The World of Work Podcast

James and Jane discuss the future of work with Lewis Garrad from Mercer. The broad conversation ranges from an exploration of changes to society through to reflections on purpose and meaning in work, as well as the compulsory discussion of the impact of technology on work.

James and Jane are joined by Lesley Thomson from the Scottish Government to discuss Scotland's National Performance Framework, the framework of outcomes that Scotland is working towards achieving as a country. This interesting and novel approach by government aligns very well with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, and the concept of responsibility in business.

James and Jane are joined by Rob Robson for a conversation about Reversal Theory. After first exploring the history of motivation, Rob explains what reversal theory is and shares some practical advice around how it can be used for self management and in coaching.

James and Jane discuss influence within organizations and why it matters from a responsible business perspective. They also discuss the impacts that different legal structures and sources of funding have over who really influences the ability of organizations to behave in responsible ways.

James and Jane are joined by Alexander Schwall from Rhabit Analytics to discuss Organizational Network Analysis (ONA). The conversation explores what ONA is, what some benefits of it are and how organizations undertake it.

Jane and Jane touch on storytelling and the importance of the stories we tell in society before exploring the concept of career narratives. The list of the week consists of the seven basic types of stories that exist, with some thoughts on how they can relate to careers.

James and Jane discuss the concept of responsibility in business and explore some of the ways in which businesses can be responsible. They also touch on several organizations that support and promote responsible business.

James and Jane explore the history of the LGBT community in work with Dr Phil Tiemeyer from Kansas State University. In this episode they discuss key moments in the LGBT community's relationship with work over the past century and reflect on the current rights of the community, primarily in the US.

James and Jane discuss Edgar Schein's 8 Career Anchors, a helpful tool for assessing your own career decisions and progression, as well as for considering the progression of individuals in your team. The list of the week covers lessons organizations can learn from the Career Anchors about how they lead their people.

James and Jane discuss what can be done to increase diversity on organizational boards with Neil Stevenson from Changing the Chemistry, a charity that works to do just that. The conversation covers what it's like to work on a board, the different roles of different board members and how to develop the skills you need to get onto a board.

James and Jane discuss the holiday season and reflect on what it means for the world of work. The consider people who may not have positive associations of the festive period, reflect on how organizations can manage holiday requests over the period and what you can do if you find yourself working this period. The conversation then ends with some thoughts on how to make the most of the season.

James and Jane discuss the role that unconscious bias plays in recruitment, and how technology can help overcome this bias with Andy Babbage from Applied. The conversation covers some common mistakes that nearly everyone makes when it comes to recruitment, and some ways that we can all get better as the assessment process.

James and Jane discuss Menopause with Ruth Devlin from "Let's Talk Menopause". The conversation covers a general introduction to menopause and overview of the symptoms of menopause. It also includes guidance around what organizations and managers can do to become more menopause inclusive.

James and Jane discuss Inclusion and Diversity in the sporting world with four time former Olympian, Donna Fraser. The conversation covers ways to assess inclusion and diversity in organizations as well as things you can do to help improve inclusion and diversity in organizations.

James and Jane discuss the importance of mental health with Ian Braid from DOCIA sport, a mental health first aid trainer. The episode covers signs of declining mental health, what to do when you realize you are not in a good mental place, and how get back to being your best.

James and Jane discuss the gender pay gap, diversity and inclusion with Katy and Fi from the Catalyst Collective. In the conversation they explore what the gender pay gap is, some reasons why it might exist and some of the things we can do to try and change it.

James and Jane discuss journeys that care experienced individuals and post trauma experienced individuals go through in the world of work, and what organizations can do to be more inclusive towards these people.

James and Jane discuss Neurodiversity is with Emma Walker, from Auticon. In the conversation they learn about diverse conditions including autism, ADHD, Dyslexia. They also learn how organizations can be more inclusive towards these people, so that they can benefit from the huge strengths that many of them bring to the world of work.

James and Jane discuss more nuanced aspects of inclusion with Dr Rehman Abdulrehman. This excellent conversation encompasses the power names, micro-iniquities, privilege and cultural competence.

James and Jane speak to Sarah Churchman, PwC UK's Chief Inclusion and Wellbeing Officer, about Diversity & Inclusion(D&I). They discuss what is meant by D&I, why D&I matter to individuals, organizations and society and how to create more inclusive and diverse teams. The conversation also focuses on what it's like to work in an Inclusion and Diversity team, and what the future might look like for D...

James and Jane talk about how people can manage their own career development and self-improvement. They reflect on the importance of personal development plans and what good ones look like, as well as discussing some of the conflicts that exist between personal development and performance management in the world of work.

James and Jane discuss mental health and the role that it can play in our lives and the world of work. They report some powerful facts about mental health in the UK workplace before sharing the Mental Well-being vs Mental Illness matrix and the Mental Health Continuum Model. The list of the week is made up of successful people who have experienced mental health challenges.

James and Jane discuss what self regulation is, explore some theories of self regulation and ask if it's possible to get better at regulating yourself. The list of the week sheds light on a self regulation questionnaire.

James and Jane discuss different tools and approaches that people can use to become more effective at work. They reflect on the concept of "getting things done", talk about the concept of time-blocking and the pomodorro technique and discuss the importance of "mindset".

James and Jane discuss what self awareness is and why it matters in the world of work. They also talk through the Johari Window, a model for measuring inter-personal awareness, before reflecting on how you can improve your self-awareness. As an aside, they touch briefly on narrative identity theory.