While we are familiar with flexible working and how different that can look from employee to employee, company to company, at MMC, we felt that the idea of embracing flexibility in working hours wasn’t enough for our team.
As a fully-female workforce, we are well versed in how the statistics show we and our careers carry the brunt of parenthood and, more importantly, that we need to actively play our part in changing that.
That’s why we’ve adopted a ‘supportive working’ approach to how our business is run.
A supportive working environment generally refers to an approach where employees receive the necessary assistance, encouragement, and resources to perform and succeed in their roles, recognising their differing individual needs. It creates an atmosphere that promotes collaboration, communication, and overall well-being, ultimately leading to a well-balanced, productive workforce.
At MMC, we achieve this through:
Real work-life flexibility and balance
More than simply allowing our team to work outside of the normal 9am-5pm grind, we are committed to honouring the fact our employees are individuals with personal lives too. By removing the pressure that comes from unexpected personal emergency phone calls, summer holiday childcare and of course those appointments that must be within working hours. There is no judgement, just support when these things and the many other curveballs that life throws at you hit.
Psychological safety
We’ve built our culture on our values, providing our team with the resources and tools to feel empowered in their work, confidence in their communication and collaboration and the clear expectations to keep them on track to achieve in their role. Gratitude is regular, both verbally and through gifts or gift cards, and feedback is taken on board with empathy and humility.
Wellness
We truly care about the well-being of our employees, both mentally and physically. We’ve created a culture where they can openly discuss their health without any fear, and we provide resources like counselling, fitness programs and health check-ups without pressure or intrusive expectations.
Through a culture of mutual trust and respect, MMC has built a working environment that works; both for the business and for the team. The only way this kind of environment can work is where business leaders trust their team and the team members trust leaders. Natasha McDonough, our founder and Managing Director said:
“It works both ways for me. As a working parent, and now being of the age where I have elderly relatives to care for, I couldn’t work in – let alone run – a business where mutual trust isn’t there. It’s just as important for me that the team trusts that when I’m taking time out, I make up for it in buckets when I am working! We’re all human, we all have to juggle, and quite frankly we all run out of steam some days. Being in an environment that honours personal needs as much as possible means that when we are working we’re more focused, more energised and that can only be good for both our colleagues and clients.”
Photo by Arnel Hasanovic on Unsplash