3 things I like about Peabody

 

 

 

What do I like about working at Peabody? There are lots of things I like about working at Peabody.

First of all I have a boss whose management style I am suited to. This is a totally personal thing. I can not cope with people who micro manage and/or who think the right and only way of dealing with a situation is their way, in their style. First of all this is impossible to emulate if you are not that sort of person and secondly, it crushes the spirit. I totally appreciate accountability and cc in on every necessary email. I generally love 1:1s and hate them getting deferred or cancelled at the last minute as I will have been saving up my issues for discussion. I just need some vague projects and space for the creative juices to flow.

Secondly, I love the diversity of the staff. I think that people who haven’t worked outside London can not really understand what a buzz it is to be in an office where all ages, genders, faiths, proclivities etc. are represented. I went to a school of some 1000 pupils in Yorkshire and there was one black girl. I even remember her name – Amber. It gives me great pleasure that the diversity in my world has changed beyond measure. Even my team is full of difference. I feel chosen because I contribute something different, not because I am a clone. It’s a good feeling. My current boss is only the second I have had who actively does that. The first was a guy called Peter Smith who is still working around London who preached that the best functioning teams are made of difference and people respecting that difference. Too many managers look for people they are personally 100% comfortable with.

A third thing I like about Peabody is that they encourage new ideas and ways of thinking. In their leadership themes they make statements like, ‘we inspire curiosity, new thinking, meaningful visions for the future and deliver our best ideas’. This broad brush statement is made to feel real by their Learning and Development Manager who is a sunny South African and so lives and breathes the above her integrity is unquestionable. She has a member of her team who works her hours around launching a designer handbag range http://alexajay.com/. How awesome is that, to be encouraged to fire on all cylinders and meet your potential?

And the CEO supports Millwall Football Club. Son 2 has been supporting Millwall since he was 5.