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Leadership & Strategy
Article
Our business is global, but managing a team working remotely is tough
As Formula Botanica has grown it has struggled to find people who won’t “wither” working remotely across England, Belgium, Slovakia and Brazil.
Support your employees
People & Team
Article
Diversifying our incentives helped keep staff motivation high
Consultancy firm 383 faced a battle to keep staff motivation high and see important projects through as they gravitated towards comfort zones.
Provide staff with recognition, and experiment with non-financial rewards
People & Team
Article
Giving junior staff a voice helped us win in a competitive market
Softwire fell into the trap of assuming the culture of open communication wouldn’t change as it grew, but junior staff stopped approaching the senior team.
Listen to employees
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Bringing in an external specialist gave us cutting-edge product development
CoreRFID discovered that finding a partner with complementary high-tech expertise created a huge opportunity to expand.
Build partnerships with other experts
People & Team
Article
We stopped trying to shoehorn people into a role needing filled
Rattan Direct had been guilty of shoehorning someone into an in-house role they don’t really want or settling for a new hire who lacked the right skills.
Recruit to succeed
Planning
Article
We maintain investor confidence in our goals with frequent milestones
When your business is set up to deliver something several years down the line, it can be hard to maintain enthusiasm among your investors. It's a challenge that rocket company Skyrora had to overcome.
Justify long-term plans to investors
People & Team
Article
We built a training culture to survive rapid change
Shopblocks staff needed more time to explore new development areas, but it was hard to find capacity for a training culture without damaging existing work.
Create a training culture
People & Team
Article
Our appraisal process left us struggling to compare employee performance
Preston-based firm Suresite realised that its staff review process was too vague to provide any real insights on company-wide performance.
Define 'good' performance using clear performance metrics
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Working with a mentor transformed my approach to staff management
How do you turn things around when your staff lack motivation? For Tutor House founder Alex Dyer, a mentor was crucial to getting his business back on track.
Seek neutral advice
People & Team
Article
Allowing staff to innovate took the business in new directions
When you get stuck in a rut, how do you re-energise your business? Online gift company Prezzybox found that innovation started with its staff.
Encourage staff innovation
People & Team
Article
We created a bespoke training programme to invest in employee development
When expensive external training proved too generic for staff needs, Tommies Childcare developed its own programme.
Define the skills needed
Sales & Growth
Article
We invested in customer experience to beat the competition
Using customer experience to set your business apart can help you compete with much bigger, more established brands. Here’s how one jewellery company took on Tiffany’s.
Invest in your customer experience
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Our company values meant something different to everyone
Fordway learned that its company values meant something different to each employee. Here's how they got staff involved in updating and designing new ones.
Create meaningful vision and values
People & Team
Article
A structured onboarding process helped staff adapt to our pace
Onboarding isn’t just about welcoming new people in. OneUp Sales saw business improvements across the board when the team gave a little structure to their onboarding process.
Develop a successful onboarding process
Digital Readiness
Article
We couldn’t build any further without developing our business data
Users of the ShopAppy website were dropping off as changes were based on one or two opinions, rather than prioritising based on user business data.
Develop the use of business data
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Sharing our vision with staff gave us the momentum to move forward
When you’re tasked with juggling history and modernity, small steps can make a big difference. Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses is leading the way.
Check staff understand your vision
Leadership & Strategy
Article
We used our company’s “why” to steady ourselves during rapid growth
Mojo Mortgages realised growth was making it hard for employees to “buy in” to management decisions being made without communicating across the business.
Structure your approach
Leadership & Strategy
Article
As the company grew, we stopped talking about our business values
Accountancy firm The Wow Company found that as the company grew, the visibility of company values suffered and it began hiring what looked good on paper.
Communicate vision and values
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Why we marketed our core values before we marketed our product
How do you find customers for a product you haven't quite finished yet? You inspire them with your vision and your brand values of course, like Origin Workspace did.
Ensure clients understand your values
Digital Readiness
Article
We used external agencies to build a luxury ecommerce giant
Leather retailer Maxwell Scott found it challenging to transition its door-to-door business into a digital success, turning to external agencies for help.
Collaborate externally
People & Team
Article
We used coaching and peer reviews to turn around outdated management
Changing an ingrained patriarchal management culture was never going to be easy at Harvey Water Softeners. Find out which two people development tools helped most.
Shape your leadership to fit staff needs
Digital Readiness
Article
We beat bigger budgets by focusing on our independent niche
How do you compete with some of the biggest brands in the world? Best of British Beer started by embracing its independence.
Identify potential areas for growth
Planning
Article
My technology failed because I didn’t think big enough
When Formula Botanica realised early on that its technology wasn’t keeping pace with growth it put in place a plan that would provide peace of mind.
Invest in new technology
Digital Readiness
Article
We upgraded our software capabilities to gain real-time insights
With outdated software slowing processes and stifling growth, Blends tracked down a new solution.
Find software that supplies real-time data