{"id":211281,"date":"2019-06-26T18:39:14","date_gmt":"2019-06-26T17:39:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/letstalktalent.co.uk\/?p=211281"},"modified":"2023-11-29T13:59:43","modified_gmt":"2023-11-29T13:59:43","slug":"connecting-company-purpose-with-engagement-at-notonthehighstreet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/letstalktalent.co.uk\/blog\/connecting-company-purpose-with-engagement-at-notonthehighstreet\/","title":{"rendered":"Connecting Company Purpose with Engagement at not on the high street"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Last week we were delighted to welcome Jess Taylor<\/a>, People Director at notonthehighstreet <\/strong>to talk to us about her three-year journey to date with notonthehighstreet (NOTHS). We learned how Jess brought her team on an engagement journey from HR process to a really meaningful connection with the organisation. Thank you Jess for a thought-provoking morning!<\/p>\n\n\n\n At Let\u2019s Talk Talent<\/a> we believe that connecting people and purpose is key to business success<\/a> and we live that through our own manifesto. Here I\u2019d like to share some of Jess\u2019 story and a few key takeaways that I hope will encourage you to think about how your organisational purpose fits with the way you engage and develop your people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jess\u2019 story <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c<\/em><\/strong>One of the best bits\nof starting a new job is the fresh eyes, those first few weeks and months are\nso precious to be able to \u2018experience the experience\u2019 without bias\u201d. <\/em>When Jess arrived at NOTHS feelings were high and investment in\nengagement covered \u201ceverything from massages to yoga, ping pong, Friday\ncheese parties, summer parties and Christmas parties\u201d.<\/em> But something was\namiss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Important people metrics were not as healthy as they could have been,\nand this was impacting business performance. Attrition was high, employees\nwere, on average, not staying longer than 16 months, pay to revenue ratios\ncould have been better, and there was evidence of siloed thinking and working. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Data showed that despite highly visible engagement efforts, the fundamentals\nof employee experience needed some attention. \u201cI knew we were at a point\nwhere although the underlying brand was brilliant, something wasn\u2019t quite right.\u201d\n<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Jess bravely took her case to the board and over the last three years\nhas re-shaped the employee experience around NOTHS\u2019 unique proposition and\npurpose. From our discussion, these are the three points that really hit home\nfor me:<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Be brave <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It was a brave step to\ncut through all the noise and take a fresh look at fundamentals- and to take\nthis to the board. HR data showed that engagement was not always linked to\noutcomes or advantages to the business and rewards didn\u2019t necessarily fit with\nthe workforce profile. Being brave meant\ntaking people back to the \u2018why\u2019, going back to basics and questioning whether\nyou\u2019re doing things because they look cool or because you really want to make a\ndifference. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 2. Join up the\ninternal and external brands<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you\u2019ve got back\nto your \u2018why\u2019, question how your internal and external brands fit together \u2013\ndoes your internal employee experience match up to the external customer\nexperience? \u201cNever lose sight of why people work for you, at NOTHS it\u2019s all about\nconnection and building a really thoughtful connection with the Partners we\nwork with and our customers, as well as the connection between our teams and with\neach other\u201d. <\/em>This connection is central to both the internal and external brands.\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n 3. Think of your\nbusiness as a lab not a factory!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGet your people team\nto think lab and not factory, focus on experience and not process\u201d<\/em> is the advice from Jess \u201ccontinually test things out and learn from\nthings especially when they go wrong\u201d.<\/em> Ensuring a connection between the\nessentials of culture, the physical environment and IT infrastructure gives\nNOTHS the flexibility to pivot and focus on where they need to spend more time and\nenergy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fast forward three\nyears<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Over the last three\nyears, Jess has led the business through change including the recent formation\nof a new senior team. Through these changes, Jess has paved the way to a bright\nfuture by being brave, connecting internal and external brands and thinking\nof the business as a lab and not a factory. <\/strong>Engagement levels and\nconfidence are returning, and purpose is well and truly part of the fabric of NOTHS\nwhich is incredibly inspiring when you step in even for a short while like I\ndid last week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n