Green Energy Advice Bureau (GEAB) continues to thrive as a leading employer in the region’s energy sector, prioritising team engagement, offering uncapped commissions and creating a supportive, growth-oriented work environment.
It’s no secret that the North East is the prime location for energy brokers. With the industry bouncing back in the wake of a challenging few years, Tyne and Wear-based telesales agents have their pick of companies within easy commuting distance. This leads to fierce competition when it comes to hiring talent, and retaining employees, prompting the Green Energy Advice Bureau (GEAB) to reflect on key themes of employee engagement.
What makes an agent the ‘right fit’ for the company? What does GEAB need to do to ensure it gets the best people through the door? How do they then keep them loyal to the company? Over 100 employees strong, GEAB has demonstrated resilience and determination in the face of industry lows. In the last four years, Covid followed by the Russia/Ukraine war sent the energy market into freefall and, with prices soaring and lower revenues, tough decisions had to be made.
What Paul Cobb, CEO and founder of GEAB, was sure of however, was that his employees were his top priority. Despite the turbulent market, GEAB’s headcount has tripled since 2018, and 40% of its current employees have been with the company since before Covid took hold. Paul takes his role as an employer seriously and works tirelessly to make sure the company supports its staff even when under tremendous pressure. Now that things are back on track, the focus has moved from survival to expansion. Sales, staff numbers, commission, partnerships and marketing have seriously ramped up since the back half of 2023 and GEAB is now looking at how it can expand even further, with the strongest workforce yet.
Money is a key driver for GEAB’s award winning sales team, so the management developed a commission
structure that sets them apart from competitors. To start, there is no cap on commissions – and no small print around this either. GEAB’s model is designed to incentivise top performers to go above and beyond consistently surpassing targets and reaching new milestones is always rewarded. When the business profits, so do the employees who contributed to that success. Furthermore, GEAB starts paying agents commission at the point of a contract being signed rather than waiting for the contracts to go live. In the energy industry, a big challenge for sales agents is the lag between the sale date and payment date – GEAB recognises this frustration and has adapted their accounting schedule based on employee feedback.
Year to date, GEAB has already paid out £1.5 million in commission – this shows how dedicated they are to rewarding their workforce for their contribution. Gone are the days though, where salary is the ‘be all and end all’ for employee engagement. Although money is an essential element in workplace satisfaction, the working environment and opportunities for career development are of equal importance to employees in all roles. For that reason, GEAB have invested in a full-time training team with three trainers and coaches working onsite to encourage progression.
The workforce is hugely varied in both age and experience. GEAB have created a place where you can either launch your career or embark upon a career change later in life. What’s important to note is that GEAB will always search internally before looking outside for new candidates. In fact, 75% of GEAB’s management team have been promoted internally, and two of the directors joined the company in customer facing roles. Hard work and dedication are rewarded, which has led to an efficient and loyal workforce.
So much so, that when times were hard across the industry due to the Covid restrictions, many GEAB employees actually chose to continue working without commission payments to ensure the business could remain afloat and customers could still receive the support with their energy contracts when they needed it most. It was dedication from the agents, as much as management, which lead to the success and subsequent growth of the business in recent years.
The past 12 months have been focused on significant growth for the company. In January of this year, GEAB launched its new look brand and website. While energy procurement is still the hero product for customers, the sustainability offering GEAB have developed is a key area for development. The team managing solar solutions and Pulse’s energy monitoring system has more than doubled in the past 12 months.
GEAB’s proposition is moving towards a streamlined energy consultancy service, covering all aspects for customers. Unlike other brokers who focus on procurement, GEAB’s offering of helping businesses achieve their net zero goals provides broader employment prospects for energy agents. Increasing the product offering has also allowed for further professional development, boosting the knowledge and promotion opportunities for employees looking to expand their energy portfolio.
It’s not just validation from employees that gives GEAB its status as a top employer. It has been nominated for, or won, five awards in just the past year. Among these are currently being a finalist for The Lloyds Bank Small to Medium Sized Business of the Year Award and winners of the Service Excellence Award in the North East from the Federation of Small Business awards – a stellar achievement.
GEAB is always on the lookout for new talent, be that in sales, account management, admin or marketing. If you’re interested in working with GEAB, or know someone who you think would be interested in a career at GEAB, get in touch at www.geab.com/careers or send your CV to [email protected]
