Behind the scenes of A Company That Cares award submission

There’s nothing quite like the moment a big achievement lands at Ideal HQ – literally. After months of hard work on our Investor in Customers (IIC) submission, and the excitement of being named A Company That Cares with an Excellent rating, our official awards have now arrived!

Members of the wider team came together to celebrate and snap a few photos with the trophies – a proud moment for everyone who played a part in this achievement.

To mark the occasion, Cherie Bradford, Customer Experience Manager, and Lyndsey Lippiatt, Customer Service Operations Manager – the duo behind our award-winning submission – took us behind the scenes to share what really goes into creating a top-scoring entry and how it felt to bring home this recognition for the whole business.

Behind the scenes of an award-winning submission

“We began by identifying the evidence requirements for each question,” explains Cherie, “then engaged with stakeholders across all business areas to gather the necessary supporting documentation and information. Once we had everything, we indexed and organised the evidence, so every response was backed by clear, accessible proof.”

Lyndsey adds, “Both of us invested a lot of time checking and rechecking that our submission didn’t just show the data but also told the story of our passion for customer experience. We wanted the assessors to feel the That’s ideal commitment in every page.”

The effort paid off – not only did Ideal Heating secure the A Company That Cares accreditation, but we also scored ‘Excellent’ in all four areas assessed:

• Understanding customer needs

• Meeting those needs

• Delighting customers

• Engendering loyalty

Investor in Customers praised the submission as “outstanding” – a clear reflection of the team’s hard work and the company’s culture of putting customers first.

“It was a tremendous feeling of satisfaction,” says Cherie. “We knew we had a strong submission - seeing that ‘Excellent’ rating across the board was really special.”

And for the pair, seeing the wider team come together this week to celebrate in person was the cherry on top.

“It was a pleasure watching the wider team come together to share pride in what we’ve collectively achieved,” Lyndsey said.

For Cherie and Lyndsey, the recognition goes far beyond a trophy:

“Achieving the Investor in Customers (IIC) – A Company That Cares Award with a score of 9.02 is tremendous validation and a powerful reflection of our team’s unwavering commitment to putting customers at the heart of everything we do,” says Cherie.

“The outstanding scores achieved across ‘understanding, meeting, and delighting our customers’ reflect the daily dedication and passion of our entire team to deliver exceptional service. Every interaction – from initial enquiry to ongoing support – is designed with our customers in mind. This recognition reinforces our position as a customer-centric organisation and motivates us to keep raising the bar,” adds Lyndsey.

“Our ultimate message is that every single member of the Ideal team should feel proud knowing their dedication, passion, and commitment are not only deeply appreciated – but now officially award-winning!”

While this award is a huge milestone, the work doesn’t stop here. Cherie and Lyndsey shared that the recognition energises the team to continue innovating, especially as the Service Centre explores the transformative potential of AI.

“This award belongs to every member of the Ideal Heating family. Thank you for making Ideal a Company That truly Cares.”