Fleetwood Back

September saw Anna return from maternity leave to the role of Agency Director. Within a couple of hours, it was as though she had never been away and by the end of day one she was already knee deep in new business, briefs for existing clients and getting up to speed with all the new services we can now offer being part of the Jupiter Advertising and Basis Media group.

Speaking of which, not only can our clients now access the brilliant Brand in a Box product (more of that below), but you can also tap into a much bigger multi-award winning creative and copywriting team. And that’s not to mention Basis Media, who have their own highly intuitive Applicant Tracking System, Nexgen (that’s at a competitive price point), and the brilliant piece of onboarding software that they’re about to launch – Day-One. So, if any of that has made your ears prick up do just give us a call.

The team have been busy working on lots of Graduate and Apprenticeship campaigns for a range of global and UK businesses; as well as the exciting launch of a new 5 Star Mayfair Hotel; a pitch for a big brewery (we can vouch for understanding their products very well, so have been free to focus on how to help them overcome some of the challenges the hospitality industry are currently facing) and a range of internal comms campaigns. It looks like Q4 is going to be a really exciting one for the Sparks team, so we can’t wait to get cracking!

Time over for overtime

According to the ONS, the UK’s productivity rate is the second lowest in the G7. A nice cheery note to start on, sorry about that.

Unsurprisingly then, maximising productivity is on the agenda. However, there’s some debate surrounding how best to measure efficiency. One common practice in the UK is working overtime, with employees feeling the pressure of ‘presenteeism’, essentially meaning they feel obliged to stay at work longer in a bid to appear more productive.

In fact, a recent study found 43% of employees stay behind due to their fear of being seen as a slacker. Something that appears to be confirmed by employers, as 31% of bosses think leaving on time is a negative attribute.

But is working more hours the same as being productive? We don’t think so, and we’re not alone as almost a third of employers also believe that reducing the working day would positively benefit productivity levels. So how can you instil enhanced productivity without your staff working longer? Most employees would look to a salary increase (no surprise there), as well as increased annual leave and flexible working.

Other initiatives proven to be working include ensuring your teams are engaged with their work, reducing email flow, and providing quiet places to work. Options to work from home are also proving positive, and employers that actively encourage their staff to take lunchbreaks away from their desks are reaping productivity rewards too.

Unfortunately, our hard work ethic in the UK often equates commitment to working harder for longer. This inadvertently places more importance on how many hours we spend at work rather than what we achieve as a result. Bosses who judge their workers by how many meetings they attend, emails they send and hours they work send a signal that visibility is more important than productivity. But what looks like work isn’t always productive. In fact, it could be creating more work! Is it time your company created a cultural shift? If so we can help you drive change.

An employer brand that won’t break the bank!

‘Brand in a Box’ is one of the new products we can now offer. It is an off-the-shelf, low-cost alternative to more expensive, traditional employer brands.

With Brand in a Box, we can create a unique identity for your workplace, for a set low price of £15,000. The cost includes a comprehensive staff perceptions research document from our sister company Charlie McIntosh Ltd, a one-day photoshoot at one location, a two-page careers website and a new employer brand developed by our creative team. To see an example of a new brand we’ve created, delivered via a careers site built using this process click here to view.

All this can be delivered in around four-to-six weeks, and because it comes with a set cost for a few essential options (with lots of bolt-ons available), getting budget sign off has hopefully just become a whole lot easier!

If you are interested in developing your employer brand, but don’t want to blow your annual resourcing budget on it, please give us a call to find out more information.