Claire Blacka’s Post

We're gearing up to launch Magic Sponge: Part 2, where we'll be sitting down with inspiring leaders to explore their career journeys and lessons. We're kicking off with none other than Stuart Machin, Chief Executive of Marks and Spencer 💥 Stuart's journey started as a teenager collecting trolleys at his local Savacentre (a JV between Sainsbury’s & BHS). It was this job that inspired Stuart to forgo University and instead focus on a career in retail. Stuart climbed the ranks at Sainsbury's, Tesco, and Asda, before moving to Australia to work for Wesfarmers as Operations Director of Coles and Managing Director of Target. After a decade down under, in 2018 Stuart returned to the UK to lead M&S Food, before becoming M&S Chief Executive in 2022. Since taking the helm at M&S, Stuart has made a significant impact, accelerating the M&S transformation plan to ‘reshape for growth’. As part of this, Stuart has been working hard to instill a ‘high-performance culture’ across the organisation, with a mindset of ‘always aiming higher’ and staying ‘positively dissatisfied.’ In 2022, Stuart launched the "Straight to Stuart" initiative – a platform for M&S’s 70,000 colleagues to suggest positive changes to the business directly with the CEO. Since then, M&S colleagues have suggested almost 20,000 ideas, with many of them given a YES and implemented across the business. Stuart has also been a vocal advocate for social mobility, lobbying for reforms to the National Apprenticeship Levy to help get more young people into work. Under this leadership, M&S returned to the FTSE100 in 2023 and has seen its share price increase by around 300% over the last two years. It was a great conversation covering leadership, Stuart's career, and more. Stay tuned for the full chat, which is coming soon! Subscribe here to be the first to hear when it launches: https://lnkd.in/eSNyU43P Who inspires you as a leader? Tag them below, and we’ll do our best to (metaphorically) pin them down for a conversation as part of Magic Sponge: Part 2! Andy Cottrill Emily Koltunicki (Assoc CIPD) #InspiringLeaders #Retail #MagicSponge #SocialMobility #HighPerformanceCulture

Today, I had the honour of delivering a Values & Behaviours session to some of my esteemed colleagues, alongside fellow V&B champions Angie and Julie. The session was truly enlightening and impactful as we explored together the core principles that drive our business, fundamental to the Intersnack Work System. These principles shape our culture, ensuring we operate with integrity and purpose. As a V&B champion, I am deeply passionate about promoting an inclusive, equitable, and diverse workplace culture. It is incredibly rewarding to witness colleagues feeling valued and motivated every day. KP Snacks has an outstanding strategy to embed inclusivity, equality, and diversity across the organisation, making it a place where everyone is proud to contribute to our success. The session also provided a great opportunity to learn about identifying red flags in behaviours, understanding the shadows we cast through our actions, and the importance of giving constructive feedback. We emphasized that feedback should be seen as a gift, helping us grow and improve rather than being perceived negatively. One of the quotes that resonated with me during our session was: "You may not be able to control someone's negative behavior, but you can control how long you participate in it." Overall, the session enhanced everyone’s understanding and commitment to our shared values, ensuring a positive and supportive work environment for all, which undoubtedly attracts new talent seeking an inclusive and equitable workplace. #WorkplaceCulture #Inclusivity #Equality #Diversity #ValuesAndBehaviours #KPSnacks #IntersnackWorkSystem #ProudToBeKP

This is not a post about chocolate. It’s a culture lesson. Last year I put a call out on LinkedIn for someone from the chocolate industry to help my son with some research for a school project. The power of this platform connected me with a kind man so generous with his time. And yesterday I met him in real life. Michael Huggins (pictured below with us) gave a very warm welcome to Cadbury’s home in Bourneville as it celebrates its 200th year celebrations. My kids expected to eat chocolate all day. What they got instead was a lesson in culture. Everything Michael talked about connected back to the original ethos the Cadbury brothers had envisaged for a business trying to do things differently. Some might say, ahead of their time. Walking around Cadbury World there were so many references to how, over the years, employees were front and centre of decision making - from welfare provisions and healthcare to housing, recreation and celebration. Visitors can’t possibly avoid being immersed in the importance of the company’s culture and its central, yet humble, community role as part of their visit, and so of course it was something I discussed with the kids at length. Today, the business holds on to a Glassdoor score of 4 which I looked up on my way home. Thank you Michael. We all enjoyed meeting you and hearing about your almost four decade long career journey with company. Your passion shines. Link to a brilliant article that explains a bit more about the story behind the business’s culture for those interested. Don’t forget, you can get all my “behind the scenes life of a NED” on Instagram by following at Circles_in_a_circle #culture #companyvalues #employees #values #behaviours

Doing the "actual" work of supplier inclusion means more than just 'speaking' on panels or sharing what we're doing—it’s about rolling up our sleeves and getting involved in every step of the process It’s about mentoring suppliers 1-on-1, matching them with the right connections, and advocating for them every step of the way. It’s about working closely with procurement teams to align opportunities and build robust pipelines that create tangible impact because to 'diversify a supply chain means to de-risk a supply chain'. Most importantly, it’s about being transparent about where the real value lies and ensuring suppliers understand how to navigate complex landscapes. I'm excited to partner with Aramark Avendra International and Diversity Masterminds® on a 10-week development program. Together, we’ll help select diverse suppliers tackle the complexities of foodservice and distribution. Looking forward to the journey! #SupplierInclusion #LevelUp Sysco #SupplierDiversity #Mentorship #Partnership #Procurement #Foodservice #DEI Natily Santos, MBA Jonathan Mason Heather Cox 🎗️Mercedes Rodriguez

After 6 years I’ve left retail and working at Sainsbury’s. Just wanted to highlight that it plays an important role in getting your foot in the door of the working world. Wether you see yourself there for a year or 25 year’s, being a future manager or just a part time gig, supermarkets and retail are great for student employment and learning transferable skills and how to talk to older people, colleagues, and members of the public. In times of underfunded community hubs, supermarkets often take the place of such hubs, where else do you see such eclectic mixes of people on a daily basis? So just a little insight to maybe change your perception of retail and supermarkets from something mundane and boring to something that Brings people together.

So last week we visited the CIPD #FestivalofWork in London. We spoke to hundreds of amazing people professionals about #reward and #recognition, cost of living support and a whole bunch of other amazing things. We also let every visitor to our stand spin the wheel. Whether it was £5 or £50, we sent the prizes out as Prezzee smart cards, giving the lucky winners the choice of redemption at hundreds of retailers. So this brings us to a really interesting question, just what do HR professionals like when it comes to a little treat? Well it turns out the list is varied, 37 different retailers have been chosen so far… Coming in at number 4 with 2% of redemptions we have John Lewis & Partners, because who doesn’t like John Lewis? At number 3, it’s Just Eat Takeaway.com at 3%, no one wants to cook after 20k steps around #ExCel for the day Number 2 is Tesco with 7%, it’s just convenient, isn’t it? And the absolute winner? (and in one of the most exhausting professions out there this shouldn’t be a surprise) Costa Coffee coming in with 9% Special shoutout to the £50 winner choosing Miller & Carter-we like your style.

So far this quarter, MWB Restaurants has awarded over $80,000 in bonuses to our restaurant leaders. And that's just the start. 🙌 This year, we’ve gone all in on showing appreciation in big ways, including: 🧡 Awarding $15,000 to our Huntsville Plaza team for their Whatagames win 🧡 Hosting monthly contests with prizes ranging from gift cards to pizza parties 🧡 Launching a platform that lets employees earn rewards for hitting goals 🧡 Celebrating our Operators with quarterly rankings and trophies 🧡 Revamping our PTO policy to offer 2-3 weeks off depending on the role 🧡 Increasing the base salary to $70,000 for all Operating Partners 🧡 Improving our paternity and bereavement leave programs 🧡 Implementing new systems designed to streamline operations 🧡 Creating a clear career path for Operators to grow 🧡 Revamping our bonus program for Managers, Operators, and support team 🧡 Hosting a Holiday Party for our Support Team and Operators (in 2 weeks!) 🧡 Pushing for greater development and knowledge-sharing across teams 🧡 Revamping our internal newsletters to improve communication ✨ And more ✨ No company is perfect, but if you're looking to work somewhere that truly appreciates the hard work of its people, this is the place. Ready to join us? #Whataburger #EmployeeAppreciation #TeamMWB

Ever wondered how some businesses retain staff and others don’t?  Or how to encourage staff progression? Check out our Best Practice guide on pub chain and family brewery Hall & Woodhouse who launched a programme that triggered a step-change in its practices. 📲 Read more here https://lnkd.in/eCeEGTc6

More than just treats. We're spreading joy & serving up smiles all season long with custom baked goods, artisan popcorn, hot beverage bars, & festive events. From tenant and employee appreciation, to corporate gift sets, there's something for everyone at Scoops2U. #corporategifting #tenantevents #tenantappreciation #employeeevents #employeeappreciation #holidayparty #officeparty #tenantgifting #employeegifting

💡 How to keep your staff happy 💡 Simple... you reward them for their dedication and commitment to your organisation and let them know that they are valued... 🚀 It isn't Rocket Science 🚀 Hats off to CEO Roisin Currie at Greggs who has decided to pay all staff members that have been working for them 6+yrs a £700 bonus each after the bakery beat McDonald's to become the UK's favourite breakfast spot. I know not every organisation can afford to do things like this, but recognising the hard work and dedication from your employees will help you to retain them and have a happy workforce. Win:Win 🙂