PRIORITISING HAPPINESS
The testing business environment should see managers doubling-down on
supporting their sta – especially females or those from minority groups
BY REBECCA BUTTERFIELD, PLANT RELIABILITY AND PROVISIONING ENGINEER, AIR PRODUCTS
In these challenging and unpredictable times, it’s
never been more important for businesses to
support their employees. With the continuing
concerns around COVID-19, the UK going into
recession and uncertainty around job security,
many people are more anxious and overwhelmed
than usual – so it’s essential that employers look
after their staff to give them the support they
need, both personally and to help the business to
continue as usual.
According to the latest research from The
Institute of Leadership & Management (https://
bit.ly/3mADRYL), three-quarters of business
leaders and managers intend to remain with their
current employer, but a fi fth are aiming to move
to another organisation. So, what is the key to
retaining those workers?
I believe there are two key solutions –
listening and being fl exible. Let me explain.
Employment is a relationship between the
employee and employer, not just a process of
paying someone in return for a service. It’s
important for managers to listen to their staff ,
in order to have a better understanding about
how they’re feeling, what they might need to do
their job better or help support their work-life
any time but especially during
these testing times.
It’s something I’m
particularly passionate about,
which is why I’m leading a
female-focused group at Air
Products. The aim of the
European Women’s Success
Network is to help more women
stay in the workplace; we
want to make the employment
experience as good as possible
and provide a support network
throughout the company to
help our staff at all stages of
their career.
Through the group, we
host several events, webinars
and discussion sessions
during the year, which
aim to be less focused on
technical development and
project specifi cs, and more
on the personal working
experiences of the presenters,
within a judgement free and
comfortable environment
to encourage open dialogue.
These career presentations
from colleagues across Air
Products focus on outlining
their career paths, exploring
personal experiences that are
specifi c to being a woman in
business and discussing their
key pieces of advice.
The group also creates
networking opportunities for
the team to meet people from
other departments, giving them
the chance to learn more about
other careers and roles, how
their peers have progressed and
also provide the opportunity to
MANAGEMENT OCTOBER 2020
ask job related questions that
are focused on keeping women
in the workplace. It’s not just
for women, however, as men
are welcome to attend, so they
can listen and engage with their
female colleagues and better
understand the challenges their
counterparts face.
The themes cover a number
of areas, such as fl exible
working, travelling for work,
leadership, working on site and
in the offi ce, work-life balance
and caring responsibilities (for
children or other dependents,
such as elderly relatives).
The group enables the
members to openly discuss
these topics, which can then
be raised anonymously with
representatives from Human
Resources to share with the
relevant teams, when issues are
raised that need feedback or
action is required.
For example, we’ve made
more women aware of the
opportunities for working from
home, and also the support
given to those who have taken
career breaks and then have
been re-introduced back into
the workplace. Our business is
keen to keep its talented staff ,
which is why we want to show
the support and fl exibility they
can access through a number
of diff erent channels, in order
to help support their careers
and work-life balance. It’s been
fantastic to see so many women
take part in the group and
then progress higher up in the
"Employment is a relationship,
not just a process of paying
someone in return for a service"
balance. Ultimately, a happy employee is a more
productive employee, which is crucial at
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