A Hitchin-based business has been ranked as one of the UK’s best small companies to work for.

The Comet: The Step Change Outsourcing team celebrate with Dan Walker. Picture: Dan WalkerThe Step Change Outsourcing team celebrate with Dan Walker. Picture: Dan Walker (Image: Archant)

Step Change Outsourcing, a contact centre based in Market Place, were ranked third in the Sunday Times Best Small Companies to work for 2020 list last week.

The list, complied by experts at Best Companies, ranked the top 100 companies with the highest 'Best Companies Index Score,' which is a recognised standard for employee engagement.

Of the 100 organisations listed, Step Change were only beaten by Brightstar Financial, a lender based in Essex and Pure Planet, an energy company from Bath.

Speaking after the news, Beth Jones from Step Change Outsourcing, said: "Over the last decade we have spent time building our culture to what it is today, emphasising on creating a more positive, engaging and fun place to work.

"This is just the beginning of our journey.

"We will continue to focus and build our culture to continuously improve."

This was the first time since their inception that Step Change decided to enter the awards, as they believed now was the right time to enter.

In order to be considered for the prestigious list, companies have to prove that employees rank them highly on their wellbeing, pay and benefits, personal growth and other categories.

Once the company-wide survey was completed, the accreditation process began which saw Step Change Outsourcing ranked as one of the nation's best.

Clearly, their hardwork has paid off, as the organisation was also recognised as having the highest accreditation of workplace engagement by Best Companies, which reflects "extraordinary" levels of workplace engagement.

Declan Shilton, the chief executive of Step Change Outsourcing, said: "I am enormously proud of our team and what we have achieved.

"Our people are our number one priority and creating a culture that our team can thrive in is so important.

"Becoming the third best company to work for in the UK is an amazing achievement, I can't thank our team enough."

This tops off a good year for the company, after they were also named finalists in November's Hertfordshire Business Awards in the Best Employer Category.