Beyond The Water Cooler

Self-awareness is the “meta-skill of the 21st Century,” according to Tasha Eurich, and I tend to agree. That's the starting point for emotional intelligence, maximising potential and good leadership. 

So, in this concluding episode for the first series, we hear from the guests who have appeared on my podcast who talk about their journeys, what they have learned, and the principles that shape the way they work. The insight these leaders provide are a great addition to what they discuss in their individual shows, that have been all about unpicking what we mean by employee experience. 

Thank you Andrew, Stuart, Anna, Mike, Ali, Charlotte and Sally.

I asked each guest 4 questions: 

1. If you could rewind 10 years, what advice would you give to yourself?
2. What two things have you learned about yourself during your career and what one thing would you leave in the past?
3. Name one thing you’d like all business leaders to be doing now.

I wonder what your responses to these questions would be?

How do your reflections impact on your self-awareness? How do your answers shape your next steps? 

And finally, what will you take forward from the episodes in this first series, to influence better things to come for yourself and those around you?

Do drop me a line at [email protected] to let me know what resonates with you, what you're planning or to explore something you're feeling stuck with. I'm more than happy to have a chat.

We’re going to be taking a short break now but returning after the Easter holiday to launch into our next series about planning for employee experience. So, listen out for the next episode on Friday 6th May. 

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

Sally Naunton, who has been MD at Bray Health Care since 2019, joins me to discuss Being Bray and the Impact of Psychological Safety. Sally's leadership has taken her workforce on a journey to develop a new way of working, based on a framework the team created called Being Bray. 

In this conversation we explore psychological safety, including:

• how it is part of employee experience 
• the motivation for developing Being Bray
• how values need to be more explicit in terms of behaviours
• the process of developing and embedding the framework
• some of the challenges around achieving and maintaining psychological safety
• personal responsibility and accountability 
• using the framework for growth and progression within the company: bronze, silver and gold standards
• advice for companies thinking about a similar approach

To find out more about psychological safety in your workplace, read my blog here.

Although Sally has not yet produced an overview to share about the Bray approach, she is happy to be contacted for further information.

Sally has been the MD at Bray Healthcare since November 2019. She is MBA qualified with both commercial and operational experience in healthcare. Her career has included senior board level roles in entrepreneurially driven, private equity backed medical device businesses as well as the public sector. Whilst she has always been headquartered in the UK, she has held direct operational responsibility for overseas operations in Germany, France and Australia. People are her passion and she sees her role as a leader to support, develop and mentor her Team.

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sallynaunton

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.bray.co.uk

Twitter: @SallyNaunton

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

In this episode I'm joined by Jim Liptrot, MD of Howorth Air Technology. He has been on an interesting journey that is full of learning and Jim has put this into practice by leading with intention. The clear purpose and values that shape his practice as a leader are encapsulated in The Howorth Way. This is an approach that many organisations would benefit from exploring for themselves.

We talk about how to enable people to be their best selves and the importance of getting the right people to create the fantastic dots to join up. We cover a lot about leading an engaging and values-led organisation, including:

• What has shaped Jim to become the leader he is today
• The core values and behaviours that drive Jim's leadership style
• The culture that drives employee experience at Howorth
• The journey at Howorth, including some of the challenges and highlights
• Getting from 'good' to 'great'

Links to resources:

The Howorth Way: About Howorth | Howorth Air Tech (howorthgroup.com)

Simon Sinek: Start with why -- how great leaders inspire action | Simon Sinek | TEDxPugetSound - Bing video

Jim Collins: Getting the Right People in the Right Seats over Time : Jim Collins - Video/Audio

More about Jim:

Managing Director of Howorth Air Tech:

Extensive experience gained in Blue Chip and SME environments. 25 years with BAe from apprentice to Senior Operations Leadership and over 20 years having a major impact in SME’s across the North West. The last 13+ years at Howorth Air Tech starting as Operations Manager in 2008 before progressing through the ranks to become MD in 2018. The result has seen transformational culture change within the business which is known throughout the company as “The Howorth Way”

An inspirational leader with a passion to change lives and a strong emphasis on Customer Focus. From the minute someone walks through the doors of Howorth they are inspired by the cultural feel of the environment. An environment created by a shared purpose, through great people working to a set of non-negotiable values, and all on a journey to constantly develop their skills, develop their knowledge, and provide the best possible levels of service to all their clients.

Purpose, People and Behaviours - "The Howorth Way".

In the words of Jim Collins "Leaders don't have jobs, they have responsibilities" and everyone at Howorth shares that sense of responsibility. Why? Because we all know that everything we do matters, every one of our family, every one of our friends, each and every one of us could one day need the services that Howorth helps to provide.

Links to contact Jim:

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jim-liptrot-69871218

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

Charlotte is someone who strongly believes in valuing the contributions of individuals and leading by example. She is an experienced leader who puts people first and and in this conversation she explores the female perspective on employee experience and creating a culture for women to succeed. Who better to inspire others for International Women's Day?!

We cover a lot of ground, including:

• What makes our experience feel meaningful 
• What can get in the way of employee experience being positive 
• The unique contribution of women, and for women at work 
• The need for diversity
• Planning for an exceptional employee experience
• Examples of good, and not-so-good practice 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/chrismyers/2018/02/23/how-to-find-your-ikigai-and-transform-your-outlook-on-life-and-business/?sh=313f814c2ed4

https://jane-frankland.com/

The Power of Perception by Shawn Andrews: The Power of Perception: Leadership, Emotional Intelligence, and the Gender Divide: Amazon.co.uk: Andrews Ed.D. M.B.A., Shawn: 9781683505792: Books

Charlotte is an experienced Sales Director that has managed teams across wide geographies ranging from 3 people to 300 people. She is a highly people and culture centric leader who strongly believes that nurturing happy teams creates high levels of fiscal success and happy customers. Charlotte has a large blended family, works as a NED and Data protection Trustee for a small charity and sits on a committee for University of Westminster and in her career has largely focused on technology and cyber security companies.

Links to contact Charlotte

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-wilson-2056673a/

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

I’m joined by Ali Hollest of TriSwimCoach in this episode who I think would be more at home having this conversation on a mountain than over a mic!

I recently connected with Ali after hearing his story about how his mental health impacted on his journey and how he pushed himself to undertake some awesome physical challenges. Mental wellbeing is something I spend a lot of my time exploring, supporting and developing with individuals and organisations, and I love nothing more than getting involved in an adventure outdoors, so I was looking forward to this conversation!

I was struck by a comment Ali made when we last met about how he considers himself unemployable. It may have been an off-the-cuff comment but it really resonated with what this podcast is about. We covered a number of points, including:

• What employee experience means to Ali
• How businesses can learn from Ali's approach to using physical activity as the main driver for wellbeing, happiness and performance in every aspect of people's lives
• What it is that Ali wants from work life that made him suggest he is unemployable
• The extent to which employers should be taking the needs and wants of individuals into consideration so that people can work in a way that feels like a positive experience
• How companies can go about meeting such a wide range of unique needs and wants

Ali is passionate about coaching people to become the best versions of themselves in all aspects of life, creating a holistic and rounded approach to life and wellbeing. His colourful life journey has given him great empathy to understand people for who they really are and fuels his desire to help individuals and businesses thrive. Ali balances his work load to ensure that he is the best Dad he can be to his three young children. His other loves are all things mountains and trail running.  

Links to contact Ali:

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.triswimcoaching.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ali.hollest

Instagram: www.instagram.com/snowdon6wayschallenge

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

I’m pleased to be speaking with Mike Quinnell, Commercial manager at Fugro in this episode. I have known Mike for a few years and have always been impressed by his commitment & determination to not only be his best at work but also to enable others around him to thrive.

Mike is an advocate of putting staff development and wellbeing at the top of his focus list to allow staff to perform to the best of their abilities, to develop themselves and to progress their careers. He recently took on the exciting challenge of creating a new team, and with the experience of his employees very much the centre of his agenda, I was very much looking forward to having this conversation!

The high notes we touch on along the way are:

• Why employee experience is important for us to get right
• How to convince our peers that this needs to be high on the agenda
• How we go about building a team culture centred around employee experience
• What employee experience means to me and my team?
• How we know if we’re getting it right
• How we look after ourselves in the process of developing this important aspect so that we meet the needs of others whilst also looking after ourselves

Michael Quinnell is a senior manager in an industry-leading meteorological and oceanographic (metocean) company. He first qualified in Ocean Sciences, later obtaining a post-graduate qualification in Coastal Engineering. Starting as a marine geophysicist surveying the seabed for cable routes, Mike progressed to an oceanographer position undertaking data analysis and site work, before moving into project and operations management. He then transferred to Singapore to start a new division where he progressed to regional director responsible for South East Asia region. He is presently Commercial Team Manager for Europe and Africa based in the UK.

Over a 24 year career Michael has been based in the UK, Norway, France and Singapore, and has supported Clients with projects in over 50 countries, yet he still believes that ‘every day is a school day’ as he continues to develop himself and his team.

Links to contact Mike

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/michael-quinnell-80169922

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

I'm really excited to be joined by Anna Hamzah, VP of Product at Venture Harbour. She is so energetic and completely committed to creating the right experience for employees. The results are evident as the company continues to go from strength to strength.

Venture Harbour really does things well which was why in 2021 I invited them to provide a case study, as part of my role on the Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce Steering Group for mental health. Their story, along with other great examples from across the Thames Valley, created the resource ‘Building a Positive Mental Wellbeing Culture’, that went live in December.

In our conversation we covered a lot of ground and there are some useful references below to expand on some of these ideas, including:

• What we really mean by the term ‘employee experience’
• The challenge of misconceptions about tech people
• The challenge of rapid change
• Demonstrating impact
• Gender differences
• Training and development
• Empowerment
• Closing the loop
• The necessity for calm time
• The key ingredients that make a difference

Anna is the VP of Product at Venture Harbour, a venture studio based in the UK. She has over 15 years of experience leading teams and developing technology in companies ranging from ground-up start ups to giant multinational corporations; launching and growing products on the cutting edge of marketing, advertising, research and creative technology. She is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion in the technology space; mentoring others on their path to success in a traditionally un-diverse space. When not obsessing about customer and team experience, she is also an accomplished fiction writer and couture seamstress.

Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce Group: www.thamesvalleychamber.co.uk

Closing the loop: From workshop to action: From Workshop to Application - It's Time for Change (itstimeforchange.co.uk)

Retrospective Process: Project Retrospectives: Looking Back to Look Ahead | by Karl Wiegers | The Startup | Medium & How to Run an Agile Retrospective Meeting with Examples (atlassian.com)

Anna's contact details:

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/anna-hamzah

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

Today I’m joined by Andy Whiteaker, Partner at Boyes Turner & Chair of Reading Abbey Quarter Business Improvement District.

I first met Andy at the launch of the ‘Better You Better Business’ event in Reading in October last year, where he provided the keynote speech. I was really struck by the similarity in our messaging about the importance of employers creating the right work climate for people to want to be part of.

So you he was an obvious choice to join today’s conversation about employee experience and whether it is just another buzz word.

We covered a range of points including:

The high notes we covered along the way are:

• What we really mean by the term ‘employee experience’
• How we know if companies are getting it right
• How we make employee experience something that is tangible rather than just talk
• The difference getting employee experience right makes for companies
• How to get leaders on board with this area of development when they don’t see the value (yet) or don’t know where to start

More about Andy:

Andy advises clients in a wide variety of contentious and non-contentious employment matters, including human resources support, providing employment support for mergers, acquisitions, and disposals, employment tribunal litigation and negotiating and drafting executive service contracts.

His clients include national and multination organisations, and he provides international support for clients with cross-jurisdictional issues through Boyes Turner’s network of partner law firms.

Andy focuses on providing practical advice, seeking to identify pragmatic and commercial solutions to his clients’ needs.

Andy is recognised as a Next Generation Partner by The Legal 500.

Areas of expertise

•Employment tribunal litigation

•Executive service contracts

•HR support

•Industrial relations

•Mergers, acquisitions, and disposals

•HR Training

Links to contact Andy

LinkedIn: Andrew Whiteaker

Email: awhiteaker@boyesturner.com

Website: boyesturner.com

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]

Stuart Neilson who is a business leader and MD of mark’ennovy UK & Nordiks joins me in this episode. He has extensive knowledge and skills about authentic leadership and the impact on organisational culture. He has worked with the FutureWork Forum, and his experience and very active interest in leadership makes this a must-listen. We touch on a lot, including:

• What 'employee experience' means including generational differences
• The people or business who have been instrumental in Stuart's employee experience journey
• The role, influence and impact of leadership on employee experience
• The process towards achieving a positive employee experience
• The connection between employee experience that should inform the future of work

Authentic and respectful leadership - FutureWork Forum

FutureWork Forum: Home - FutureWork Forum

FutureWork Forum: The Working World of 2030, Stuart Neilson https://futureworkforum.com/the-working-world-of-2030-a-better-place/

FutureWork Forum: A Human Approach to Leadership, Mike Johnson & Eric Cornuel A Human Approach to Leadership - FutureWork Forum

Nine Lies about Work, Marcus Buckingham & Ashley Goodall

Stephen Covey e.g. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - A Free Book Summary from Soundview

A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose, Eckhart Tolle Simon Sinek e.g. simon sinek become a student of leadership - Bing video

The Future Leader: 9 Skills and Mindsets to Succeed in the Next Decade, Jacob Morgan Never Going Back: How Covid-19 changed work for good, Mark Thomas & Peter Thomson

Stuart is a highly enthusiastic and results orientated experienced international leader with broad experience across a variety of industries spanning from FMCG to Medical Devices. He has worked for a number of global organisations including Cadbury Schweppes , Boots Healthcare International , Novartis and The Sivantos Group (formerly Siemens Hearing). More recently Stuart has supported a number of start-ups and used his talents to turnaround underperforming organisations. A strong believer in results through people Stuart is passionate about the importance of authentic and respectful leadership and how transformational leadership drives employee engagement and optimum business performance. As an international leader he has experience of managing large global teams and has a successful track record of leading multiple Country Turnarounds. In his role as Vice President of The Sivantos Hearing Group he was based out of Munich with responsibility for business in over 70 countries playing a key leadership role as part of a high performing Management Board. Stuart graduated in Business Studies at Leeds University before embarking on a commercial career. He built his career mainly through the Sales function where he rose through multiple levels from Sales Representative with Cadbury Schweppes to Sales Director at Novartis . His success in sales comes from a belief that strong customer collaboration comes from how as a supplier you can truly ‘add value’ and thinking ‘out of the box’. In his role of UK Managing Director with the Sonova Hearing Group he applied a transformational approach to leadership fully embracing talent management , leadership development , agile working , flexible benefits and embracing diversity .As a consequence of the high performance , the approach became a global leadership model for the group and led to 4 of his management team becoming Managing Directors in their own right. Stuart was trained in Strategy Development at Ashridge Business School and more recently joined The Future Work Forum as a key contributor and one of twenty five global Partners .

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stuartneilson1

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub Email: [email protected]

Like many great things, good ideas emerge during conversation over a cuppa. In my case, the water cooler scenario became my kitchen and my comrade in conversation was Dave of Dave Greenaway Coaching.

In this inaugural episode, we kickstart the conversation about employee experience by exploring my interest in the topic and my role within it. I explain my motivation, and begin to unpick some of the importance of getting the experience right.

This is me saying it how it is. And I think it sets the foundation well for the authentic discussions to come over future episodes about what life is really like and how we could be thinking about things differently.

Contact details for Dave Greenaway:

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/davegreenaway

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/lisapsychology

Website: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk

Sign up for Lisa's Monthly Bulletin: www.itstimeforchange.co.uk/jointheclub

Email: [email protected]