offi ce life The Offi ce
We all work in an offi ce of some sorts but each one of them is different. In this edition we fi nd out what goes on behind those closed doors...
Ashley Harkus, Partner at Everett Tomlin Lloyd & Pratt solicitors, Newport and Pontypool
Does your business have a dress code? We do have a dress code
as many of our lawyers are advocates and can need to go to court at short notice. We also want to look professional when we deal with our clients or opponents.
Team building – does it work and what do you do? We have regular meals out, trips to the theatre and social events where the emphasis is fi rmly on enjoying ourselves! One of our solicitors owns a double decker bus and we had an eventful day out in that recently. A lot of our staff have been with us for a long time and we have a reputation of being a good fi rm to work for so it seems to work.
Under what circumstances are staff allowed to work from home? As clients often come into the offi ce and we need to be available for them regular home working isn’t always possible. We try to be as family friendly as we can and we have a number of staff working part time or fl exible hours. Staff are encouraged to work from home in the evenings and weekends though!
If you had a magic wand and could instigate one thing to make a better working environment what would it be? (We won’t hold you to it...) Open a Greggs in Gold Tops!
18 THEbusiness QUARTER
Ami Jones, director of Aible, Workplace Health and HR Solutions
Does your business have a dress code? Yes we do. When meeting clients, potential referral
partners and networking, we always wear business casual – smart but not necessarily a suit. We do this because as a business which provides a professional service to other businesses it is important for us to set a high standard. However when we are working in the offi ce, casual wear is common place!
Team building – does it work and what do you do? Team building events are defi nitely valuable as long as they are done properly. You need to make sure you do something which involves
all members of the team and gives you the opportunity to get to know each other better. Our events involve outdoor pursuits and pampering sessions!
Under what circumstances are staff allowed to work from home? As our business involves a lot of work that is non-client facing we are able to provide our employees with the fl exibility to work from home reasonably often. CIear guidelines need to be set, but there also needs to be trust from both the employee and the employer. Also, avoiding unnecessary travel is one of our key objectives and is integral to our environmental policy and work-life blend.
If you had a magic wand and could instigate one thing to make a better working environment what would it be? A full-time marketing manager to take care of all our marketing needs!
Cennydd Thomas, corporate fi nance manager at UHY Peacheys
Does your business have a dress code? Why? Our dress code is
formal, which usually means a suit and tie for the men and suits or smart dress for the women. Our clients range from large corporates to taxi drivers and therefore the formality would vary accordingly. We are frequently in London for meetings and have noticed that very few people there wear a tie. Having a one size fi ts all policy wouldn’t work for us and the dress code is fl exible to fi t in with our clients’ expectations.
Team building – does it work and what do you do? We hold a team away day once a year, which is usually held at a hotel or similar venue and is attended by our Newport, Bristol and Abergavenny offi ces. The day provides an opportunity for the partners to provide a review of historic KPI’s and major developments within the business as
well as providing team-based exercises on work-related topics. It also provides an arena for staff to provide feedback and comments. We also carry out more informal activities like a team quiz, which gives people the chance to relax and can help develop closer links with staff from other offi ces. We fi nd that such events are successful at keeping everyone in the loop, as well as having a positive impact on morale.
Under what circumstances are staff allowed to work from home? We don’t tend to fi nd that working from home fi ts in with our client needs. Clients occasionally drop into the offi ce with a query or an individual team member may have a client query that needs immediate internal response so it tends to work better if we are in the offi ce. We are a service industry so need to be on hand to give excellent client service at all times.
If you had a magic wand and could instigate one thing to make a better working environment what would it be? (We won’t hold you to it...) Typical accountant answer: that everyone would keep their timesheets up to date!
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