THE POWER WITHIN TO LEAD POST-CRISIS, DIAL UP THE SKILLS THAT GOT YOU THIS FAR - SPRING 2021 / ISSUE 05 THE MAGAZINE FOR CMI MEMBERS
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SPRING 2021 / ISSUE 05
THE MAGAZINE FOR CMI MEMBERS
THE
POWER
WITHIN
TO LEAD POST-CRISIS,
DIAL UP THE SKILL S THAT
GOT YOU THIS FAR
TAKE YOUR BUSINESS FORWARD
With a Management Apprenticeship
In the depths of the COVID-19 crisis, management apprenticeships have given leaders the
skills and resilience that they have needed, creating a positive impact within their organisations
The Positive Impact of Apprenticeship
9 out of 10 97% 8 out of 10
Apprentices felt they had made a positive Of current apprentices reported Apprentices said completing their
contribution to their business as a result confidence in their ability to do apprenticeship had given them
of completing their apprenticeship.* their job more effectively.* better career prospects.*
It pays to hire an apprentice
With the recent Government increase
in incentive payments for hiring a new
apprentice, it’s never been a better time to
invest in the future and your organisation!
• £3,000 cash incentive for any employer
who hires a new apprentice between
Robyn successfully completed 1 April 2021 and 30 September 2021
Team Leader/Supervisor Level 3. • This is in addition to any £1,000 16-to-
18 year old cash incentive
“ • A total of up to £4,000 cash incentives
“
It’s helped me to develop and get my
available to employers for employing a
new apprentice
promotion. It’s prepared me for the To find out more please visit:
next stage in my career.
Government incentive payments or
Robyn Donaghy, Team Leader, Veolia
CMI management apprenticeships
Watch Robyn’s story
#ApprenticeManager * Results taken from our Apprentice survey 2020
open
in cmi’s ‘ m a n a g e m e n t t r a n s f o r m e d ’ report in 2020, managers and leaders told us that ensuring staff
well-being would be their number one priority for 2021. As the world edges towards reopening, the importance
of this supportive role is becoming clearer all the time. A recent CMI Managers Voice poll revealed the extent
of the mental health and well-being challenges facing managers.
56%
More than half
of managers said
62%
that their employees’
overall well-being/
Six in ten mental health had
managers worsened as a result
said that the of the pandemic
well-being/
mental health of
44%
particular team
members had
been or would
More than two-fifths
be affected by
of managers said that
the return to
their own overall
the workplace
well-being/mental
health had worsened
Check out our
97%
feature on the
rise of digital
mental health
solutions on The majority of managers said that poor mental health could
page 44, or damage an organisation, with 93 per cent reporting a hit to
visit our mental staff morale, 87 per cent concerned about productivity,
health hub at 80 per cent noting changes in sickness absence rates, and
managers.org.uk 72 per cent pointing to the effect on service delivery
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 03
ANN FRANCKE OBE
CHIEF EXECUTIVE, CMI
You’ve got this!
many economists and commentators believe that we’ll that end, I’m pleased to be on the advisory council for the
see a productivity uplift as a result of the coronavirus UK government’s new ‘Help to Grow: Management’ scheme,
pandemic. But will we build back better? That’s one of the which aims to help small and medium-sized companies boost
key themes in this CMI magazine. The past year has been their productivity.
an enforced hiatus, a time to reflect on and improve the way If you have any feedback about what we’re doing for
we go about things. As you’ll discover in several stories in CMI members and how we can improve, please contact me
this edition, the best managers and leaders have seized the direct or email us at editorial@managers.org.uk
opportunity to accelerate digital developments, improve
the way they communicate and engage with their people, CHARTERED MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT
become more agile, and be more aware of the community In the spirit of driving up professionalism, we’re excited
and context in which they operate. to be officially launching the Chartered Management
We’re all part of the process of building back better; how Consultant (ChMC) award at the end of April. This is
you behave as a manager is the key to unlocking great the product of a joint partnership with the Management
performance. The secret, as you’ll read on page 26, is to dial Consultancies Association (MCA), the trade association for
up the behaviours and skills that got you this far. Keep up the the UK’s leading consulting firms. The award celebrates
process of self-reflection (a cornerstone commitment to excellence, ethics, client
of the Chartered Manager process) and trust and assurance. We’ve been running
commit to learning and development. various pilot waves of the award for the
For example, at CMI, we have focused past 18 months, and we now have 350
on self-improvement and delivering on ChMCs and a further 1,500 people on
our mission over the past year, and this the path to assessment. At present, 25
is producing some great results. There consulting firms are working to accredit
are now a record number of Chartered their in-house training programmes.
Managers (11,500, up from 8,500 at the
end 2019/20) bringing a positive and ETHNICITY PAY REPORTING
professional approach to organisations As well as building back better, we must
around the world. More than 100,000 are also build back more inclusive. At CMI, we
learning with us, and ever greater numbers were disappointed that the government’s
of students are becoming CMI members.
This means our management community is 11,500 Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities
only recommended a voluntary approach
now more than 150,000 strong. And we’re Chartered Managers – for organisations to report their ethnicity
supporting those managers and leaders that’s a record! pay gaps. Organisations of all sizes benefit
with digital events, content and forums, from greater transparency – as we’ve seen
as well as new benefits such as access to
mental health and well-being resources.
150,000 with gender pay gap reporting – and it
would have been a catalyst for change to
managers in our
As ever, we also strive to encourage the community make this requirement mandatory. We’ll
latest best practices in management. To be keeping up the pressure on this.
04 — SPRING 202 1
welcome
---------
“The Duke of Edinburgh had
a 50-year association with
the Chartered Management
Institute, having become an
Honorary Fellow in 1969 and
CMI’s Royal Patron in 1992”
HRH THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH
All of us at CMI were deeply saddened
by the passing of His Royal Highness
The Duke of Edinburgh, who died
on 9 April aged 99. The Duke had a
50-year association with the Chartered
Management Institute, having become
an Honorary Fellow in 1969 and CMI’s
Royal Patron in 1992. We were very
grateful that he was a guest of honour
at our 2017 President’s Dinner, shortly
before his retirement from public life.
The Duke devoted his life to public
service and made an invaluable
contribution towards CMI’s mission
to increase the number and standard
of professionally qualified managers
and leaders. Our thoughts are with
his immediate family and with the
countless people and organisations
around the world on whom he made
such a powerful impact. •
—
To discuss any of the topics covered in this
issue, tweet Ann @cmi_ceo
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 0 5
Contents
09 rethink 19 Dial it up! 26 Just a bit more... 32 Lab leadership 40 The four-day week
Welcome to the What does peak Boost your personal Is your leadership (*Tell me why*) I don’t
humanocracy, plus performance look performance with guided by the like Mondays... Here’s
nine other insights like after COVID-19? these tips, and 20 science? Lessons why the four-day
from the 2021 CMI These companies are questions to check in management working week may
Management Book stepping up to a new you’re in tune with from Scymaris, actually be within
of the Year longlist level. Plus the global your team one of the UK’s reach after all
economic picture top laboratories
09
20
19
06 — SPR ING 202 1
44 Mental health 48 Blended learning 57 CMgr 64 Conversations 67 close
Need counselling? Sorry Alice Cooper, That’s the lockdown Julia Heslop recalls Are you helping your
There’s an app for but school’s very essentials covered! the decommissioning team members or
that. Digital mental much in again. Meet the Chartered of Aberthaw Power hurting them? Kevin
health tools are Even so, I wouldn’t managers delivering Station – a tough Murray explains
proving a valuable delete Zoom just a vaccine centre in process involving how to give your
lifeline for stressed- yet if I were you... Didcot and reliable many redundancies “emotional signature”
out employees internet in the Pacific a health check
32
44
57
“People often look to leaders to be
strong and resilient, but we also
need leaders who can admit or talk
freely about their vulnerabilities”
67
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 07
CHARTERED MANAGEMENT
CONSULTANT AWARD (ChMC)
GAIN A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE BY BEING APPROVED
AGAINST THE COMPETENCY FRAMEWORK...
ARE YOU READY TO BENEFIT FROM BEING CHARTERED?
84% 100% 98%
84% say their self 100% say it allows them to 98% say it demonstrates integrity
confidence has increased demonstrate a level of excellence and commitment to ethics
and credibility to clients
CHOOSE THE RIGHT PATHWAY FOR YOU AND YOUR EMPLOYEES
} }
Career/ Analyst, Consultant, Senior Consultant, Senior Manager,
Business Analyst, Advisor, Senior Advisor, Principal, Partner
Experience Junior Consultant Associate Senior Associate Director
In-house Accredited ChMC
Development Programme
Route to Experienced
ChMC Professional
Level 7 Professional
Consulting Qualification
Years of
Experience 1 - 5 years 7+ years
“
For our clients, having consultants who have Chartered status is invaluable. It helps
them to understand who out of the profession actually meets a certain quality standard. “
Charles Newhouse, BAE Systems, Applied Intelligence
Hear what our ChMC Consultants have to say
Find out more about how you can get Chartered or have your
organisations learning and development programme accredited leading
to Chartered status for your graduate trainees. managers.org.uk/chmc
rethink
H AV E YOU
C H A NGE D
T H E WAY
YOU L E A D?
10 transformational ideas from the people writing the future of management
The way we lead was changing even before COVID-19 struck. Now those
changes are being turbocharged. Over the past few months, we’ve been
reviewing the contenders for the 2021 CMI Management Book of the Year
award. In advance of the winner being announced – and in case you don’t
have time to read all 20 books – here’s our 2021 leaders’ playlist...
--------
A N A LY S I S B Y E M M A D E V I TA
F I N D O U T M O R E AT M A N AG E R S .O RG .U K / M A N AG E M E N T- B O O K /2020 -AWA R D S
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 0 9
01
It’s hard to plan for the future when the future keeps getting more
unpredictable. Margaret Heffernan’s stand-out book Uncharted makes the
case for ditching forecasts (the world is far too complex for these to be useful)
and for abandoning the idea that the solutions we used for similar situations
in the past can be replicated. Being prepared, she argues, means developing
a practical form of r e s i l i e n c e that capitalises on our knowledge and
experience, as well as the power of imagination, creativity and compassion.
This will help us better identify where the opportunities for experiments lie.
10 — SPR ING 202 1rethink
02
If there’s one thing the past year
has shown us, it’s that the quality
of our relationships makes or
breaks our success at work.
Knowing how to rub along with
everyone else under intense
pressure, and to cleverly
resolve conflicts when they do
arise, is a must-have skill for
managers (even more so when
most of our interactions are on
Zoom). In Connect, siblings
Guy and Tami Lubitsh-White
show us how to dig deep and
make better connections.
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 1103
The leader of tomorrow needs to
be an e x p l o r e r , argues Jacob
Morgan in The Future Leader.
This means being someone who
believes in questioning assumptions
and challenging the status quo;
someone who’s curious, a perpetual
learner, has a growth mindset, is
open-minded, agile and nimble.
This mindset and these qualities
cannot be faked. You already have
it in you somewhere. Now’s the time
for you to liberate it.
12 — SPR ING 202 1rethink
04
From our workplaces to our planet,
now is the time for us to r e i m a g i n e
o u r e n v i r o n m e n t s , argues Rae
André in Lead for the Planet. As we slowly
reconvene post-lockdown, it’s time to
rethink what we use our workspaces
for. Hybrid working seems to be here to
stay, so should our offices be maximised
to suit the creative, collaborative and
social parts of our working lives? At
the big-picture level, business leaders
need to become ‘climate leaders’ who
inspire their organisations towards
global solutions and who take their
sustainability initiatives beyond the
confines of their businesses.
05
There’s one word in leadership circles that keeps buzzing,
and it’s p u r p o s e . Whether it’s the ‘we’re all in it together’
community spirit or the huge number of volunteers who came
together to get us through the pandemic, creating a sense of
purpose is something that managers should try to carry over into
their working lives. That’s why Alex Edmans’ book Grow the Pie
chimes so well right now. The question on every leader’s lips should
be: how do great companies deliver both purpose and profit?
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 1306
Could the pandemic be the final nail in the coffin
for the five-day working week? Alex Soojung-Kim
Pang, author of Shorter, encourages companies
to think seriously about allowing their workers
to work a f o u r - d ay w e e k in the knowledge
that productivity will only increase. The Silicon
Valley consultant says the pandemic has brought
an unexpected productivity upside to many
businesses, which might now be brave enough
to experiment with fewer hours.
14 — SPRIN G 202 1rethink
07
Innovation is one of those
buzzwords that we’ve all
grown sick of. It’s easy to pay
lip service to the concept,
but f e a r l e s s i n n o vat i o n ,
as Alex Goryachev argues in
his book of the same name,
means doing innovation for
real and weaving it throughout
the culture and processes
of your organisation to
become something that can
be measured. Innovation 2.0
means going back to basics
and taking it seriously.
08
We’ve all had to dig deep into our reserves during the pandemic. We’ve had to
be brave in facing the uncertainties and difficulties that COVID-19 has thrown
at us. Let’s not lose that c o u r a g e . Leaders now need to think bold, choose
brave and go beyond what they assume can be achieved, argues Terence Mauri
in The 3D Leader. He refers to the Finnish concept of sisu, which is all about
showing extraordinary determination, courage and grit in the face of extreme
stress or adversity. You’ve proven what you can achieve when pushed beyond
your limits, so why not start to capitalise on that fear and uncertainty?
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 15rethink
09
Creating organisations as amazing as the people inside them is the
mission of management guru Gary Hamel, who – along with co-author
Michele Zanini – has coined the concept of h u m a n o c r a c y . The advent
of machine learning and AI (and the lack of our usual face-to-face social
contact during the pandemic) has thrown into relief the importance of
the human side of business and work. It’s time to ditch bureaucratic
systems and organisational cultures that are hangovers from the industrial
age. The 2020s are about encouraging human qualities and creating
workplaces where everyone belongs. As Kathryn Jacob and her co-authors
write in Belonging: “Without the involvement of everyone in the workplace,
diversity initiatives will not succeed”. It’s not something that a CEO or head
of HR can simply impose.
16 — SPR IN G 202 110
CHARTERED MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE
Breakthrough performance is often
Management House,
built on a smorgasbord of existing Cottingham Road, Corby,
ideas that are brought together Northamptonshire NN17 1TT
in new ways. To create a more 01536 207307
effective business d n a , leaders membership@managers.org.uk
www.managers.org.uk
should be picking and mixing from
the most inventive leaders and —
entrepreneurial experimenters, CHIEF EXECUTIVE
argues Peter Fisk in Business Ann Francke OBE
Recoded. This, in his terms, enables DIRECTOR OF MEMBERSHIP
you to ‘recode’ your leadership Matt Roberts
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS
and organisational approach so
AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
that you can thrive in the future. Niamh Mulholland
“Change drives new attitudes HEAD OF RESEARCH AND INSIGHT
and behaviours, new ideas and Elizabeth Spratt
solutions,” he says. Now’s the time HEAD OF POLICY AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS
Daisy Hooper
for leaders to step up and recode
SOCIAL MEDIA AND CREATIVE
their business DNA. CONTENT MANAGER
Ola Masha
MEMBER CONTENT AND
COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER
Rebecca Kearley
THINK EDITORIAL TEAM
EDITOR
Matthew Rock
CONTENT EDITOR
Rosie Gailor
ART DIRECTOR
Ian Findlay
MANAGING EDITOR
James Sutton
ACCOUNT DIRECTOR
Kieran Paul
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Jackie Scully
© 2021. Published on behalf of CMI by:
Think, Capital House, 25 Chapel Street,
London NW1 5DH, 02037 717200
—
editorial@managers.org.uk
—
CMI is incorporated by Royal Charter and
registered as a charity (No. 1091035). CMI does
not necessarily agree with, nor guarantee the
accuracy of, statements made by contributors
The winner of the 2021 CMI See the full shortlist at:
or advertisers, or accept responsibility for any
Management Book of the Year managers.org.uk/community/ statements they may make in this publication.
will be announced soon... awards/management-book- —
of-the-year/ ISSN 0969-6695
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 17IT’S OK TO NOT BE OK
INTRODUCING our brand new member benefit...
to support your emotional well-being and mental health helping you to be a better manager.
CMI are partnering with Kooth, the UK’s leading online mental health platform, to provide our
members with a free, safe and anonymous space for online support and counselling.
KOOTH: TRUSTED AND ACCREDITED
We chose Kooth for you because they are used in 80% of the NHS’s clinical
commissioning group areas across the country. The services are fully
safeguarded and moderated.
Tailored Support Offering
• Kooth Student to support our • Community support
student membership at university. • Professional Counselling
• Kooth Qwell designed specifically for CMI • Personal well-being tools
members and learners outside of university.
• Articles and tips to improve
your mental health
FIND OUT MORE
We recognise prevention is better than cure
72% 61% 1 in 5
Of employees rate well-being as Adult mental health service Students diagnosed with a
a top priority for management. usage increased in 2020. mental health problem.
ONGOING SUPPORT WHEN YOU NEED IT AND NO WAITING LISTSThe COVID-19 pandemic is driving all of us – and our
organisations – to higher levels of performance.
Here’s the good news: the skills that have got you
this far can also take you to the next level
A S T O R Y I N F O U R PA R T S
---------
1 . T H E C O M PA N I E S PAU S I N G , R E S E T T I N G A N D R A I S I N G T H E I R G A M E
2 .“A P RO D U C T I V I T Y P O S I T I V E ”: W H AT T H E E C O N O M I S T S S AY
3. FO U R WAYS C OV I D - E R A M A N AG E R S A R E D R I V I N G T E A M P E R FO R M A N C E
4 . 20 Q U E S T I O N S TO A S K YO U R S E L F TO I N S P I R E H I G H P E R FO R M A N C E
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 191
“I F YOU C A N ’T A FFOR D
SOM EON E TO SW EEP I T,
W H Y H AV E A DI RT Y FLOOR?”
Smart managers and companies have used the pandemic pause
to rethink how they go about their operations
PHOTOGR APHY / WILL AMLOT
david harris is one of the canny brigade. A plastics and packaging industry veteran, —
David Harris and
Harris was CFO of British Polythene Industries prior to its sale in 2016. Two years later, he his team at Chase
bought Chase Plastics, a 55-year-old family-owned company based in Brandon, Suffolk, that Plastics, Suffolk
makes recycled plastic pellets.
A key factor behind his decision to purchase the company was the regulatory tailwind
gathering strength behind it. From April 2022, the UK government is set to introduce a tax
on plastic packaging with less than 30 per cent recycled content. The tax will add about 20
per cent to material costs. That, in a single-digit margin industry, is a big deal. Chase Plastics
stands to be a major beneficiary but it needs to be ready to seize the day. “Many businesses
will be forced to change, so we have got to have the capacity and confidence on the ground to
take advantage of it,” says Harris.
His ambitious growth and investment plans
were hit by the arrival of COVID-19. Demand
dropped when the pandemic hit. Chase Plastics’ and the ambitious growth and investment plans make for a
24/7 operations were cut to four days a week. positive convergence.
Half of the shopfloor staff had to be furloughed. As the company has reassessed and focused on what really
However, one year on, Chase Plastics is set matters, there is now greater clarity. This can be seen, for
to double its capacity. New hires have been example, in the physical movement of materials around the
made at both senior management level and on site, or the elimination of poor housekeeping procedures.
the factory floor. Customer volumes are up by “If you can’t afford someone to sweep the floor, why did you
20 per cent. Training and processes have been have a dirty floor in the first place?” asks Harris.
improved. “We have remobilised and returned Harris is gradually bringing in greater formality to
to 24/7 operations but we have not lost our talent processes. “Simple checklists are incredibly useful. Giving
and skills,” says Harris, who is now “incredibly people things that they have to do – be it hourly, daily or
confident” about the company’s trajectory. weekly – concentrates effort and provides visibility and
The whole team at Chase Plastics has been simplicity. It may be a small step, but good checklists have a
keen – and relieved – to get back to work. What’s really important role to play in changing culture.”
more, they have returned reinvigorated. An The company has made a point of keeping in touch with its
enforced break, the protection of furlough customers. “Throughout the past 12 months, we kept calling
our customers,” says Harris. “We did not allow COVID to
hold us back. You are either fighting or you’re not.”
And this has been a time for investment in employer
branding – from the logo to workwear to how they recruit.
20 — SPRING 202 1M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 21
“We must be seen as a smart, good place to work,” —
says Harris. Using local community Facebook Harris is gearing up
to take advantage
pages, Chase has recruited four young people of the incoming
in recent months. They’ve injected freshness tax on unrecycled
and change. “This is a generation that is happy plastic packaging
to operate and adjust machinery with a joystick,
not just a spanner,” says Harris. The digitisation
of the factory also makes it more female-friendly
and, he says, manufacturing in general benefits
hugely from greater female involvement.
Of course, the pandemic has been expensive and
disruptive for businesses. It has resulted in the
forced closure of entire sectors. It has pushed many
over the edge. For many people and organisations,
it has been a period of sheer misery.
But it has also forced many management teams
to rethink every aspect of what they do. Take this
recent statement from the retailer Next, in which
CEO Lord Wolfson says: “There has been much to
learn from the experience. We have discovered
powerful ways to improve our warehouse and
call centre operations. Perhaps more importantly,
the experience of having to work from home has
opened our eyes to new and better ways of working,
collaborating and communicating amongst
ourselves and with our suppliers.”
Lucinda Bruce-Gardyne, the founder of Genius
Foods, has also seen a “massive difference” in the
quality and consistency of her company’s baked
goods from its two factories. The two-metre rule
forced the company to think differently about how
it ran its lines. Genius also stopped using agency
staff who, she says, tended to be less committed to
the brand and were more likely to make mistakes.
“We are down to an efficient permanent team who
really care and are well trained,” she says.
Furlough forever?
For Chase Plastics, as for thousands of other businesses, the furlough scheme
has been a game changer, protecting the company just as it started to go
through a process of transformation. “We have been able to adjust and
deal with a crisis without a loss of skills because of furlough,” says Harris.
Although it is an exceptional measure for exceptional times, the
experience has made Harris think that it’s time to consider the creation of a
smaller, modified version of the furlough scheme for the future, which could
provide both employees and employers in skilled manufacturing businesses
with a degree of protection during periods of poor demand.
22 — SPR ING 202 1—
Chase Plastics’
John Ellis keeps
a watchful eye
Does this idea have legs? on the site
Do you believe we should
be examining some kind
of permanent furloughing
option for companies with
fluctuating demand? How
might such a scheme be
applied and managed?
We’d love to hear your
views. Please email us at
editorial@managers.org.uk
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 232
“NO OFFICE COSTS,
NO WAST ED COM M U T I NG
T I M E = SA M E OU T PU T.
GO FIGU R E”
Many economists believe the pandemic will inevitably raise productivity
time to widen the lens a bit. The creation of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID vaccine
has demonstrated that it is possible to design, test, manufacture and roll out an innovative
and complex product on a global scale, deploying people from across the world, at speed and
scale – all under pandemic conditions.
So is it possible that the past 12 months may prove to be a catalyst for an improvement in
UK and international corporate performance and productivity?
The Bank of England’s chief economist Andy Haldane thinks so. He has gone public
with his view that the effects of the pandemic may hold the key to reviving productivity
growth, creating a positive productivity shock.
In a recent Bloomberg conversation with Stephanie Flanders, Haldane observed that
businesses and their employees have had to become “digitally match-fit” and that huge
amounts of “unpaid, unproductive time” (aka
commuting) has been redeployed. “If we are
canny, it could be a positive,” he said. survey of global firms by the World Economic Forum last
Haldane is not the only economist to think year found that more than 80 per cent of employers intended
like this. The shift to remote working “has to accelerate plans to digitise their processes and provide
got to improve productivity because we’re more opportunities for remote work, while half planned to
getting the same amount of output without accelerate the automation of production tasks.
commuting, without office buildings and Another survey of 500 global firms by Capgemini found
without all the goods and services associated that employee productivity grew at nearly two-thirds of
with that,” says the US economist Robert organisations during the third quarter of 2020. This was
Gordon of Northwestern University. attributed to “less commuting time, flexible work schedules
Meanwhile, Lord O’Neill, vice-chair of the and the adoption of effective virtual collaboration tools”.
Northern Powerhouse Partnership, has noted In the UK, many businesses start from a position nearer
that, now companies have been forced to think the back than the front of the class. The lack of so-called
and act outside of the box, the UK “might get “diffusion” of best practice has been cited as one reason for
a productivity boost as a result”. the UK’s lower productivity rates than competitor nations.
Companies around the world are waking up Companies don’t have the ability to assimilate and take on
to the opportunity of a productivity uplift. One board the lessons and knowhow of the best, and then to
incorporate this knowledge into their own practices. That
requires time, training and commitment. The Help to Grow
programme unveiled by Rishi Sunak in his Budget is one
response to this, and CMI is on the advisory committee.
24 — SPR ING 202 1—
The Bank of England’s
chief economist Andy
Haldane believes
that COVID-19 has
helped businesses get
“digitally match-fit”
The performance gap between --------- Britain’s businesses about how they
well-managed and poorly-managed invest and adopt new technologies
companies may yet widen. “In highly “Remote working has got to and working practices. Having the
productive organisations, employees improve productivity because leadership capability and the ambition
have capitalised on new technologies we’re getting the same amount to improve is what matters.
to stay connected with customers of output without commuting, It’s too early for the lessons from
and co-workers during this time. We without office buildings” the likes of Chase Plastics and Genius
estimate that the best organisations Foods (see pages 20-23) to show up in
have seen productive time increase any economic statistics. But, as Next’s
by five per cent or more,” say Bain Lord Wolfson has written: “Some
& Company’s Eric Garton and Michael Mankins in the good has come from the upheaval. It is remarkable what
Harvard Business Review. On the other hand, working from can be learned from shutting down your entire operation
home “only made matters worse” for companies that were and slowly, department by department, store by store,
struggling before the pandemic, as “poor collaboration warehouse by warehouse, bringing it back to life. It’s
and inefficient practices have reduced productive time by all the more challenging and informative with much
two to three per cent for most organisations”. There’s a of the endeavour being managed by hundreds of our
fear that support measures taken by governments may colleagues sitting in their spare bedrooms, kitchens and
just have created legions of so-called ‘zombie’ firms. conservatories! We have learned how we can work more
Ultimately, achieving a post-COVID step-change in effectively. Lessons which, if we are careful to preserve
performance throws down a gauntlet to the managers of them, will stand us in good stead for years to come.”
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 25U
YO T
O
G S!
THI
26 — SPRING 202 13
FOU R T I PS TO T U R N
W H AT YOU USUA LLY
DO U P TO 11
Want to keep your own and your team’s performance up in the age
of COVID? Put your usual management techniques on steroids
the past 12 months have been a year like no other. The COVID-19 pandemic
has upended our lives, disrupted the way we work and trapped many of us in
our homes for months. No wonder burnout is up and productivity is down in so
many workplaces.
While data is still rolling in about the full impact, the Office for National
Statistics reports that the number of adults experiencing psychological distress
jumped from 24.3 per cent in 2019 to 37.8 per cent in April 2020. It is unlikely our
collective mental health has improved since, and the strain is showing at work.
A global survey by pioneering burnout researchers conducted in the autumn
of 2020 found that 89 per cent of respondents felt their work life was getting
worse, and 57 per cent felt that the pandemic had a “large effect on” or
“completely dominated” their work. Research by consultancy Bain & Company
has revealed that while a tiny sliver of high-performing organisations actually
saw their productivity climb over the past year, the majority have seen a steep
drop-off. (Search online for Bain’s report Time, Talent, Energy: Overcome
organizational drag and unleash your team’s productive power.)
This is probably not a surprise to most managers. The harder question is
what to do to keep your team going. Here is where the experts have better news.
While COVID-19 might be an unprecedented challenge, the best tools to help your
employees get through it are familiar.
As two of the researchers behind the
burnout study point out: “COVID hasn’t ---------
led to a redefinition of burnout”, it has just
aggravated it. The tools and techniques A global survey by pioneering burnout
that you used to help your team shake off researchers conducted in the autumn
stress and remain productive before are of 2020 found that 89% of respondents
much the same as those that will get you felt their work life was getting worse,
through this last stage of the pandemic. and 57% felt that the pandemic had
Keeping productivity up simply requires a “large effect on” or “completely
turning up the dial on these behaviours. > dominated” their work
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 2701. KEEP YOUR EYES 02. R&R IS LESS FUN BUT MORE
ON THE HORIZON IMPORTANT DURING A PANDEMIC
--------- “It is absolutely vital for the Clearly communicated --------- Many of us are daydreaming
top of the shop to have longer-term goals are about sunny beaches and far-flung
the vision of where they’re essential for beating back holidays, but taking leave right now
trying to get to now,” insists the toll of a very tough is less appealing than normal. With
Julian Free CMgr CCMI, a year, other experts agree. so many restrictions in place, there
deputy vice-chancellor at “Instead of lowering the aren’t many ways to enjoy your time
the University of Lincoln temperature completely off, so why not save it for later? If this
who previously spent and feeling the effect of is the thinking of either you or your
decades in the military. exhaustion and boredom, team, you need to reconsider.
Having served in places it might be a good idea “An engaged employee is about
such as Kosovo, Iraq, and to turn up the heat and 45 per cent more productive
Afghanistan, he has front- go into fight mode,” says than a satisfied employee, but an
line understanding of business psychologist inspired employee is 55 per cent
what drives people Dr Merete Wedell- more productive than a merely
during crisis situations. Wedellsborg. “Take engaged employee,” points out
Like many other leaders, a good look at the Bain & Company’s Michael Mankins,
Free spent the early battles that will meet who co-authored its Time, Talent,
months of the COVID you. How can you stay Energy research. Keeping employees
crisis putting out fires and ahead of the curve? in the inspired column has been
scrambling to move his How can you prepare the biggest challenge during the
team to a remote set- for the next stages?” pandemic, he feels, and doing so
up. Quickly, though, he If you feel your team is requires ensuring your people get
and other leaders at the slowly drowning in the enough rest.
university realised that dreary details of day-to- Mankins offers the example of
they’d have to offer their day survival during the Adobe, which has closed its offices
people more than remote pandemic, now is the time one Friday each month during
work tools and immediate to lift your vision towards the pandemic to give employees
survival plans. A longer- the horizon. Setting out additional time to rest and recharge
term vision of how the your goals for the longer away from pinging notifications
university will emerge from journey can provide a and colleagues with “quick requests”.
the crisis and “build back shot of additional energy But simple vigilance from managers
better” was necessary. and motivation. can be helpful too.
Did you know?
Between 2008 and 2015, time spent in meetings grew by 7% a year, meaning it
doubled every nine to ten years. Bain & Company’s Michael Mankins believes that
the collaboration software that has made this possible has led to lower productivity
28 — SPRING 202 103. TAKE CONTROL OF MEETINGS AND
TECHNOLOGY PROTOCOLS
--------- The culture of meetings your communications, the
has changed, and this efficiencies of remote work
could drag down your may more than balance
productivity. Bain & out any exhaustion-related
Company’s research fall in productivity.
shows that the number And, says Mankins, “the
of meetings has gone best have not allowed the
up during the pandemic, number of attendees per
while meeting length has meeting to go up. All of
Free, with his military background, gone down. Freed from the meeting disciplines you
learned long ago how essential R&R the constraints of physical had before COVID basically
is during times of stress. “In a crisis location, managers need to be put on steroids.”
like this, you notice your key people are inviting many more As a manager, you are also
aren’t taking leave. That’s a really, attendees to meetings. responsible for setting limits
really bad idea. You need people Together, this adds up to on your availability. Julian
to walk away, de-stress, reset, think vastly more time lost to Free, for example, does
about what they’re doing, recover.” unnecessary meetings. not touch his computer or
He has carefully monitored whether Happily, fixing this is an phone on Saturdays.
his employees are taking leave easy win for productivity. “If anyone wants to get
over the past few months and is The research also shows me on a Saturday, they’re
having sometimes uncomfortable that, thanks to reduced going to have to ring my
conversations to urge individuals out commuting and more landline, and the barrier for
the door. Forcing people to take a time spent online, the someone to ring someone’s
holiday might not be the first idea average employee is landline now is massive, so
that springs to mind when you’re working around 45 minutes they’ll only do that if the
casting around for ways to increase more per week during the wheels have come off. I
productivity, but it could be as pandemic. Much of that think you have to put some
effective as it is counter-intuitive. time, however, is wasted barriers in,” he says. Free’s
in a flurry of unnecessary approach may not work
emails, Slack messages for your team, but you may
--------- and Zoom calls. If you want to consider something
can be disciplined with similar to avoid burnout.
“An engaged
employee is about
45% more productive 04. PROTECT YOUR TOP PERFORMERS
than a satisfied
employee, but an --------- The famous 80:20 rule applies to individual
inspired employee is contributions in the office, too. “Eighty per
55% more productive cent of the most important interactions in a
than a merely company are made by just 20 per cent of the
engaged employee” people, so 20 per cent of a company are being
asked to do everything,” explains Mankins,
summing up the research on the subject.
That’s true in good times and bad, but
once again the pandemic has amplified
an existing trend with both positive and
negative consequences. Thanks to remote
work, many top performers can now make an
impact on more projects. They can also be >
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 294
20 QU EST IONS
TO ASK YOU RSELF
I F YOU WA N T TO
I NSPI R E H IGH
bombarded with requests
for help and collaboration PER FOR M A NCE
at a time when most face
additional stresses at home.
Unchecked, that leads
straight to burnout or even
a decision to step back
from the workforce entirely. This short self-assessment is designed to
If managers are aware help you reflect on your key leadership
of this issue and carefully competencies in relation to the past year.
monitor the workload of
their top people, they Score each statement on a scale of one to five
can reap the productivity (one = strongly disagree; five = strongly agree).
benefits of more flexible Bring this perspective to your answers: have
ways of working without
the danger of driving their
I become more aware of how my behaviours
best talent to quit. “You affect other people’s performance since the
have to be more vigilant pandemic started?
in seeking input from your
employees in terms of what Reflect on your answers and, if you
their workload is. If you had feel you’re lagging in one area, visit CMI’s
pulse checks before and Career Development Centre, where you’ll
you did them quarterly, find a huge range of resources, checklists
you better start doing them
monthly. You may even
and articles covering each of the
need to do them weekly,” self-assessment categories.
Mankins urges.
His advice is typical of
that being doled out to
managers struggling to
keep their heads above
water after 12 months of
lockdowns and uncertainty.
It’s neither new-fangled
nor complicated. In fact,
it mostly boils down to doing
more of what worked before.
Great management hasn’t
changed dramatically. It’s
just more important now
than ever.
30 — SPRING 202 1Communications
1. I make time to speak with my direct reports individually.
2. My colleagues trust me to manage conflict effectively and appropriately.
3. My direct reports would feel safe coming to me if they made a mistake.
4. I consider employees’ personal communication preferences (eg, phone call,
Zoom, in-person, in groups versus individually).
—
Prioritising well-being Ian MacRae is
1. I make sure employees are included in conversations about well-being. head of workplace
2. When talking about the importance of physical and mental health, I lead psychology at
Clear Review and
by example. managing director
3. I regularly check in with direct reports and teams, to see how they are doing. of High Potential
4. I’m realistic about expectations when assigning work and deadlines. Psychology. His
psychometric tests
have been used by
Focusing on productivity (not hours worked) tens of thousands
1. I am clear about what my team needs to accomplish by the end of this month. of people from
2. I set clear expectations based on specific outcomes. dozens of countries
around the world.
3. I follow through on my commitments in a timely way. He has written six
4. Employees are rewarded for performance, not hours worked. books including
High Potential: How
Culture to spot, manage
and develop
1. My direct reports have a sense of purpose in their work. talented people
2. I celebrate large and small wins, and share credit among the team. at work. His new
3. I champion flexible working, where employees take the lead on how book Dark Social:
Understanding
they manage their tasks and schedule.
the dark side of
4. I have a good understanding of my team’s goals (both personally personality, work
and professionally). and social media
will be published
by Bloomsbury
Commitment to inclusivity in November.
1. I make time to communicate the importance of diversity and inclusion.
2. Reverse mentoring programs have been set up and are used effectively.
3. I am personally involved in programmes and processes that have been
set up to address diversity and accessibility.
4. Selection, development and promotion decisions are regularly reviewed
to consider accessibility and diversity.
Once you’ve answered these 20
questions, we recommend heading to
ManagementDirect, where you’ll find
Checklist 280 – Reflective practice skills.
This contains ten steps to take you further in
your reflective journey. It will also walk you
through the tried-and-tested “What, So What,
Now What” model, and it has links to many
other resources. Click here to access it now
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 31A R E YOU
GU I DED
BY T H E
SCI ENCE?
Science has informed our response to the
pandemic and now offers us a route out.
We go inside some world-class scientific
institutions to find out whether it could also
change the way we manage people and
organisations in a post-pandemic world
WORDS / GEMMA CHURCH
ON 12 MARCH 2020, just after the spread of the novel coronavirus
was declared a global pandemic, UK prime minister Boris
Johnson made a speech full of foreboding. “I must level with
you,” he said. “Many more families are going to lose loved ones
before their time.” It was, for many, the moment when the
gravity of the situation cut through.
A few moments later, ordering people with symptoms to
stay at home for seven days, he used a phrase that has become
the government’s go-to response during the crisis. “At all
stages, we have been guided by the science, and we will do the
right thing at the right time.” (I leave it to future historians to
decide whether the two parts of that sentence belong together.)
For scientists, this was a milestone moment. It suggested —
that world leaders would be moving away from their usual You lead, I’ll follow...
instinctive leadership personas and trying to take a more Boris Johnson arrives at
Downing Street with Chris
rational, evidence-driven approach to decision-making Whitty and Patrick Vallance
instead. “What governments are doing for the first time, very
publicly, is positioning scientific expertise front and centre >
32 — SPRING 202 1>
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 33>
in the decision-making process that affects our everyday I NSI DE SC Y M A R IS:
lives,” says Ed Hayward, director of laboratory operations at
Scymaris, a Devon-based chemical and pharmaceutical lab.
NOR M A LISE CH A LLENGI NG
For other scientists, Johnson’s choice of phrase was wide O T H E R S T O B U I L D T RU S T
of the mark. “Questioning like science” might have been a
---------
better mantra instead. “Working in science, you question
every single motive you have,” says Katherine Ridley, a spatial Down on the Devon coast, with
transcriptomics laboratory manager at the University of stunning views out to sea, you’ll
Cambridge. “You’re always trying to question why something find a laboratory that has been
is happening, why it’s happening in that way and what more than 70 years in the making.
alternative explanations there are for what you’re seeing.” The facility started life as a marine
As Hayward puts it: “People often look to leaders to be science field station in 1948. Now
strong and resilient, but we also need leaders who can admit it serves the pharmaceutical,
or talk freely about their vulnerabilities, leaving them free agrochemical and chemical
to draw on the expertise of others.” industries, researching everything
The development of COVID vaccines from a chemical’s effect in the
in just a year is a supreme achievement marine environment to its impact
of science. So, can science provide on fresh water, soil and sediment.
mainstream managers with a blueprint After a £15m investment from
---------
for leadership that answers questions AstraZeneca in 2008, the site now
using expert opinion and facts, not “People often look to leaders houses multiple state-of-the-art
instincts? What can leaders learn from to be strong and resilient, laboratories. These are operated
the way that science is conducted? We but we also need leaders by Scymaris, a contract research
spoke to the leaders of some world-class who can admit or talk freely organisation with the agility to
laboratories to get some answers. about their vulnerabilities” make the most of this world-class
—
Ed Hayward’s background
is in analytical chemistry,
particularly on projects that
demand a rapid turnaround
34 — SPRING 202 1facility thanks to its expanding Scymaris was formed in 2016 and been very conscious not to create
team and its expertise in both now employs more than 40 people, silos. From the way we lay out the
management and science. including 29 bench scientists lab to the way we organise our
“Our goal is to help our clients working across two large analytical office areas, we need everyone
understand the life cycle of their chemistry and environmental working in collaboration. That’s very
chemicals in our environment fate laboratories and other different from other organisations,
and the impact this has on the specialised ecotoxicology labs. where biologists and chemists may
wider ecosystem,” says Scymaris The company works with everyone operate in separate buildings. In our
director of laboratory operations from multinational pharmaceutical experience, that just doesn’t work.”
Ed Hayward. and chemical companies to start- This “highly integrated cross-
Several members of the ups trying to get a new product functional approach” is one of
Scymaris team joined from to market, helping them comply Scymaris’ strengths, according to
multinational companies. with industry regulations and Hayward, addressing one of the key
Hayward explains that “while we understand the impact of their challenges today’s scientists face:
take the best of what we learned product on the environment. trust. “We’re open to challenging
working for such organisations, Managing scientists across a each other and questioning each
we also understand how things range of different disciplines is other. We normalise the practice
in larger companies can inhibit not without its challenges. “Some of asking questions, sharing
collaboration and teamwork”. scientists are in the lab by seven in information and challenging
Equally, other team members the morning to attend to the biology one another on everything from
have spent decades working at of a test system, and others may the scientific methods we use to
that very site, “so we have people pop in at ten at night to check on our wider ways of working. By
with various specialties and instrumentation or to review critical normalising that challenge, you
expertise that we can draw on data. They all operate in different create an environment where you
to get any piece of work done”. worlds,” says Hayward, “so, we’ve build a lot of trust between teams,
THE SCIENCE OF
LEADERSHIP:
LESSONS FROM
SCYMARIS
1. Normalise the practice of asking questions, sharing
information and challenging one another on everything,
which will help to build trust between teams.
2. Talk freely about your vulnerabilities. This leaves space
to draw on the expertise or opinions of others.
3. B ring together people with various specialties, expertise
and lengths of service.
4. Create an environment that inspires collaboration and
teamwork – and prevent the formation of silos.
5. A flat structure means you can bring the right people
onto a project, even if it’s only to address a small aspect.
6. Keep the manager’s role simple: bringing together
the right minds, the right equipment and the right
infrastructure to solve complex problems.
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 35and that transcends barriers of
departments, specialisms and
scientific disciplines.”
This structure helps Hayward in
his day-to-day work. “In my role, I
essentially make sure we have the
right minds, the right equipment
and the right infrastructure to solve
complex problems for our clients.
Central to all of this is the quality
of the scientific outcome. I’ve
got access to a very deep well of
knowledge across the organisation,
including six senior analytical
chemists in one team, one of whom
has been on the site for 45 years.
C OM M U N I C AT E A N D E D U C AT E :
By adopting a flat structure, you’re
not limited in bringing the right E M M A T H O R PE ’ S S T O RY
people into a particular project, ---------
even if it’s just to address one
particular aspect of a project.” Emma Thorpe CMgr is a laboratory manager at ALS
The coastal location of the Environmental, an environmental testing solutions
laboratory in Brixham, Devon, company with laboratories across the UK and Ireland
means that Symaris can extract
fresh seawater via a series of
dedicated intake and return pipes “I lead a team of nine one apprentice in my team.
for its tests, while providing staff analysts, working in one of Everyone has a different level
with a beautiful place to live and our environmental testing of experience, but we share
work. “The site is one of our biggest laboratories in Wakefield. the same lab space together
assets and selling points. When The majority of my day is and with another team working
people come to the facility, they dedicated to analysis of in a similar field. Across the
get to see first-hand the work we’re results, conducting meetings site, we don’t have a lot of
capable of doing,” says Hayward. including one-to-ones with interaction with other teams,
Video calls can’t do the site staff, dealing with customer which is something we’d all
justice, but the company has queries and organising staff like to change. The pandemic
successfully maintained its development and training. has certainly not helped us
recruitment drive during the “Writing reports is another address that issue.
pandemic, completing three major undertaking, as I have “What skills would I
hires using Microsoft Teams. to translate our experimental rely on in a commercial,
“We had to modify some of results into something anyone non-scientific environment?
our usual practical assessments can understand. This will People skills are a must. If I
for the online interview, which be an important skill set started a new leadership role,
was interesting, but it gave us going forward, as more I’d need to know what that
the information we needed. We people rely on science and team was doing, understand
could see how the candidate must understand what the what each person does and
behaves under pressure, test science is telling them. where their key skills lie. The
their basic maths skills and “I also spend around ten reports, meetings and staff
assess their scientific decision- per cent of my time working in development are universal
making,” Hayward explains. the laboratory, often helping tasks for all managers. But
“Being nimble in any sense my team with their work science teaches you to deal
is vital for any company at the and providing mentoring. with problems by analysing
moment. We’ve got to change “There are two senior them both at the data and
because the world has changed.” analysts, six analysts and people level.”
36 — SPRIN G 202 1U N D E R S TA N D T H E W H O L E WO R K F L OW:
K AT H E R I N E R I D L E Y ’ S S T O RY
---------
Katherine Ridley is a spatial transcriptomics laboratory manager at the
University of Cambridge, working jointly between the Department of
Paediatrics and the STEM Cell Institute at Addenbrooke’s Hospital
“i manage the progress of the experiments observed in regular management scenarios too,
in the lab at an organisational level, where where something goes wrong and you need to
I’m basically the expert or ‘super user’ of all troubleshoot that workflow. You need to have
the equipment within a specific pipeline for a good understanding of every single element
one experimental technique. I maintain the of that workflow, because then you’ll be able
equipment, create presentations, maintain to pinpoint where your problem is.
open communication with all members of the “Science teaches you to be detail-oriented. A
project and write that project up. The lab itself is lot of science is taking a process and trying to
interested in brain function and brain diseases. figure out why that process is happening, often
“I usually work with a lot of people at any one by removing one element. I think that’s quite an
time – but we’re all on the same level, working on important perspective to have in the real world.” •
our individual projects. No one manages anyone.
Instead, individuals are supposed to be motivated
---------
by their own projects.
“Usually, the challenges come from managing “I’m sure long and arduous workflows
the equipment and the experiments. The pipeline are observed in regular management
that I’m responsible for has hundreds of different scenarios too, where something goes
components. There are many pieces of complex wrong and you need to troubleshoot
equipment, different chemicals and a microscopy that workflow”
and data analysis platform – each of which is made
up of various stages that need to be managed.
“It’s quite a convoluted process from beginning
to end. I’m sure long and arduous workflows are
M AN AGER S .ORG.UK — 37You can also read
