Why do we still work five days a week, when we could be working four? And can you actually make it work in your organisation? This podcast episode is a result of the latest UK pilot study of the four day week.

In this episode Vic & Scott will be :

• Discussing what the four day week movement is
• Reviewing the latest UK study and the results
• Discussing how companies have actually made it work in their business with comments and insight from Claire Daniels, CEO of Trio Media whose four day week trial has proven to be very successful thus far in her results driven marketing agency
• Exploring and sharing opinions on recent studies and trending LinkedIn posts 

What do you think? Can the four day week become a reality by 2030? Does you company do it already and how is it going. If you'd like to get in touch with thoughts and ideas please email victoria.mcewan@oak.com

Resources:

4 Day Week Global

UK Pilot Results

Joe Ryle Guardian Podcast

Hays Study 

Unilever: Four Day week (NZ & AUS)

Microsoft Japan four day week 

Trio Media 

4 Day Week Planner 

We’re well underway with our second season of Comms In A Nutshell, a brand new look, a new episode format (episodes are now more appropriately nutshell sized) but all the same great internal communications insights you all know and love. 

For this next episode we’re joined once again by Jenni Field but this time we’re talking about all things organisational change, specifically… Why are we so resistant to change? And what can businesses do to help guide employees through organisational change successfully. In case you haven’t heard our other episode with Jenni, you can listen here to discover how you can create psychological safety in the workplace. 

75% of change initiatives fail because of resistant company culture. Human brains are naturally resistant to change because they crave stability. But change is inevitable in the workplace, and done correctly can lead to leaps and bounds of progress and growth in your business. In an ideal world, changes would happen just as we want them to, but you’re dealing with a whole host of people and emotion. This can make change tricky. Which is why we're back with Jenni Field who walks us through:

• Why our brains dislike change
• The change curve (Kubler & Ross)
• Practical tips to approach change in your organisation
• Essentials for communicating change
• Jenni’s top tips for empowering and supporting change in the workplace

Reading & Resources:

• It’s not disengagement, it’s distrust - Redefining Communications 
• The Speed of Trust: The One Thing that Changes Everything - Stephen M.R. Covey 
• Redefining Communications Website
• Redefining Communications with Jenni Field (Podcast)

Hello everyone, we’re back and better than ever with a second season of Comms In A Nutshell! A brand new look, a new episode format (episodes are now more appropriately nutshell sized) but all the same great internal communications insights you all know and love. 

To mark the first episode back we’ve got a great guest. She is an international speaker, author, podcaster and business communications strategist and having worked in communications for almost 20 years she specialises in helping teams and leaders use communication to take people, and organisations from chaos to calm. 

We're joined today by Jenni Field who we're going to be chatting to about how to create safe spaces for employees within your organisation.  Creating safe spaces is incredibly important when ensuring employees feel safe at work and feel like they can talk about their feelings and experiences.

In our latest report with our partner, If U Care Share, we found that on average 58% of respondents have suffered mental or physical stress as a result of work in the past two years and we want to explore how businesses can deal with the factors that impact mental health in the workplace from creating a safe culture to the importance of values.  

In this episode Vic, Scott & Jenny cover: 

• Getting to know Jenni Field and her experience 
• How important is the role of internal communications in creating a safe space for employees to talk/ how can they use their function to create a safe workspace?
• A culture that supports openness and feedback with help from leaders
• Do your internal comms encourage participation? 
• Do the communication methods match the needs of your employees?
• How to drive awareness and communicate the values of the organisation, what the business stands for and what do they mean?
• Jenni's 5 tips in a Nutshell on how to create a safe space for employees

Reading & Resources:

Digital Body Language - Erica Dhawen 

Communication Channel Matrix Template 

Harvard Business Review: It's time to take a fresh look at your company's values - John Coleman 

Start with Why - Simon Sinek 

Inclusion on Purpose - Ruchika Tulshyan 

Rebel Ideas: The Power of Diverse Thinking - Matthew Syed

Redefining Communications Website

Redefining Communications with Jenni Field (Podcast)

Employee Experience is crucial in the world of business, it has a huge impact on your company culture that attracts top tier talent who become employees and confirm that the culture that appealed to them is genuine. Employee experience and company culture have an overall impact on your employer brand, a concept which is becoming hot on the radar for many employers. Having a strong employer brand helps businesses to bag the best talent and establish your brands credibility.

In this episode we're joined by Dan Sodergren, Dan is a digital marketing and technology expert who studies and trains companies in how the future of marketing, work and technology will change our world. He is a TedxTalker, Keynote speaker, Ex marketing agency owner and serial tech startup co-founder. Having appeared on BBC Breakfast, BBC new channels, BBC Watchdog, the One Show, RipOffBritain and on countless radio shows, Dan's is an expert with 20 years of experience on all things tech and the future of work.

Dan is also the founder of Your Flock, a team engagement platform that helps to build relationships within teams, develop company culture and ensure hybrid working, works. In this episode Dan gives us his insight and advice on how companies can create a successful employee experience which will in turn, impact their employer brand.

References and links:
Dan Sodergren, The Future of Work: Ted X Talk - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiZJkod7h-4
Your Flock: https://yourflock.co.uk/
High Performance Podcast with Ben Francis, Founder of Gymshark:  https://www.thehighperformancepodcast.com/podcast/benfrancis

In this episode Vic & Scott are chatting to Kate Isichei, Managing Director of Where to look communications who has over 15 years of experience in the world of internal communications and who also has her own podcast ‘Engagement Express’. Kate is a lover of intranets, tech, employee apps and the subjects of leadership, strategy, collaboration and in this episode we spoke about all things future of work focusing on flexible working, hybrid work and work life balance. We covered:

• Is there a correct formula for flexible working?
• Trust in the workplace
• How to make hybrid work, work
• Encouraging employees back to the office
• The four day week 
• The key to work life balance 

Articles referenced: 
https://www.oak.com/blog/wfa-new-employee-benefit-is-it-worth-it/
https://www.oak.com/blog/diversity-and-inclusion-in-the-workplace-a-complete-guide/

Want to know the secrets to engaging internal communications, connecting your workforce and getting 99% of your workforce using your internal communications app?

Vic & Scott are chatting all things intranets with our customer Five Guys to get the scoop on the success of their employee engagement app. Vic & Scott sat down with Five Guys’ Communications Manager, Bastian Bauermeister to discuss: 

• Why Five Guys chose Oak to be their intranet partner
• The importance of internal communications as a global business 
• The secrets to keeping your intranet content consistent and engaging and keep adoption rates high
• Why employee engagement is essential to your business and how they pioneer employee engagement as a brand

From games and competitions to communications secrets and methods that you might not have heard of, this interview should spark inspiration and show you just how important it is to have an internal communications strategy.

Comms In A Nutshell is your go to place to listen to discussions with industry experts, global brands and our hosts Vic McEwan & Scott Ritchie about the most pressing topics surrounding the world of work and internal communications. 

You might have noticed Adaptive Intelligence on our website, you might have seen that we’ve transformed NatWest’s employee experience through our new Adaptive Intelligence or you might not have heard of it at all but you’re curious. What is it? How does it work? How can it help internal communicators, HR professionals and more? 

In our latest podcast episode Vic & Scott sit down with of Director of Product, Dave Ferguson who teaches us all about:

• What Adaptive Intelligence is
• What features make up Adaptive Intelligence
• What problems it solves
• The benefits of Adaptive Intelligence
• How it can help to personalise the employee experience
• What the future of adaptive intelligence looks like

Listen to the interview below, and be sure to subscribe to Comms In A Nutshell on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or your favourite podcast player for all the latest episodes and discussions.  

Comms In A Nutshell is your go to place to listen to discussions with industry experts, global brands and our hosts Vic McEwan & Scott Ritchie about the most pressing topics surrounding the world of work and internal communications. 

It’s safe to say boohoo are making the most out of their intranet. They’re using their intranet ‘boohooforyou’ to host their internal company podcast, have used the in-built feedback tools to engage with their workforce about their celebrity designed collection with Megan Fox and use their intranet as an onboarding tool to welcome new starters and instantly become part of the boohoo family. With over 350k content views on their homepage, it’s safe to say they’ve got their internal communications strategy down and their content has got their employees engaged.  

In this latest challenges by industry episode Vic & Scott chat to boohoo’s Internal communications manager, Madison Birtwistle about:

• Maddie’s Role as an IC professional and what internal communications looks like at boohoo group - boohoo group is made up of 13 major brands from Karen Millen, Pretty Little Thing, Debenhams, Nastygall and boohoo itself! 
• How boohoo are driving employee engagement for their office based, remote and frontline workers through their intranet and their relatable content
• Their favourite features of Oak and how to make the most out of your intranet
• The challenges boohoo have faced with internal communications and how the pandemic affected their internal communications strategy

Enjoy this episode and why not check out some of our other interviews with big brands, HR journalists, wellbeing experts and more!?