Business Info - issue 133 - page 9

01732 759725
magazine
09
We have a
commitment
to radical
flexibility and
then we have
what we call
our modelling
language –
that’s all of the
principles and
ways of working
that underpin
the DNA of our
culture
WORK LIFE
Coherent model
With his background in management
consulting, Jones’s commitment to
‘radical flexibility’ is underpinned by a
technocrat's enthusiasm for modelling.
“We have a commitment to radical
flexibility and then we have what we
call our modelling language – that’s
all of the principles and ways of
working that underpin the DNA of our
culture.We’re very disciplined about
documenting, using and reproducing
these thinking models. That produces
a kind of coherence you wouldn’t get
if you just bring people into an office,”
he said.
Modelling for all Ludic events is
recorded in a book, known internally
as
Alice inWonderland
. In a very visual
way, it describes the eight factors
involved in any project, including
knowledge and research, project
management and budget, process
design, knowledge workers’ skill set, the
learning requirements of the program,
the aesthetic requirements of the
program and the client’s requirements.
“The modelling language we use
allows us to have a visual language that
we're able to send to our associates
and networks around the world and
very quickly develop a common sense
of understanding and language. This
shorthand allows us to work very
flexibly together,” explained Jones.
Getting together
As part of its culture, Ludic has regular
'circle-ups' or 'virtual water-cooler
moments' where team members come
together to share knowledge and discuss
their needs. These are done online and
in person.
“Because we don’t have an office, we
need to replace it with things like our
collaboration technology, the modelling
language and knowledge-sharing.We
also get together three times a year for
frisbee and BBQs and events for whole
families. In addition to regular virtual
knowledge-sharing, team activities
and so on, we build in this heartbeat
of people actually coming together.
People work remotely and we make sure
they feel part of the team,” explained
Ashcroft.
He and Jones concede that flexible
working isn’t for all people, professions
or organisations, but say it suits a
project-based business like Ludic,
especially as its employees tend to
have talents and interests outside the
workplace.
“Garrick is a musician. I write. Our
team comes from a really diverse
group,” he said. “Many of our team have
super-skills; they are professional opera
singers, actors, writers or gymnasts and
they work alongside people who are
academics or business content experts
or scientists.We encourage people to
bring ideas from what they do in their
own lives into work because it makes
us more interesting as a business.We
didn’t want to invent another consulting
business, we wanted to create
something that was an intersection of
art and design and business.”
Ashcroft adds that to maintain this
culture, he and Jones work hard to avoid
the pitfalls of modern ways of working.
“We actively avoid the 24-hour, always
on culture.We tell people to go outside,
to take a walk, to spend time with their
children.We have to pay attention to
this side of things, because we don’t
have the luxury of bringing people into
a central place on a daily basis,” he said.
Global talent pool
This philosophy has wide appeal and
enables Ludic to draw from an extensive,
global talent pool of more than 900
associates.
“We’re able to tap into a very diverse
group of employees,” explained Jones.
“People who are older, who have loads
of experience but who may no longer
want to work for a big organisation;
mothers or fathers who are looking
after kids at home; also younger people.
Instead of trying to crowbar everybody
into one cookie cutter, our diversity
and flexibility allow us to pull in the
skillset we need on an as-needs basis.
You can’t have an old person on a six-
week project full time, because they
don't want to do it and it doesn't suit
their lifestyle. However, they may have
a range of functional skills that you can
pull in one day a week or for a couple of
hours a week. Our approach allows that;
it extends the scope of people we’re
able to work with.”
Ludic’s employees are not the only
ones to benefit from this approach.
Jones points out that the experience
Ashcroft and he have in managing a
disparate workforce and the tools they
have put in place to create a community
and maintain face-to-face interaction
give Ludic a competitive advantage
when dealing with large clients, many of
which are very traditional and office-
based.
“We’re winning awards for our
SmartLearning platforms because
we're able to do it at scale and deliver
a personalised experience, a very
flexible experience for people,” he
said. “We are getting results that are
better than bringing people together
face-to-face, because our platform is
highly personalised and people can
use it asynchronously on a Sunday
evening when the children have gone
to bed, and also be supported by online
coaching and online virtual classrooms.
The principles that we employ in the
business are now moving into the way
we deliver very large programs.”
Garrick Jones
Paul Ashcroft
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