MILESTONES THAT INSPIRE PROGRESS
MILESTONES THAT INSPIRE PROGRESS
STORIES OF ACHIEVEMENTS AND ANNIVERSARIES THAT SPARK NEW OPPORTUNITIES AND STRENGTHEN COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS.
GLASS CEILINGS CHANGE MANAGEMENT CELEBRATES FIVE YEARS IN BUSINESS Laura Evans CEO Glass Ceilings Change Management
Glass Ceilings Change Management celebrated 5 years influencing change for work-life inclusion in October. Just a month beforehand, it was a privilege to celebrate the Chamber’s 175th anniversary at the impressive Hill Dickinson Stadium, where HRH Princess Anne asked several questions about our work. I found myself pondering where Glass Ceilings would be in 170 years’ time! Reaching half a decade was particularly poignant for me. It is often said that most small businesses fail within the first 3 years. Just 2.5 years in, and on the verge of exciting opportunities, I survived life threatening illness including 10 days’ hospitalisation. Despite this in a difficult economic and social climate, Glass Ceilings is still here and we are growing. So how did we manage this at a time when so many businesses are struggling or closing altogether? One of the main reasons is that we practice what we preach on growing a business sustainably. We have effective systems and governance, in place since day one but capable of adapting at pace when faced with external demands and pressures. We have built and maintained trusted relationships with existing clients and partners through delivering above and beyond expectations on projects and calmly supporting them through their own challenges, whether people or operational. We work with clients UK-wide of all sizes and across all sectors in the economy, supporting businesses to streamline operations and manage business risks effectively whilst creating a workplace people want to join, stay, grow, and thrive. If you imagine a Venn diagram, we sit uniquely in the middle of Management
Consultancy, People Consultancy, and Inclusion Consultancy, combined with a belief that nobody should be left behind. Everything we do is through the prism of inclusion, meaning we consider the people impacts; the diversity both of the existing workforce and future talent pipelines; and, developing systems and skills that sustain organisational growth in the short, medium, and longer-term. We have a reputation for spotting things well in advance, before they become a bigger problem. In short, we help save time and money in the longer term that is better spent growing a business than firefighting. Clients value our support with systems thinking, helping them to streamline and make best use of existing resources, whilst also identifying commercial and growth opportunities and making inclusive use of AI and emerging technologies. In the past year, we received more requests for support with restructures and redundancies than any other issue, particularly since employment costs and tax rises began to bite into profit margins and business confidence since last April. In addition, the recruitment market has been stagnant and there are challenges around high levels of sickness and disability in the working age population. I have personally walked the walk on these issues throughout the past 18 years, having established functions during a period of 45% cuts
without making a single person redundant. I have also led change programmes in organisations spanning 300 to over 40,000 employees, across all sectors, identifying £millions worth of savings reinvested into frontline services. As policy specialists, we demonstrate that policy should never be something stagnant on a page waiting for its next review. Done properly, policy is living and breathing, and very much drives the culture and feel in any organisation. Our policy clients value the way policies interact with each other to create true work-life inclusion across the piece. We are trusted as a cool head in a crisis, providing advice retrospectively on serious incidents or supporting clients to identify, proactively manage, and reduce potential risks whilst maintaining productivity and profitability. The current economic trends and issues around long term ill health and disability arising from the Covid pandemic form a large part of our work in these areas. We achieve wider influence through public speaking on webinars and podcasts; contributing to or publishing our own articles; and, responding to government consultations shaping employment law and policy. I am beyond proud of everything we have built and achieved so far, and excited for the next five years!
To learn more about us, view this special anniversary Q&A on our website: https:/ /glassceilings.co.uk/5th-anniversary-qa/ Get in touch to talk about how we can support your business: info@glassceilings.co.uk
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