Higson

😎 Autonomy
At Higson, autonomy plays a crucial role in empowering the team and giving us the freedom to make decisions, take a flexible approach to work, opportunity for learning and staying accountable for results.

One of the ways we do this is by having the team structure their day and calendar as they want and what they wish to prioritise. This helps the team find a work life balance which suits their preferences and needs, and helps us feel more in control of our time. An example of this is being able to block out “focus time” for deep work in our calendars, which is respected by other members of the team.

In addition to autonomy over time, the team can also set their own goals every month in one to ones, allowing us to steer our careers at Higson the way we desire. Through career conversations, we are given the freedom to choose our focus areas and priorities for the next few months and chart out a process to achieve them.

Coupled with autonomy, we also have a culture of trust and ownership. Team members are trusted to take full ownership of the tasks they take up and complete them, and there is no micromanagement involved.

📖 Opportunities to learn
At Higson, we have a culture which embraces learning and continuous improvement, and we believe this is essential for the success of individuals and Higson.
Our comprehensive 8-week induction programme is designed for new starter to equip them with the knowledge and skills. It covers a wide range of topics- about Higson, core content, client base and knowledge. Additional resources such as articles, books, videos and podcasts are shared to supplement the learning. It is ensured that the learning is embedded through weekly opportunities to deliver core content to experienced team members who provide feedback, guidance and answer any questions. Feedback is seen as a valuable for collaboration, personal growth and for continuous improvement. This thorough induction process definitely helped me improve my confidence and increase knowledge across areas.
We have a dedicated Slack channel where the team shares interesting articles and research pieces. We then take this up every few weeks in team meetings as part of our “content wrap ups” where we discuss the material and brainstorm ways together as a team to our existing content.
Lastly, we support uninterrupted focus time for learning. To do this, the team members are encouraged to block out dedicated focus time in their calendars every week, which allows them to research and read about areas of their interest, acquire new skills, or explore relevant topics which support their professional growth. For example, recently, I was able to complete a CIPD learning course on data and insights, which is an area of interest and is definitely helping me in my internal role of “Head of Data and Insights”.


⛑ Employee wellbeing
At Higson, employee well being is at the forefront of the culture. We recognize that happy and healthy teams make for success.
We actively encourage taking breaks and time off through an “unlimited holidays” policy. This helps the team prioritise their well-being and ensures that we are protected from burn out, and have opportunities to rest when needed.

To further promote well-being and have fun as a team, we have a dedicated well-being calendar that is rolled out every month. This calendar outlines team events for the month as well as suggestions for activities that individuals can engage in on their own. For example, we recently celebrated World Sleep Day by booking a “lie in day” and start work an hour later.

Aspects of our culture like flexible work arrangement and autonomy play a significant role in supporting employee well being at Higson, allowing the team to structure their day and week in a way that suits their personal preferences and needs. This promotes work-life balance by a healthy mix of work and personal life.

By prioritising employee well-being and incorporating fun and flexibility, Higson truly creates an environment which supports well-being and happiness of the team and creates a positive atmosphere.

Overall

Higson really fosters an inclusive, purpose-driven and enjoyable work environment. As someone who is still fairly new to the team, I have always felt welcomed and supported by the team because of the highly collaborative environment. The flat hierarchy helps contribute ideas, participate, and work very well together as a unit. In addition, Higson really values and helps us maintain a healthy work-life balance, and taking breaks and time-off is actively encouraged. This has definitely had have a positive impact on success and efficiency as a team.

What truly sets Higson apart from other consultancies is the dedication to embedding the solutions proposed. We genuinely care about the impact we have on clients, and go above and beyond to ensure implementation. We also care deeply about the planet- Higson's focus on sustainability really resonates with us- 20% of out annual profits are donated to charitable causes, and we run pro bono workshops for charity partners.

Working here definitely makes you feel and realise the impact you make in so many different ways. I have grown not only professionally but also personally- all in 6 months!

❤️ Benefits
Higson offers a wide range of benefits with employees mental and physical health in mind.
Unlimited holiday means that we can fully rejuvinate before returning to work after, for example, a weekend wedding. I feel extremely lucky that I am able to say yes to ad hoc plans that, in the standard holiday allowance I would have had to say no too.
We have access to a finance coach through Bibbit Ltd which has been invaluable when helping me navigate a topic I have very little education about. The awareness around employee needs and putting those into action is second to none at Higson.
Higson champions flexible working, we are trusted to use our time effectively and in return are able to work from home, abroad and team days in the office.
Each member of the team can choose a charity to work with every year, this can include a workshop or coaching as part of our pro bono work. This concept adds so much value to our roles as we can ask a charity that is personal to us or that we admire. Giving back is embedded in our culture and is such a unique aspect of the company.
August is a month that champions recharging and creativity. We have super flexible working hours with no client work or meetings so that we can delve into researching new content, develop our areas of expertise and go for long walks in the sun. We are empowered to work to the beat of our drum and enjoy the summer.


📖 Opportunities to learn
The value of learning at Higson is clear from the first interview during recruitment. We are asked how we learn, what resources we enjoy and the different trends we find particularly interesting. This curiosity is is a fundamental part of our induction programme with weekly learn tasks on various applied themes to our workshops, for example, productivity. Our approach to learning is not one size fits all with You Tube summaries, podcasts and documentaries.

Every quarter we have learn days where we focus on a particular topic, for example imposter syndrome, we take time for independent research before coming together as a group to present back and pick out trends that can be used to create new modules for our clients. We take it in turns to deliver ‘learns’ in our team meetings. This is an incredible chance to learn from one another about relevant topics that we find particularly interesting. For example, I delivered a learn on Disability which was a chance for discussion and shared experiences on a topic I am passionate about. With sustainability at the heart of HIgson’s values, we are having a workshop on Carbon Literacy which will add so much value to us as individuals and as a company.

We are encouraged to take time every week for independent research and to hold each other accountable for creating this space amongst our busy schedules. We often have check ins to see how everyone is getting on with protecting this time and brain storm how we can be even better at sticking to it. My manager created a development plan for me to gain a better understanding of Sales so that I am prepared for delivering this content in workshops later in the year. The emphasis at Higson is to have an all round understanding of the material so that we can be the expert in the room and answer any challenges with an in depth understanding of the topic.


🥰 Employee recognition
Employee recognition at Higson is the best that I have ever experienced due to it’s consistency and variety.
We give and receive recognition through words everyday in our three positives slack channel where collaboration or meetings are often celebrated, from quick coffee catch ups, to pitch proposals. In every other team meeting we give shout outs to each other from the previous week and the culture of consistent positive affirmation is embedded in the culture. For employee recognition day we each wrote a hand written card to one member of the team as a personal note of recognition. As a team we are never in doubt how much we are valued by one another through these regular and ad hoc gestures.
Time is a fundamental recognition tool through weekly team meetings and team activities. A different member of the team hosts the team meeting and has the chance to add their own spin to proceedings, this increases repore and relationship building and always ends with words of gratitude. We have a fun and wellbeing calendar which outlines the team activities for the year as well as our annual strategy away stay, which this year was held in Margate. This was an excellent bonding experience for the team as we had the chance to brainstorm on a host of topics whilst also having fun together via dinners, scavenger hunts and swims in the sea!
At Higson we do not just receive blanket gifts, but ones that are well thought out to our individual interests and hobbies. For example, a hot chocolate voucher for the chocoholic on graduation, class pass voucher for the fitness fanatic for contribution to a project, and a plant for the green fingered maestro on their birthday, to name a few. Team treats are woven into the fun and wellbeing calendar with vegan croissants on national croissant day and surprise falafel wraps at lunch.


Overall

Higson really practices what it preaches and a client said last week, 'you can tell that you really believe in the tools you share and it's clear how well you work together, why can't I have that!'

The team genuinely care about each other and the company's success. We are made to feel valued and we have an equal share of voice. The charity partnerships in particular add to the purpose of our roles and it is a very unique aspect of the work that we do.

Higson is a place where individual strengths and qualities are recognised, we each have our own side responsibilities which play to our interests and strengths. It is an excellent all-round company and puts much thought into everything we do.

📣 Mission & Purpose
Higson is values-driven and led by a clear mission: to create positive lasting impact, with a focus on both people and planet. This is seen in our day-to-day work as a people consultancy, where we help drive growth and behaviour change through insight, training and embedding strategies. We help clients develop their culture, people strategy, and shape their businesses to be more values-driven. To do this even better, we are in the process of becoming accredited as carbon literate and sharing that expertise with clients.

We are also committed to creating lasting impact outside of our client work, in line with our accreditation as a B Corp.

Some of the impact we create:
- donate 20% of our profits to charity
- donate time and expertise to create social impact. We have 3 key charity partners that we help train, coach and fundraise for. We recently organised a fundraiser for our charity partners Free to Be Kids and raised £35,000 over the course of the evening
- we have also created the Higson Foundation, an annual core skills programme designed for individuals who would not otherwise have access to this opportunity. We have run three successful cohorts to date and helped participants get jobs, develop their career and improve self-awareness.


👭 Inclusivity
We are committed to inclusivity on multiple levels. To pull out 3 key areas: internally within the team, in the way we recruit, and in helping our clients create more inclusive cultures.

1. Internally within the team

As a team, we are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone can bring their authentic selves to work, communicate and collaborate in the most effective way. We share 360 feedback quarterly and as part of that share feedback around how we can continue working and supporting each other even better. We run bi-yearly strengths sessions to understand how we can best harness different skill sets within the team and delegate more according to strengths. Higson also has a “people playbook”, a centralised document which outlines different communication preferences within the team and helps us adapt our communication preferences within the team. New starters have also found this very useful to learn more about the team and understand how to work together most effectively.

We also have monthly team socials to bring the team together and develop relationships outside of work, which helps facilitate all of the above.


2. Our recruitment process

We have designed our recruitment process to be as inclusive as possible and review it ahead of each recruitment cycle. We review blind CVs and have for each role we recruit a clear outline of target competencies and behaviours that we evaluate against. We deliberately keep the “requirements/previous experience” section of our job adverts very open to encourage applications from a wide variety of backgrounds.

In interviews, the interviewing panel have individual scorecards to minimise groupthink and bias in the way we assess candidates. We communicate expectations and interview format as clearly as possible to help candidates prepare in the best way.

If we reject a candidate, we always provide detailed feedback on why and what they could improve for future job interviews. For the individuals we do recruit, we tailor our onboarding programme based on individual knowledge and skill gaps.

3. Helping clients create more inclusive cultures

We run leadership and cultural transformation training programmes with clients, with a focus on how they can create more inclusive cultures. Some core themes as part of this: building psychological safety in a team, adapting to different behaviour styles, awareness of bias, creating equal share of voice in meetings, uncovering what motivates different individuals and nurturing career development.


👩‍👧‍👧 Team members
Everyone in the team is proactive, value-led and willing to learn. They are committed to work together and put the effort in to make our small team dynamic, while also adding fun to the way we approach work. One of our values is ‘going above and beyond’, and I really believe that the team embodies this in the way that they approach work and collaboration with the rest of the team. We regularly ask each other for feedback on how we can improve the way we communicate, delegate and collaborate with each other. This is essential as our work is fundamentally collaborative - we always co-deliver projects.

We share a lot of recognition within the team and have built in opportunities in our working rhythm to do that (e.g. shoutouts in team meetings), which creates a very positive environment. We are also comfortable sharing constructive feedback and having honest conversations when need be. This is facilitated by the time we invest in building trust and developing relationships within the team.


Overall

I think Higson is an amazing place to work and would definitely recommend it. Working in a small business, every day does look very different and there are so many opportunities to get involved in lots of different areas.

The team is lovely and united in shared purpose and values, and we have a great balance between high collaboration and autonomy over our work and development. We have a culture and business model that always seeks continuous improvement, so we are always asking ourselves “how can we make this better?”. As a team we have real opportunity to shape the growth of the business and see the impact of what we do very quickly, which is incredibly rewarding. I would strongly recommend it as a great place to work.