Looking at Investors in People accreditation? Here’s an alternative that proves the same thing, lighter.
Investors in People is a long-established accreditation framework, built around a detailed audit process. HELM Culture Score gives any business a credible, externally usable answer in ten questions, without the audit.
The difference in a sentence
Investors in People accredits you against a detailed framework, typically through an extended assessment process. HELM Culture Score measures your culture directly, through your staff’s own anonymous answers, in a fraction of the time.
Both aim to give you something credible to show externally. The path to get there looks very different.
Investors In People | HELM Culture Score | |
What you get | Accreditation against a detailed people management framework | One overall score, plus a result for each of five pillars |
Process | Can involve an extended assessment and audit process | Ten questions, a sixteen-day survey window, a report shortly after |
What it measures | Organisational practices and processes against a framework | What your staff actually say about working there, directly |
Time to result | Often a multi-month accreditation cycle | Weeks, not months |
External use | An accreditation level (Standard, Silver, Gold, Platinum) | A score, plus the badge and pillar detail behind it |
Best suited to | Businesses wanting a structured framework audit of their people practices | Any business wanting a fast, credible, staff-verified answer |
Why businesses choose HELM instead
A framework audit is a genuinely thorough way to assess people practices, and it takes the time that thoroughness requires. Most businesses want a credible answer they can act on and use externally without committing to a lengthy accreditation cycle to get there.
HELM Culture Score gets to the same underlying question, is this a good place to work, directly from the people best placed to answer it: your own staff, answering anonymously. Ten questions, a report within days of the survey closing, and a score that’s genuinely comparable year on year.
Straightforward, published pricing
No accreditation cycle needed to find out what it costs.
Small | Medium | Large | Enterprise |
£2,400 | £3,600 | £5,400 | Custom |
Common questions
Is HELM Culture Score a substitute for Investors in People accreditation?
It answers a different, more specific question. Investors in People assesses your people management framework. HELM Culture Score measures what your staff actually experience, directly and anonymously, on a much faster cycle.
Could we use both?
Yes. Some businesses use HELM Culture Score as their ongoing annual measure, and pursue a framework accreditation like Investors in People separately when the time and resource make sense.
How quickly can we get a result?
The survey runs for sixteen days, and the report follows within two working days of it closing. Considerably faster than a full accreditation cycle.
Ready to see if it fits?
HELM Culture Score. 10 questions. One honest score.