Reality TV shows like ‘The Apprentice’ attract audiences by placing pressure on contestants and encouraging conflict – making them fun to watch but poor representations of everyday business realities. Research tells a very different story. Studies on motivation, workplace wellbeing and shareholder return lead to the conclusion it takes quite different qualities to be a good manager, design good jobs and build sustainable businesses. Join this session to hear what really gets good performance from workers and makes organisations run smoothly.
Dr Helen Fitzhugh of Norwich Business School is passionate about organisations and research communication. She gathers the best academic evidence she can find on workplace wellbeing and productivity and then distils it down into practical information and resources for organisations as part of a project called the PrOPEL Hub. She draws upon work by researchers at the University of East Anglia who have been researching in this area for decades. Helen has worked across the public, private and voluntary sectors, so brings with her an understanding of how to adapt complex research findings so that they make sense to real life workers and managers in a variety of different settings.