The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 12: Summer 2019 | Page 19

BUSINESS ADVICE EVERYONE’S A LAWYER: A SLICE FOR A PRICE Peter Woodhouse is an employment law expert and heads up the Business Sector at national law firm Stone King - but he asks; aren’t we all lawyers? In each issue of TBE Peter reflects on a legal skill that most of us use every day. This time he reflects on his childhood. a chore although I suppose some of it was fun. But looking back at it now, it is easy to spot the techniques all of us used that I see now daily in the office and across courtrooms. It’s probably easiest to explain this by summarising the presentation styles of the four siblings involved: Oldest sibling (girl) Adopts the weight of responsibility and air of gravitas. I am the one in whom you place responsibility and I am exercising that now. I am the voice of the one you trust. Giving me what I want is really an extension of your own desires. You know it is the right thing. Next oldest (boy) I am the biggest and strongest one here. I can (and will) cause the most aggravation if I don’t get what I want. It will be better for you if you do what I say. Twin (boy) There is thesis and antithesis. I am synthesis. I am the peacemaker. Everyone values my view. Let me have what I want and I will make it right with everyone else. Me Sod it! I’m taking my ball and going home. Versions of these approaches get played out at work or in court processes all the time. If anyone reading this article ever thinks about presenting a case, they could do worse than think about which of these models, or blend of these models might work for them. Similarly, if anyone has to adjudicate on a decision, it is worth assessing what presentation style is being used, and if you are more susceptible to that presentation style. It is an age-old court advocacy technique to make oneself the ‘friend of the court’. The one that can be relied upon to give unbiased, fair and objective views to the judge - it being entirely coincidental that those unbiased, fair and objective views exactly coincide with the wishes of that advocate’s client. For those in the workplace who need to present a case, the more you can align yourself to the conscious and unconscious interests of the listener, the more successful that presentation is likely to be. And in case you’re wondering, my childhood technique rarely got me very far! e: [email protected] t: 01225 326753 twitter: @StoneKingLLP My parents were high achievers and they worked hard to ensure that each of their numerous offspring were high achievers too. They had only moderate success! But in the process of attempting to instil that high achiever instinct, we all had to participate in various activities that were, to various levels, cerebral or artistic, or simply monetarist. So, on occasion, we were invited to learn whole poems or foreign language vocabulary (for monetary reward), or write and present plays. My personal favourite was to be given the money to buy the ingredients for a cake and be permitted to offer siblings a ‘slice at a price’. One activity that got frequent airtime was presenting a case. On one occasion we had a prosecutor and defender appointed to determine ‘The Case of the Missing Cookie’. A lot of this felt like Peter Woodhouse, partner and head of business at Stone King Company culture – How important is it really? by Jo Kangurs, Keystone HR The business environment we are operating in today is evolving rapidly. Advances in technology and the expectations of the next generation means businesses are having to change the way they think about work and consider how they can conduct business for the better. Company culture is a big part of this. SME COMPANY CULTURE SMEs are at an advantage here. With less large corporate hierarchical systems, more opportunities for face-to-face communication and flexible working conditions, SMEs can respond quickly and adapt their company culture to gain a happy work-life balance for its employees from the start. On the flip-side, if SME’s ignore the needs of their employees and adopt what is known as a ‘toxic company culture’ the negative impact on overall business performance will be far more damaging. WHY IS COMPANY CULTURE IMPORTANT? In a nutshell, cultivating a great company culture is important not only for employee engagement, happiness and retention, but also for the future success of the business. You may not see it directly impacting the bottom line but if you look closely you will see how your employees’ behaviours or your company procedures affect your profitability or the quality of what you do or produce. You may have never even considered what your company culture is, but if you feel like there are some repeated performance niggles or that your overall output has plateaued, you might want to take the time to question whether the way you do things has changed or if it hasn’t, does it need to change for the business to move on? If you have any HR queries or would like some help developing your company culture, contact Jo Kangurs by emailing: [email protected] WHAT IS COMPANY CULTURE? All companies whether small or large have a culture of sorts. Culture is not just the values, nor it is the free office fruit, the annual pay rises or the table tennis table. It is not just about having excellent leadership or management styles. Company culture is all of this and more. It is how a company encourages business growth and competitive advantage by fostering healthily day to day attitudes, behaviours and work ethics. Great company cultures set the foundations for real, tangible business growth. They are always looking to remove the barriers in the workplace so people feel empowered, enabled, recognised and have access to the resources they need to do an excellent job. THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2019 19