Comms from the Shed: interviewing diverse voices on our present and the future.: Recent Episodes
Sam Bleazard
Following a 20-year career in communications, like so many friends, peers and ex-colleagues I found myself working from home 100% of the time. In this series I hear from a range of interesting and diverse voices about their response to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, their health and wellbeing, creativity in adverse times, and our shared hopes for the future.
Training?
“It’s started off quite informally, I left school in Taunton in Somerset not really knowing what to do…I even signed up for the Army but I missed an intake - there was a 6 month wait.
My Dad was a Dairy Farmer, my Mum was a Nurse and a really good cook, and I had grown up on a farm with 3 brothers. I was used to an outdoorsy life, so perhaps I thought time in the army would be an adventure. I was also dyslexic, so in part, am sure this influenced my thinking in some way.
Favourite dishes from Mum?
She makes a good pasta bake! Also cooks a delicious ham in cider with a glaze, served with dauphinois potatoes and a parsley sauce. At Xmas it was a Boxing Day thing with my 3 brothers in tow! Every time I’m back it’s like the first time she’s cooked…she asks for my advice, but also has opinions on food, she takes complete credit for all of my culinary success! (Smile) my main culinary influence…
College days…
I enrolled in college and whilst I was there doing business studies I took a part time job washing pots and pans in a converted cow shed called Pod Shavers. A pod shaver? It’s someone who makes cricket bats. The head chef there got me involved in plating dishes, he was also a College lecturer…so he got me doing more in the kitchen. I enjoyed the environment and working weekends being part of the buzzy atmosphere.
Next steps?
I decided I wanted to be a chef, enrolled in the local College in Somerset, who were training Chefs to work in schools and hospitals, but I wanted to be in restaurants. So at 18 years old I got an apprenticeship at the Castle Hotel in Taunton which had a Michelin Star at the time and it’s where Gary Rhodes and Phil Vickery made their names, it’s always been known for championing British produce and British chefs.
I worked for a Chef called Richard Guest who had worked in London under Jean Christophe Novelli. It didn’t phase me because I didn’t mind working hard or long hours. It was a bit of an old school kitchen, there was a standard and you had to produce to that standard.
I went on to work in a restaurant called Givey Park down in Devon with Michael Caines, it had two Michelin stars…the style of food was classically French. He’d trained with Gordon Ramsey when he was young, it was amazing training, as it taught me discipline. I suppose just like being in the army…it was intense, there were 18 hour days, and you lived onsite.
Being dyslexic at school made me feel that I couldn’t carry on in further education…but I knew I needed to work with great Chefs. While I was at The Castle I did a Chef swap, I went to Normandie in France. It was in the middle of nowhere, I was 20,years old and I didn’t speak any French. I was there for about 6 months. It was a smaller restaurant and it made me realise that I didn’t want my own restaurant. The chefs were the first ones in and the last ones out…I realised that it wasn’t the life for me longer term.
I had a plan in my head, but it went out of the window…I was a bit burned out when I came back from France. There was no structure to my career, I was ducking and weaving at the time. I find that in Hospitality you’re promoted because you can cook…but you might then be a Head Chef responsible for 12 other chefs, put in charge of a budget, responsible for HR, but no one’s ever taught you any of that. Head Chefs react how they’ve been taught. But at Fortnum’s now there is lots of management training, which is great.
Mentor?
Confidence had been knocked out of me a bit early on in my career. My Mum had been a midwife in Africa, and I’d always wanted to go and visit. There was a book called the 50 best restaurants in the world, this was before Instagram, so I ended up sending them a letter asking if I could do work experience (unpaid work) in a restaurant in Cape Town. This allowed me to take in Zambia, Botswana and Namibia as a month long overland trip first (along the way). At the time 8 of the top ten best restaurants in Africa existed along this one strip in Franschhoek Valley, which is a wine region in SA.
It was exciting because at the time SA Chefs could come to the UK and get a visa to work in great restaurants. There were great restaurants there too. In SA the Chefs had worked in lots of different places, and liked mashing up lots of different ideas as opposed to sticking to more formal training that we had been taught. The quality of the produce on their doorstep was tremendously exciting.
I stayed for a year and met my wife Sarah in a youth hostel there, who was from Bromley in Kent! She was travelling the garden route, as I was, so we ended up travelling together. We ended up going to Kenya and also going up Mount Kilimanjaro together. Later I came back to the UK…but I never wanted to work in London, due to the reputation for the intensity those restaurants had. I did a year as Chef de Partie at Scott’s in Mayfair, which had 40 Chefs in the kitchen. Scott’s was good but I wanted progression. A Chef de Partie is the backbone of the kitchen…doing all of the cooking. In London I had a bit more of a social life, hours were more reasonable as it was a big crew.
Mentor?
I was looking for a job after I left Scott’s and took some agency work to go to Monaco and work for Maclaren formula one. A French chef knew I was looking for a job, and he suggested the French Embassy in London. I thought it would be great to look inside the kitchen, I did a trial and got on well with the Chef there. It was a small team of 3-4. Head Chef Gil had been there for 20 years…everything was French and I was the first British Chef they’d employed! We’d watch the French news in the staff restaurant…and I had to prove that I could hold my own. They made fresh baguettes there every morning and I had to make them every day until I got it right. Gil was a great mentor and when I left there I went to work for a chef called Mark Hicks. He was a great mentor to me and an incredibly well connected guy. Any events he would do, I would have to cook for…and he would take all the glory! Every meal I did I was cooking for Mark really. I knew what he wanted and started thinking like him: we ended up having a great relationship and great friendship.
Style of cooking / known for?
Only when I came to 45 Jermyn St. when I started doing my own stuff, did my own cooking style emerge. I was quite happy working for Mark, did great stuff in Malibu and at events all over the world, but unfortunately he went into liquidation due to Covid. When I first came to 45 I was still working to a brief and cooking in that style…it had to be on a white plate, because Mark served on white plates etc. Simon Thompson gave me confidence and brought me out of my shell. We did tastings together and the whole experience built my confidence and signature style.
Signature dishes?
The Beef Wellington is great and the theatre is brilliant. I like the truffle custard that I’m putting on it at the moment. A warm set custard with wild mushroom soldiers and a Parmesan Tuiles, with shaved white truffle. 45 is formal but not too formal, there are no table cloths…so you can dip in, but it still has a touch of class based on the menu and cuisine. The journey we’re on now is one that I really enjoy. Looking at the supply chain, and always considering regenerative farming. My brother is a farmer too. Using small producers in the UK, Mark believed in that and so do Fortnum’s.
Fortnum’s crew along the way? (Flesh out)
When I worked for Mark we did Boardroom events here. I knew Chef Director Sydney, and Julien Lanclume as well. Simon had worked at Caprice Holdings previously so we had crossed paths.
I never wanted to end up in a pub or a small neighbourhood restaurant - there’s nothing wrong with that, but I’ve always been looking for somewhere that offered me growth. Which Fortnum’s have.
Best days at Fortnum’s? (flesh out)
Moving out of Marks shadow has been good. Mark Hicks, Rick Stein Jose Pizarro - 45 is now on of their favourite restaurants…and they are people I’ve greatly admired.
Is it about Bringing talent through?
Yes it is. It’s about growing talent inside Fortnum’s. We have a Chef training programme. Here you have everything under one roof, it’s about freeing up their time to learn. I have a pastry chef in 45 who can go and learn how to make afternoon teas which is another skill. Or go and create a dinner event on our new 3rd floor. There’s no need for them to go elsewhere.
How do you find new talent?
Getting the message out on social media is important, it’s a tool we’ve got to get better using. Show that we’re accessible and giving people a chance. I’ve had CVs and been advised that this person wasn’t for me. I’m a believer in getting them in, because it’s about attitude…and investing in people. When it works out it’s brilliant. I have a young guy called Alfie who is a Commis Chef. He has special needs, he loves cooking and all he ever wanted to be is a Chef. Now he’s running the Larder section. So it can be done, but we need to adapt.
I have a few people who can’t read or write, Alfie records everything in his phone, so technology can play its part within reason. There’s also Baker, who’s been with us for 6 years. He came to us from Sierra Leone, he fled the civil war there, spent six years in a camp in Guinea (separated from his family). He is a success story of Fortnum’s even though he can’t read or write. He is the energy in the kitchen, and we need that. He keeps us going when we get tired.….we are also audited, but we have to embrace technology when developing chefs as well…using audio recordings as a tool too. But also recording training sessions eg how to de-bone a lamb etc.
Jaz who is the Head Chef at 45 - we’ve built something together in partnership which is great. I think I probably give people a bit more of a chance due to my dyslexia, I think the empathy comes from there…
Do you cook at home?
I keep it quite simple at home, I like the pasta dishes our Chefs make … 3-4 ingredients that our Chefs make. A bit of linguini with anchovies Parmesan, that’s delicious.
Angela Hui PART 2
INTRO
2mins - The awkwardness of the teenage years, trying to fit in and coming from a place 'where I didn't know who I was...'
6mins30s - We didn't really appreciate where we grew up...'but it was mine and I wouldn't change it for the world...it made me who I am'
8mins30s - Starting to be accepted into the community, keeping a balanced perspective on racism and the sadness of the decline of the Chinese Takeaway.
10mins - Reflecting on the great characters in Wales, and Angela's perspective and reflections on racism.
11mins - Losing the human connection and the fabric of community during Covid-19...and how the Chinese takeaway brought various walks of life together - being 'the after-party for the pub'.
12mins30s - What's so special about Chinese Takeaways...
14mins - Sam's memories of eating Chinese food in Morar and Mallaig in Western Scotland...
15mins30s - Angela's thoughts on Hospitality traditions and memories of eating family meals.
16mins - 'I'm a sucker for steamed Sea Bass...', Angela's thoughts on how to make it.
17mins - Not eating meat, and trying to be a pescatarian..."my parents didn't understand..."
19mins - Chefs and Food authors admired by Angela...different types of food writing, and creating news channels for Hospitality workers who found themselves unemployed.
22mins30s - Angela talks about new projects that she's working on at the moment, including looking at Chinatowns all over the world.
25mins - Being 'unhinged' on social media and sharing updates with a sense of humour...and no filter!
26mins - The last paragraph in the book, 'burying grief...and serving behind the counter one last time...'
27mins - Mapping the remaining UK Chinese Takeaways and Angela's personal favourites.
30mins - Final thoughts and memories of Mum & Dad...
INTRO
1mins30s - Paperback coming out, being shortlisted for Awards...and writing as the solitary profession.
2mins30s - Delighted by the response 'from such a wide demographic'
4mins - what was the original idea for the book? Multi dimensional approach...from extensive notes and memories taken during the Covid lockdown.
6mins30s - ...feeling very torn on identity growing up in rural South Wales, but also proud of being Welsh.
7mins30s - Helping out in the Takeaway as a teenager, reflecting on childhood and testing recipes with Mum...'an incredibly obsessive cook'.
11mins - 'Wanting to celebrate Hospitality businesses'...memories of a Scottish childhood from Sam.
13mins - Angela's Parents' reactions to her book? "Incredibly proud...but they'll never say the 'P' word."
14mins - Book launch in Hackney Community Centre, why it meant so much to host it there.
16mins - Extract one from the book: quotes from readers, and steamed seabass with ginger and spring onion.
18mins45s - How the book helped Angela understand her own identity with the passing of time.
19mins30s - Regrets over the language barrier, and wishing to know her parents at a deeper level.
22mins - Speaking to her brothers many years on, about how she felt, their responsibilities, and the challenges of working in the takeaway as a young, vulnerable girl...
26mins - Growing Shark Fin Melons...Angela's Mum and her make-shift garden in Wales - why it was so poignant.
28mins54s - 'she grew up in the cultural revolution...she didn't have an education...'
30mins - The health benefits of Chinese soups - 'this soup will cure your asthma!'
32mins - How Chinese families 'soldiered on...not really kicking up a fuss...' - and the cultural dynamic of not wanting to draw attention to themselves.
PART 2 - Sarah Lazenby in conversation with Sam Bleazard
INTRO
1min - What communication skills might we have lost in the current landscape? "Keep adapting, and keep very open-minded..."
3mins - The missing insight into our audiences...
7mins - Finding your purpose post Covid-19, crisis comms and Communications professionals having a seat at the table.
14mins - Communicators that you admire?
17mins30 - Board of Trustees for the Sussex Community Development Association - addressing the needs of local people, being a carer and neurodiversity in the family
20mins - What would Sarah's one piece of advice be to any young person thinking of a career in communications?
23mins - Any life lessons gained in your school years? Bullying at school, escaping into drama and first job interviews...
25mins - Tell us something we wouldn't know about you!
Sam Bleazard in conversation with Sarah Lazenby pt 1.
1min30s - '...my heart is in healthcare...'
2mins30s - Investigative journalist at heart? "I was nosey as a child...and always loved writing..."
3mins30s - "Is there anything else you think I should know...?"
5mins - Working on the Eastbourne Advertiser and getting a letter from Levi Jeans in the US - threatening legal action.
6mins43s - "Saving Sarah on the South Coast!" Getting a shot on the News features desk in the '80s...
7mins30s - Queuing outside Kelvin Mackenzie's office...
8mins30s - Editing the Dear Deirdre letter column at The Sun
11mins - Writing in a disciplined way, and being a great Editor
12mins30s - Sarah's funniest stories at The Sun newpaper, "...there were 4m readers at the time..."
13mins30s - Corporate storytelling, and fantastic tales...
16mins - Is there mischief in it at some level?
17mins - Holding up a mirror sometimes...the importance of authenticity and being resilient
18mins - Memories of first corporate roles
19mins - Moving into consultancy and managin crisis comms in the Rail industry
22mins - How has Internal Communications changed over the years as a profession? Behavioural change and the role of leaders...
24mins - Working closely with External Comms teams
26mins - Favourite bosses or line managers over the years?
28mins - A love of mud-wrestling!
29mins - "I love a leader where you feel that anything is possible..."
Intro to part 2
1min30s - Tik Tok, Employer Brand and recruitment: sharing short form tips and tricks.
3mins30s - Tik Tok as educational platform and search engine.
5mins - Going viral without any followers via the For You Page #fyp.
7mins45s - Being a karaoke enthusiast, early gigs and wanting to be a backing singer 'when I grew up'.
9mins30s - Seeing The Cure, Bananarama, Duran Duran and Prince - serving hot dogs and drinks at Wembley Arena.
11mins30s - Being an introverted exhibitionist, and going for the high notes! "My singing voice has gotten worse, not better"
13mins15s - Side hustles, lifestyle blogs, podcasting, #uglyfood and income streams.
15mins30s - Content creation get easier "...once you open yourself up to it, the ideas come from everywhere!"
19mins30s - "Every like and comment makes a difference to people..." - and the discomfort of showing your face online.
23mins - Career highlights, what makes you feel good, and what you love about what you do..."helping people find fulfilment."
PODCAST notes
2mins - January being one of the busiest times of the year for recruiters
3mins - The role of recruiter as therapist, counsellor and advisor - 'has never been a transaction for me' - dealing with human beings and emotions.
5mins - Managing expectations as a recruiter - and the candidate experience
9mins - What is the legacy of 2021 and 2022 from a recruitment perspective?
13mins - The outlook for 2023, candidates continuing to want more, and employers starting to take back control?
16mins - Vicki's advice for candidates entering the market right now
17mins - Recruiters looking at how active candidates are on LinkedIn and social media, telling a compelling story
21mins - The importance of a Personal Brand for professionals and 15 years to be an overnight success
27mins - Vulnerability and being 'bullied, bored and burnt-out'...why it's liberating to make changes in your life
Mustafa Tumburi - Bar Manager at 45 Jermyn St.
On meeting Mustafa (or ‘Musty’ as he’s known) for the first time, I sit as he makes me a #55 - and I learn that each number corresponds to something to do with the drink..."it's served with a shot of Cachaça, a variant of rum made in Brazil..and 55 is the country code for Brazil."
So I kick off with the obvious question…
What's your history with Fortnum’s?
"I joined in the winter of 2016, and I've been with the company six years. I started as a bartender...so when our Head Bartender moved to another position I took that role. When the Bar Manager left to work on a project with our Hong Kong team, I took over the position of Bar Manager"
How do responsibilities vary between the different bar roles?
"When you're a bartender you have to make sure that the limes are cut just right, otherwise the Bar Manager will have something to say about it...and in that role it's opening and closing duties, plus service. Also learning how to deal with the prep that goes into making all of our lovely ingredients. There's quite a lot to learn as I think there are about 15-16 different homemade ingredients in our menu.”
Once you become the Head Bar Tender it's your job to support the Bar Manager, and start ordering, but also being responsible for keeping the bar stocked. Once you get to Bar Manager you're partly responsible for the success of the Bar, and you have to lead the team, motivate and inspire them.”
Favourite things?
"One of my favourite things about 45 Jermyn St. is that we're very egalitarian when it comes to menu development. So everyone has a go. It doesn't matter if you're a junior bartender or you're a senior bartender, or if you're the Bar Manager, everybody has input into making our drinks.
As Bar Manager - when our people are developing drinks - what I try to do is guide their ideas and try to elevate them, but also ask them if they've tried pairing with other ingredients.”
Have we got a drink that's unique to 45 Jermyn St.?
"Yes! We've got a few. One drink I'd like to highlight...
We've been quite hot on re-use as part of our sustainability drive, so what we want to do is try to figure out any way that we can squeeze the last drop out of any ingredient. A good example of that is The Thicket. A cocktail originally developed for our FIELD restaurant, which we've started developing at 45 Jermyn St. as well. One of our ingredients is Raspberry cordial, and it shows up in our ice cream floats, and in our signature drinks such as our Negroni.
Previously when we made that we were throwing away a lot of sweetened raspberry seed pulp which was going straight to food waste. So we thought to ourselves - how can we use that again and get some more life out of it? So now, whenever we make a batch of raspberry cordial we split the pulp and half of it goes into a vat for use in our raspberry seed rum. The rest of the pulp is spread out onto silicone and dehydrated, and what we're left with is a lovely raspberry shard that's crunchy and sweet, but it still has some of the sharpness from the berries. We then pair that with amaretto, Peychaud's bitters and Fortnum's Rosé sparkling tea.”
How many total combinations of drinks do you need to be aware of?
"150 classics and 50 or so 'regionals'. For example if you worked in New England you should probably know how to make a Caesar, because everyone has Clam Chowder there. I now like to work to a tight edit of 100 classic cocktails. We have a classic cocktail 'Bible' for the bar, and add to that our menu which currently has approximately 27 cocktails. It was as many as 40 at one point.”
What else might people not know about the 45 Jermyn St. bar?
"Before 45 Jermyn St. was known as 45 Jermyn St. (the bar), it was known as 'The Fountain'. Almost like a 50s style American diner where you could get a Knickerbocker Glory. I believe the soda fountains in the bar were one of the first to feature in London at the time, they were custom made and came from the United States. So it's a very unique and retro feature that still exists and that we're lucky to have. The soda fountains are used for our ice cream floats, which are quite unique to Fortnum's. I'm actually the son of an ice-cream vendor, in fact I come from an ice-cream family. I remember my Dad saying to me - 'do you want to take over the family business?'...and I said, not on your life - I will never scoop a single ice-cream ever again! Flash forward to 2017 and I was back behind this bar doing just that. However my grandparents also owned a Diner when I was a kid, very old-fashioned by today's standards - with venues in London and Suffolk."
"My favourite float for the record, is The Kentucky Morning. We have 2 scoops of Cornflake flavoured ice-cream, which creates a buttery-sweet delicious flavour, we then pour some soda water over that, some Bourbon and then finally add - my favourite ingredient - some Beurre noisette syrup. The end result is outstanding."
What are Fortnum's most commonly ordered drinks?
"Because of our clientele we lean more towards our classics, for example Negronis, Gin & Vodka Martinis and Cosmopolitans too. In terms of our top 10 classics I want all of the team here to be able to execute those consistently. Consistency is the highest indicator of quality, in my view."
What's our approach to customer service at 45 Jermyn Street?
"We have our bar regulars and I like to anticipate their requests, know what they are going to ask for in advance. I hear them deliberating about what they're going to have in the background sometimes, so I listen very carefully. Humour goes a long way too, and there has to be a bit of informality to what we do - we're not stuffy and old-fashioned - because people come here to have a good time. I remember my old bar manager saying to me - 'bars are supposed to be fun!'
Page Break
What's the most fun aspect of working in 45 Jermyn St.?
"We once got an order for 16 Espresso Martinis - and we've only got 4 shakers - but it's the kind of challenge we love, and we managed to pull it off. We set up like an assembly line, we were like the Henry Ford of Espresso Martinis! One of the team was racking up glasses, one person getting the garnish, another filling liquids, someone adding ice and someone else shaking. You have to create bartenders with 6 arms! And the serious point is that it's just a wonderful feeling being in a flow state. In order for that to happen, everyone has to be in a good place. No negativity and the bar has to be set and ready."
Team culture?
"I'll take a good attitude over experience any day, because technique can be taught...but attitude? That's hard to teach."
What is bartending to you - what is your favourite thing about it?
"My favourite thing to do is to turn someone around, from being in a grumpy state when they arrive, setting myself a challenge of making that person like my best friend by the time they leave. And I think I can always do it. When someone's rude it is fear, its fear that they're not going to get what they want - so you do need to kill that with kindness."
If someone has never come to 45 Jermyn St. - why should they visit?
"Well they should definitely try the Beef Wellington, the theatre of how we serve it! But it's actually everything about the theatre of this venue, the tastes...but my tip to anyone coming in for a meal would be, to come and see myself and the team at the bar around 6pm (before the meal). Jump on to chair 56 when we're still preparing some of our finishing touches, straining some clarified punch for example."
What do you see as the future of 45 Jermyn St.?
“I also want to continue to push the sustainability storytelling...it's a lot of fun to think about the things we can create, which would previously have gone straight into the bin. This also brings me onto our waste citrus vodka, in November and December of last year every single lemon that was used to make lemon juice for this bar was zested first. We ended up with 20 kilos of just lemon skin, and this went into a run of 400 bottles of the Citrus Vodka. So more collaboration with other brands in the future, and doing more with less."
Page Break
What's the relationship between the bar and the restaurant?
"We try and keep it as reciprocal and symbiotic as possible. As an example I make a syrup from strawberry leaves. So every morning when Ellen finishes chopping up her strawberries in the kitchen for the Mille-Feuille she brings me a little punnet of green leaves that I store in my freezer until I have enough to make my strawberry leaf syrup."
How do you keep up to date with the leading ideas in the drinks industry?
"I stay away from social media, I like the low information diet! But what I do instead is I ask my team to constantly be on the lookout. So Matt our head bartender lives on Instagram, scrolling away, and he shows me cool stuff. If I could pick one publication that I love, on the industry, it would probably be Punch Drink."
PERSONAL HISTORY
“I was born in Dagenham, which is Zone 5 greater London, and I went to the same school as the Archbishop of Canterbury and Dudley Moore.
I went to University and studied music, in fact we're all musicians in the 45 Jermyn St. bar, I play guitar and we have two bassists and a drummer...while one of our team used to play saxophone.
While I was studying music, I also seemed to spend a lot of time in bars and I realised I was a night owl, so I got a job in my student union nightclub initially (in the University of Hertfordshire).
I had a great time there, and after that I ended living in Cambridge...and got a job in a bar called 12A, owned by a family who were in charge of one of the only independent Italian restaurants in Cambridge. It was a carbon copy of Milk & Honey, and a good place to cut my teeth initially, as I learned the key skills I needed. It was a very cool bar that was open until 4am...it's also where I met my wife! After a year there, my now wife, decided that she was going to study in London so I decided to tag along as well.
I first worked for the Bourne & Hollingsworth Group for about a year as a bartender. There were some cool industry characters at that time, one of those I worked with was Jim Wrigley.
After that I went to work for the Breakfast Group, who have venues such as Opium in China Town. It's in the middle of Gerrard Street above a place called Dumpling’s Legend on the top floor. I then worked in various bars before coming to 45.
Hobbies?
"I love music, and I've written some of my own in the past, but also played in bands. It's hard to find the time nowadays. I bought a tape delay recently, from 1964, it's the same one that The Shadows used. I have a day off on Sunday and I'm just going to be playing surf music all day. I really like buying old lo-fi gear, but in addition I also have a clone of a TB303 Bass Synthesizer which is what all Acid House music was made on. If I can find an old radio station mixing console and have that in my house with all of my musical bits and pieces plugged into it...it could be my control centre! I also have about 11 guitars in my house, my favourite is an SG and my father in law has a Gibson 345, a 1965 edition and I'm hoping to get a Les Paul soon."
INTRO from Sam Bleazard
2mins - My love of LEGO
3mins - Conversations with clients about LEGO mini figures...how to make sure 'everything is awesome'.
5mins - LEGO typewriter
6mins - Blogging for 4 years and going into business for the first time - 9 years ago - while on maternity
9mins30s - Formative experiences in journalism. Straight from Sixth Form in 199
12mins - Favourite podcasts, and launching her own in 2014
15mins30s - Using babyseats as sound-proofing, while recording interviews on her driveway.
16mins30s - What are the most challenging aspects of podcasting?
18mins - Comms bling and 'Podfade'
20mins - "Take the leap because you'll never be ready!"
22mins - Internal Comms professionals - goalkeeper or coach? Rachel tells us why we 'empower people so they don't need us anymore'.
25mins - Personal brand is 'your reputation and promise'.
28mins - What are you known for?
29mins - Favourite podcast that you've recorded? Interviews and lasting legacy.
33mins - Giving structure, and including takeaways for every episode.
35mins - A quirky fact about Rachel...
INTRO
5mins - starting to think about brewing own beer, and starting from the bottom up.
9mins - making the decision to change focus: from Freelancing for drinks brands to brewing
10mins - making the transition from hiring others equipment to creating new drinks independently
13mins - raising the funds and making it work financially
14mins30 - delays during the pandemic and starting the business slowly...
16mins - Scaling up the business, and supporting other local businesses
18mins30s - The difference between the initial ideas and the business as it is now? "We started the business from our house...brewing in the kitchen and storing 3,000 bottles in my shed. Friends wanted to move in!"
21mins30s - what's the difference between 'The Tap Room' at BR3 and drinking in a traditional pub?
24mins30s - Examples of 2-3 of your best sellers and how they came about?
30mins - Did it help being a designer? "It was a nightmare! A horrible process."
Cathryn Barnard is a partner and co-founder at Working the Future, a consultancy helping business leaders to make sense of the future of work and build easy-to-implement, people-centred, future-proof strategies.
With a previous career in workforce planning spanning three decades, and experience of starting and growing her own successful business, Cat recognises the criticality of human connection in accelerating team engagement and performance.
As work becomes increasingly underpinned by digital technology, amazing commercial opportunity emerges - blending the best of human AND technology to deliver highly customised client experiences that drive brand loyalty and enhanced success outcomes.
Intro - Fortnum's hampers for 80s Pop Stars?
3mins - Grandad's piano
4mins - Talk of the Town and Uncle Bill's record collection
6mins - Mum and Dad at home in the 70s. Mum "delivering 5000 children in her time as a midwife in the town of Coatbridge...she brought most of the town into the world". My father sacked Alan McGee!
7mins30s - Playing in bands at school and Pat joining the band on vocals, and using grants from University to make demos
10mins - Having kids: "we've got the full gambit!"
14mins - debut single 'Here Comes Everybody', and getting signed to a record label in the 1980s
17mins - Scottish Scene and doing Top of the Pops
18mmins30s - Songwriting process between Greg & Pat Kane and where they wrote their most famous songs
21mins - Piano & Vocal: why it's so important
23mins - The 'J' Word
26mins - Kind of Blue
27mins30s - The Remote album
28mins30s - Own label Fidelity and getting dropped by EMI
30mins - selling 350,000 copies, DIY ethic and The Hue and Cry Music Club
33mins30s - Getting through the pandemic and moving house
36mins - 80s tour with Paul Young & T'Pau
37mins30s - Hybrid communication systems and crowds
39mins - Favourite Fortnum's products!
1min - role as a LinkedIn Changemaker. "LinkedIn have recognised that they can be a platform for good...driving progressive conversation in the new world of work.”
3mins30s - The recruitment landscape in 2022 - advice for candidates now. "More advertised roles than ever before...but the challenge is that the demand and supply isn’t joining up very well. And hundreds of talented people aren’t getting hired. We need a change in behaviour on both sides.”
5mins - what are candidates saying?
“Experience overall seems to be terrible, they are being treated like a number, machines are rejecting them, with no feedback given - we’ve lost the human in Human Resources”
6mins30s - Salary trend last year for “low-balling”...still the case? “Companies are losing people at an alarming rate as a result of not looking after their people...” #showthesalary. “We advise candidates to never disclose their salary in negotiations...” but “there is a real movement for more transparency, giving power back to candidates”
9mins - Video interviews. "Video interviews are less personal, more two dimensional and flat, but candidates do have some advantages- if you’re prepared to do the prep and use the situation to your benefit. Part of the problem about face to face interviews are them being a memory test. Why I need to demonstrate an amazing memory to be a Marketing Director?”
13mins - tips for video interviews: “Fundamentally people hire emotionally and then justify logically” “the challenge we have via video is the emotional connection is hampered...and the opportunity to build trust is harder. You need to hit their head, their heart and their pocket - get that hat trick in place! Finish half your answers with a question. Put a bit of rapport in... Hide your own screen, and look directly into the camera. Create a landscape view - to give cues and keep that 2-way flow going.
15mins30s - The great resignation- what does it mean to you? “The great resignation is an American term. It’s less about people resigning and more about how people are re-addressing how their relationship is with work. A lot of people during lockdown spent a lot more time with people that they care about, exercising, just reassessing. I was getting on the 6.30am train and getting to the office for 7.30. The whole thing was a circuit breaker. Evolution of how we view work , and re-thinking how we spend our time while we’re there, which is absolutely fascinating...85% of organisations - if you believe the data - have moved to remote or hybrid structure, but we don’t have the data to know how effective it’s been."
18mins30s - “The move and trend to fractional careers is fascinating." Developing your career.
22mins - The grieving process around redundancy - is it an emotional trauma equivalent to a bereavement? “It’s always listed at number 3 in terms of personal traumatic life events. It’s the least talked about grieving process in society...I think it needs to have a spotlight on it. And the person being made redundant needs to understand that they’re going to go through a grieving cycle, so they can be kind and considerate to themselves. You will also go through periods where you’re angry, you over analyse the past, your previous employers, you meet with ex colleagues, you track the share price, and you look for cracks to prove they’re worse off with you. That will happen. What’s also therapeutic- in addition to adding structure back into your life - is to find a way to serve others. Take on mentees.”
27mins - The power of community, and forming your networks. “It shows you’re not alone, and it’s about sharing best practice, but supporting others is the best medicine. Whilst redundancies may be inevitable, they should be dealt with much better.”
28mins30s - Personal branding - what are the most important elements and what’s your advice (for the less confident)? “My advice would be that if I can do it - I’m an accountant by trade, with a big shiny head made for radio - then you can do it as well! You don’t have to be a super cool Marketer to build a personal brand. You’ve already got a personal brand! It’s what you’re known for...what you’re good at, what you stand for”
30mins - Confidence building and honing your focus - is it important to be clear? "I got a lot more intentional about what I was posting. I went through a process of personal brand values. Column 1: what are the 3 topics that I’m most passionate about and know more than the majority of LinkedIn users on? 2. What are the three values that I want to stand for, in terms of my voice and how I would like people to view me? 3. My audience - what do my audience want? + Content strategy, what kind of posts do we want to do?
34mins30s - What initiatives are you working on in 2022? “Moving from jobs focus, to career focus. Not the same pain in the market now. An increase in career clarity sessions. Also an increase in people setting up on their own.”
36mins30s - Mistakes that people make when they’re trying to build communities online? "They don’t collaborate with the competition - any other organisation that is contributing to your mission have to be taken seriously e.g. ending career based misery. Find a way to cross over with the good people in your space with the same values. People also try and monetise their communities too quickly and in a way that’s inauthentic. If you want to build a business within a community it has to be community first."
40mins - How do you see 2022? “Cautious optimism, but there is still a lot of uncertainty. We can’t predict how it’s going to be in 6 months. And we don’t know what the new hybrid world of work will be...so many variables out there. Need new skills, agility, resilience, dealing with ambiguity - technology and automation will mean that soft skills will become the hard skills.”
43mins - Who has the upper hand now: the candidate or the recruiting company? “Companies are flexing their muscles - but the talent has the upper hand right now. Companies are moving from traditional hierarchies, through the matrix model, to more of an ecosystem model in a more tailored way. Companies will sit in the middle of a more fluid ecosystem.”
46mins30s - Focusing on sleep: the first domino in the wellbeing race.
Multiple interviews, performance anxiety, psychological tests, nerves and a panel keen to know your back story...but this is not a description of someone applying for a leadership role in the corporate world. This is how Wayne Ellington described the process of going through ITVs The Voice as a contestant - an experience which he enjoyed.
INTRO
0-5mins
- A definition of emotional intelligence
- Evolving in groups and the safety of a community setting (and the development of social brains)
- Managing change and change management
5mins30s
- Recognising that we have emotions
- Cognitive behavioural therapy: thought - emotion - action
7mins
- Getting in touch with ourselves and becoming more emotionally literate
- Love - only one word for it in English (the power of language)
9mins30s
- Happiness and contentment vs having negative thoughts (the EQ model, optimism and the power of hope)
- "I am future oriented"...and not feeling stuck in the past.
- Thoughts, beliefs and limiting assumptions (about yourself) that are outdated - exposing thoughts and emotions...and challenging yourself.
- Stepping away from the baggage of the past - and not getting stuck there.
13mins
- Psychological safety - and performing better - 'the ability for people to take inter-personal risks in a working environment'
- Managers should create a climate in a team where it's safe to take risks, where it's safe to speak up
- How to build trusted relationships? 42% of people leave meetings having said nothing
18mins
- Thrust into a management position in sales at 22 years old, and not really liking people
- "A natural people person and connector...kind of like my alter ego."
- Can you connect with somebody in 10secs - early experience of tele-sales
20mins
- Leaders at COP26 developing self-awareness
26mins
- Attending German language camp in the Black Forest and falling in love
27mins
- The teenage brain being very difficult to an adult brain (firing up the neuro-chemicals)
28mins
- 'everyone can be a leader...[to] sit in the driving seat of their own life'
30mins
- Human therapy - bringing horses into hospital and the power of animals helping people to heal
- Workplace choirs to break down silos
34mins
- Why do you want to be a manager? Are you in it for the right reason, and are people always right for management roles.
- Having to learn deep empathy.
- Promoting the 'winners' with the technical skills, the organisations results oriented people
39mins
- Leaders and the importance of always displaying great self-awareness
40mins
- 'to stay alive and vibrant you need to re-invent yourself'
42mins
- Listening, integrity and moral courage - the attributes of great leaders
44mins
- The power differential in traditional organisations and family hierarchies
47mins
- Reflections on the hybrid world post pandemic - can we be more self-aware and emotionally intelligent?
50mins
- Thinking about your mission and purpose - new possibilities and dreams
53mins
- Why does all this matter?
- Employee experience catching up with the customer experience in the eyes of investors.
INTRO
1min30s - finding out more about Sproutl, and comparing notes on home gardening
5mins30s - why Mark joined a start-up after a varied successful career
9mins30s - Mark on Inclusion: "Diversity and inclusion isn't just something you do for a week or a year..."
11mins - Background on team Sproutl
14mins - How important is social media?
15mins - How to do gardening if you've never done it before...?
19mins - "The person who has helped me most in my career..."
20mins30s - Hybrid working and treating employees like adults
23mins30s - Body image, size normal swimwear and expectations of brands in 2021
25mins30s - Sustainability: what should big brands be doing in this space? "We are in a climate crisis..."
28mins - Start-ups: what's better, and what's been more challenging?
30mins - Side hustles, new puppies, art and house renovations
32mins - Huggy's Disco and Norman Cook
33mins - What's next for Sproutl?
Music by Gavin Calder and Sam Bleazard.
Discussion themes for this episode of Comms from the Shed:
- A new profession called Internal Communication
- DIY learning in the spirit of a start-up (and why staying behind the scenes appeals)
- Being a journalist at heart and the power of editing
- Interviewing Noam Chomsky on political turmoil
- Mister Editorial, promotion and the importance of mentors
- Why we increasingly trust CEOs over authority figures - what are the implications for employee comms?
- Splunk - and what it does
- Nothing stays internal!
- Rare & mysterious books
Music for this episode was very kindly provided by Gavin Calder - Who Wanna Be In The Band? (Funky Weapon remix), and True Funk soldier (Quiet Storm).
The Porterhouse with Gregory Porter (hosted from the family kitchen in Bakersfield, California) - is a new show where the two time Grammy winner celebrates food, music, family and giving back.
Gregory Porter's first two albums — Water (2010) and Be Good (2012) — both received Grammy nominations. In 2013, he released his Blue Note debut Liquid Spirit which quickly grew into a global phenomenon, selling more than a million albums and earning him his first Grammy Award with NPR declaring him “America’s Next Great Jazz Singer.” His 2016 follow-up Take Me To The Alley claimed him a second GRAMMY for Best Vocal Jazz Album and firmly established him as his generation’s most soulful jazz singer-songwriter. In 2017, Porter released the heartfelt tribute album Nat King Cole & Me, and in 2020 returned to his original song writing on the uplifting All Rise, both of which received Grammy nominations. He is also the host of the podcast The Hang, a conversation series featuring his famous friends that explores the musical and creative threads that join us all together.
“Music and food, two things in life I truly love, have always been connected,” says Porter. “The kitchen was actually my home before I ever stepped on stage. Food is not just food, it’s tradition, it’s family, it’s roots, and that’s what music is. When I make a beautiful dish, something that makes people feel good and it brightens their face and lightens their mood, this is the way I think about music. Writing songs and creating dishes have always inspired me.”
Summary and themes
2mins - Supporting the mental health of pregnant women, and charting how far mental health services have come.
5mins - The mental health of teenagers during Covid-19, dementia support and 5 Ways to Wellbeing
12mins - Local council and mayoral elections - and what these might mean for the provision of services
15mins - Training housing associations and key workers such as nurses and young carers.
19mins - Career path to this point.
22mins - What is the most fulfilling part of your job?
24mins - Inspirational stories - involving pie and mash, and Rita Ora's hairdresser.
27mins - Has the pandemic made us more compassionate? Reflections on the period.
28mins30s - What has been the toughest part about delivering services during the pandemic and digital poverty locally?
30mins - Future MIND initiatives, including a new 3 year strategy to provide a diverse range of services.
34mins - Looking at the spectrum of mental health issues
36mins - How should we all keep supporting each other in the months ahead?
38mins - Home comforts, music and yoga during lockdown.
39mins30s - A quirky fact about you that we might not know?
41mins - Hopes for the future, and thoughts on the months ahead.
Career Change special part 2 - themes & chapters
2 mins - thinking about changing career for the first time (Katie Kelleher).
3mins - selling yourself and gaining the confidence to do so.
4mins - the fear of the unknown, sacrifice and being brave enough to make the jump.
5mins - from John Lewis to acting in the West End (Antony Antunes).
7mins - a parallel career as a scriptwriter and being inspired by the birth of a first child (Kevin Mears).
9mins - the challenge of editing and promoting film scripts in Covid-19.
10mins - what was your big motivation to make a change? (ALL)
14mins - balancing the day job, family life and the side-hustle, plus the benefits of Zoom and no commute (KM).
15mins30s - Entrepreneurial spirit in a time of Covid (Katie Kelleher).
16mins30s - state of the arts (Antony Antunes).
17mins10s - What gets you out of bed and inspires you? (ALL)
22mins30s - Social media: top tips from the panel.
28mins - recruiting a female tower crane operator in a pet shop and women on the tools (Katie).
31mins - advice for anyone thinking about making a career change (ALL).
34mins30s - what was your go to comfort thing during lockdown? (ALL)
42mins - meet and greets in Basildon with Bing! (Kevin)
Episode chapters
1min - Publishing a book and interviewing in lockdown.
2mins30s - The centre half and their quirks.
4mins30s - Twin loves of football and journalism - keeping it in the family.
6mins30s - Ghosting David Beckham
10mins30s - Gaining respect as a writer and breakthrough moments.
13mins - Premier League football and the response to the pandemic.
18mins - Black Lives Matter in football, is it effective?
21mins30s - What will life be like for football fans in the future?
23mins - Writing I'm most proud of, and the magic of the FA Cup.
28mins30s - Greatest ever moments in football.
32mins - Favourite career interviews.
35mins - Vegan dinners of choice for Premier League footballers?
35mins45s - Writers I enjoy reading.
38mins30s - Stories of Scotland's Gordon Strachan.
40mins30s - Projects in the pipeline and hopes for the future?
42mins30s - Predictions for the remainder of the season: who will win the biggest prizes?
Andrew Macaskill - Career coach, Board advisor and founder of Executive Career Jump - is on a mission to end our job search misery.
1min - the best and worst of Covid-19 and innovation in adversity.
3mins - communities, social media and serving others.
4mins30s - best pieces of career advice and treating the job search like a project.
7mins - ending job search misery: "getting the human back into Human Resources".
9mins - AI and the transactional systems causing problems.
10mins - the 'Etch-A-Sketch' effect.
11mins - Career history, wanting to be a sports journalist and getting to know the language of business.
15mins - Assessment of the job market now and the K-shaped economy.
17mins30s - Advice to people changing careers or setting up their own business.
21mins30s - Are the CVs days numbered?
22mins30s - funniest interview stories and CV mistakes.
25mins30s - What get's you out of bed in the morning?
28mins30s - What's attributes and approaches are helping people to be successful and getting them over the line?
30mins30s - Why do people find it so hard to package themselves up? "Quite often the best candidates have the least amount of practice in interviews..."
32mins15s - Gender differences on Imposter Syndrome, and becoming an MD at 29... - 'qualify yourself in, rather than qualify yourself out'.
35mins30s - Competency based interview questions and E-STAR-Q.
39mins - Comfort in lockdown, running and podcasts.
41mins40s - Strange fingers and swapping girlfriends with Craig David.
43mins - Coaching experiences that gave me the most satisfaction.
From chatting to The Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, about sustainability and the future of jobs, to binge watching MasterChef and Netflix with her young family. We talk about the changing priorities enforced by lockdown living on Yewande Akinola - an award winning female engineer, who shares memories of an inspirational childhood in Nigeria and her Mum's spicy Jollof rice. We also discuss the connection between engineering, art and performance, and why water will always matter. "Women see in colour!", she tells Comms from the Shed - listen in to our latest episode to find out more.
Chapters
1mins20secs - My biggest challenge in the last 12 months
3mins20s - A week in the life of Yewande
5mins - Chatting with the Chancellor about the future of jobs
7mins - Memories of a Nigerian childhood
11mins - Following in Dad's footsteps
14mins30s - Demas Nwoko: Arts, Architecture and the back-garden Ampitheatre.
19mins - World Water: 'I saw the impact the lack of water had in my immediate environment'.
22mins - 3 major construction projects that stick in my memory.
24mins30s - a very tiny amount of Mandarin!
25mins - A newly sharpened career focus.
27mins - What STEM means to me, and the importance to girls and young children.
30mins - My years as a 'baby engineer', being a sponge and coming of age.
32mins30s - Comfort TV and lockdown living.
35mins30s - Hopes and aspirations for the long term.
37mins - Message for women considering construction as a career. "Women see in colour!"
39mins45s - Comparing Mum's cooking and spicy Jollof rice.
42mins - Looking to the next generation for inspiration.
Beauty journalist, Brand consultant and former magazine editor Keysha Davis talks to us about community spirit and raising two boys during lockdown, why black hair matters and feeling star-struck by Janet Jackson and Tyler Perry.
Show summary
1min – Lockdown living with two young sons at home, and what matters in life.
2mins30s – Unconventional career route: intern to entertainment at Pride, and Editor at BlackHair magazine.
7mins – switching from print to digital, with feet in both the analogue and digital worlds.
8mins30s – virtuous circle of experience: fashion, beauty and music.
9mins45s – interviewing Janet Jackson and Tyler Perry, my ‘pinch me moment’.
12mins08s – Black hair and hair discrimination: ‘it’s just hair, but it’s our hair.’ Brand responses.
16mins – Instagram and IG live: heroes, heroines, health and beauty.
19mins30s – “MsQuiche”.
20mins – Collective Covid grief and information overload.
23mins – Filtering social media and the ‘hive mind’.
26mins45s – Inspired by, and the importance of, the local community.
31mins30s – Spending quality time and rediscovering your life partner.
33mins – Comfort content, favourite new books and Judi Love’s date nights.
39mins30s – Hopes and aspirations for the future – imposter syndrome, and going out again.
Inspired by her grandmother's entrepreneurial spirit in the New York of her youth, Monique has published two books: Divas Doing Business and Get Your Hustle On! She shares her thoughts on career opportunities in 2021, the Tech sector, a Hollywood A-lister mentor, and balancing the demands of corporate America while running your own business in a time of coronavirus.
Show summary & chapters
1mins38secs - My biggest challenge in the last 12 months.
3mins - A new era of career possibility.
4mins38s - Growth of the Tech industry during Covid-19.
6mins30s - A golden age for entrepreneurs, and investing in the downturn. "Your home is your new favourite restaurant".
8mins45s - From South Carolina to NYC - and being inspired in grandma's Beauty Salon.
12mins - Grits and eggs, and being mentored by Morgan.
15mins - Draw on diverse business acumen to balance the side-hustle in corporate America.
20mins - Still learning and trying to stay ahead of the curve.
22mins - Future of work, and the potential recovery in the United States.
24mins10s - An unusual fact about Monique.
25mins45s - a two week spell in McDonald's?
26mins44s - Careers, self-care and what comes next.
Ladies fashion, womenswear - Jo Hooper has got the t-shirt. Having already worked with some of the UKs most famous high street brands, she wasn't content to rest on her laurels. Two years ago she founded NRBY, whose 'one-mile wear' caught the imagination of women working from home. We bring Jo's story up to date, but also look back on her early years as a student in Durham. Essential listening for anyone with an interest in fashion.
Episode 3 - summary & timecodes
Intro from Sam Bleazard
1mins10secs - NRBY Clothing concept.
2mins05s - Japanese 'one-mile' wear, and a trip to the Golden Triangle.
4mins30s - Launching two years ago, surviving and speaking to customers online.
9mins - The rise of the influencer and authenticity.
13mins - The future (and purpose) of the high street, fast fashion and the UK creative industries.
18mins30s - Ethics, supply-chain sourcing and transparency.
24mins - Where Jo's love of fashion began.
28mins - The Tuxedo Princess
29mins - Women who inspired me #IWD2021.
33mins30s - 'A few of my favourite things'
35mins30s - An unusual fact about Jo.
37mins20s - Hope for the future of fashion, and plans for NRBY.
39mins30s - A final thought.
What is the future of the arts, live and virtual events? We put this question to Dr Kirsty Fairclough of Manchester's Metropolitan University. In a wide-ranging interview she also discusses the School of Digital Arts in Manchester, Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights, the legacy of 'Mad Men', plus backstage and concert memories of Beyonce, Nile Rodgers and Prince.
Show summary & chapters
1mins22secs - Love for Academia: where did it come from?
5mins09secs - Digital City Festival, virtual events and future live hybrids.
8mins05secs - Arena concerts and memorable backstage moments.
10mins48secs - Showcasing female entrepreneurs, #IWD2021 and AMPLIFYhER - a project supporting musicians in Brazil.
13minutes - Love of books, the legacy of 'Mad Men' and new projects coming up.
19mins15secs - Challenge of home-schooling and moving jobs during the pandemic, teaching online and setting up a school remotely.
23minutes - School of Digital Arts (SODA) and Manchester's cultural scene.
29mins30secs - Deleted scenes (and a cameo in Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights).
31mins17secs - Prince: memories and a critical appreciation.
38mins44secs - What we can learn from the Arts and hopes for the future.
We talk to Drew McMillan, leader of the global Colleague Communication & Culture function at British Airways - about the Covid-19 response of the world's favourite airline, pride in their people, what the future holds for travellers, and an early career in Glaswegian coffee...
Introduction from Sam Bleazard
1mins15secs - Initial reaction to the pandemic and putting measures in place.
3minutes - Pride in keeping supply lines open and the sense of responsibility, in saying goodbye to, and repatriating people.
6mins45secs - British Airways people doing remarkable things.
9minutes - Creating dedicated channels of support.
12mins45secs - Drew on his Colleague and Culture role: 'Today I consider myself more of an HR professional.'
15mins45secs - Changes to the airline industry.
18mins - Early career, first job and lifelong love of coffee.
21mins45secs - Communication lessons and universal truths.
27mins30secs - What can we learn from the airline industry?
31minutes - Hobbies, side-hustles and Drew's unknown fact.
38mins30secs - Hopes for the future.