What does an involved workforce look like?
In a recent interview with HR Grapevine magazine, Head of People and Development at the Jamie Oliver Group, Daniel Eley, outlined the Jamie Oliver approach to an involved team:
“We’re always looking for people who are passionate about what they do and are really involved and engaged in what our business does”
Daniel Eley, Head of People & Development, Jamie Oliver Group
Based on footage of the incredible 40th birthday surprise staff at the Jamie Oliver Group arranged for their namesake the other day, we’d say it’s working!
Jamie Oliver has always been known as a good boss, but the engagement of his staff was clear to see as he walked through the office to cheers, posters bearing his name and well-known catchphrases, along the street to the cheers of a town crier and then down into his nearby restaurant, where staff, friends and family had arranged a big party. The TV chef was reduced to tears when he descended the stairs into the restaurant, overwhelmed by the love and appreciation of all his staff.
If ever there were an example of an involved workforce, this is it. But how does the Jamie Oliver Group do it?
Jamie Oliver & Involvement
While the organisation bears his name, Jamie Oliver himself cannot possibly be involved in every process, every new hire or each individual change programme. So while the feelings of staff towards the man himself are clear to see, how does the organisation get their employees living brand values embodied by one man?
“Jamie is the culture and values of the business, and everything that we do is based around the culture and values of the business, so everything comes from him”
Daniel Eley, Head of People & Development, Jamie Oliver Group
The Jamie Oliver Group brand values are all conceived around something the chef himself has done or said, so his personal ethos remains at the heart of everything. The company is known as a great place to work, and is devoted to involvement programmes to make sure staff, too, are aligned with Jamie Oliver’s personal beliefs.
One way that the company does this is by bringing everyone in line with the reason Jamie Oliver’s journey began – food. Every single person who starts at Head Office, for example, is enrolled in a ten-week cooking course designed by Jamie himself. Food is engrained in everything at the Jamie Oliver Group and, according to Eley, is ‘always flying around the place”:
“You’ll get an email at 11.30am saying ‘there’s 10 roast chickens downstairs from testing we’ve been doing, come and get it!’”
It’s how the Jamie Oliver Group ensure that staff are involved with the brand values championed by Jamie Oliver himself. Training, management and culture are all focused on creating brand advocates who think and act the way Jamie himself would in their shoes.
What a great example of involvement!
Happy Birthday Jamie Oliver!