Eat Sleep Work Repeat - better workplace culture

Most company training is a waste of time that turns firms into bureaucratic sludge holes. That’s roughly the conclusion of today’s episode which is a conversation with Andre Spicer and Mats Alvesson They have a new book out The Art of Less. Andre has been a guest a few times before - way back in 2018. This podcast is old. In 2018 this podcast was ahead of Steven Bartlett’s Diary of a CEO at the top of the podcast charts. (Andre talking about open plan offices) The idea that much of what companies do is related to their self identity, what the company aspires to be in the world - with the end result that it doesn’t achieve these things. Things we discuss:'The Death of the Corporate Job'how 'initiative-itis' is dragging down organisationshow training is corporate sludge that doesn't achieve its goalscorporate culture as an act of 'grandiosity'Sign up to the Make Work Better newsletter or check out the best ever episodes at the website.Eat Sleep Work Repeat is made and hosted by Bruce Daisley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 11 November 2025

Jeremy Holt is a psychologist and leadership coach who has spent more than 20 years helping teams get better. Read his research about better team results. This episode is the third part of a series about the power of identity in teams. Listen to the other Eat Sleep Work Repeat episodes about identity. Jeremy posting about identity Watch the Lebron documentary More Than a Game Jeremy's book For the Love of the Game Sign up to the Make Work Better newsletter or check out the best ever episodes at the website.Eat Sleep Work Repeat is made and hosted by Bruce Daisley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 2 November 2025

This is the second part of an interview with Professor Alex Haslam, the world's leading voice on the study of social identity.You can hear the first part of this interview on the website. In this discussion we talk how social identity can help us understand leadership. Alex talks about the CARE model of leadership.C - Create the groupA - Advance the group (sometimes over themselves)R - Represent the groupE - Embed the group identity in everyday life for the group If you're interested in exploring Alex's recent contributions to discussions on leadership and culture these papers are a great place to start:Zombie LeadershipHuman Me-sources or Human We-sources - exploring leader narcissism Alex Haslam is Professor of Social and Organisational Psychology at the University of Queensland. He is one of the world’s leading researchers on group dynamics, leadership, and identity. Over the past three decades, Alex has helped reshape our understanding of how people think, feel, and behave as members of groups, and why social identity is central to motivation, resilience, and effective teamwork. Sign up to the Make Work Better newsletter or check out the best ever episodes at the website.Eat Sleep Work Repeat is made and hosted by Bruce Daisley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 27 October 2025

“Why are we so fixated on the individual self? I think it was a big con. The individual self is a relatively modern invention. The idea that human psychology is about the individual self was really an analytical fiction that was devised in the 20th century.” This is the first part of a wide-ranging discussion with Professor Alex Haslam. He talks us why our group identities are so essential to us and define who we are as adults. He quotes his mentor John Turner who said, 'Social identity is what makes group behaviour possible'. By the time you've finished with this episode I'm sure you'll agree. Check out an utterly brilliant talk by Alex - consider this the best training you could send yourself on. Alex mentions his partner Cath Haslam, who is also a psychologist. Full transcript and notes are on the website - along with an Identity playlist of episodes. Alex Haslam is Professor of Social and Organisational Psychology at the University of Queensland. He is one of the world’s leading researchers on group dynamics, leadership, and identity. Over the past three decades, Alex has helped reshape our understanding of how people think, feel, and behave as members of groups, and why social identity is central to motivation, resilience, and effective teamwork. Alex is co-author of The New Psychology of Leadership and The New Psychology of Sport and Exercise, and his work has been applied widely—from health and education to business, politics, and the military. With over 300 research articles and multiple international awards to his name, Alex is recognised as a pioneer of social identity theory in practice, showing how a sense of “us” can unlock extraordinary human potential. Sign up to the Make Work Better newsletter or check out the best ever episodes at the website.Eat Sleep Work Repeat is made and hosted by Bruce Daisley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 21 October 2025

Simon Gilbody talks loneliness at workThe Loneliness of the American Worker - Wall Street JournalMake Work Better on lonelinessMore on solving lonelinessLoneliness in teamsDerek Thompson on elective isolation Professor Simon Gilbody is a psychiatrist and clinical epidemiologist at the University of York. His work specialises in 'taking a population approach to mental health', trying to understand the aspects of modern life that contribute to how we feel.I was impressed by a talk that Simon did with the Financial Times on the topic of workplace loneliness.In our discussion Simon reflects on the toll of loneliness, how workplace loneliness can leave us with invasive thoughts, and what to do about it.Some links we discuss:Dr Lucy Foulkes - I really enjoy her TikToks, I think I gave a shout out to her book on adolescents a few weeks ago.Red Cross Report on LonelinessThank you to Mary Howarth at University of York for helping to arrange the discussion. Transcript on the website Sign up to the Make Work Better newsletter or check out the best ever episodes at the website.Eat Sleep Work Repeat is made and hosted by Bruce Daisley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 14 October 2025

This sponsored episode is brought to you by Deliveroo for Work Spencer Walker is the global director of Deliveroo for Work. The podcast has returned several times to the idea of food as a cultural trigger, something that catalyses connection and allows cohesion. We explore that idea further this week with Spencer Walker who runs Deliveroo For Work the workplace service provided by the delivery firm. The Deliveroo Feeding Employee Engagement Report I mention a book by Robin Dunbar and Samantha Rockey, it's this: The Social Brain - Tracey Camilleri, Samantha Rockey, Robin Dunbar. They talk about giving curry to bond teams (because the sharing plates require people to pass them around). Hear them talking about it here. Deliveroo for WorkThe Deliveroo Feeding Employee Engagement ReportMore about food, rituals and culture  Sign up to the Make Work Better newsletter or check out the best ever episodes at the website.Eat Sleep Work Repeat is made and hosted by Bruce Daisley. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 9 October 2025

Delighted to post this small conversation with Nick Shackleton-Jones. Nick posts brilliantly witty rants on TikTok that are just the best things I hear about work and the futility of bureaucracy. TikTok is a fame machine and if creators drop a banger they can end up reaching a vast audience. Nick has posted some content about work, neurodiversity and philosophy that has had millions of views. It was his take on why middle aged men wanted to return to the office that I put in the newsletter last week and made up the reason why we chatted but there’s so much more to this - not least him talking about adaptive behaviours and masking for people on the spectrum. Great listen. If you don’t use TikTok then I’ve given a selection of his best posts below: Nick on LinkedInShackleton ConsultingNick on TikTok - this is the good stuff Best posts to check out:Middle aged men don't get on with their wivesThe original on middle aged menWhat I miss about corporateMore of what he misses about corporate (on company values)Adaptive processes for neutrodivergent peoplePedestrian bellChase difference Get the newsletter here Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 26 September 2025

If we shifted our focus from the individual to the collective how different would our results at work be? I'm joined by Colin Fisher who explains that great teams are the most important contributors to great outcomes at work. The problem is that for many of our teams they are equal to less than the sum of the parts. Groups get bigger and bigger and stop being effective. Managers avoid having discussions about trimming teams down - and it leads to failure. Colin's new book The Collective Edge breaks down the ingredients of forming good teams. Colin Fisher is a professor at UCL School of Management Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 21 September 2025

It’s been a while since I revisited a conversation on offices and how our physical workspaces are evolving. Disruption has made the property business hugely raise their games. With 20-25% of Gen Z workers self reporting having issues of neurodivergency the office is trying to prove that it's still the centre of great workplace cultures. I chatted to Susan Carruth, a partner a 3XN, an architecture firm who is pioneering thinking about the needs of occupants and Mike Wiseman Head of Campuses at British land. For more details on the 2FA project mentioned and British Land's campuses. As discussed: 12% of US mortgage backed office deals are 'delinquent' right now Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 12 September 2025

Last month the FInancial Times published an article by John Burn Murdoch in the form of an analysis of personality data, specifically looking at what are styled the Big Five personality traits: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Typically these five factors are regarded as a statistically reliable way to measure personality. Unlike approaches like Myers Briggs these factors prove consistent over time and psychologists took a view that much of the variance of human personality can be understood using these factors. Interestingly these factors also prove predictive for other outcomes. Conscientiousness for example predicts academic success and job performance, neuroticism can predict mental health issues. To discuss it I'm joined by Nick McClelland, Nick is the CEO of Byrne Dean The original article by John Burn Murdoch (archive version)Newsletter discussion on the dataDiscussion between John Burn Murdoch and Derek ThompsonChristopher Ferguson questions the effect sizeJay Van Bavel talks about the effect size of the dataAlex Haslam points out the questions that lead to the conscientiousness scores Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 5 September 2025

Sign up for the newsletter A couple of years ago, I was surrounded with so many happy Spurs fans that I bought into the euphoric buzz they were giving off.Ange Postecoglou had brought the smile back to Tottenham supporters. I chatted to Charlie Eccleshare from The Athletic about the cultural reinvention that the Australian manager that enacted. Reader, the Big Ange story didn't end well as a result a lot of fans of other clubs regularly message me asking about the episode, or my opinion of Postecoglou's demise. It was while I was joking about this one time that today's guest got in touch. Dan Jackson is a former Aussie Rules footballer who now acts as General Manager at Adelaide Football Club. He got in touch suggesting that I might be unfair backtracking on the support of Ange, challenging me to reflect on 'how the world's premier football competition has such little respect for building genuine high-performance culture?' He said 'I'm sure you'd agree it takes time and a lot of focused effort to change and build a good culture - two things that don't appear to be given any focus in most EPL teams'. I loved the pushback and immediately got in touch to have a conversation with him. We talk both about Postecoglou (and whether we did him dirty) but also about how he is part of a team that tries to build strong long-term culture in his team. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 11 August 2025

I’m often asked asked which company cultures I admire, especially as I tend to be critical of the culture inside tech firms. It’s easy to have good vibes in small firms but organisations who manage to deliver good culture at scale are the ones I’m most interested in. I often call out Nando’s or Octopus Energy. I was delighted to get the chance to talk to the CEO of Octopus Energy Group, Greg Jackson. I’ve often reflected that the best cultures seem to be codified and made explicit, but Octopus’s culture isn’t really defined by formal values, Jackson doesn’t pin it down to three or four words. Instead the culture has a vivid feeling but is loosely articulated, a tangible mix of trust, autonomy and a shared mission.Cultures are often defined by what they’re against as much as what they are for. Many companies give a laundry list of desirable attributes they strive for. There’s an organisation at the end of my street that has ‘excellence’ and ‘respect’ on its windows, but would any business claim to be built on mediocrity or disrespect? Aren’t they just given? Sometimes these things are called the Pillars of Character. Yes, we have integrity here, but how does that help you work here? For businesses these pillars are useless for creating differentiation. Jackson’s approach at Octopus stands apart from that, he takes issue with common norms elsewhere. Researching for the conversation I listened to one interview where Jackson talked about the absence of back-to-back meetings in his day. He said:First of one thing I do that I think is unusual is I don't pack my day with meetings. I'm religious about having lots of time outside meetings because in the one hour that someone wants to have a meeting, I can make 10 phone calls or I could drop by the desks of half a dozen team members and I can be available for people to deal with what's going on that day. So one thing for me is your time is far too precious to let it get soaked up on other people's meeting requests. It's quite funny when I got a new PA, she came from a very large software company and I said, ‘I've got a lot of meetings tomorrow’. And she said, well, where I used to work, my job was to pack from 8 AM to 5 PM every day, hour by hour by hour. And I was like, Whoa, how does that person get any thinking time? How does it get any, any time to reset? And how does it get to do anything proactive that changes the world?After the conversation, which was recorded live on stage near Guildford, someone came up to me. ‘My son works at Octopus,’ he said. Here we go, I thought. ‘Every single word he said up there is true. He says he wishes he’d joined there years ago’. Links:Greg on High Performance podcastTranscriptMake Work Better newsletter Take a listen, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 30 July 2025

This is the second episode this month about AI and the implications for our jobs. Two weeks ago I went along to a huge event run by Workday down in North Greenwich. Workday, their partners and their customers took to the stage to talk about applications of AI that are coming to their platform. As part of the event I was able to run a discussion with a couple of voices from the company who are helping businesses navigate the challenges that AI presents to us.  Sign up for the newsletterMore about Workday Elevate I was joined by Jerry Ting. Jerry is the founder of Evisort and now teaches at Harvard Law School and is a senior leader at Workday. And the other contributor was Angelique de Vries Schipperijn, she's the EMEA president for Workday. The conversation was fascinating for me in a few ways, firstly we can be so daunted about what AI represents in our jobs and this seemed simple and easy to understand, but secondly because as I mentioned last week the conversations I got from the audience suggested that there’s a lot of businesses who have barely started their own journeys. Look, here’s the challenge of the moment, I think the conversation at the event described a future that we have the agency to participate in. It seems real and like something we can connect with, but also everyone who came up to me afterwards anxiously told me that their organisations are doing nothing at all. That’s why I got so much value from this conversation. I think inverted commas “doing AI” feels scary and huge whereas incorporating it into some of the things we’re already going feels possible and easily achievable.   I need to declare that this is a promoted episode in the sense that Workday is a client that I was working with at this event and have worked with before, but critically it was a conversation that I’m delighted to be sharing here.  I want to give a shout out to Hollie Benneyworth at Workday who has worked so hard to make this happen. You can find a full transcript for this on the website. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 6 June 2025

Sign up to the newsletter First of two episodes going deep on how AI is going to impact work - and therefore workplace culture and dynamics.This week is with Alexia Cambon from Microsoft. Alexia is Head of Research on Copilot & Future of Work. Last month her team released the Work Trend Index Annual Report. It’s one of the most important pieces of insight into how our jobs will change. Their previous reports have been interesting going deep into how people are experimenting with AI but this year’s is different. It articulates a version of work that most of us aren’t yet ready for. P&G research: Having an AI assistant doubles a worker’s output, proving as effective as having a real teammateAlexia mentioned that the research was performed by Karim R. Lakhani. The paper itself.Conor GrennanJaime TeevanMore about marathoner Katherine Switzer Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 26 May 2025

"There's this concept called inbox zero, where everyone tries to get to their inbox down to zero. But I would suggest that a more noble pursuit is that of calendar zero". I chatted to Howard Lerman this week. I was blown away by this discussion - it captured exactly what is wrong about current work, and why back-to-back meetings are going to lead to many organisations missing the opportunity of this vital moment. This is an essential listen - about where work is imminently going and how Howard's philosophy is building his fascinating new product Roam to serve the company of the future. Explore Roam, follow Howard. Read all about the way that work is about to change in the newsletter The AI 2027 predictions are the wake up call we didn't know we needed Microsoft explains why we need to ready ourselves for the reinvention of work Konstantine Buhler on 'always on' Full transcript on the website Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 28 April 2025

Zach Mercurio talks about mattering Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 13 April 2025

The next two podcasts I see as a piece with each other, today is about meaning the next one is about mattering. Collectively I feel they present serious substance about the foundations of good culture. Read Meaningful Work Read the latest newsletter There’s some overlap - the authors today,Tamara Myles and Wes Adams, have done research with next week’s guest Zach Mercurio. One of today’s guests Tamara Myles said one of the most powerful questions you can ask to measure engagement at work is to ask ‘does your manager care about what is going on in your life?’Today is about meaning, and I feel it gets to grips with questions of purpose. Why sometimes purpose doesn’t seem to create an impact in an organisation - and other times really makes it hum.The authors describe meaningful work as work that provides community, helps us contribute to something that matters, and challenges us to learn and grow.For full show notes go to the website. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 6 April 2025

Sign up for the newsletter Someone posted on LinkedIn that the podcast had died. Or I had died. But he is risen! I'm back with a great discussion, powerful in its simplicity. Psychologists Dr. Patricia Grabarek and Dr. Katina Sawyer have created a guidebook for anyone who wants to make things better for their teams. In it they suggest that managers need to set the tone for our colleagues. Yes, of course I hear you say but it's so often something that the hectic buzz of work distracts us from. As workplace wellness is in decline they suggest that it's time for managers to step up and be the creators of great culture, even if that might be pushing against the tide. Leading for Wellness is out now. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 21 March 2025

Join 100,000 other workplace culture enthusiasts by signing up for the Make Work Better newsletter Interested in how skills could enhance your business? Check out the short film I made with the Department for Education. Get in touch with Bruce What do your typos say about you? What's the right medium to build connection with your colleagues? How did Shopify and Netflix reinvent their communication? How can any of us navigate a bulging calendar and overloaded inbox? Professor Andrew Brodsky gives us a field guide to communications and tells how we should be rethinking how we message. Andrew's new book Ping is out in February. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 23 January 2025

Interested in how skills could enhance your business? Check out the short film I made with the Department for Education. Sign up for the newsletter Today's episode is an Avengers Assembled of podcasts about work. I join host Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis from the Squiggly Careers podcast, as well as Isabel Berwick from the FT's Working It and Jimmy McCloughlin from Jimmy's Jobs. We talk AI, asking payrises, RTO and much more. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 8 January 2025

Michael Morris's book Tribal covers the codes that bond humans together. It has been shortlisted for the Financial Times Business Book of the Year award 2024. He explains that humans are inspired by peer codes, human codes and ancestor codes when it comes to their behaviour - and he gives plenty of insight of how we could build more tightly bonded groups in our own teams. Make Work Better: Resisting the Enshittification of Work in 2024 Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 6 December 2024

Everywhere we look we see someone who is outraged - and plenty of that anger makes its way to the workplace. The last time President Trump was in power it led to employees becoming more active - who knows if the same will happen in 2025. Karthik Ramanna talks us through the way to deal with outrage - and the actions that any leader can take to make the workplace a better place. His new book is out now. More about the Edelman Trust index Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 26 November 2024

Everywhere we look we see someone who is outraged - and plenty of that anger makes its way to the workplace. The last time President Trump was in power it led to employees becoming more active - who knows if the same will happen in 2025. Karthik Ramanna talks us through the way to deal with outrage - and the actions that any leader can take to make the workplace a better place. His new book is out now. More about the Edelman Trust index Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 26 November 2024

Sign up for the newsletter Tiffany Gaskell outlines coaching as a route to transformational leadership Tiffany Gaskell is the co-author of Coaching for Performance, the top-selling guide to coaching first published by Sir John Whitmore the inventor of the discipline. It's curious to consider that there was a founder of coaching, and Tiffany takes me through the history of the practice, how it took hold and where it is today. There's a key consideration about the modern manager given to us by the Gallup Global Workplace Report, 80% of those who are engaged with their jobs say they've received direct feedback from their manager in the last week. This is a powerful insight but also poses a huge challenge - how can any of us find the time to observe and then feedback to every worker in our team. Tiffany explains that this is where a culture of coaching comes in, transferring the burden of observation from the manager to facilitating a socratic questioning approach. You can follow Tiffany on LinkedIn and the book is out now. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 14 November 2024

Subscribe to the free Make Work Better newsletter Brigid Schulte is a journalist and writer who brings a reporter's ear for stories to her exploration of modern work.Over the course of a decade Schulte has talked to people about the impact their jobs has on their lives - and has explored any hope that we might be able to make this better. Her new book, Over Work and paints a hopeful image of how we might fix the toxic elements of our jobs.One of the examples is about Intel, who in 2013 experimented with a new initiative styled Freelance Nation to bring some of the upsides of gig work to a professional knowledge work environment. It proved hugely successful and yet they decided to scrap it. Buy Over Work Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 5 November 2024

Colin Ellis is a consultant and author who spends his time working with organisations to improve their culture. He's turned his attention to why some companies go bad in a new book Detox Your Culture. He talked me through what has gone wrong at the likes of ITV's This Morning, the CBI, The Ellen Show and Boeing. Sign up for the newsletter Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 10 October 2024

Sign up for the newsletter How can any of us build a more effective team? Owen Eastwood is one of the world’s most in demand performance coaches, with a focus on team culture & leading. Owen has worked with some of the most successful sporting sides in the world. He also works with corporate teams wrestling with similar themes.Last year I talked to Owen about his work on belonging and identity but I wanted to pick his brains on the biggest challenge for modern leaders - how to build a stronger team. Buy BelongingFollow Owen on LinkedIn Owen talks me through his step-by-step approach to building better teams - starting with the toughest starter question that most teams never tackle. takeawaysDetermine whether a team is necessary for the desired outcomeClearly define roles and expectations within the teamRecruit talented individuals who can contribute to the team's successEstablish effective communication channels within the teamConsider the challenges of being part of multiple teams in the corporate world Individuals have a choice in shaping the team's identity and should be selfless and committed to the team's purpose and desired outcome.A high-performing team is one where individuals consistently perform at their best and have a culture of excellence.The environment plays a crucial role in enabling or disabling team success, and teams should create an environment that fosters innovation and energizes individuals.Teams should regularly reflect on their environment and identify and eliminate factors that hinder performance. For a full transcript see the website. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 25 September 2024

Sign up for the Make Work Better newsletter How important is a happy workforce? According to Mark Price, the former boss of Waitrose, it's the main thing that leaders should be thinking about. Make your workforce happy and the profits will follow. Mark's new book is Happy Economics. To prove it Mark cites his experience running the supermarket chain, when with a goal of workers happiness he made it the fastest-growing, most profitable supermarket in the UK. The original purpose of the John Lewis Partnership, as laid out by the very same John Lewis , was to uphold the happiness of the people who worked inside the organisation. Mark's new book is Happiness Economics. Mark's book makes the assertion that the quickest way to business success is to focus on creating happy employees. This is genuinely a brilliant listen - and one that you might benefit from reading the transcript of - you can get the transcript here. While I got real value from the book, I actually found the conversation even more enlightening. It challenged some things I believed and I found myself reflecting on it for the day afterwards. I think there’s a clarity in the conversation that the book lacks at times - I think it’s the challenge of books to be honest. We’re so used to ideas being visually backed up that when we’re paging through 200 pages of words the emphasis is often lost. Maybe they work best together. Mark has a clear 6 stage framework for making a happy, productive workforce laid out in his compelling new book Happiness Economics. Reward and recognitionInformation sharingEmpowermentWellbeingA sense of pride& Job satisfaction Mark's company is WorkL. You can take their surveys and see their data on that link. Key takeaways The happiness of employees is crucial for driving productivity and increasing profitsManagers play a vital role in creating a positive work environment and should focus on training, recognition, and coachingLeadership should involve setting a clear plan, making employees feel valued and important, and maintaining optimism about the future.Well-being initiatives should go beyond tokenistic measures and address underlying issues in the work culture. Employee happiness is crucial for workplace culture and productivity.The six key drivers of happiness at work are reward and recognition, empowerment, sense of pride, line management, career development, and job satisfaction.Implementing these drivers effectively can lead to improved well-being, productivity, and business performance.Building a positive culture is essential, and companies should focus on measuring and improving employee happiness. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 11 September 2024

This episode is part of the Presence project: Presence: Fixing culture starts with your calendar, not your office You might think an episode about improv comedy might be a stretch for a podcast about making work better. But in fact as Kelly Leonard explains today the skills of improv comedy are the most important ones that will determine our success at work.  Kelly helps to run Second City, the world's famous famous improv comedy club - he believes that improv skills can teach us about what we need in work going forwards. ** TRIGGER WARNING ** includes one brief mention of poetry Check our Kelly's book Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 16 May 2024

This episode is part of the Presence project: Presence: Fixing culture starts with your calendar, not your office In the 2000s a book called Fish! A remarkable way to boost morale and improve results became a bestseller. A small book, it was often used by companies accompanying a video of the same name. Together the two told a story of the culture of the fish market in Seattle, a noisy, bombastic place, but a place that was filled with joy. I first encountered Fish when a firm came to pitch to me when I was working in publishing. They told me that their culture was Fish. There are a few things that stood out from it. The idea of intentionally designing culture isn’t new but this seemed to be explicitly linking culture, emotion and mood. There were 4 principles of FishPlaybe theremake their daychoose your attitude Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 16 May 2024

This episode is part of the Presence project: Presence: Fixing culture starts with your calendar, not your office This is the second episode about rituals - the first one is next to it in the podcast feed, it's an interview with Kursat Ozenc about how rituals can be used to create culture. This episode goes into real life examples. Claudia Wallace talks about Crisp Thursday (Connection)Andy Puleston talks about Pizza Meetings (Connection) and Leaving Speeches (Change)Dan Pink talks about Friday Night Experiments (Creativity)Biz Stone talks about Hack Week at Twitter (Creativity)Dr Heidi Edmondson talks about Ten at Ten (Performance) Heidi has a wonderful new book out - Darkness in the City of Light You can also hear the original episodes that each of these extracts came from by click the links above. I have to say that those whole episodes are worth revising. For example, Andy Puleston talks about how effective the culture was at Radio 1 when it was a series of affiliated tribes and he articulates the role that buildings play in shaping cultures. Each episode teaches something special.  Andy Puleston is now Director of People & Culture at Circulor, an award winning technology business. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 10 May 2024

This episode is part of the Presence project: Presence: Fixing culture starts with your calendar, not your office Kursat Ozenc is a product designer who he teaches at Stanford university, He teaches on the subject that we can all learn from which is the idea that culture can be designed. The specific tool he uses to design culture is the creation of workplace rituals.  Kursat's Substack newsletter Kursat's first book is here and the second, on virtual meetings is here. The reading list for Kursat's course is here Kursat’s book includes the suggestions that: ‘The rituals in our life show what we care about’. Critically then creating rituals demonstrate what our culture values. Kursat gives five use cases for rituals: For changeCreativityPerformanceConflictCommunity If you like this episode you'll also like the episode that accompanies it - which goes into depth about specific rituals that companies have used. Listen to that episode here. A full transcript of the episode is at the website. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 10 May 2024

Flow is the state of being in which people become so immersed in the joy of their work or activity “that nothing else seems to matter.”Presence is to be in a flow state of connection with others. Here’s the last discussion about the Happiness TrackSign up for the newsletterEmma’s new book SovereignHBR: The Best Leaders Have a Contagious Positive EnergyHBR: Proof That Positive Work Cultures Are More Productive Today is the first of series of podcasts about an idea that needs more consideration in our workplaces. The idea of presence. Emma Seppala is a psychologist and lecturer at the Yale School of Management – she also runs the Women’s Leadership program there. I first spoke to Emma about 6 years ago when I came across her book the Happiness Track. The hypothesis of that book was in many ways the sweet spot of this podcast: the notion that if you make workers happy then they do their better work. Emma had a new book out this week called Sovereign and it felt like a great reason to have a new conversation. The conversation leads into the next block of podcasts which are all about the idea of presence. Over the last 4 years we’ve seen discourse from CEOs about wanting workers back in the office but in many ways they’re putting things the wrong way wrong. A lot of us find ourselves making our way into work and sitting on video calls all day. Or having headphones on because its so noisy. We got home at the end of the day thinking ‘what was the point of that’.  When bosses say they want us to be present in the office, what they actually describe is something different. They talk us about us interacting, having ideas, watercooler moments. Bosses say they want us to be present in the office, but what they really want is presence, for us to be in each others company.For me presence is related to flow Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 24 April 2024

To receive the newsletter and the forthcoming Presence project sign-up here Today’s top episode goes to the heart of an issue that a lot of people raise with me. They say ‘where do you start when changing a culture’. To some extent it’s what the episode about the hospital trust in Barking was about, going in and changing the culture of a huge organisation. I saw one of today’s guests Darren Ashby speak at an event - talking through the specifics of how his company Business Four Zero tried to change the culture of Tesco. Business Four Zero are one of a group of organisations who work with leaders to change company culture. I know there’s a few of these firms. I attended a dazzling event by one firm called Scarlett Abbot in this field about a month ago.  Darren is joined by Atif Sheikh as they talk through the specifics of what they did with firms like Electronic Arts, Aviva and Tesco. They’ve turned some of their work into a book which you can buy here. Some of the things that stood out for me: What’s the number one thing you look for in a high performing culture? How internal are they? How much time are they spending on themselves vs the outside world?Only 28% of workers say they are connected to purposeCulture is what are you committed to as group - emotional commitment of what you want to createValues - before you define your values know that there are 6 core values shared amongst everyone (sometimes called the 6 Pillars of Character - Trust, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship). These should not be your differentiator. These are universal basic expectations. You need to define something differentiatingLeaders' role is to bring energy: Satya Nadella told Microsoft’s execs: ‘find the rose petals in the field of sh*t’So how do you elevate a culture? They introduce 2 or 3 critical behaviours that elevate a culture Might be ‘be kinder’ And they build a process of how you might enact those behaviours For example Intercontinental Hotel GroupHad switched from being a hotel owner to a franchise businessCEO needed to remove silosWhat did they need? Too many people in the business didn’t understand how they made money - it made spending decisions hard. So they focussed on ‘think return’Additionally it had become complacent, so they decided to ‘move fast’Finally they agreed to ‘talk straight’ with each other Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 16 April 2024

Isabel Berwick is a writer and podcaster who focusses on the evolving state of modern work. I’ve celebrated her podcast Working It many times here (here’s her specials on the 4-day week for example, or her special on meeting-free days was essential listening). I love its ability to react rapidly to the biggest news stories of the moment and to drop a snackable episode midweek.I talked to her about her opinions on modern work, going deep on the rapidly changing world of employment and where we’re going next.Isabel has a brand new book out, The Future Proof Career, which she says is for everyone who doesn’t read books about work but wants to be better at navigating it. Recent episodes you might have missedThe importance of trust at work - and why it's on the declineCharles Duhig on how to be a supercommunicator in your job (and your home life)Can improvements to culture fix a broken NHS trust?The Big Ange effect at Tottenham HotspurFrances Frei on the importance of training managers Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 9 April 2024

How should most of us think about the differences between Employee Experience and Employee Engagement. I first spoke to Emma Bridger, who is the author of a well respected book on this topic and the founder of the EX Space, a learning community focussed on raising the bar in the Employee Experience field. Then I picked the brains of Melanie Wheeler who leads People Communications at Sutherland, a firm widely recommended to me as outstanding in Employee Experience. Get in touchSign up for the newsletter Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 27 March 2024

Charles Duhigg’s bestseller The Power of Habit was the definitive guide to building and sustaining successful habits. His new book, Supercommunicators, grapples with the knotty topic of creating successful interactions with others. It’s a thorough and dazzling read that has many applications for the way we work (and how we live our lives). We talked about:the single biggest thing that builds psychological safetywhy moving conversation out of small talk into deep discussion proves more satisfying than we expecthow teams should use 'who are we' conversationshow we should think about three different types of conversation (are they looking to be helped, hugged or heard? Read an extract of Charles' book here Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 7 March 2024

Many of us have worked in environments that provided bonuses or rewards for success. Maybe they took the form of team rewards or individual incentives, or end of year profit-share schemes. But do these rewards achieve what they are designed to? Professor Uri Gneezy is the world's foremost expert on the science of incentives - and he comes with a huge warning about what such schemes actually achieve. Eat Sleep Work Repeat is today hosted by Bruce Daisley, Ellen Scott and Matthew Cook. Sign up to the newsletter Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 21 February 2024

This week's Eat Sleep Work Repeat is hosted by Bruce Daisley, Ellen C Scott and Matthew Cook.Roll up roll up as this week we talk the major trends in work and workplace culture and the big stories of the last month. Including:Wellness programs don’t work - in TikTok form, or in Matt’s post on LinkedIn Research from Oxford University looking at the (in)effectiveness of workplace wellbeing interventions at an individual levelChronoworking GymclassgateEllen on Gen Z workersFewer and fewer of us want to go out in the evenings or weekendsThe dystopian prospect of AI interviews Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 6 February 2024

I was flattered to be invited to visit the NHS trust of Barking, Havering and Redbridge last year. I spent an afternoon meeting the team and seeing the place in action. It was an inspiring question that CEO Matthew Trainer was asking: 'can we improve the results by making it a better culture?' What does that look like? And how is going for them? Matthew Trainer's CEO note at the end of 2023 Video: Inside the Trust Fill in the form: Consider my firm for a future podcast Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 29 January 2024

We often overlook the fact that trust is the basis for all good culture. I called out some of the remarkable data on this in the Work In 2024 deck. In Slack’s August 2023 survey of over 10,000 global office workers, trust was the top determinant of employees’ productivity scores. Employees who felt trusted were 2X as productive as those who didn’t. They were 30% more likely to put in extra effort at their jobs. If we don’t feel trusted we’re twice as likely to say we’re looking for a new job. But what role does trust play in the modern company? And how can we build it? Mark McGinn is a senior leader at the communications agency Edelman, he talks to me about their research into trust and how we should seek to build it. Has our organisation replaced government? Increasingly our company is the biggest thing that we believe we can have an impact on.Mark explains that Trust in our organisation is based on four things:Organisational abilityDependabilityIntegrityPurpose You'll strongly enjoy downloading Edelman's Trust Barometer and also Edelman's special Trust at Work report.  Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 17 January 2024

The role of managers are pivotal in our working lives but most managers aren't trained or prepared for the responsibilities that they are given. When we look at the research from Gallup about burnout and why people hate their jobs managers are regarded as having the biggest responsibility. Half of people who say they don't rate their manager say they are looking for jobs. So what can we do to make our relationship with our managers better? I chatted to Anthony Painter from CMI. Download the Work Trends deck Chartered Management Institute research on the Accidental Manager82% of workers entering management positions have not had any formal management and leadership trainingonly a quarter of workers (27%) describe their manager as ‘highly effective’of those workers who do not rate their manager, half (50%) plan to leave their company in the next year Full transcript on the website Follow Anthony on LinkedInFollow Anthony on Twitter Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 10 January 2024

The role of managers are pivotal in our working lives but most managers aren't trained or prepared for the responsibilities that they are given. When we look at the research from Gallup about burnout and why people hate their jobs managers are regarded as having the biggest responsibility. Half of people who say they don't rate their manager say they are looking for jobs. So what can we do to make our relationship with our managers better? I chatted to Anthony Painter from CMI. Download the Work in 2024 deck Chartered Management Institute research on the Accidental Manager82% of workers entering management positions have not had any formal management and leadership trainingonly a quarter of workers (27%) describe their manager as ‘highly effective’of those workers who do not rate their manager, half (50%) plan to leave their company in the next year Follow Anthony on LinkedInFollow Anthony on Twitter Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 10 January 2024

Eat Sleep Work Repeat is hosted by Bruce Daisley, Ellen Scott and Matthew Cook. Sign up to the newsletter We talk through the hottest topics in work: New research says that bosses think going part-time signals the end of career ambitionRadio 5 Live's Nihal Arthanayake says he feels alienated as the only brown face in a sea of white at his workplaceBill Gates advocates for the three-day week but doesn't detail who he thinks is going to pay for it Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 12 December 2023

Professor Frances Frei is the biggest brain in the field of workplace culture and I was delighted to get another opportunity to talk to her. She explains the one thing that firms should do to fix their cultures (spoiler: train their managers), why she thinks inclusion is a more important element of culture than just diversity. The previous episode with Frances FreiFrances and Anne’s podcast FixableFrances’ and Anne Morriss’ new book Move Fast and Fix ThingsSign up for the newsletter  Quotes from the book that I cited: “One way to build cynicism quickly in an organisation, something we see all the time, by the way - is to ask people for their input and then do very little with the information they give you (and take a long time to even do that)’ Robert McDonald, former CEO of P&G “Organisations are perfectly designed to get the results they get… if you don’t like the results you need to change the design”.  We're often asked for a summary of how to build a workplace where everyone feels welcome. Our short answer is to recruit great people you don't already know, give them interesting work to do, and invest in them as if your company's future depends on it. If they deserve a promotion, give it to them in a timely man-ner. Don't make them wait. Don't make them go to a competitor to get the role, title, and decision rights they already earned on your watch. And in the name of all that is right and just in the world, pay them fairly and equitably for the work they do.” Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 7 November 2023

Eat Sleep Work Repeat is hosted by Bruce Daisley, Ellen Scott and Matthew Cook. Sign up to the newsletter Is toxic culture driving your team away?If you’re someone whose job it is think about culture, or maybe you’re a boss who has tried to communicate values to your team then today’s episode is an essential listen.Donald Sull and Charlie Sull are a father and son research team who have discovered extraordinary insights into values and what they look like in the real world.Here are some articles to get you going to understand the world of the Sulls:Toxic Culture Is Driving the Great ResignationThe Toxic Culture Gap Shows Companies Are Failing WomenWhy leaders need to worry about toxic culture? Charlie and Donald have a business that focusses on this called Culture X. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 2 November 2023

Eat Sleep Work Repeat is hosted by Bruce Daisley, Ellen Scott and Matthew Cook. Sign up to the newsletter This week we go deep on the latest news about work. ITV tell staff to declare ‘friendships’Moderation staff at Facebook are suing over PTSDBBC staff given help for stress levels'We Had To Remove This Post' - brilliant novella by Hanna BervoetsOobah Butler’s Amazon show on Channel 4Reddit anti workReddit r/LateStageCapitalismMatt’s final comment about having orgasms to boost productivityBig Train sketch: 'no wanking in the office please' Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 24 October 2023

Eat Sleep Work Repeat is hosted by Bruce Daisley, Ellen C Scott and Matthew Cook. Sign up to the newsletter This week we go deep on the latest news about work. We discuss:Two thirds of bosses expect a return to the office by 2036KPMG CEO surveyDavid Foster Wallace - This is Water commencement speechShonda Rhimes “Whenever you see me somewhere succeeding in one area of my life, that almost certainly means I am failing in another area of my life”80% of remote workers claim to have two jobsEmail sign-offs are changingCoffee badging as a protest against being in the officeSnail girl jobs (and the toxicity of ‘trends’ about women working less)The gendered nature of WFH assessment (participants in research were less likely to choose to hire working mothers than childless women) Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 17 October 2023

Sign up for the newsletter What Ange Postecoglou changed at Spurs in his first 100 days: ‘The mood has been transformed’ Charlie writes about the oratory of Ange Postecoglou Last week I read something wonderful about the culture of Tottenham Hotspur, I contacted the writer and it felt like it was worth putting out quickly. We’ve got a couple of podcast recorded with Matt and Ellen so we’ll be back for a fuller episode next week.Ange Postecoglou has been the manager of Spurs, Tottenham Hotspur, for around a hundred days. In that time he’s started something of a transformation. And I can tell that because the Spurs fans I know how have started smiling. Spurs have started the season well, currently sitting 2nd in the Premier League. But more than that the players seem to be happy and are playing exciting football. There was a brilliant article by Charlie Ecceshare from The Athletic looking into the culture of the club under Ange, the article talked about how the mood of the club has been transformed. For anyone interested in the impact that cultural change can create it was a fascinating read, full of specifics and clear actions. Aren’t all of us looking to change the mood of our jobs? I got in touch with Charlie and we talked about Postecoglou, culture and the impact that culture has on results.  In the show note you’ll find links to Charlie’s articles, YouTube clips of some team talks we discuss and some other things that you might find of interest, like an interview with Gary Lineker.  Fabulous interview with Gary LinekerBig Ange motivational speech Thank you to Charlie, all of the articles mentioned are in the show notes. What a fabulous discussion. I’m grateful for him taking the time to chat to me. If you’re interested in workplace culture you can sign up to the newsletter in the show notes - and also check out previous episodes on Liverpool FC, Barcelona and the All Blacks. Further listening:Inside Klopp's early days at LiverpoolA close look at Barcelona's cultureThe culture of the All BlacksReinventing the culture of the England team with Gareth Southgate Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 5 October 2023

Eat Sleep Work Repeat is hosted by Bruce Daisley, Ellen C Scott and Matthew Cook. Ellen is away this week - we were working hard to squeeze an elite guest in. Amy Edmondson is the most renowned organisational psychologist in the world. In other words she's looked to more than anyone else for the answers of how to fix work. In this in depth discussion she talks us through what she understands by psychological safety, how any of us can create it and what she believes the best team structure is to achieve it. We're also joined by Octavius Black, founder of Mind Gym, who provide behavioural science based interventions for lots of the biggest companies in the world. Amy's new book is The Right Kind of Wrong Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/eatsleepworkrepeat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcribed - Published: 29 September 2023