I have seen and heard so much good content about #IWD2021 that I contemplated not adding to the noise. I then decided it is about celebrating strong and inspiring women, and I want to do that.

The last year (more than any) has reminded me we have a long way to go until we can truly celebrate equal status for women and no longer need #IWD. A perfect illustration is when the public expressed anger at the Government’s Stay at Home campaign. The ad pictured women home schooling their children and doing household chores, while the man sat on the sofa watching TV.

I wonder, were people cross that it looked like an ad from the 50s, or actually that it was a fair representation of what was happening in the majority of homes? A reminder of how far equality had been set back by the pandemic? Of how working women I know and follow, have been juggling chef, hotel manager, teacher and full-time entertainer, along with their own career?

Read more “Celebrating #IWD in actions, not just words of support”

People are at the very heart of what we do, our biggest assets and what makes Stand what it is. We knew this way before the pandemic came along, but the lockdown made us think of new ways of listening to our teammates, made us even more sensitive to individuals’ needs and got us all thinking more about each-others’ mental wellbeing.

As of this week we’ve taken another meaningful step towards supporting our staff by signing the Time to Change pledge, and becoming one of over 1500 organisations working towards ending mental health stigma in the workplace. We’ve committed to creating a cultural change within Stand, and by extension in the industry at large and all the communities we are a part of.

Read more “Our pledge to end mental health discrimination”

We shut the Stand office and started to work remotely nearly four weeks ago. Twenty people scattered across the country, rather than in an open plan office in WC1. It’s this change in environment I’ve found the toughest. For an extrovert, who gets their energy from others, I’ve found the need to call, video or text, rather than wander and talk, quite exhausting. Not just at work, but with family and friends. I miss the interaction, the noise, the physical presence of others. I’ve had to entertain myself, rather than get my buzz from people and activities around me. But I’ve learnt that I don’t need to be ‘busy’ all the time. That drive to ‘use every moment’ and ‘live life to the full’ comes from me, and I am not sure what it achieves. I definitely don’t want to self-isolate on a permanent basis, but it is OK to do nothing sometimes.

Read more “Lessons from Remote Working #3 – Believe in better, now and in life post lockdown”

On seeing the Bell Pottinger and Oakbay Capital story unravel, I imagine the temptation of most PR agencies is to argue that’s not how other PR agencies work, and to ask that we are not judged by the behaviour of one of the world’s largest agencies.

Read more “Who sets the moral compass? Leadership lessons from the Bell Pottinger case”

On the day of the Olympic opening ceremony in Rio, and almost four years to the day since I put on my Gamesmaker uniform, I’ve been thinking back to the sense of excitement I felt being part of London 2012.  The country was buzzing with national pride and a slight smugness that we’d managed to pull off something quite so spectacular – ahead of time.  For an event that so few people were lucky enough to be directly involved in, it felt like the whole country was behind this brilliant British export.

Read more “Reflecting on opening night”

Stand Agency has appointed Rakhee Rajani to further build the agency’s broadcast expertise and video content offer.

Read more “Stand Agency hires BAFTA winning Rakhee Rajani”

Laura Oliphant, Stand Agency’s MD was recently interviewed by Prospect Resourcing on life inside and outside of Stand towers.

Read more “Prospect presents Laura Oliphant”

Stand Agency’s MD, Laura Oliphant, was recently interviewed by Gorkana on cutting her teeth in charity PR, why research is so important to ensure good judgement calls and plans for unaided yoga headstands by this time next year.

Read more “Behind the Headlines with Laura Oliphant”

According to Theo ‘Dragon’s Den’ Paphitis, 50% of small businesses fail in their first three years.  With small businesses constituting 99.6% of all business in the UK private sector, the economic implication of them succeeding or failing is huge. In some cases, as he says, inadequate preparation is the reason, but cash flow is the lifeblood of small businesses and can be the deciding factor in their survival.

Read more “Do as you would be done by”

A few weeks ago pictures were shared of Andy Murray’s motivational notes he carries with him during a big match. Some of them apply to life in general, like be good to yourself and others are more tennis specific, like keep going for your serve.  The idea of reminding yourself of what helps you perform at your best got me thinking about what inspires me to be the best I can be. So taken with this idea we have created a quote wall at Stand Agency Towers so we can get some quick inspiration on the way to the kitchen.  In terms of what I would have on my motivational crib sheet here are a few ideas: Read more “Keep going for your serve”