Both Sides of the Desk
Newcastle Helix presents... Both Sides of the Desk.
One boss. One employee. Hear about work culture from Both Sides of the Desk.
Be a fly on the office wall while host Charlie Charlton is caught between two people from very different levels of the same business. Join their honest- sometimes awkward- conversations about creating happy, highly-productive and sustainable workplaces.
Get trusted insights about retaining ambitious talent in the competitive global tech sector; ensuring social mobility through recruitment in a transatlantic law firm; the challenges of embedding true Corporate Social Responsibility in a private company; and as HR teams find ways to support childcare, hear the personal stories of a diverse workforce now increasingly caring for older relatives.
The world of work is changing fast. These are real stories of the newly-empowered hybrid and remote workforce, its enlightened bosses and the challenges that brought them together.
BSOTD is a video podcast mini-series recorded and filmed with the community of the Helix Innovation District in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England.
Both Sides of the Desk
Both Sides of the Desk - Episode 1: Mesma
Both Sides of the Desk. One boss. One employee. Talk work culture.
Host Charlie Charlton is caught between CEO Louise (Lou) Doyle, and Marketing Manager Sally Forsyth of Mesma. They deliver UK-wide quality assurance technology and consultancy to the education and employability sectors.
When it comes to recruitment and retention, they feel there's one looming issue that needs raising: 'parentcare'. With an ageing population comes the impact of recruiting and retaining men and women who juggle jobs with caring for elderly relatives. This opens up a challenging conversation about flexibility, security and the risk of burnout.
Lou is co-founder of Mesma with Carole Loader and have a female-dominated workforce. As an SME, Lou’s used her experience in the corporate world to implement a four-day week policy; hybrid and remote working; flexible work hours; maintaining an apprentice-first recruitment strategy.
Sally's energy and drive is obvious. She wants to dive into creatively satisfying projects at work but feels the frustration of not being able to 'have it all'. Sally balances her job with huge responsibilities at home, caring for family young and old.
The line between work and home is now so blurred, so what can a business do to support, keep and get the best out of talented people? Find out with Charlie, Lou and Sally.
CREDITS:
- In conversation: Louise (Lou) Doyle, Co-founder and CEO of Mesma, and Sally Forsyth, Marketing Manager of Mesma
- Producer/Presenter/Editor: Charlie Charlton
- Camera/Director: Chris Taylor
- Camera/Editor: Jordan McDonald
- Sound Producer: Andy Bell, Blast Studios
- Social Producer: Natalie Eminae, OCOCO Media
- Exec Producers: Newcastle Helix Partnership + John Seager
In collaboration with Di Gates, Connection Heroes
Filmed on location in The Lumen Building, Newcastle Helix
Big thanks to the whole community of the Helix Innovation District in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England.
See Charlie Charlton and her guests in action: https://www.youtube.com/@newcastlehelix2403
FURTHER READING:
- https://www.bps.org.uk/research-digest/women-bear-brunt-unpaid-labour-and-it-may-be-affecting-their-mental-health
- https://www.cipd.org/uk/knowledge/reports/four-day-week/
- https://www.software.com/reports/future-of-work
- https://www.gov.uk/employing-an-apprentice
Connect with Newcastle Helix:
- Website: https://www.newcastlehelix.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/newcastle-helix/
- X: https://x.com/newcastlehelix
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newcastlehelix/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/newcastlehelix/
- Email: info@newcastlehelix.com
Thanks for listening to Both Sides of the Desk. Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and join the conversation!
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Hi, welcome to Both Sides of the Desk.
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I'm Charlie Charlton,
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and each week we have one boss, one employee
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to talk work culture.
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Why? Well as a journalist, I host a lot
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of business conferences, and it is the one
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subject that always comes up.
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How do we create and keep happy high performing teams?
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So to give the honest, sometimes emotional, answers to that,
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we have Mesma. They're experts in quality assurance
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and improvement for the education and employability sectors,
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and they're based here at Newcastle Helix.
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On one side of the desk, we have Mesma's co-founder
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and CEO Louise (Lou) Doyle.
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And on the other side of the desk we have Mesma's Marketing
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Manager, Sally Forsyth.
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When we talk about female dominated workplaces,
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inevitably childcare is the thing that comes up first,
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but you feel that there's a whole other, perhaps bigger,
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longer-lasting consideration that needs to be made? Yeah,
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I really do. I mean, I think
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that it's something that, I think that
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it's a political issue,
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and I'm trying not to go down a political route route
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with it, but I think a lot of people who are maybe my age
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or a little bit older than me,
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so I'm in my early forties- just, still.
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So, um, I think that a lot of us in,
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in this age bracket are experiencing the other side of care
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and responsibility, so that comes down to parental care.
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So I think that, um, I'm in a situation where, um,
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my mum has recently needed more support from us as a family.
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Um, and I am, I've done that thing where I've moved
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to university and then ended up living in the place
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that I went to university.
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So I've left my family behind, and it's me looking
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after my mom who followed me up.
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So that's, and I think that, I think
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that there's a massive recognition of that,
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but I don't think anyone's come up
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with a sensible solution to that at the moment.
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And I think that that's hard for the people
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that are experiencing it.
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And I think it's really hard for businesses
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and in particular smaller
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businesses to deal with that as well. Do
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You mind me asking why your mum needs more care?
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My mum has Alzheimer's
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and she's recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
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So what impact does that have on you on
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a day-to-Day basis?
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Um, well, it, it has an impact on us
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because I have to support my mum
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with, um, remembering things.
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I have to support my mum.
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My mum lives with us, or we live with my mum,
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depending upon where we're up to.
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Um, we've also got two children who are, um, 9 and 12.
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So we've got caring responsibilities on both sides.
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Um, and like I said, there's only me and my husband,
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and it requires an awful lot of logistical movement, um,
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and consideration and planning, forward planning
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and the support system, isn't there.
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There are two elements there.
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One, which is an older population and an older workforce,
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and increasingly people in Sally's position
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of being sandwiched.
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Um, have you come across this before
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or is this something that you are very aware of?
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Uh, when I've worked in corporate, so if I kind of put
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that hat on of being in a corporate world
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and may, maybe it's a sign of the times
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as well about our willingness
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and our interest in people as people when they work
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with you, that you're not just a number in a corporate.
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But there was definitely, for me, a line between your
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work and your home life that yes,
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you knew things about each other,
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but not to the extent that that's amplified.
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And I, I think that is a sign of the times,
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but also in a small business
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because you know the person,
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you don't just know the person at work.
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Um, and, and that's probably the thing that has become more
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and more apparent over the last couple of years.
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But I was kind of adding up, you know,
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if you look at Mesma over the last couple of years. In a team
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of less than 10, we have had a cancer diagnosis,
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we've had death of a parent, we've had divorce,
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we've had mental health difficulties,
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we've had Sally's really challenging situation.
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I could go on with others
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that have affected people in our team.
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So you are never dealing
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with just one person's life and scenario.
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You've got all of them going on at the same time and,
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and trying to make that work.
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It is challenging, you know, there's no two ways about it.
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I think what you can do as a small business,
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or certainly we do, and I know many others do the same.
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We have the flexibility to say,
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you work when you need to work.
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You know, if you wanna work it till midnight
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and not during the day, that that's what we'll do.
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You're not constrained by HR policy process
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that understandably have
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to be in place in a bigger organisation.
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So I think it gives us that element of flexibility.
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Sally, you know, may have a different view on that,
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so it'd be good to hear Sally's take on that.
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Um, that allows us to manoeuver around it in a different way.
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However, it creates a bigger risk of burnout.
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That's the thing that keeps me awake at night,
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my own burnout, my team's burnout, Carole's burnout- about
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how do you not just protect the person from the work
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that you are all trying to do to make Mesma successful,
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but actually protect them as well as much as you can
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and as much as they want you to
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from what's going on in their life outside of work as well.
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I think that if you're going to do a contrast
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between a corporate environment,
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and I've also worked in larger organisations
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before I work for a small business, I think there's more
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flexibility in managing roles and responsibilities.
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Um, I think it's much harder.
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There's no one there to pick up slack. Yeah.
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If you, if you are in a small business, so you have,
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if you've got a work ethic, like I've got a work ethic,
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you know that this is your job, you wanna,
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and sometimes it's harder to just
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let things go a a little bit
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because you feels like you are losing
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grip on your job a little bit,
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and you don't wanna, you don't wanna
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feel, you don't want to do that. So,
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You know, what I'm hearing, hearing from from Sally
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is it feels like a very typical sad story
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actually for a lot of women that all the data
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says it's still the women who were the primary caregivers,
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whether that's to their children or whether that's
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to their parents or their loved one,
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or their friends rather than men.
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So if you are working in a world where you
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have predominantly employed women, your business is going
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to be more impacted whether the political situation changes
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or not, because that's, that's the narrative.
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That's the story. Yeah. Yeah.
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So do you then look to recruit women if this is going
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to be the challenge you're gonna be faced
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With? I think you make a
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really interesting
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and challenging point, which is, um, you, we kind
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of think we've gone past those years of, um, it became a bit
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of a joke, didn't it, of not recruiting women who might be
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of childbearing age.
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Um, you know, whether that was overt or not,
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because of the risk of them going off on maternity
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and then having responsibilities for young children.
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And, and that doesn't, you know,
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feed the conversation as much now.
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But equally, this, this version of
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us being fitter in our middle years,
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our parents living longer, whilst all the research is there
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that supports that, what we aren't doing is, is having
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that conversation openly
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around this is more likely to fall to the women.
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So, so therefore how do we,
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and let's add in the fact it's menopause era as well.
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So you've got all of these whammies
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of probably having children later in life.
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So our children are still school age and younger.
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You've got parents who have to be looked after
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and your own personal scenario
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that's going on in the middle of that.
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And it's good to see that those changes
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and those conversations are getting
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better and there's more there.
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But I think Sally's spot on the conversation about how do we
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support staff recruit without bias, um,
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and then support staff to be able to navigate that needs,
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uh, at, for us in Mesma more thought and more consideration.
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Um, but it's not just about us, you know,
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Charlie, you've used the phrase before when you said you
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and, and not in this conversation,
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but you've said you can't have everything.
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You can't have it all, and you're kind of expected to.
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Um, and and that's where it gets hard.
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'cause you think, well, why can't I?
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You're frustrated. Yeah, yeah. Very,
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Because you're ambitious.
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You're talented. You've just been told now
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that your job is entirely secure.
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And yet I'm sure there's something at the back of your mind,
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can I sustain this?
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Can I sustain this pressure of looking after my mum, looking
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after the children, pushing on at work, taking on new
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and exciting projects that you actually want to do?
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Mm-Hmm. Because that's your work culture. Yeah.
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Your work culture isn't
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Settling. No, never.
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We don't know what that like
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It's pushing player and, um,
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I'm not meaning to upset you both.
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No. I just get upset when she gets
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Upset Because, because I know what she's having
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Too. That is it, isn't
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it?
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So what can an employer do in that sense?
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Is there anything apart from the arm around the shoulders
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and saying, you're doing a great job,
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But in some ways you don't wanna be
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pitied. So this is the other thing.
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Would that feel like pity?
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Yeah, because I'm, because just
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Not understanding In some ways.
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Yeah. But in some ways, no,
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because you know, I've, we've been to these,
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we've had this con so there's a, there's an also a thing.
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In some ways this conversation irritates me
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because we're only having it because we're women
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and it irritates me
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because I am, it's that separation of work and home.
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And actually I've not worked for the last,
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I've given up enough, you know?
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And, but it's that thing of
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I don't wanna give up the other things.
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So I can't, I can't be a mum and run
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and, you know, run a, be head of marketing
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and be a full-time carer and bake cakes
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and do three mile bike rides on a weekend
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and have a springer spaniel.
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I can't do all those things 'cause there just
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aren't hours in the day.
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I said to you, didn't I, we don't,
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we don't really wanna have conversations
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about the menopause.
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We don't really wanna have conversations about those things.
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And it's, and it's not 'cause I'm playing them down
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or I'm not, because I don't, I don't think we need
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to have those conversations,
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but we need to have them with men.
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We need to have men sit around the table talking to,
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because they share 50% of the responsibility for care for,
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for older people and for children.
245
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There's something about controlling
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the controllables for us.
247
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So in the situation where we're talking about Sally's,
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and you could apply that to any of the others, you know,
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scenarios is having high expectations
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of ourselves is really important in terms of what we do.
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Because actually the role that we have
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with our clients demands high expectation.
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It, we're in a quality management business.
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So, so quality has
255
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to permeate through everything that we do.
256
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Where that I think sometimes causes us some challenges,
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is the bar that we set for ourselves is incredibly high.
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So maybe that's something we've got
259
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to think about is what does that look like?
260
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If we are, where can we lower the bar?
261
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Where is gold standard not needed?
262
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Where is it that we can let things go
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that we're not letting go?
264
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Because actually we want to do them
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and we're excited for them.
266
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My, my worst
267
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and best feature is my, I've got an idea.
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Let's do it. Let's do this. This is a great idea.
269
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That's marvellous in, in one extent because it keeps us alive
270
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and it keeps us fresh.
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But then it ends up in Sally's workload.
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I don't mind kicking a few, like 50, 60 hour weeks around.
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That isn't, that isn't an issue for me at all.
274
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It's the fact that it almost feels unfair to me
275
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that I can't do that in some ways,
276
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or that it, that it caused cost so much to me personally
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or to my family to be able to do those things.
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It feels unfair. 'cause I think, you know, 20 years ago, 15,
279
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20 years ago wouldn't have been an issue.
280
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I would've just done it. It wouldn't have been fine.
281
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It would've been fine. I wouldn't have felt
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so tired at the end of it.
283
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I'm not even gonna let say age would be a
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consideration 'cause it just wouldn't.
285
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And I've still got loads of energy.
286
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It's nothing to do with that.
287
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It's to do with the fact that you've only got so many hours
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and so much capacity in the week to, to,
289
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You've got another job there.
290
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The parental care is another. Yeah. Yeah.
291
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Unpaid job that's taking your resources.
292
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So what could an employer do about that?
293
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'cause I know you didn't wanna get into policy
294
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and politics, so is there anything
295
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that an employer could do?
296
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I don't think it's up to the
297
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employers to deal with the scenario.
298
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I think it's up to the, the government to make the changes.
299
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It's so employers will do
300
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what they can do within the restrictions that they have.
301
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'cause they've got a, they have a business to run.
302
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Don't be so understanding.
303
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Forget that there's any help
304
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that's gonna come from no matter which political party what.
305
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So we're not talking policy here.
306
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I'm thinking things like with childcare, there are firms
307
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that we've spoken to who adjust the diary so
308
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that the parent can be on the school run.
309
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Yeah. So they can do the school run, then come back,
310
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pick up their work as they get on.
311
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Yeah. And they've adjusted that. Are there
312
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any things like that
313
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That, that already happens?
314
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So that's, okay. So everything
315
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that a business could do, Mesma probably have done.
316
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And that's partly due to, you know, um, Lou
317
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and Carole making those decisions.
318
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But also because the world of work has moved on.
319
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What would those examples be?
320
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So having flexibility when you can work is, um, hours.
321
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Hours and locations as well.
322
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You know, um,
323
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So there's, so the, the, the I i I,
324
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I genuinely don't expect my employer to do anything
325
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to support me in my, in my scenario.
326
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I think it's up to, it's, I have personal responsibility for
327
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what happens outside of the hours that I get paid to work.
328
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And so I have to deal with those.
329
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I think there's an understanding element, which is
330
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what Louise was talking about in terms of if I have an issue
331
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that I, I am dealing with now that I didn't have to deal
332
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with a couple of months ago, have someone understanding
333
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and be able to be flexible about that.
334
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I think that's as much as I can expect them to do. So
335
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What have you offered, or what would you offer
336
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and your advice for other firms in this situation?
337
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Yeah. Things to consider.
338
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So, so the, the, the advice for other firms is,
339
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I don't know how you can function these days without
340
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building flexibility into what you do.
341
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I fully appreciate there are some sectors that's a no go.
342
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So if you work in the care sector, uh,
343
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you working in retail, you know, the, the the,
344
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we have a flexibility because of the nature of what we do.
345
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And, and therefore I'm mindful of
346
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that in what I'm about to say.
347
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So, so those things like the simple things like the school
348
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run, the appointments for doctors, um, speaking
349
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to medical people, there, there are those things that affect
350
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all of us in different ways
351
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that I think you're nuts if you're not already thinking
352
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about how you build that level
353
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of flexibility into your workforce.
354
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Because I am absolutely confident we get back in spades
355
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what we give out.
356
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So, and more on, on top of that.
357
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So we, so that for me is the number
358
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one is how do you make that work?
359
00:15:15,585 --> 00:15:18,565
Um, I think again, if you can, again, some sectors can't,
360
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then the model of of
361
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home v office work is important
362
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because it allows for some of that.
363
00:15:25,645 --> 00:15:29,605
I worry about it for different reasons about that model,
364
00:15:29,905 --> 00:15:32,645
but I think it does help up to a point, you know, the fact
365
00:15:32,645 --> 00:15:33,885
that we've got that in place.
366
00:15:34,505 --> 00:15:37,405
Um, the things I think we haven't put enough thought into
367
00:15:37,825 --> 00:15:42,605
are things like, um, how might
368
00:15:42,605 --> 00:15:44,925
that look with, um,
369
00:15:45,545 --> 00:15:47,725
not talking about Sally's situation necessarily,
370
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but actually less hours.
371
00:15:49,665 --> 00:15:52,605
So rather than it just being about the times you can work,
372
00:15:53,065 --> 00:15:54,165
is there a period of time
373
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where you can reduce someone's hours?
374
00:15:55,915 --> 00:15:57,525
Because that works for them with,
375
00:15:57,555 --> 00:15:59,525
with an absolute cast iron guarantee.
376
00:15:59,875 --> 00:16:01,845
When this is finished in six months, a year's time,
377
00:16:02,085 --> 00:16:04,325
whatever it is, then you come back to full-time working.
378
00:16:04,905 --> 00:16:07,485
Um, maybe for some people that works, maybe there's people
379
00:16:07,545 --> 00:16:09,845
who want sabbaticals in order to deal with it.
380
00:16:10,185 --> 00:16:13,565
That's tough when you're a small business to make that work.
381
00:16:13,915 --> 00:16:16,485
That doesn't mean that we can't make it work.
382
00:16:17,045 --> 00:16:20,805
I, for me, the one that is the most controllable of any
383
00:16:20,805 --> 00:16:23,525
of those things is around, um,
384
00:16:25,105 --> 00:16:27,285
how we look at the expectation on workload.
385
00:16:28,595 --> 00:16:32,765
That that's the one we haven't sat down in a targeted
386
00:16:33,065 --> 00:16:34,405
and concerted way
387
00:16:35,105 --> 00:16:38,165
and said, let's have a look at what's on your plate
388
00:16:38,865 --> 00:16:40,645
and does this make sense
389
00:16:40,715 --> 00:16:43,485
because of what's going on for you, you know, outside
390
00:16:43,485 --> 00:16:46,565
of work, coming back to your scenario specifically, I think
391
00:16:46,565 --> 00:16:50,405
that conversation, we, we have the conversation around
392
00:16:50,425 --> 00:16:53,965
and about, we don't have that conversation in a way that I,
393
00:16:54,045 --> 00:16:55,805
I feel that, you know, we, we should have done.
394
00:16:56,115 --> 00:16:59,445
It's amplified in a small business to a point where
395
00:17:00,065 --> 00:17:04,325
you can't not encroach in people's private lives in order
396
00:17:04,385 --> 00:17:06,085
to be able to say, well actually
397
00:17:06,105 --> 00:17:07,725
how can we make this work better?
398
00:17:07,955 --> 00:17:11,285
Because when someone is underperforming in a small
399
00:17:11,525 --> 00:17:12,845
business, you know it don't you?
400
00:17:13,065 --> 00:17:15,165
So, so actually if any of us were un
401
00:17:15,165 --> 00:17:16,325
and at different times there's peaks
402
00:17:16,325 --> 00:17:17,725
and troughs of them, everyone where, you know,
403
00:17:17,725 --> 00:17:20,005
you're at the top of your game and then you don't know the
404
00:17:20,005 --> 00:17:21,485
next month you make think, oh my God,
405
00:17:21,505 --> 00:17:22,965
I'm an absolute bloody waste of space.
406
00:17:23,025 --> 00:17:24,125
You know, what am I doing here?
407
00:17:24,425 --> 00:17:26,205
I'm not adding anything to this business.
408
00:17:26,645 --> 00:17:27,685
Everyone will go through that.
409
00:17:27,725 --> 00:17:28,765
I, I imagine within,
410
00:17:28,765 --> 00:17:30,765
maybe it's just me in in their own jobs.
411
00:17:31,085 --> 00:17:32,445
You have the peaks and troughs of it,
412
00:17:32,625 --> 00:17:34,285
but when people are having the trough
413
00:17:34,865 --> 00:17:38,165
and you have some insight into what's happening for them
414
00:17:38,165 --> 00:17:41,045
outside of work, then you can navigate
415
00:17:41,045 --> 00:17:42,485
that sometimes better.
416
00:17:42,945 --> 00:17:44,365
I'm not saying we do it well by the way.
417
00:17:44,565 --> 00:17:46,085
I, I think there'll be times we've done it well
418
00:17:46,085 --> 00:17:48,045
and times I'm confident we haven't.
419
00:17:48,465 --> 00:17:52,005
One thing that SMEs do beautifully, it's their bread
420
00:17:52,005 --> 00:17:54,965
and butter is develop very strong client relationships.
421
00:17:55,025 --> 00:17:56,925
Mm-Hmm. Um, I think you said this Sally,
422
00:17:56,925 --> 00:17:58,805
that you're not just the marketing manager,
423
00:17:58,945 --> 00:18:00,645
you are the therapist.
424
00:18:00,835 --> 00:18:02,965
Well, no, not me. So the team more
425
00:18:02,965 --> 00:18:04,045
than me as well as anything else.
426
00:18:04,105 --> 00:18:07,365
And, and, and all of us have got different clients
427
00:18:07,445 --> 00:18:09,005
that we've got got closer to,
428
00:18:09,005 --> 00:18:10,765
and I think you do that anyway in any business.
429
00:18:10,825 --> 00:18:13,845
But I think there's something about the nature of Mesma
430
00:18:13,845 --> 00:18:16,485
and what we do with our customers that is different.
431
00:18:17,345 --> 00:18:18,405
Um, and,
432
00:18:19,145 --> 00:18:22,325
and I think the, you know, I think I made the point a couple
433
00:18:22,325 --> 00:18:25,485
of points around things like we don't put an awful lot
434
00:18:25,485 --> 00:18:26,805
of client notes on the system
435
00:18:26,805 --> 00:18:28,725
because of just the nature of the business
436
00:18:28,725 --> 00:18:30,405
and what we do with our customers.
437
00:18:30,625 --> 00:18:33,405
So, um, actually it's
438
00:18:33,405 --> 00:18:35,005
because, you know, we, we've built those
439
00:18:35,005 --> 00:18:36,085
relationships over time.
440
00:18:36,405 --> 00:18:38,285
I know that if people are have an issue
441
00:18:38,345 --> 00:18:41,445
or outside of working hours, they wouldn't be afraid
442
00:18:41,445 --> 00:18:43,565
to get in touch with Louise or Carole about that
443
00:18:43,825 --> 00:18:45,925
or any of the other associates in the business.
444
00:18:46,145 --> 00:18:47,285
And, and,
445
00:18:47,305 --> 00:18:49,485
and I don't think you've always get that level
446
00:18:49,545 --> 00:18:52,365
of personal relationships with your customer base
447
00:18:52,365 --> 00:18:53,365
that we have here.
448
00:18:53,865 --> 00:18:56,365
So as the company grows,
449
00:18:57,105 --> 00:18:59,045
how do you nurture that?
450
00:18:59,145 --> 00:19:00,485
How do you sustain that?
451
00:19:01,165 --> 00:19:04,325
A lot of really large companies go full circle, don't they?
452
00:19:04,765 --> 00:19:06,045
Absolutely. And, and think we did
453
00:19:06,045 --> 00:19:08,085
really well with our staff. Where did that
454
00:19:08,085 --> 00:19:09,085
Go? Absolutely.
455
00:19:09,085 --> 00:19:09,965
I I think, um,
456
00:19:11,125 --> 00:19:12,485
I hate using the word strategically
457
00:19:12,645 --> 00:19:13,645
'cause it's so dull, isn't it?
458
00:19:13,705 --> 00:19:15,125
But there you go. It's on the table now.
459
00:19:15,805 --> 00:19:20,085
I, I think about that a lot around, um, our,
460
00:19:21,805 --> 00:19:24,245
probably one of our biggest unique selling points.
461
00:19:24,315 --> 00:19:26,205
I've done two look at me going on business.
462
00:19:26,745 --> 00:19:29,445
Um, if I look at that unique, um, selling point of us, one
463
00:19:29,445 --> 00:19:30,805
of them is about our client relationships.
464
00:19:30,865 --> 00:19:32,925
As Sally said, the strength of relationship
465
00:19:32,945 --> 00:19:34,165
and the bond that we have
466
00:19:34,665 --> 00:19:36,525
and the, it's okay to send
467
00:19:36,525 --> 00:19:38,365
that message at 10 o'clock at night
468
00:19:38,675 --> 00:19:40,645
because you've got a regulator in
469
00:19:40,785 --> 00:19:41,965
and you're worried about something.
470
00:19:41,965 --> 00:19:43,445
That's okay. And we'll respond to that
471
00:19:44,345 --> 00:19:47,245
is also our achilles heel when we start
472
00:19:47,245 --> 00:19:48,525
to think about how we grow that.
473
00:19:49,105 --> 00:19:53,365
So there are things that I do personally because I go out
474
00:19:53,365 --> 00:19:54,805
and still deliver consultancy.
475
00:19:54,845 --> 00:19:57,485
I still deliver events. I don't imagine, um, not doing that.
476
00:19:57,875 --> 00:20:00,405
That we struggle a little bit to think about
477
00:20:00,425 --> 00:20:04,205
how we extract me from those types of activities.
478
00:20:04,465 --> 00:20:06,245
And actually, if we're going to grow, that has to happen.
479
00:20:06,315 --> 00:20:08,125
It's not just me that applies, you know,
480
00:20:08,125 --> 00:20:09,685
across the board in, in different ways.
481
00:20:10,225 --> 00:20:13,445
Um, so, so we have to think that through really carefully.
482
00:20:14,025 --> 00:20:18,045
And to think, I, I think about what is the DNA of
483
00:20:18,045 --> 00:20:19,325
that relationship structure.
484
00:20:19,545 --> 00:20:21,765
So actually it's not just built on
485
00:20:21,765 --> 00:20:22,925
that personal relationship
486
00:20:22,925 --> 00:20:24,365
that you've established over time,
487
00:20:24,785 --> 00:20:29,565
but we extract the DNA from that so it becomes something
488
00:20:29,565 --> 00:20:33,245
that can be replicated as much as that is possible.
489
00:20:33,535 --> 00:20:36,085
There are some of our clients who we don't have
490
00:20:36,275 --> 00:20:37,685
that close relationship with
491
00:20:37,685 --> 00:20:40,485
because they don't want it with us, they don't need it.
492
00:20:40,675 --> 00:20:43,405
They buy the software for example, and that's all they want.
493
00:20:43,425 --> 00:20:45,765
You know, it's a commodity that they use in order
494
00:20:45,765 --> 00:20:47,005
to do what they need to do.
495
00:20:47,455 --> 00:20:50,845
There are others that we know, probably some of them as well
496
00:20:50,845 --> 00:20:52,725
as we know our own team, some
497
00:20:52,725 --> 00:20:54,485
of them actually arguably better, uh,
498
00:20:54,485 --> 00:20:58,045
because of how tight that bond is between us.
499
00:20:58,225 --> 00:21:01,285
So is that a mixture of internal comms and external,
500
00:21:01,705 --> 00:21:06,165
or is it just, how do you keep those core values
501
00:21:06,835 --> 00:21:09,205
through the firm no matter how big it gets?
502
00:21:09,565 --> 00:21:11,685
I think if you try and force it, it won't happen.
503
00:21:12,065 --> 00:21:15,565
So I think there has to be an a need from your customer
504
00:21:15,785 --> 00:21:19,485
to want to embrace that as part being a feature
505
00:21:19,505 --> 00:21:21,765
of the business and being a feature of what you get from,
506
00:21:22,785 --> 00:21:24,085
um, working with Mesma.
507
00:21:24,325 --> 00:21:25,645
'cause I think there's a need for it
508
00:21:25,675 --> 00:21:28,525
amongst the professional group that we work with.
509
00:21:28,945 --> 00:21:31,405
So if you were to try and do it maybe in a different sector
510
00:21:31,415 --> 00:21:34,085
where they perhaps didn't have that need for that,
511
00:21:34,235 --> 00:21:37,205
then they would go, actually, I just really wanna buy a bit
512
00:21:37,205 --> 00:21:39,045
of software off you, or I just really wanna buy,
513
00:21:39,385 --> 00:21:41,925
or I just really need your support to fix this problem.
514
00:21:42,405 --> 00:21:45,205
I don't necessarily wanna them become part of a community,
515
00:21:45,465 --> 00:21:46,605
you know, thank you very much.
516
00:21:46,785 --> 00:21:48,005
But I'll, I'll leave it there.
517
00:21:48,315 --> 00:21:49,805
There's a real fine balance with that.
518
00:21:49,805 --> 00:21:51,805
And I, I think, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm reluctant
519
00:21:51,805 --> 00:21:53,765
to step into the AI space, but,
520
00:21:53,825 --> 00:21:57,485
but I, I think that as we head into that world of
521
00:21:57,935 --> 00:22:00,925
where does the human element of the way that you engage
522
00:22:01,085 --> 00:22:03,085
with your clients get retained, you know, I'm,
523
00:22:03,085 --> 00:22:04,725
I'm sure everyone who's listening to this
524
00:22:04,725 --> 00:22:07,365
or watching it can immediately think of, I know
525
00:22:07,365 --> 00:22:09,005
what my inbox looks like at the moment,
526
00:22:09,105 --> 00:22:12,045
or my LinkedIn dms, which is just a stream
527
00:22:12,045 --> 00:22:13,925
of AI generated blurb
528
00:22:14,195 --> 00:22:15,925
that I just delete the whole lot of them.
529
00:22:15,985 --> 00:22:18,605
You know, that that's,
530
00:22:18,605 --> 00:22:21,845
that's not client relationship based from any part of the,
531
00:22:21,945 --> 00:22:23,605
the journey that you have with your clients,
532
00:22:23,605 --> 00:22:25,525
whether they're a prospect through to someone
533
00:22:25,525 --> 00:22:26,685
that you work with as a customer.
534
00:22:26,945 --> 00:22:29,605
So I think the people who navigate that well are,
535
00:22:29,665 --> 00:22:31,925
are the businesses that are going to be successful.
536
00:22:32,355 --> 00:22:34,045
Just something you said before that I thought I'd come back
537
00:22:34,045 --> 00:22:37,045
on where you said about is it about how you internalise it,
538
00:22:37,265 --> 00:22:40,405
um, your values, to give you an example of it where,
539
00:22:40,455 --> 00:22:43,965
where I think values can be dangerous,
540
00:22:44,055 --> 00:22:46,005
which is a really weird sentence.
541
00:22:46,165 --> 00:22:48,325
I see your face, Charlie, look at me as if to go,
542
00:22:48,435 --> 00:22:49,445
what are you talking about?
543
00:22:50,025 --> 00:22:53,925
And this is a Mesma example, is I'm
544
00:22:54,025 --> 00:22:58,285
so hell bent on delivering to what I think we stand for,
545
00:22:58,715 --> 00:23:01,365
that there are times what I
546
00:23:02,655 --> 00:23:05,805
drive our team to do puts work pressure on them.
547
00:23:06,425 --> 00:23:08,365
And I'll give you perfect example of this
548
00:23:08,365 --> 00:23:10,565
Uncompromising, Um, uh,
549
00:23:10,885 --> 00:23:14,165
I don't think I'm uncompromising, but I,
550
00:23:14,165 --> 00:23:17,525
but there are things that I'm less willing to compromise on.
551
00:23:18,905 --> 00:23:20,645
So, so, so, so,
552
00:23:21,145 --> 00:23:23,725
so I'm gonna give you the example to work that
553
00:23:23,725 --> 00:23:24,725
Through.
554
00:23:26,355 --> 00:23:27,765
I'll give you the example of that.
555
00:23:28,345 --> 00:23:30,085
So you don't think I'm going completely mad.
556
00:23:31,145 --> 00:23:35,285
I'm very clear that, and we've done a fantastic job of it.
557
00:23:35,285 --> 00:23:36,365
We're well known for it.
558
00:23:36,435 --> 00:23:40,205
It's given us a huge marketing boost that half
559
00:23:40,205 --> 00:23:42,245
of our business, half of our team are recruited
560
00:23:42,245 --> 00:23:44,485
as apprentices, including Sally into her role.
561
00:23:45,185 --> 00:23:47,725
We take on, um, T level placement students,
562
00:23:48,185 --> 00:23:51,245
we took on a kickstart placement when that happened
563
00:23:51,245 --> 00:23:53,685
during Covid, we take on internships.
564
00:23:54,465 --> 00:23:55,605
That's fabulous
565
00:23:55,605 --> 00:23:58,005
because all of that speaks to what we stand
566
00:23:58,065 --> 00:23:59,085
for and our values.
567
00:23:59,705 --> 00:24:03,085
But then what comes with that is a, is a tsunami
568
00:24:03,225 --> 00:24:05,405
of workload that hits our team.
569
00:24:05,455 --> 00:24:08,205
Would that be fair? Yeah. In that happen. 'cause you need
570
00:24:08,205 --> 00:24:09,325
To support that person
571
00:24:09,355 --> 00:24:10,725
Because you've got to support them.
572
00:24:10,905 --> 00:24:12,485
Yes. You've got to make that happen.
573
00:24:12,665 --> 00:24:17,245
And I'm so uncompromising on that
574
00:24:18,145 --> 00:24:22,125
around we have a responsibility in the northeast of England.
575
00:24:22,545 --> 00:24:23,965
We have the highest younger
576
00:24:23,965 --> 00:24:25,765
of num young people who are out of work.
577
00:24:26,025 --> 00:24:27,805
We have the lowest number of apprenticeships.
578
00:24:27,865 --> 00:24:29,805
We have a very high number of SMEs.
579
00:24:30,065 --> 00:24:32,245
We have very few big corporate businesses.
580
00:24:32,705 --> 00:24:34,365
So if we are not gonna do that,
581
00:24:35,145 --> 00:24:36,605
who is going to make that happen?
582
00:24:37,305 --> 00:24:39,365
And also we sell into that sector.
583
00:24:39,945 --> 00:24:42,645
So how can you possibly sell into
584
00:24:42,645 --> 00:24:44,845
that sector if you can't walk the talk of that
585
00:24:44,845 --> 00:24:45,845
as a business yourself?
586
00:24:46,345 --> 00:24:49,205
So there's lots of reasons why we do that
587
00:24:49,665 --> 00:24:52,325
and are very thoughtful in making that happen.
588
00:24:52,745 --> 00:24:54,605
And there have been successes around that.
589
00:24:54,635 --> 00:24:56,725
However, the however is,
590
00:24:57,025 --> 00:24:59,725
and we've had a conversation earlier in this podcast about
591
00:25:00,125 --> 00:25:03,525
workload and pressure and personal life and so on.
592
00:25:03,625 --> 00:25:08,085
And there are things that I direct that I have
593
00:25:08,085 --> 00:25:09,285
to be more mindful of.
594
00:25:09,745 --> 00:25:12,005
So your values can underpin what you do,
595
00:25:12,425 --> 00:25:16,045
but there is a point where you,
596
00:25:16,045 --> 00:25:19,445
you're not giving up on them, but recognising
597
00:25:19,445 --> 00:25:22,885
and responding to the impact of living them sometimes.
598
00:25:23,385 --> 00:25:24,885
Um, so I think you've got kind of like,
599
00:25:24,885 --> 00:25:27,285
you've got a responsibility to your, your team to make sure
600
00:25:27,285 --> 00:25:28,965
that they're supported and they have the workload.
601
00:25:29,005 --> 00:25:31,205
I think you've also got responsibilities to that individual
602
00:25:31,385 --> 00:25:32,685
to make sure that you're in a position
603
00:25:32,685 --> 00:25:33,845
to be able to support them.
604
00:25:34,625 --> 00:25:37,325
And because we all understand that
605
00:25:37,425 --> 00:25:38,725
and know what was required of that,
606
00:25:39,265 --> 00:25:42,285
and maybe slightly reluctantly agreed to it
607
00:25:42,285 --> 00:25:43,685
because we knew what was required
608
00:25:43,685 --> 00:25:45,725
because we know that that support is needed.
609
00:25:46,485 --> 00:25:49,125
I think that, um, that's better than just
610
00:25:49,125 --> 00:25:50,445
saying, no, I'm not going to do it.
611
00:25:50,475 --> 00:25:55,405
Because actually what you get from, from putting yourself in
612
00:25:55,405 --> 00:25:59,845
that situation is you get new ideas, you get fresh talent,
613
00:26:00,225 --> 00:26:02,765
you get that, um, responsibility,
614
00:26:03,125 --> 00:26:05,725
a social responsibility part of it, which we do need
615
00:26:05,725 --> 00:26:07,005
to have more of in the northeast.
616
00:26:07,865 --> 00:26:10,685
So I think it's, um, so I think you have to do it
617
00:26:10,705 --> 00:26:12,965
and just be very aware of the responsibility
618
00:26:12,965 --> 00:26:14,685
that comes with it as well. 'cause
619
00:26:14,685 --> 00:26:16,325
I was just thinking about return on investment.
620
00:26:16,585 --> 00:26:19,045
I'm not necessarily meaning in terms of finances,
621
00:26:19,045 --> 00:26:22,205
but time, time and resources that if you're putting
622
00:26:22,235 --> 00:26:24,525
that energy into apprentices and,
623
00:26:24,745 --> 00:26:27,805
and you support apprentices in later life as well,
624
00:26:27,805 --> 00:26:29,205
don't you, you are very keen on that.
625
00:26:29,305 --> 00:26:31,325
So there's kind of like second careers
626
00:26:31,345 --> 00:26:33,725
and we've talked about older population,
627
00:26:33,725 --> 00:26:36,245
older workforce giving that opportunity there.
628
00:26:37,225 --> 00:26:38,605
You wanna get it back at the other end.
629
00:26:39,185 --> 00:26:41,765
You do, don't you? I think with, I think with apprentices,
630
00:26:43,345 --> 00:26:46,845
the ROI is really clear, um, that, um,
631
00:26:47,805 --> 00:26:51,005
I I wouldn't change that for the world that, that we, we,
632
00:26:51,025 --> 00:26:53,965
we operate with Mesma, an apprenticeship first policy,
633
00:26:54,455 --> 00:26:57,325
which is if we need to recruit a new job, we have
634
00:26:57,325 --> 00:26:58,645
to talk ourselves out
635
00:26:58,645 --> 00:27:00,045
of why it shouldn't be an apprenticeship
636
00:27:00,045 --> 00:27:01,125
rather than into it.
637
00:27:01,305 --> 00:27:03,925
And I think that's a fundamental difference with lots
638
00:27:03,925 --> 00:27:06,405
of other businesses who, assuming they don't pay the
639
00:27:06,405 --> 00:27:07,525
apprenticeship levy you,
640
00:27:07,525 --> 00:27:09,245
which has got a different reason for doing it.
641
00:27:09,545 --> 00:27:11,725
If you're a small business and you don't pay it,
642
00:27:11,755 --> 00:27:14,285
talking yourself into it is a very different mindset
643
00:27:14,425 --> 00:27:15,445
to talking yourself out of it.
644
00:27:15,445 --> 00:27:16,765
Mm-Hmm. So, so that's what we do.
645
00:27:16,765 --> 00:27:19,445
We start with it, it's gonna be one unless we prove why not.
646
00:27:20,225 --> 00:27:23,925
And our apprentices that we've taken on, Sal being one
647
00:27:23,925 --> 00:27:25,365
of them, have been exceptional.
648
00:27:25,865 --> 00:27:29,045
And that's from a school leader who didn't want
649
00:27:29,045 --> 00:27:31,645
to move into university to Evan,
650
00:27:31,985 --> 00:27:33,845
who is a professional rugby player,
651
00:27:33,845 --> 00:27:37,085
and it's his second career, um, to Liam who had a business
652
00:27:37,105 --> 00:27:38,205
as a personal trainer.
653
00:27:38,785 --> 00:27:40,405
And it went under during covid,
654
00:27:40,945 --> 00:27:43,965
but he had shown some real aptitude around web development,
655
00:27:44,265 --> 00:27:46,925
um, to Sally who was looking for a different career and a,
656
00:27:46,925 --> 00:27:48,765
and a real drive in interesting marketing.
657
00:27:49,065 --> 00:27:50,925
So there is not a single bit of that
658
00:27:50,925 --> 00:27:54,245
that I don't think the pain points, if I can call it that.
659
00:27:54,245 --> 00:27:57,805
And I, the perfect example of that would be that, um,
660
00:27:59,105 --> 00:28:01,125
we have gone down for our staff members
661
00:28:01,185 --> 00:28:02,725
who want it to a four day week.
662
00:28:02,825 --> 00:28:04,405
So we've offered that to everyone
663
00:28:04,405 --> 00:28:06,405
and said, if you want to work a four day week,
664
00:28:06,595 --> 00:28:09,365
then you can do that for some of our staff
665
00:28:09,505 --> 00:28:10,925
for reasons you now know love.
666
00:28:10,925 --> 00:28:12,605
That's not necessarily the right option.
667
00:28:12,705 --> 00:28:14,845
So we carry on with a different flexibility
668
00:28:14,855 --> 00:28:16,405
until it's the right time to do it.
669
00:28:16,825 --> 00:28:18,965
But we couldn't not offer that to our apprentices
670
00:28:19,025 --> 00:28:21,845
who also have a day out to go and study.
671
00:28:22,385 --> 00:28:25,205
So, so one of our developers is already out,
672
00:28:25,585 --> 00:28:27,445
but we still offered that extra.
673
00:28:27,545 --> 00:28:31,405
So that's a really big deal that we've lost that extra day,
674
00:28:31,865 --> 00:28:33,965
but we know we will get that back.
675
00:28:34,225 --> 00:28:37,365
And I, I do think there's an element of loyalty with that,
676
00:28:37,835 --> 00:28:41,365
knowing that you've willingly allowed someone to still do
677
00:28:41,365 --> 00:28:42,965
that and not reduce the amount
678
00:28:42,965 --> 00:28:44,725
of time that they're studying. Okay.
679
00:28:44,925 --> 00:28:48,325
A few quick fire questions about hybrid working
680
00:28:48,545 --> 00:28:50,325
and the changes to working practices.
681
00:28:50,425 --> 00:28:54,365
So four day week, that's a full commitment from me.
682
00:28:54,555 --> 00:28:56,285
Full commitment. It's contractual change.
683
00:28:56,465 --> 00:28:59,005
So, so, um, not a, oh, you can do it
684
00:28:59,005 --> 00:29:01,645
and, you know, we don't really mean it, it was a,
685
00:29:01,685 --> 00:29:02,765
a contractual change.
686
00:29:02,985 --> 00:29:05,445
Um, Carole, my business partner, um, led on that.
687
00:29:05,745 --> 00:29:08,205
We, we, it took about 12 months, you know, to get it
688
00:29:08,205 --> 00:29:09,325
to the point of saying, actually
689
00:29:09,325 --> 00:29:10,885
how can we make this work in practice?
690
00:29:11,145 --> 00:29:12,885
And then got to it and thought, let's just, you know,
691
00:29:12,885 --> 00:29:14,125
we've gotta do this at some point.
692
00:29:14,225 --> 00:29:16,765
But you didn't wanna do it. No.
693
00:29:17,265 --> 00:29:18,885
Didn't, I didn't wanna do it, couldn't do it
694
00:29:19,345 --> 00:29:20,345
As well. So you are still five
695
00:29:20,345 --> 00:29:20,765
days.
696
00:29:20,995 --> 00:29:22,125
Yeah. But I'm all right with that.
697
00:29:23,065 --> 00:29:24,165
That's your choice. Yeah,
698
00:29:24,425 --> 00:29:25,425
That's my choice. And
699
00:29:25,425 --> 00:29:26,925
actually that's okay. You know, that's okay.
700
00:29:26,925 --> 00:29:29,165
That it's my choice. I'm sometimes,
701
00:29:29,285 --> 00:29:32,525
I think maybe it would be easier to have a four day week,
702
00:29:32,825 --> 00:29:37,645
but I've got, um, school holidays to think about and,
703
00:29:37,785 --> 00:29:40,845
and you know, I've got, I've got different, I, I,
704
00:29:41,125 --> 00:29:44,405
I prefer the flexibility in the week rather than having to,
705
00:29:44,625 --> 00:29:46,245
to be off on, I say a Friday
706
00:29:46,465 --> 00:29:48,525
and be thinking I could be getting on with work
707
00:29:48,705 --> 00:29:49,925
and not working on a Tuesday.
708
00:29:50,805 --> 00:29:51,805
'cause I've got more flexibility.
709
00:29:52,665 --> 00:29:54,885
If you looked at a software developer job with Mesma,
710
00:29:54,965 --> 00:29:58,045
like for like, with a software developer job at
711
00:29:58,645 --> 00:30:00,125
a very large, um,
712
00:30:00,125 --> 00:30:02,605
public sector organisation in the North East,
713
00:30:03,425 --> 00:30:04,845
we can't pay that salary.
714
00:30:05,695 --> 00:30:08,845
We're, we're not big enough to pay to match that salary.
715
00:30:09,475 --> 00:30:12,325
Like for like, so you have to, as a small business,
716
00:30:12,345 --> 00:30:16,685
be more creative about how do we provide different things
717
00:30:17,195 --> 00:30:20,285
that might matter to someone more than the end salary.
718
00:30:20,385 --> 00:30:21,525
And for others it won't, you know,
719
00:30:21,525 --> 00:30:22,725
the salary will be everything,
720
00:30:23,025 --> 00:30:25,085
but we, there, there comes a point where you go,
721
00:30:25,085 --> 00:30:26,285
we're not gonna be able to do that.
722
00:30:26,305 --> 00:30:27,885
And actually the more we all try
723
00:30:27,885 --> 00:30:29,645
and do that, the more inflation goes dah, dah, dah.
724
00:30:29,785 --> 00:30:31,485
And they just add more because they can.
725
00:30:31,745 --> 00:30:32,965
And, and we can't do that.
726
00:30:33,065 --> 00:30:35,165
So you have to become more innovative
727
00:30:35,665 --> 00:30:38,645
and creative in how do we become a place to work.
728
00:30:39,265 --> 00:30:42,485
And that was one of the things that we were able to do.
729
00:30:43,105 --> 00:30:47,365
You, um, invested in office space here at
730
00:30:47,365 --> 00:30:48,445
Newcastle Helix.
731
00:30:49,025 --> 00:30:50,125
And a major part of
732
00:30:50,125 --> 00:30:52,485
that isn't just having a name above the door.
733
00:30:52,585 --> 00:30:55,485
It was because there was a central base for people to come
734
00:30:55,785 --> 00:30:57,725
and meet and share ideas.
735
00:30:58,825 --> 00:31:01,245
Um, what are the advantages of that?
736
00:31:01,605 --> 00:31:02,885
'cause there is still this debate about
737
00:31:02,985 --> 00:31:04,325
how do you get people to return to work
738
00:31:04,325 --> 00:31:05,605
and should you force them?
739
00:31:06,985 --> 00:31:09,005
The advantages are kind of what you said in the question,
740
00:31:09,095 --> 00:31:12,405
which is, um, there are lots
741
00:31:12,405 --> 00:31:15,085
and lots of examples where you can make a decision
742
00:31:16,225 --> 00:31:19,365
in the space of 30 seconds when you are sitting next
743
00:31:19,365 --> 00:31:22,605
to someone in comparison to online
744
00:31:22,655 --> 00:31:26,445
where you have create a meeting, bring people together.
745
00:31:26,755 --> 00:31:30,485
It's so much more efficient, I think, in the way
746
00:31:30,485 --> 00:31:31,525
that you can get work done.
747
00:31:32,385 --> 00:31:34,645
If you put our developers at this table,
748
00:31:34,715 --> 00:31:37,085
they would literally be shaking their heads at this point
749
00:31:37,085 --> 00:31:39,805
and saying, it is the least productive way for them to work.
750
00:31:40,565 --> 00:31:42,845
'cause you put the likes of me and Sally
751
00:31:42,985 --> 00:31:46,245
and Evan in a room who, the nature of our jobs,
752
00:31:46,465 --> 00:31:47,765
we wanna talk and we're,
753
00:31:48,065 --> 00:31:50,525
and we're, we're exploring ideas together.
754
00:31:51,145 --> 00:31:54,285
And the, the dev, the developers need silence
755
00:31:55,145 --> 00:31:58,765
and a very black room, you know, on their own at midnight.
756
00:31:59,425 --> 00:32:01,925
So it, it doesn't work for everyone.
757
00:32:02,545 --> 00:32:04,485
Um, and that I think will always be
758
00:32:04,485 --> 00:32:05,645
the, the, the case with it.
759
00:32:05,685 --> 00:32:08,605
I, I can think of years ago, um, having developers
760
00:32:08,625 --> 00:32:09,805
or similar roles work for me,
761
00:32:09,805 --> 00:32:11,405
and we had exactly the same issue.
762
00:32:11,425 --> 00:32:12,685
So it's, it is not new.
763
00:32:13,185 --> 00:32:15,765
Um, it's just the fact that we've seen a different way,
764
00:32:16,505 --> 00:32:18,845
and as technology has advanced, it's allowed
765
00:32:18,845 --> 00:32:20,125
that different way to happen
766
00:32:20,705 --> 00:32:23,245
in a much more practical way than it ever has been before.
767
00:32:23,425 --> 00:32:26,085
So, so that's number one is about that opportunity to just
768
00:32:26,615 --> 00:32:28,965
sound ideas of each other and to speak and,
769
00:32:29,065 --> 00:32:30,965
and to have the conversations
770
00:32:30,965 --> 00:32:32,445
that would take longer otherwise.
771
00:32:32,865 --> 00:32:34,525
Um, the other point being is
772
00:32:34,525 --> 00:32:38,165
that we would not have been able to take on apprentices
773
00:32:38,825 --> 00:32:40,685
or placements if we didn't have an office.
774
00:32:41,185 --> 00:32:44,445
The, the, the reason we took the office on was
775
00:32:44,625 --> 00:32:46,205
to allow that to happen.
776
00:32:46,705 --> 00:32:49,325
And actually there's some regulatory, um,
777
00:32:50,365 --> 00:32:52,165
regulatory barriers to that as well.
778
00:32:52,165 --> 00:32:53,765
Whilst you, you're allowed to do it with apprenticeships,
779
00:32:54,025 --> 00:32:56,885
you can't do it with, um, placements.
780
00:32:57,035 --> 00:32:58,645
They have to be done in person.
781
00:32:58,675 --> 00:33:01,085
There's a very small, um, small amount of them
782
00:33:01,085 --> 00:33:03,245
that you can do in a different way to that.
783
00:33:03,585 --> 00:33:06,565
But you are working predominantly from home Sally. Mm-Hmm.
784
00:33:06,645 --> 00:33:10,165
So do you feel like you're missing out on the opportunity
785
00:33:10,345 --> 00:33:11,485
to innovate?
786
00:33:11,485 --> 00:33:13,565
You're missing out on the collaboration,
787
00:33:13,565 --> 00:33:18,405
you're missing out on the osmosis, all the creativity,
788
00:33:18,475 --> 00:33:19,605
fostering creativity.
789
00:33:19,805 --> 00:33:20,845
I think you do miss out on it.
790
00:33:20,925 --> 00:33:22,845
I think, I think there is, like Lou says, you know,
791
00:33:22,845 --> 00:33:27,165
when you are in a job where you are, um, where you are,
792
00:33:27,355 --> 00:33:28,485
they get more creative.
793
00:33:28,745 --> 00:33:30,365
No, they're very, they're still very creative.
794
00:33:30,465 --> 00:33:33,165
But you are in a, you are in the bit of the job where you,
795
00:33:33,265 --> 00:33:34,525
you have to have conversations about
796
00:33:34,565 --> 00:33:36,765
what your customers are talking about while you're listening
797
00:33:36,765 --> 00:33:37,965
to their conversations
798
00:33:37,985 --> 00:33:40,525
and hearing about what themes are coming out
799
00:33:40,525 --> 00:33:42,005
of discussions with customers.
800
00:33:42,765 --> 00:33:44,445
I think that's really important. And I think
801
00:33:44,445 --> 00:33:46,445
So would you mandate because of all that, I mean,
802
00:33:46,445 --> 00:33:47,605
that's a lot of benefits.
803
00:33:48,535 --> 00:33:51,485
Would you mandate then you you should be in the office
804
00:33:51,665 --> 00:33:53,285
for say, two days a week? It,
805
00:33:53,315 --> 00:33:55,605
It's a really interesting question and, and Carole
806
00:33:55,625 --> 00:33:59,045
and I have, um, done that and then stopped that
807
00:33:59,755 --> 00:34:03,485
because it wasn't working where we tried to force
808
00:34:04,065 --> 00:34:05,205
the number of days in.
809
00:34:05,725 --> 00:34:07,725
I think that's a really perfect example.
810
00:34:07,865 --> 00:34:09,885
It feels like, you know, we're, we're coming back
811
00:34:09,885 --> 00:34:12,525
to earlier conversations we've had, we've had,
812
00:34:12,555 --> 00:34:16,605
it's a really perfect example of us also recognising
813
00:34:16,605 --> 00:34:20,765
that if we impose that when people's lives are
814
00:34:21,675 --> 00:34:24,205
happening in a way that is challenging for them,
815
00:34:24,555 --> 00:34:26,205
then we might lose that person.
816
00:34:27,235 --> 00:34:29,845
Yeah. And, and so there has to be so, so it's,
817
00:34:30,265 --> 00:34:33,725
so I see this issue as being like a temporary issue
818
00:34:33,825 --> 00:34:36,245
and I plan to be back in the office in the next couple
819
00:34:36,245 --> 00:34:37,245
Of months. That would be your
820
00:34:37,245 --> 00:34:37,925
preference. That
821
00:34:37,935 --> 00:34:39,165
Preference, definitely.
822
00:34:39,505 --> 00:34:43,205
So it's, it comes back to that thing about if somebody,
823
00:34:43,345 --> 00:34:46,885
if somebody's life circumstances changed, I think 20,
824
00:34:47,105 --> 00:34:49,645
30 years ago you would've, it would've been,
825
00:34:50,215 --> 00:34:51,805
there would've been very little flexibility,
826
00:34:51,805 --> 00:34:52,925
very little compromise.
827
00:34:53,265 --> 00:34:56,765
And after a period of HR process, you would've just been,
828
00:34:57,545 --> 00:34:59,365
you probably would've been disciplined, you know,
829
00:34:59,385 --> 00:35:00,765
for not being able to be in the office.
830
00:35:00,905 --> 00:35:02,445
It would've absolutely been the case
831
00:35:02,505 --> 00:35:05,725
and I would've probably been on the other side of
832
00:35:05,725 --> 00:35:07,885
that process, you know, as a manager at the time.
833
00:35:08,485 --> 00:35:11,165
I think the world has moved on, thankfully
834
00:35:11,465 --> 00:35:12,765
so much since then.
835
00:35:13,225 --> 00:35:15,245
And I think that because we can, we do,
836
00:35:15,645 --> 00:35:17,045
I think we are on the cusp
837
00:35:17,045 --> 00:35:21,045
of a much bigger problem if we don't really get to grips
838
00:35:21,045 --> 00:35:22,925
with how we get people into work
839
00:35:22,925 --> 00:35:24,165
because they want to be there
840
00:35:24,785 --> 00:35:26,805
and we support them when they're in there,
841
00:35:27,345 --> 00:35:30,005
rather than us kind of going, oh, it's okay for some of you
842
00:35:30,005 --> 00:35:31,445
to do this, some of you to do that there,
843
00:35:31,445 --> 00:35:32,725
there's a problem here already.
844
00:35:32,835 --> 00:35:34,165
It's gonna get bigger. And I
845
00:35:34,165 --> 00:35:36,245
Think it's it's doing it from the off, isn't it?
846
00:35:36,245 --> 00:35:38,845
Yeah. It's thinking about the right elements
847
00:35:38,845 --> 00:35:41,685
of hard infrastructure mixed with the right elements
848
00:35:41,685 --> 00:35:42,725
of soft infrastructure
849
00:35:43,145 --> 00:35:45,445
to make those communities that, that we talk about.
850
00:35:45,645 --> 00:35:48,525
Absolutely. Yeah. Um, just to wrap up good work culture.
851
00:35:48,995 --> 00:35:53,085
Give me three things that would be either, um,
852
00:35:53,955 --> 00:35:57,165
good things to you if you were looking for a new job
853
00:35:58,065 --> 00:36:01,165
or, um, a firm was doing something that you thought, right,
854
00:36:01,165 --> 00:36:04,445
that is good work culture or red flags.
855
00:36:05,105 --> 00:36:06,925
Um, in the main, I've been incredibly
856
00:36:06,925 --> 00:36:07,965
fortunate with my career.
857
00:36:08,065 --> 00:36:11,685
If I put it down to one thing, it would be working for
858
00:36:12,265 --> 00:36:16,565
people or companies who allowed me to grow
859
00:36:17,305 --> 00:36:19,125
and had the confidence in me.
860
00:36:19,505 --> 00:36:23,125
And I guess the risk willingness to say, do you know what?
861
00:36:23,125 --> 00:36:24,845
You might mess it up, but it, it's,
862
00:36:24,915 --> 00:36:26,645
it's all right if you do.
863
00:36:27,025 --> 00:36:29,725
Um, I, I would put that bang in the middle of, um,
864
00:36:30,805 --> 00:36:31,805
anywhere I would ever want to work.
865
00:36:31,945 --> 00:36:34,205
How do I know I'm going to be given that flexibility
866
00:36:34,265 --> 00:36:37,445
to do a great job without someone stifling that?
867
00:36:37,705 --> 00:36:39,405
See, I don't think you see the, the culture
868
00:36:39,425 --> 00:36:41,205
of an organisation from the outside.
869
00:36:41,405 --> 00:36:42,925
I think it's really hard. I think
870
00:36:43,525 --> 00:36:45,925
companies can be particularly good at presenting an image
871
00:36:45,925 --> 00:36:48,845
of themselves as of veneer of having a really good culture.
872
00:36:49,585 --> 00:36:50,685
The world is different now as well
873
00:36:50,805 --> 00:36:52,885
because we have things like Glassdoor
874
00:36:53,065 --> 00:36:56,605
and we have like, it's much easier to know about the culture
875
00:36:56,625 --> 00:36:59,125
of an organisation externally than
876
00:36:59,125 --> 00:37:00,205
it was perhaps in the past.
877
00:37:00,505 --> 00:37:04,325
And I think that reputationally, I think that you do,
878
00:37:04,325 --> 00:37:05,725
particularly when you're in a small sector,
879
00:37:05,805 --> 00:37:08,045
I think you do get to hear about good
880
00:37:08,065 --> 00:37:11,285
and bad, um, organisations that you were,
881
00:37:11,285 --> 00:37:12,965
that you could potentially end up working in.
882
00:37:13,175 --> 00:37:17,085
There was a story not so long back of a, um, millennial
883
00:37:17,705 --> 00:37:21,085
who went into a job, got through like five rounds
884
00:37:21,085 --> 00:37:23,005
of interviews and it was the final, you know,
885
00:37:23,005 --> 00:37:24,485
this was it, the job was theirs.
886
00:37:25,065 --> 00:37:28,925
And um, and then they just said to the guy behind the desk,
887
00:37:29,035 --> 00:37:31,325
well, but none of this, um,
888
00:37:31,835 --> 00:37:34,685
furniture looks like it's been ecologically sourced.
889
00:37:35,505 --> 00:37:36,925
Um, how do you respond to that?
890
00:37:37,785 --> 00:37:39,925
And there was no answer from behind the desk
891
00:37:40,185 --> 00:37:42,005
and the, the person didn't take the job.
892
00:37:44,065 --> 00:37:47,325
Are they expecting this was a company
893
00:37:47,325 --> 00:37:49,285
that had absolutely nothing to do
894
00:37:49,285 --> 00:37:51,045
with ecological furniture at all?
895
00:37:51,065 --> 00:37:53,885
Mm-Hmm. But you didn't think it matched their values. Yeah.
896
00:37:53,885 --> 00:37:56,085
Yeah. Is that a ridiculous decision to make?
897
00:37:56,225 --> 00:37:57,845
Who, who's side lean on that? I
898
00:37:57,845 --> 00:37:59,005
Think that you can judge that personal making,
899
00:37:59,265 --> 00:38:00,365
that's a decision for them.
900
00:38:00,885 --> 00:38:01,925
I think there is an argument
901
00:38:01,945 --> 00:38:04,685
of knowing which values you align yourself with.
902
00:38:04,985 --> 00:38:08,925
If that company states very clearly this is important
903
00:38:08,945 --> 00:38:11,645
to us and this is one of the, you know, five,
904
00:38:11,705 --> 00:38:12,965
six things in our strategic plan,
905
00:38:13,025 --> 00:38:14,765
and then he ask that question says, no,
906
00:38:15,125 --> 00:38:16,845
I would absolutely walk away from that business
907
00:38:16,915 --> 00:38:18,765
because then it's veneer then,
908
00:38:18,765 --> 00:38:20,285
then it's not about what quite
909
00:38:24,155 --> 00:38:28,085
Dear d And on that note, Ching,
910
00:38:29,465 --> 00:38:30,605
Um, thank you.
911
00:38:31,425 --> 00:38:34,285
Thanks guys for tackling such important
912
00:38:34,745 --> 00:38:38,565
and let's be honest, emotional subjects today, Lou Doyle
913
00:38:38,665 --> 00:38:40,485
and Sally Forsyth of Mesma.
914
00:38:41,585 --> 00:38:45,445
So I agree that the dial is shifting on female-dominated
915
00:38:45,695 --> 00:38:48,845
workforces, the growing focus on gender pay gaps
916
00:38:48,865 --> 00:38:52,165
and with it the needs and benefits of working moms,
917
00:38:52,945 --> 00:38:54,845
the impact of the menopause
918
00:38:54,905 --> 00:38:57,645
that's also filtering into employment conversations.
919
00:38:58,265 --> 00:39:01,285
But the challenge that's only gonna grow is that
920
00:39:01,345 --> 00:39:02,645
of parental care.
921
00:39:03,105 --> 00:39:04,765
How everyone, not just women
922
00:39:05,345 --> 00:39:07,885
can be at their best at work whilst meeting the needs
923
00:39:07,885 --> 00:39:09,405
of their own elderly parents.
924
00:39:09,875 --> 00:39:13,725
Because this is a talent pool nobody can afford to lose.
925
00:39:14,545 --> 00:39:17,325
So however, and wherever you are listening
926
00:39:17,325 --> 00:39:19,685
or watching both sides of the desk, thank you.
927
00:39:20,115 --> 00:39:21,605
This is all about sharing ideas
928
00:39:21,665 --> 00:39:24,565
to create a more positive work culture for everyone.
929
00:39:24,905 --> 00:39:26,205
So please subscribe to the podcast
930
00:39:26,465 --> 00:39:28,165
and share it with your friends and colleagues.
931
00:39:28,915 --> 00:39:32,365
Data shows that positive work culture boosts productivity,
932
00:39:32,995 --> 00:39:35,845
reduces staff turnover and makes people happier.
933
00:39:36,385 --> 00:39:38,525
What's not to love? Well, we'd love you
934
00:39:38,625 --> 00:39:40,005
to join the conversation too.
935
00:39:40,235 --> 00:39:43,045
Drop us a message on the socials for Newcastle Helix,
936
00:39:43,045 --> 00:39:45,925
whether that's LinkedIn, X, Facebook, Instagram,
937
00:39:46,065 --> 00:39:47,485
or the YouTube channel.
938
00:39:48,185 --> 00:39:50,245
We are all about collaboration here.
939
00:39:50,385 --> 00:39:53,365
So on that note, this video podcast was filmed with the help
940
00:39:53,365 --> 00:39:56,125
of the incredible team at The Lumen building on the
941
00:39:56,125 --> 00:39:57,685
Newcastle Helix site.
942
00:39:57,985 --> 00:40:01,285
It was filmed and directed by Chris Taylor, filmed
943
00:40:01,285 --> 00:40:03,525
and edited by Jordan McDonald, mixed
944
00:40:03,525 --> 00:40:06,565
and mastered by Andy at Blast Studios and produced
945
00:40:06,585 --> 00:40:09,005
and presented by me, Charlie Charlton.
946
00:40:09,345 --> 00:40:12,685
The concept emerged in collaboration with Di Gates
947
00:40:12,785 --> 00:40:13,845
of Connection Heroes.
948
00:40:14,075 --> 00:40:16,765
This is a development program all about the value
949
00:40:16,865 --> 00:40:18,885
of human connection at work.
950
00:40:19,425 --> 00:40:22,045
So, coming up in the next episode of Both Sides of the Desk,
951
00:40:22,585 --> 00:40:24,285
You've probably heard this phrase now,
952
00:40:24,345 --> 00:40:27,245
but in Newcastle we have a phrase, "shy bairns get nowt".
953
00:40:27,965 --> 00:40:30,125
I am a cheeky boy, um,
954
00:40:30,835 --> 00:40:33,325
From the happy team here at Newcastle Helix.
955
00:40:33,745 --> 00:40:34,525
See you next time.