successful concert performance is always the result of many individual performances. If everything works smoothly during the performance, and all the constituent parts merge to create a unique whole, the audience experiences an unforgettable evening of music. The ethos of Credit Suisse has great synergy with this. Classical music is responsible for many stimulating experiences with guests and clients of our bank. We don’t go to a concert or a challenging opera production because it is “the right thing to do” but because we love the music and the world it stands for. Credit Suisse is proud of having forged significant partnerships in the world of music that are really worthy of the name.”

Yan continued, “Music is able to break down barriers and open up new worlds. Like an accomplished orchestra here at Credit Suisse, Gibraltar, we work closely with our colleagues from around the globe and so the result is a world class service for our clients”.

Barclays Wealth in Gibraltar has been providing clients with professional advice for 120 years, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. Today, with a presence in twenty-five countries and a reputation for providing international reach and expertise, clients can also access products and services from jurisdictions around the globe through Barclays Wealth’s Gibraltar-based relationship team. This is just one of the facts clients learned about Barclays Wealth Intermediaries at a recent unique ‘education and networking’ event highlighting the many facets of this global banking partner recently.

The evening, held at The Rock Hotel and entitled ‘Learn about Barclays, Learn about Wine,’ was the perfect opportunity for Barclays Wealth Intermediaries in Gibraltar to update existing and potential intermediary clients about developments ‘on the ground,’ while at the same time, introducing them to the range of products and services offered by other experts from some of the many jurisdictions which make up the wider Barclays group.

Barclays Wealth Intermediary representatives from London, Cyprus, Switzerland and the Isle of Man joined their colleagues in Gibraltar to share their expertise on various business areas via a series of interactive workshops. Areas covered included Brokerage, Investments, Cash Management and Treasury as well as one workshop designed to highlight the concept of Barclays Wealth Intermediaries as a ‘gateway,’ for clients to the wider Barclays group.

Carlos Garcia, Head of Intermediaries at Barclays Wealth in Gibraltar who organised and hosted the event told B2B: ‘This was an opportunity to showcase the scope of the Barclays group and demonstrate how we have specialists in every field across all jurisdictions who are capable of providing the services our clients require. During the evening, the Gibraltar-based Intermediaries team were able to facilitate introductions between clients and Intermediary representatives from across the Barclays group.

In order to encourage interaction and networking, each workshop was followed by a wine tasting session. This unique aspect of the evening meant that as well as gaining a deeper understanding of Barclays Wealth Intermediaries and its representatives, clients had the chance to savour food and wine which had been carefully selected to compliment the jurisdictions represented, thus providing an evening to remember and a feast for the senses.

In conclusion, Carlos added: ‘The event was a major success and my thanks go to all the clients who attended and to the Barclays Wealth employees who travelled from far and wide to take part in the initiative. My thanks also go to The Rock Hotel where the event took place, the sommeliers and the caterers who made the event so unique.’

Country Manager of Barclays Wealth Gibraltar, Franco Cassar said: ‘This was an extremely successful and unique networking event which captured the imagination of all involved whilst delivering a key message: that Barclays Wealth Intermediaries is an effective platform from which clients can access both local and global expertise to suit their various needs. Congratulations to all involved. Thanks especially to the clients who took the time to attend. We look forward to working with them and to conducting many more unique events in the future.’

Barclays Wealth employees went back to the classroom recently to learn basic first aid courtesy of The St John Ambulance Service. As a ‘thank you’ for their newly acquired skills, Barclays Wealth presented the charity with a £100 donation.

Around twenty employees volunteered to take part in the course, which taught them how to deal with a variety of emergency situations which could arise in the workplace, from burns and seizures to asthma and heart attacks.

The donation to The St John Ambulance Service was made by The Gibraltar Family and Parenting Network, a support group within Barclays Wealth which aims to support staff and their families during their career.

Barclays Wealth Family and Parenting Network member and course participant Michelle Walsh told B2B: “The course was a great opportunity for staff to learn essential skills that could potentially save a life. We enjoyed our time with The St John Ambulance Service very much and would like to thank the team for its support. We are pleased to have been able to make a donation to support the vital work the charity carries out.”

Commissioner of the Order of St John Ambulance, Graham Southwell said: “The course teaches people how to react to different situations at work. But the skills also equip them to deal with emergency situations in everyday life, so family, friends and members of the public can benefit. We would like to thanks Barclays Wealth for its kind donation.”