More of the action

This could be subtitled, ˜Do the SME's win?' Well if we cannot make work interesting and get people engaged in it, the answer is ˜Yes' they do. As for those bright people we all want to have in our businesses, survey after survey reports that they see small and medium enterprises as not only more interesting, but more caring about employees ' wishes too. So they are, in reality, the perfect place for lifestyle, want-to-be- myself -at-work people to go. This means that we are going to have to be prepared - if we are not an SME - to begin to manage more as if we were. Those soulless corporations and public sector monoliths are going to have to get their communication and their leadership right to meet the needs and expectations of those who would rather be working in a cosier climate. And there is no real reason why that cannot be achieved. As I pointed out earlier, if banks can appoint people managers then so can others. Small, work-friendly units can make even the most gigantic organisation feel like a small enterprise. I see an ever-increasing role for HR in staffing these units (or having people managers who are part HR person and part specialist).

As we continually emphasise, organisations must have a corporate rethink as to how they are going to make people want to work for them, who are the people that can make that happen successfully and what kind of training they will need.

Time and again I hear of small business units in big businesses where people stay for years and years because they are happy with their colleagues and the scale of what they are asked to do. If we can get these people managers on board, empowered perhaps to make work- related decisions such as extra time off, job sharing, days working at home, etc we can create some very dynamic businesses that fulfil employee expectations.