Better At Work with Cathal Quinlan

Does a happier workforce actually perform better? Lord Mark Price, former managing director of Waitrose and founder of WorkL, argues the answer is yes.

Cathal Quinlan recorded this conversation with Mark on 14 November 2024, a few weeks after his book Happy Economics came out. We are releasing it now because the question at its heart hasn't gone away: what makes people happy at work, and what can a manager actually do about it?

Mark sets out the six things that drive happiness at work:
Reward and recognition
Information sharing
Empowerment
Wellbeing
A sense of purpose
Job satisfaction, including career development and the relationship with your line manager
They also explore:
Why Mark felt flat on the day he got the promotion he had always wanted
Why recognition can matter as much as pay, once people feel fairly paid
Mark's account of what changed at Waitrose when people were happier at work
Why the relationship with your line manager matters so much
When to tackle a problem at work, and when to let it go
Happy Economics (Kogan Page):
https://www.koganpage.com/general-business-interest/happy-economics-9781398617360

WorkL:
https://workl.com

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https://betteratwork.net
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Careers, children, a house renovation and a never-ending list of jobs. Sophie and her partner love their work, but the daily juggle is leaving them overwhelmed. Does one of them have to step back?

Cathal Quinlan and Annette Sloan explore four places to start: help, flexibility, kindness and self-care. They also reflect on their conversation with Rob Briner, including evidence-based practice and the feedback that helps people do their jobs better.
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What if the problem at work isn’t analysis paralysis, but a rush to act before we understand what’s wrong?

Rob Briner joins Cathal Quinlan to challenge familiar assumptions about management, culture and performance. Thinking and analysis deserve to count as work, he argues, and rolling out another programme isn’t necessarily progress.

In this episode, we explore:
When asking for more data becomes a way to avoid making a decision
How to give evidence-gathering time while setting a decision deadline
Why wellbeing initiatives can miss the real workload problem
What we overlook when we talk about changing culture
How a zero-complaints target discouraged people from recording complaints
What useful performance feedback needs beyond praise

Plus, why the unused juicer in your cupboard is a useful analogy for workplace solutions bought before the problem is clear.

More from Better at Work: https://betteratwork.net
Corporate Research Forum: https://www.crforum.co.uk

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How do you get into product management in a bank?

Cathal Quinlan and Annette Sloan answer Jake's question about finding a way into the role. Annette explains what product managers actually do, then shares three practical places to start: shadow someone doing the job, explore relevant study, or learn the business through a customer-facing or operations role.

They also revisit Cathal's conversation with workplace designer Dan Moscrop: why friendship at work matters, how to design around the people using a space, and what makes an office worth the commute.

Have a career question for Cathal and Annette? Visit https://betteratwork.net and send them a note.

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What makes an office worth coming back to?

As businesses push for a return to the office, the bigger question is what people are coming back to. Somewhere that helps them work better, or somewhere to sit on video calls?

Cathal Quinlan is joined by Dan Moscrop, founder of workplace experience studio THEM, to explore how office design shapes company culture, communicates a business’s story and gives people a reason to make the commute.

They discuss why putting a logo on the wall isn’t enough, what other companies’ impressive offices can’t tell you about your own, and where to start when a full redesign isn’t on the cards.

In this episode:
What makes a workplace worth the journey.
How to bring your company’s story into its physical space.
Why staff, visitors and new starters need different things from an office.
How everyday frustrations reveal what needs fixing.
Small changes you can make without a full office refit.

If you lead a team, shape company culture or make decisions about the workplace, this conversation will get you looking at your office differently.

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