Culture and values To help reward colleagues and create a special culture within the business, Timpson runs a myriad of schemes to say “well done” and “thank you”: from offering personal loans to those in financial trouble, incentives to stop smoking, meals out, football tickets, scratch cards, paying for driving lessons, a free weekly lottery with prizes of up to £1,000 and a programme to make colleagues’ “Dreams Come True”. When this particular scheme was launched in 2013, Timpson committed to making one colleague’s dreams come true. Every month it now funds many more, including everything from dream holidays to weddings in Las Vegas and several divorces. “They have never been cheap dreams,” quips Sir John. Timpson also employs a Director of Happiness. A “magic angel” in Sir John’s words who, despite her title, spends most of her time supporting colleagues who are in distress. “It is the thing the makes the difference. Our success depends on the people who work in our shops. They make us the money and everything else we do is really just backing them up – doing the things that make it as easy as possible for them to deliver the service.”
Maintaining it is so important that the company no longer hires external candidates into area management teams, preferring instead to promote those who already understand what makes the company tick. “We are still smarting from an appointment we made several years ago,” recalls Sir John, “a person from another business who brought new ideas and an old style of management. That person cost us a lot of money and upset many colleagues in the process.” Positive personalities Timpson has also stopped hiring skilled key cutters and shoe repairers, preferring to hire people with positive personalities that fit with the culture and values of the business. To support that, Sir John has devised a set of Mr Men cartoon characters for the purpose of interviewing prospective candidates. Rather than grill candidates on their work history and the detail in their CV, the interviewer simply ticks the box of the Mr Men character most like the person sitting opposite them. “It may not be a process that gains the
approval of most HR Directors, but it works for us,” says Sir John.
The process has been crucial in enabling Timpson to proactively recruit ex-offenders, something for which Sir John and his son James have, quite rightly, won many plaudits. About 500 colleagues have joined Timpson directly from prison. Many have been with the business for more than 10 years and several have progressed to important management roles. Sir John believes that being a family business has helped them to have the courage and vision to employ ex- offenders. “I met a guy recently who said to me, ‘This is the only job I have ever had. I went to prison at 18 and I came out at 33. My way out was the scheme you were running, and I have been with the business ever since.’ “We now have a loyal employee that nobody else would touch, and he is great. He is on the area team and on his way up the ladder. It is all about hiring the right personalities.”
Understanding this unique culture is key to Timpson’s continuity.
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