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Category: Features

  • Review: The Wolseley

    Lana Woolf

    During the pandemic, I found myself having a delightful conversation with Jeremy King – the King in Corbin King, the chain which owns The Wolseley, The Delaunay, Colbert and numerous other favourites in the capital. He told me that due to Covid-19, people had become ‘entombed in their homes’.

    It was the sort of intelligent phrase that makes you know you’re talking to an intelligent man. And, in fact, intelligence is the secret ingredient which makes Corbin King a cut above the rest.

    On arrival, I find that there are plenty of people who agree with me, many well-known. If you want to celebrity spot, I’d regard the Wolseley as a better bet than the Ivy. My eye lands on the former secretary Amber Rudd, and then at a different table ITV’s Robert Peston talking to someone who looks as though he might be Toby Young. As I deposit my bag, I look up to see the Earl Spencer gliding past me to his seat.

    This used to be a place where you wouldn’t deposit your bag; you’d make a deposit. My companion, well into his eighties now, recalls how it used to be an important branch of Barclay’s. This dispels some of the mystery surrounding the architecture of the place which has often reminded me of a chapel; in fact it was a kind of cathedral to our contemporary god, money.

    The place is happier as a temple to food. We move to a side table, passing half of Who’s Who as we go, and look at the menus. As we’re doing so Jeremy King comes over looking immaculate and cheerful and tells us the good news that business is back.  

    We select the oysters and I recall the portrait by Lucian Freud of Jeremy himself. Freud apparently always took the same table – not so far from the one where Rudd is sitting today. On the day of his death, Jeremy draped it in black crepe.

    We order oysters, and soon twelve Colchester natives come to us on an icy platter. They slip down perfectly with lemon and tabasco sauce. I could live a long time and never get over the glory of a Wolseley plate of oysters; my companion, in his ninth decade, confirms that it is indeed a reason to keep going. 

    The Wolseley continues to produce food of high quality without slipping into pretentiousness. For the mains, my companion plumps with a kind of cunning for the Kedigree with Poached Eggs. When it arrives, he pronounces it delicious in a voice which could live forever. I, meanwhile, opt for Roast Corn-Fed Half Chicken morels and Madeira sauce.

    This was a triumph. Most of all it is wonderful to think, after what the Wolseley team has been through, how decisively it’s come out the other side. Entombed in our homes no longer, we walk out, nodding cheerily at the Earl Spencer on our way out. Caught up in his own post-prandial happiness, he waves back.

  • Review: Ticket to Ride by Sir Peter Lampl

    Ronel Lehmann

    On a trip with Ticket to Ride seemed like a good idea. The train journey was slow compared to reading at speed about an exceptional entrepreneur who regales readers with a compelling memoir. Sir Peter takes us on his inspiring journey from a Yorkshire Council estate, via Oxford and the Boston Consulting Group to New York, in the buccaneering dollar-mad Eighties, where he sets up a leveraged buy-out firm, which nearly goes bust and then finally, in the year it comes good, ends up living next door to Keith Richards and out-earning Sir Mick Jagger. However, returning to Britain after 20 years Peter finds a vastly changed country, one in which the chances for bright kids from low-income backgrounds have plummeted. In response, he puts his business aside and devotes himself to founding the now greatly revered Sutton Trust, providing educational opportunities for large numbers of less well-off children, influencing government policy and putting social mobility at the heart of the national conversation. The guard arrived to check tickets, it was tempting to waive the book cover and at the same time beckon other travellers to purchase a copy of this inspirational read.

    Ticket to Ride is published by Harper Collins at £20

  • Book Review: A Life in Music by Gyorgy Pauk

    Ronel Lehmann

    I was looking forward to reading this book which charts Memories of 80 years with the violin, but publication was delayed due to the pandemic. Everyone knows that the classical music community has really suffered as many of those earning their living in the sector are self- employed and demand for their services collapsed. As for the students preparing to follow in György Pauk’s footsteps, they are anxiously wondering what the future holds for them. This book is inspirational.

    Born in Budapest shortly before World War II, György Pauk suffered the loss of both his parents in the Holocaust. He spent the remaining years of the War in the care of his grandmother in the Spartan confines of Budapest Ghetto. Showing extraordinary musical talent from an early age, he began to learn the violin and was admitted to the Liszt Academy at the age of only 13.

    After winning several international violin competitions, Pauk defected from Soviet-controlled Hungary, claiming asylum in Paris and becoming a ‘stateless person’ at the age of 22. He met and married his young Hungarian wife in Amsterdam. The couple moved to London on the advice of Yehudi Menuhin, gaining British citizenship in 1967.

    Over the course of more than 50 years, György Pauk became an international acclaimed concert violinist, appearing worldwide with the greatest orchestras and conductors, and making countless broadcasts and recordings.

    Now in his ninth decade, he is a renowned pedagogue based in London, and regarded as the foremost living ‘torch-bearer’ of the Hungarian Violin School, which traces its origins to the 19th century violinist, Josef Joachim, a close friend and collaborator of Mendelssohn, the Schumanns and Brahms.

    In this absorbing account of his professional and personal life, György Pauk tells us about many of the other instrumentalists, conductors, orchestras and composers he has known and worked with.

    Alongside his perpetual globe-trotting, Paul has been a devoted husband (for more than 60 years), father and grandfather, and retain friendships across the world stretching back as far as the 1940’s.

    György decided that all proceeds from the sale of his book will be distributed to charities supporting young classical musicians.

    A Life in Music is published by The Strad Shop and is priced £15

  • Post-Lockdown Opera Rehearsal, Holland Park: A new poem by Sebastian Richter

    Post-Lockdown Opera Rehearsal, Holland Park

    Summer will not sing more beautifully than this.

    Verdi, I would guess, epiphanic and sudden,

    grows out of the open-air rehearsal marquee

    superimposing tone on neutrality:

    the boy’s football match finds its drama,

    an elderly couple, their inveterate hands linked,

    becomes first courtship, perhaps beside the Arno,

    when a music like this went off in their minds.

    The eventual concert, tense with the burden of money,

    will intervene between listener and music

    with the distractions of formality,

    but now, the soprano gilds the pigeons with sun,

    the drinks in the café are all ambrosial,

    and we are taller, that much stronger, for this music.

    Sebastian Richter

  • Entelechy Academy CEO David Carter on the Case for Character in Education

    By David CM Carter

    The UK government’s focus on adult lifelong learning is welcome. Everyone should indeed have the opportunity to actualise their potential, their entelechy.

    However, having slid from #1 to #30 in global league tables of productivity over the last 40 years, the UK needs to quickly wake up and accept Einstein’s wisdom that ‘doing the same thing, over and over again, expecting a different result’ is the definition of insanity.

    The problems of work readiness identified by the CBI are a matter of Character, not skills. Character is the foundation of our success in all areas of life. If we can learn how to be better, we will do better by extension. For that to happen, our innate Character needs to be unlocked.

    The barrier to unleashing this potential is a lack of an appropriate structure to aid educationalists. The Entelechy approach, based on years of research, codifies Character, soft skills, and behaviours for the first time. It is a framework of 54 Character Qualities that define what we need to evolve, to become our best self.

    Entelechy has codified the 77 soft skills demanded by employers as ‘missing’ and mapped the 54 Character Qualities against them, that underpin their development.

    The Entelechy innovation is the teaching of Character Qualities – in their own right.

    The Entelechy disruption is to how they are taught. With Character Qualities, such as kind, adaptable, resilient, accountable, and reliable, the Entelechy heutagogy not only assesses that the learner understands what each one means (which is how they are taught and assessed today) but more importantly assesses that the learner ‘becomes’ more kind, adaptable, resilient, accountable, and reliable – and that these new behaviours are validated by two 3rd party qualified and appropriate assessors.

    What sets ‘the best’ above ‘the rest’?

    Its three simple things:

    1. A Dream – they imagine their future, and make it happen.
    2. Skills – they proactively and consistently take action to improve their skill set
    3. Character – they are self-aware, and consciously choose to evolve who they are as they show up in the world

    The capabilities to achieve our entelechy – the best version of ourselves – is a combination of ‘dreams’, ‘skills’ and ‘character’.

    Some believe that a skill is something you learn, but your character is something you are born with. Moreover, the character that you are born with will result in it being easier (or harder) to learn skills.

    We believe that we all have the same set of innate capabilities to develop ‘skills’ and ‘character’ and its working on both, that sets apart the ‘best’ from ‘the rest’. Character can be learned – just like any skill. Character capability is innate in all of us and it’s easy to unlock and develop.

    When people start thinking about the skills they need for the future, they often miss out on thinking about who they are and need to become.

    Here are some steps to imagining and becoming your desired FUTURE SELF:

    • Imagine who you want to be
    • Journal about who you want to be in 3 years from now and how you want to feel
    • Decide who you want to be
    • Enrol people in your dream
    • Create a daily routine.  Activate your future-self mindset
    • Invest in your future self—courses, skills, mentors, experiences
    • Change your environment to match your future self—including the information, food, people, and experiences you choose to engage with

    Dr. Daniel Gilbert, a Harvard psychologist, found that people don’t do a very good job predicting their future, not because they can’t… but because they don’t! The reason why, from Gilbert’s research, is that very few people spend much time imagining their future selves. They assume that who they are today is who they’ll always be.

    If we asked 1m people to comment on the thesis above, that the 3 simple things that are required to achieve success are a) a dream b) skills and c) character I am sure that 90% would agree. Despite agreeing, 90 per cent would normally do nothing about it. We can help the 90% become like the 10% who resonate with the new information and become lifelong learners. To do things to become a better version of themselves. To develop their entelechy through character.

    David Carter is CEO of Entelechy Academy

  • How to create more leadership opportunities for women

    Patrick Crowder

    While things have come a long way, there is still much work to be done to increase the representation of women in the workplace, especially in top-level roles. According to the female leadership non-profit Catalyst, only 34% of UK companies have a female directorship. Change in this area is not coming quickly, with only a 2% increase from 2019.

    The leadership consultancy Impact International has assembled a report which shows the best ways to create more leadership opportunities for women. The first is to promote internally rather than looking outside of your business for top-level hires. By prioritising skills over board experience, a business is able to find excellent candidates for top roles who may not have had the opportunity to serve in such a position before. Many candidates with years of experience serving in senior roles are men due to higher promotion rates and more opportunities, so it is worth looking to women who already work in your company and display leadership potential rather than discounting them for lack of formal experience.

    Leadership training programmes are another great way to elevate the skills of your entire workforce, while providing women with an opportunity to lead which they may not have had in their professional careers. Additionally, having employees of all genders working together on leadership programmes can have the effect of removing deep-seated stereotypes and expectations of women in leadership roles which some employees may not even know that they have.

    If you are interested in elevating your business by helping to end gender inequality at the top levels of management, there are many resources available. The non-profit Catalyst is a good start, as well as the women-led research company Seramount which has researched and advocated for gender diversity since 1979. The tools to make change are out there, and it is up to businesses to put them to good use.

    Credit: https://www.impactinternational.com

    https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-on-corporate-boards/

  • What is Upskilling, and why is it more critical now than ever?

    Adam Johnson

    Up until a few years ago, obtaining your undergraduate degree was a pass to the vast world of employment. Unfortunately, a higher education certificate might not take you that far nowadays. 

    Upskilling – the evolution of a person’s abilities and career path – has become a buzzword in today’s job ambience. Both employees and employers have begun looking at ways to maximise the available opportunities and minimise skills gaps.

    The world of work is changing at the speed of light, and you need to be able to adapt to it, otherwise you’ll fall behind. Here is how to stay on top of your game at all times with upskilling.

    Why should upskilling enter your vocabulary now?

    Upskilling has been known to humanity for a long time, and it’s become integral to our upbringing. But just like the world of work has changed, especially after/amidst the pandemic. The necessity of upskilling has changed too. While the half-life of professional skills was once 10-15 years, it’s now been shortened to five years. For technical skills, this can be even shorter. This means that workers must constantly update their skills to stay relevant.

    According to the ILO Global Commission of the Future of Work, “today’s skills won’t match the jobs of tomorrow, and newly acquired skills may quickly become obsolete.” Things like technological advancements, climate change, globalisation, and COVID-19 are dictating changes in the workplace and the need for upskilling.

    Automation calls for new technical skills

    The question of robots replacing humans in the workplace has been pressing for a long time. The 2013 movie Hernarrated the possible future of humanity where robots have replaced not only human labour but also human romance. It seems that the line between sci-fi and reality is becoming more and more blurred. According to experts at Fortune magazine, “40% of the world’s jobs will be replaced by robots capable of automating tasks”.

    Yes, around 1.5 million jobs in England are at risk of being automated in the future, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This means that human labour won’t be needed. Such jobs include elementary occupations, as well as process, plant, and machine operatives. As worrying as this sounds, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

    Although automation and digitalisation may replace low-skilled and manual jobs, they will create new job opportunities too. The areas that will see the most growth will be within the cognitive and metacognitive categories.

    We must adapt to technological innovations, and this calls for continuous learning. Digital literacy, numeracy, creativity, and innovative thinking must improve continuously to keep up.

    Globalisation, Brexit, and COVID-19: how are jobs shifting shape?

    It’s fair to say that most job sectors are shifting and so is the workforce demand. Globalised businesses are making way for both high-skilled and low-skilled jobs. However, medium-skilled jobs are being left behind. The job polarisation is due to the increased labour-intensive production, liberalisation of trade, and international transportation and communication. Workplaces within leading economies are looking for highly skilled people who are ready to operate on a global level. Conversely, they are also looking for cheaper low-skilled labourers.

    However, both Brexit and COVID-19 have had an immense impact on disruptions to supply chains and trade. The UK is facing a workforce shortage, and Brexit has only worsened the situation. Those who thrive in this changing socio-economic environment will have transferable skills. These skills can be adapted and applied to different occupations and skills. 

    You might be wondering, is my job at stake? While many businesses are set to recover from Brexit and the pandemic, others might remain in the shadows. That’s why it’s more critical now than ever to upgrade your core skills. It’s also important to upgrade your more alternative skills that are useful as a backup plan. For example, you can learn to become a ski instructor, a reiki healer, or an English language teacher. 

    Obtaining such qualifications will make you an even more desired candidate. They will show employers that you are willing to adapt to new environments and learn new skills.

    New jobs to drive the green economy forward

    With the increasing focus on sustainability, employers are looking at ways to transition to a green economy. The International Labour Organization (ILO) advises that 24 million new jobs will be created worldwide by 2030. All this is in response to the growing green economy.

    Employers are receiving support from governments to fund their sustainable recruitment initiatives. In the UK, the Sustainable Innovation Fund has been introduced to help innovative firms commercialise their ideas while contributing to national and global sustainability objectives.

    Such new careers include energy auditors, energy engineers, agroforesters, and air quality forecasters. These roles call for a whole new set of skills and abilities. Thankfully, there are a number of programs and courses designed to support sustainable development.

    Apart from the emergence of new jobs within the eco sector, existing jobs are also being affected by the transition to a green economy. Upskilling is always essential. Such ‘green’ skills include eco-awareness, waste prevention, and efficiency improvement alongside core interpersonal skills in the likes of digital literacy, strategic and innovative thinking, and leadership.

    The world is changing faster than ever with a lot of socio-economic factors at play. In order to adapt to the new world of work, employees are being urged to upskill their abilities and implement innovative thinking. In turn, this will drive both the economy and their personal development forward.

    Sources:

    https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/—ed_emp/—emp_ent/documents/publication/wcms_813222.pdf

    https://fortune.com/2019/01/10/automation-replace-jobs/

    https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/articles/whichoccupationsareathighestriskofbeingautomated/2019-03-25

    https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/articles/theprobabilityofautomationinengland/2011and2017

    https://www.futurelearn.com/info/courses/globalisation-in-business/0/steps/158496

    https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2019/04/green-economy-could-create-24-million-new-jobs/#:~:text=A%20shift%20to%20a%20greener%20economy%20could%20create,in%20place%2C%20says%20the%20International%20Labour%20Organization%20%28ILO%29.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-plan-for-jobs-documents/a-plan-for-jobs-2020

  • HS2 cuts cause concern for northern economy

    Patrick Crowder

    A major section of the HS2 railway which would have run from the east midlands to Leeds has been scrapped in a move which has outraged many, including Labour leader Sir Kier Starmer. The railway has always been controversial, and a petition to stop the railway by nature conservationists led to Parliamentary debate this September. Now, the controversy stems from what some are calling broken promises for the levelling up of northern economy.

    The lobbying organisation Construction Alliance North-East (CAN) has predicted that the new Integrated Rail Plan will mean hard times for northern construction firms. CAN Board member Stuart Miller explains the possible consequences, and how this move could not have come at a worse time.

    “The construction industry has suffered greatly over the past 18 months with materials price hikes, availability of key products, and site closures. The government’s cancellation of these projects has added to these issues with the loss of years’ worth of work to the region,” Miller says, adding that “Major infrastructure projects of this nature are the lifeblood of many, and we’re disappointed that, once again, prosperity in the North has been overlooked.”  

    Northern Powerhouse Rail investments have been cut by £24.9bn, and investments in the eastern leg of the line have been cut by £14.2bn, halving the initial investment. This move strikes a nerve as many see it as a rolling back of the Levelling Up agenda, which promises to balance the UK economy and make prosperity in the north and south more equal. Miller believes that this move will have a direct impact on employment in the region and calls for the delivery of government promises.

    “The government’s levelling-up agenda must include a step-change in infrastructure delivery in the north of England, and the decision to scale-back these plans can only hinder its stated intention of delivering a more balanced UK economy in the longer term,” Miller says, “One key section of Northern Powerhouse Rail alone could deliver a £22bn boost to the northern economy by 2060,” citing a report by engineering consultancy Mott McDonald.

    Boris Johnson says that he has not gone back on promises and guaranteed that the improvements will be delivered. In the meantime, he faces backlash from both parties. He has defended the delays, citing concerns over building on virgin countryside and “ploughing through villages”, according to a BBC report. 

    Change may well come as promised, but in the short-term at least, it seems that northern construction contractors will continue to struggle.

    Credit:

    www.constructionalliancenortheast.co.uk

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-59334043

  • One in three UK employees find getting help from HR “hard or nearly impossible”, study finds

    Patrick Crowder

    How well do you know your Human Resources department? According to a new study, about half of you should answer, “not at all”. 

    Research by the HR software company Cezanne shows that only 55% of employees would definitely be able to recognise members of their HR teams if they passed in the hall. 27% of the group surveyed said that they definitely wouldn’t recognise any members of their HR teams, and the remaining people were unsure.

    This seems to represent a problem. We know that many companies have HR departments which offer solid support to their employees – that is not in question. However, the results of this survey show that some HR departments are lacking in engagement. In addition to that, one third of respondents found it “hard or nearly impossible” to get help from HR.

    The pandemic has caused a major shift in the way that people work and interact with colleagues. It has also been a time of anxiety, uncertainty, and depression for many people, so HR departments have recently had to play a much larger role in ensuring the mental wellbeing of their employees. 

    Cezanne’s study shows that, on the whole, employees were at least satisfied with their HR departments’ handling of the pandemic. In response to the question, “Do you trust your HR team more or less now than before Covid-19,” 32% of respondents said that they now have more trust in their HR departments than before the pandemic.  This is a good sign that a good number of companies engaged with their employees and helped them through the pandemic. 

    54% were indifferent, saying that their trust in HR had not changed. This may seem lacklustre but maintaining an existing relationship of trust in the face of adverse circumstances and unknowns is no easy task.

    Of the employees surveyed, 14% said that they trust their HR team less now following the pandemic, demonstrating that there were companies which mismanaged HR since 2020 leading to a drop in employee satisfaction.

    Overall, the pandemic could have been handled much worse by HR teams across the UK, and a relatively small drop in trust during that time is understandable. However, it is also clear that some HR teams are not doing enough to be accessible, understanding of, and helpful to employees. 

    HR is paramount to running and maintaining a healthy business, and the mental health needs of employees are of more concern now than ever before. The HR departments which excel often go well beyond expectations, and it’s up to those departments which are lacking to catch up fast or risk being left in the dust.

    Credit: Cezanne HR https://cezannehr.com/infographics/trust-in-hr/

  • The WFH revolution is here, but the office is still the most popular option, finds YouGov poll

    Patrick Crowder

    New research conducted by YouGov Cambridge as part of their Globalism Project reveals the different ways people wish to work after the pandemic. Their survey of 27 countries asks where people would prefer to work if they had the choice – in the home or office – and how often they would like to do so.

    Denmark and Japan have the lowest desire to remove the office from work life completely, with only 8% of respondents in both countries stating that they would like to work from home full time. US, South African, and Brazilian workers are the most eager to ditch their commutes, with 27-28% saying that they wouldn’t like to work in an office at all.

    In the UK, the most popular option is to work in an office full-time with no work from home element. While 38% of UK workers don’t want to work from home at all, 23% want to work from home “most” of the time, and 21% want to work from home only “some” of the time. This desire for flexibility outweighs the nation’s desire to embrace the home office, with 18% of people saying that they would prefer full-time work in the home.

    As we have seen that Japanese workers have little desire to work from home, it stands to reason that Japan also has the highest number of people who want to work in the office full time, at 52%. Italian workers are second on the list for wanting to retain traditional office life at 48%, trailed closely by Spain and Germany which both saw 46% of workers wishing to keep their offices.

    Most workers in all of the countries surveyed are willing to work from home at least some of the time, with percentages for that option hovering between 20-40% across the board. Some countries, however, are resistant to working from home for most of the time, including Japan, Denmark, Spain, and France which all saw responses for that category falling below 15%.

    Across all of the countries surveyed, working in the office full time was the most popular choice at 32%. While 47% of workers are happy to work from home in some capacity at work (if we combine the respondents who chose to work from home “most of the time” and “some of the time”), only 17% are willing to make working from home their full time job. 

    However you like to work, it seems that there will always be someone else who would prefer something different – and with a bit of added flexibility and solid organisation, that’s not a problem. 

    Data: YouGov Cambridge https://docs.cdn.yougov.com/jgy6eyxvvs/Globalism21_CovidImact_AllCountries_WFHRebase.pdf