Martin Carmody.
Martin Carmody, MD of brand, creative, digital and comms agency Stratos, explains why he places significant value on respect, equality and inclusivity in the workplace.
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WITH a significant portion of our lives spent at work, ensuring a positive workplace environment is essential to the long-term health, happiness and productivity of our people.
I was honoured to be asked to contribute to The Open University’s latest report on productivity, alongside Safaraz Ali, CEO and founder of the Multicultural Apprenticeship and Skills Alliance, Nerys Bolton, Associate Head of School, Curriculum and Innovation, School of Health, Wellbeing & Social Care at The Open University, Sir Cary Cooper CBE, of Manchester Business School, Anthony Impey MBE, CEO of Be the Business and Dr Fidèle Mutwarasibo, Director of the Centre for Voluntary Sector Leadership at The Open University.
The Powering up Productivity report, which makes a case for investment in people, skills and technology, recognises the impact positive workplace culture can have on every element of business growth.
At Stratos, we believe that it is our people who create our culture and that is why we only employ those who share our commitment to caring, communicating and compromising with one another, our partners, clients and the wider business community.
“In the most basic terms, if you’re a good person and you want to do good work, you’re our kind of person.”
The report is based on a survey of 500 employers, which found that one in four employers are reporting their productivity has worsened in the last five years. This aligns with government figures, which document the UK’s poor productivity performance, compared to the likes of the United States, France and Germany.
The Open University’s report makes recommendations to organisations looking to address and improve productivity, by:
- Setting clear goals
- Tracking and analysing utilisation
- Investing in reskilling and upskilling
- Adopting new technologies
- Unlocking hidden talents
- Supporting wellbeing
- Making small, incremental changes
- Seeking external advice
Bucking the UK’s plateaued productivity trend, this year Stratos has doubled in size, taking on new creative and account management experts as well as some of the digital, comms and client services team from former Milton Keynes agency Interdirect.
And while it has been a hugely exciting year for Stratos, communication has been – and continues to be – crucial to ensuring that everyone’s voice is heard, opinions are considered and needs are supported, navigating together the next steps to business and personal success.
Flexibility comes a close second to communication in my list of workplace productivity priorities and it is something that I have proudly championed at Stratos.
We trust our people and value their ability to self-motivate and commit to producing the best possible outcomes for our clients. That is why we have openly welcomed our team’s personal priorities and offer flexible office and home working.
We have even accommodated some of our people moving and working from further afield, including Liverpool, Bulgaria and South Africa.
When it comes to measuring team performance and productivity, I strongly believe that tracking and analysing utilisation is crucial to the success of any organisation but it needs to be treated with respect and diligence.
The team must understand why it is such an important part of the business, and appreciate that it is not in play to micro-manage or ‘point fingers’. It is there to get a true reading of the time and resources that we have available to us.
Stratos is realistic about what we are able to achieve as a small but mighty team and that is why we value our partnerships, working with other people and teams at the top of their games to make us all stronger.
Leaning on specialist know-how, experience and knowledge, we work alongside each other to create a tailored approach that adds true value to projects, businesses and brands.
Likewise, The Open University (which is headquartered at its Walton Hall campus in Milton Keynes), works with more than 2,700 employers across the four nations of the United Kingdom to provide learning and development to staff, and its research and innovation addresses some of the most pressing challenges faced by society.
To learn more about the different ways to increase productivity in your workplace, visit https://business.open.ac.uk/productivity.
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