happy blogs

5 questions with Simon Grosse of Foundation SP

Damien O’Neill is Site Manager at Advanced Technology Services UK Ltd (ATS). ATS employs more than 3,000 people across the US, Mexico and the UK, and specialises in factory maintenance and IT services. Their company culture is centered around safety and continuous improvement, with their products winning multiple awards for innovation. We spoke to Damien to find out more about ATS and their culture, ahead of the 2017 Happy Workplaces Conference next month.

The link between staff happiness and engagement has been shown in countless studies to improve staff retention, improve productivity and increase profits – and it’s also been shown to dramatically increase share growth.

Sarah Metcalfe is Head of Customer Service at SureFlap. SureFlap Ltd is a Cambridge-based multi-award winning company that designs and manufactures smart pet products. These include cat flaps and pet doors, pet feeders, and microchip readers. Their products are designed to look great and are the best at what they do, and they are loved by the people that use them – SureFlap now has a Net Promoter Score of over 95% in over 20 countries around the world. We spoke to Sarah about how she has created a happy and engaged workplace, with values based on trust and freedom within guidelines.

Companies that prioritise the happiness and well-being of their employees are generally considered more progressive, are viewed more favourably by the general public and seem to be recognised as morally superior, but do happy workplaces actually perform better financially?

Happy is proud to be a Freedom-Centered Workplace

I am proud to announce that Happy has qualified as a WorldBlu certified Freedom-Centred Workplace for the fourth time. We are one of only three UK companies to make the list this year and are honoured to be there alongside John Lewis.

BrewDog introduces ‘paw-ternity’ leave for staff

As you may have guessed from the name, multinational craft beer chain BrewDog is very dog-friendly. Dogs are welcome in each of their 47 bars, and their head office in Scotland has 50 office dogs. However, they have now taken this a step further, launching a new Puppy Parental Leave scheme for all members of staff.

Build Relationships — Before You Recruit People

In keeping with the 5th Happy Manifesto Core Principle of ‘Recruit for Attitude, Train for Skill’ Semco meet potential future employees even before there is a vacancy.

When it comes to showing that you trust your people to learn, the secret is ‘Don’t tell when you can ask’.

Is it time to move beyond budgets?

On 6th February we are holding the 3rd UK Beyond Budgeting conference, in partnership with the Beyond Budgeting Institute. Speakers like Bjarte Bogsnes of Norway’s Statoil, and Mira Gvozdenovic of Coloplast in Denmark – and several more – will explain how their huge organisations run without annual budgets.

10 Simple Ways to be More Productive at Work

On our four day Happy Workplace Leadership Programme, we have introduced a section on being productive rather than busy. We share tips and challenge participants to take control in three key areas: email, meetings and distractions. Take control over your email, meetings and distractions with these 10 top productivity tips.