Woodreed Thinking (and writing and speaking)
We write, speak and train on a wide range of topics in the brand, engagement and culture arena. Volunteering for not-for-profit movement Engage for Success allows us to influence the agenda for employee engagement. Our roles as industry conference, podcast and radio hosts give us access to the latest thinking, research and leader opinions. We take these insights to enhance the work we do with our own clients. Woodreed publishes a wide range of thought papers. These are a combination of research and real world experience from us, our clients and other opinion formers. Find the latest below.
Woodreed publishes a wide range of thought papers around the subject of culture, brand and engagement. Our aim, to offer our readers an informed point of view based on a combination of research and real world experience from us, our clients and other opinion formers. Please feel free to dip into any of the thought pieces below. If you would like to join our mailing list and receive these straight to your inbox click here
From-C-Z: Bridging the Divide
Entire industries and businesses will rise and fall in the wake of Generation Z. Yet few industries or organisations seem to be ready for it. Are you?
Armed with their smartphones, memes, and an unwavering desire to challenge the norm, Gen Z are redefining the meaning of work. Fear not dear leaders, we are here to demystify – perhaps Gen Z are giving the boardroom the shot of courage they’ve always needed to do things differently?
Compassionate Leadership in the 21st Century
In a world grappling with complex challenges, changes and uncertainties, people need compassionate leaders with skills, mindsets and behaviours unlike any generation of leaders before.
Read our thought paper to find out what compassion really means, the four core elements of compassionate leadership and how compassionate leaders behave.
How to avoid a toxic fallout in your company
Toxic cultures are making the headlines AGAIN. The stuff we thought we’d confined to Room 101 for good is still there, lurking just below the surface in our organisations and institutions.
Woodreed’s latest thought paper dives into the murky depths of toxic culture. In it we show you what to look for, what to avoid and and how to make sure you come back up smelling of roses.
The Trust Issue
Trust is the fundamental bedrock that binds us together as humans; our relationships, our actions, our expectations of others. If trust is important in the good times, it becomes utterly essential in the bad. In the wake of COVID-19, it’s now literally a matter of life and death. Can I trust my employer to keep me safe? As we carve out new paths for our workplaces, one theme will come to dominate it all…Trust.
How to keep the cream of your crop
The Bank of England is predicting the UK is in for a recession that could last two years. Keeping your people engaged is even more pressing in times of economic uncertainty.
Your employer brand plays a central role in creating and sustaining the enduring partnership needed to keep the best of your talent. In our latest thought paper you’ll find the compelling stats around the value of retention. We also share what you can do to make sure you keep the crème de la crème, while attracting the cream of the crop to come and work (and stay) at your place.
What internal comms can learn from advertising
We know the power of an engaged workforce, and the role quality, effective internal communication has to play in delivering it. There’s much internal comms can gain from looking at the techniques of the ad industry. Having worked on both sides of the fence, us Woodies have a rare perspective into both worlds. Get the inside track on external comms and learn how you can put them to work inside.
Supporting, training and coaching line managers to drive engagement
Hanging on to your people has never mattered more, with CIPD figures suggesting a talent shortage crisis on the horizon. Are your line managers doing enough to keep them? With ‘Bad boss’ still right up there for reasons for leaving, we suspect not.
In this, our latest thought piece, we’ve taken leading workplace neuroscientist David Rock’s insights with their prehistoric roots and turned them into super practical tips for 21st Century line managers.
A blueprint for an internal communication campaign
As part of Woodreed’s mission to make workplaces better places to be, we’ve put together a fusion of case study and blueprint based around a brief to raise awareness of a new people strategy. We’ve done this to both inspire and guide you when creating you own internal communications campaigns.
We’ve been lucky enough to do this with creative input from successful Sci-Fi novelist Andrew Bannister.
Inside you’ll see the planning and development of an entire campaign, from brief to big idea to comms plan.
The Culture Report
A positive culture isn’t just a nice to have. It’s a competitive advantage. Your people give you the edge.
We’ve looked at organisational culture from all angles talking to leading experts and practitioners along the way, uncovering the true story of culture in UK businesses.
Read the story of culture – what it means, the barriers to developing positive cultures, how you shape them and, of course, the role of brand – the hero of the culture story.
Down with the kids, Woodreed’s Millennials report
The Millennial generation make up more than half the global workforce. They’re the instant information, instant gratification generation with the world literally at their fingertips.
Does your top team understand the Millennial generation? What motivates them? What they expect from an employer? What are their deal breakers?
Understanding this unique audience is key to business success over the coming decade, giving you the edge on your competitors and helping you win the battle for talent.
Bursting the boardroom bubble
The evidence of the impact on significant KPIs from engaged employees is growing. So why is the C suite still cocooned in a boardroom bubble when it comes to unlocking the power of an engaged workforce? We explore the disconnect in many leading organisations where brand is the preserve of marketing and employees the preserve of HR. We’ll also show you that a fraction of your external marketing budget spent inside goes a long, long way.
Ding dong the stick is dead (…and as for the carrot)
Autonomy (the ability to direct the course of your life), Mastery (The desire to improve yourself and get better at stuff you enjoy) and purpose (The reason we do what we do) are drivers of motivation in the workplace. Explained and explored in this thought-piece, we look at recognition and reward in a new light, exploring the impact this new thinking on motivation in the workplace has had on traditional ways of rewarding and recognising.
Treating customers like princes, employees like paupers – Bridging the gap between external and internal communications
There’s often a gulf between the effort companies put in to communicating with their customers versus employees. In many companies brand is the exclusive preserve of the marketing department focusing on the consumer while HR looks after employees. Never the twain shall meet. Woodreed explores this topic and shares how smart internal communicators treat their people like their marketing teams treat their customers, with the tools, techniques insight and creativity usually reserved for the customer.
Sign up for our thought papers
Woodreed publishes a wide range of thought papers around the subject of culture, brand and engagement. Our aim, to offer our readers an informed point of view based on a combination of research and real world experience from us, our clients and other opinion formers.