PROFILE
development and keep them on their toes .
“ The purpose is to get out of the bubble of oil and gas and BP ,” he adds . “ Deal with the rest of the world , do something , and mix with people you ’ re not familiar with . And do you know what ? They love it !
“ People develop as leaders far more if you give them things that are ambiguous , things that they ’ ve not done before . It works so well , it costs us nothing and it enhances BP ’ s reputation , so what ’ s not to like ?”
But perhaps the most vital component of Alexander ’ s formula to keeping a happy workforce is also the most basic . He adds : “ The last thing I ’ d say is : whatever you do , have a good time . A few years ago , the way I would run a team meeting would be a 30-page PowerPoint and then I ’ d give business updates and talk about performance and I ’ d watch as people would look at their fingernails , gaze out of the window and doze off .
“ Now what we do are competitions , we study things , look at external business dilemmas , we look at strategy material … there ’ s a lot of effort in engaging people . That ’ s a mix of learning and also , crucially , just having a good time .
“ My very strong belief is that when people come to work they should be able to have a good time and I don ’ t know why so many organisations struggle with that .”
20 October 2017