The Happy Manifesto

Nigel Paine, head of people development at the BBC, discusses the evolution of workplace learning, the creation of the BBC's iPlayer, and the importance of fostering a true learning culture in organisations. Nigel emphasises the need for trust, autonomy, competence, and connectedness toward creating an effective learning environment and shares with us examples from Danone and WD-40 to illustrate s...

Did you know that there's a strong link between happiness and success? In today's episode, we explore the surprising connection between happiness, productivity, and workplace culture. Nic Marks, a happiness expert and founder of the Centre for Wellbeing at the New Economics Foundation, and CEO of Friday Pulse, sheds light on this fascinating relationship and dives deep into the Happy Planet Index....

Many businesses still focus solely on financial metrics to understand why they are underperforming. However, one crucial factor is often overlooked—the well-being and happiness of employees who contribute to those results. Mark Price, former Marketing Director of Waitrose and founder of WorkL, discusses the critical role of employee happiness in driving business success. Drawing from his 32-year c...

In many workplaces, mistakes are not tolerated or easily forgotten, leading to environments where employers are feeling pressurised to be perform perfectly and potentially nervous to innovate new ideas. Ben Clarkson, Chief Finance and Operating Officer at Parkinson’s UK, joins the podcast today to share his journey implementing the principles of the Happy Manifesto, including the idea of celebrati...

Creating a culture of trust and collaboration and empowering frontline staff in the pressurised environment of Adult Social Care could be a challenge but it’s possible when leaders are given a clear blueprint, and the skills needed. Helen Taylor, Head of Services in Adult Social Care at Hounslow Council took on that challenge when she joined our Level Seven Senior Leader Apprenticeship programme a...

Alex Kjerulf is the original chief happiness officer and in today's episode shares insights from his 25-year journey, emphasising that true workplace happiness stems from meaningful results and positive relationships; rather than superficial perks. Alex reveals the growing global interest in workplace happiness, the benefits of remote working, four-day workweeks, and the pitfalls of relentless pos...

Emma Halahan is an apprentice who has worked with the Dog Star Foundation and is now at Guy's and St Thomas's NHS Foundation Trust. In this conversation, Emma shares her journey as a Gen-Z leader, discussing her experiences with leadership, the challenges of transitioning between organizations, and the impact of her apprenticeship. Emma also highlights the importance of empowering her team, develo...

Learning from mistakes can create a more fulfilling work environment says our guest, Dr. Natalie Nixon, a creativity strategist, who draws upon parallels with jazz music's improvisational nature, to explore the intersection between creativity, organisational culture, and productivity. Natalie advocates for a human-centric approach to problem-solving and balancing curiosity with discipline towards...

Understanding that happiness can be tied to outcomes, and that joy can be connected to the process of growth and potential, in both life and at work, can be key to developing happiness in the workplace. In this episode, Maja Djikic, an associate professor at the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, and author of The Possible Self, shares her "Wheel of Self" framework and explores th...

Early and accurate diagnosis of breast cancer, particularly in younger individuals, is important not just in the workplace but to any individual in any team or community and this is at the heart of CoppaFeel's mission: to promote early diagnosis to 18-24 year-olds, which can lead to treatments being more effective and less invasive whilst working towards higher survival rates. CoppaFeel is a breas...

Embracing neurodiversity in the workplace not only benefits neurodiverse individuals, but creates a more inclusive, flexible, and productive environment for everyone. By understanding and acknowledging different strengths and needs, we can reshape jobs and work cultures to foster a sense of belonging and joy, leading to more effective organisations. Ludmila Praslova is an organisational psychologi...

Going from startup to scale-up takes strategic planning and insight, along with a real understanding of employee happiness. Plus, crafting great job descriptions and letting people make their own decisions once they’re in a role are key to developing a team of A players. Dominic Monkhouse has a distinguished career in scaling up businesses, especially within the IT sector. He successfully built tw...

Employee happiness makes a big contribution to a company's success, as can self-management. But how do you know what’s really working, driving the business forwards, and helping it meet its targets? This week's guest is Pieter Jelle de Brue, founder of digital agency Statik, a company that values employee happiness and has adopted a self-managing structure with multiple autonomous teams. They’re c...

A four-day work week doesn’t simply lead to longer weekends. When implemented right, organisations can maintain the same level of productivity, and give their employees significant – and measurable – increases in happiness. The four-day week challenges traditional concepts of work and productivity and encourages companies to measure output rather than time spent working. This shift in approach has...

Before chasing the latest technologies or trends, organisations need to focus on building a strong foundation and core capabilities. They need a culture that encourages learning, collaboration, and transparency, and to have leadership that prioritises long-term success over short-term gains. In this episode, Henry is joined by Howard Yu, a renowned strategist and innovation expert, a Thinkers 50 s...

Creating democratic workplaces lead to accelerated growth and a culture that people love. By giving power to employees and treating them with dignity and fairness, companies can tap into the full potential of their workforce. Transitioning to a democratic workplace takes a specific mindset, democratic leadership skills, and the implementation of systems and processes that value transparency and ac...

A culture of trust, empowerment and respect towards employees leads to a successful and sustainable business model, higher levels of customer satisfaction, and a happy workplace. That ethos has been key to Handelsbanken’s operation for over 40 years, and has led them to top ratings in UK customer satisfaction for 15 years. It also makes financial sense. The banking group has been the most profitab...

Creating a culture of psychological safety is crucial for organisations. By fostering an environment where people feel safe to speak up, share their ideas, and take intelligent risks, companies can promote learning, innovation, and growth. Celebrating failures – especially intelligent failures that result from thoughtful exploration – can encourage individuals to take risks and contribute to the c...

Ricardo Semler’s radical book  Maverick  is now 30 years old. Happy was an early adopter of some of its key principles, and when software company cofounder Zahid Malik was looking for implementation examples, Happy was just about the only one he found. As Semler’s work suggests, implementing a culture of trust, freedom, and autonomy can have a transformative impact on a company. By allow...

As an organisation expands and new people come on board – either remotely in or in satellite offices – it can be hard to ensure everyone’s aligned with the same values and goals. This can lead to a lack of cohesion and a sense of disconnection among team members. So organisations need to find creative ways to maintain their culture as they grow. TLC, a relationship charity based in Greater Manches...

Creating a truly inclusive and happy workplace means understanding and addressing the unique needs and feelings of each individual. This involves actively listening to and communicating with employees, recognising and addressing implicit biases, and creating a culture of trust and fairness. Creating connections between teammates and increasing knowledge and understanding of each other's background...

Psychologically safety isn’t just about creating a comfortable climate, but about embracing discomfort. That’s because discomfort helps us grow and address complex problems, which in turn leads to greater psychological safety. This means shifting from a parent-child dynamic to an adult-to-adult relationship within teams. That involves relating to people's potential, treating them as competent prof...

Co-management is a radical and fair way to run a company. One company’s approach of having no hierarchy and no bosses has allowed for a more collaborative and communicative environment, where teams can solve problems together. Matt Perez is the co-founder of Nearsoft, a software company that practices co-management. Instead of having bosses, they have leadership teams that solve problems and make...

Happiness is not just a feeling, but an action that can be intentionally built within an organisation. By prioritising happiness and promoting engagement, pride, and appreciation, companies can create a culture that leads to profitability and success. Dr Pelè developed the concept of "profitable happiness", which centres around the notion that organisations can create a culture of happiness that l...

Budgeting is time-consuming, can lead to quickly-outdated assumptions, and can stimulate unethical behaviours like resource hoarding. Beyond Budgeting is a management philosophy that challenges traditional management practices, specifically the budgeting process. In this episode, Henry speaks with Bjarte Bogsnes about the problems with budgeting, and how some companies have broken free of the budg...