Yahoo News When tragedy strikes a business, you can't rely on 'best practice'
Q I read some touching stories in The Telegraph recently about what happens when a colleague passes away.
Is there a “right” way for a company to deal with tragedy when it strikes and what role should managers play?
AWhen a death occurs in your business, you can't rely on “best practice” – nor is there a “right way” to deal with the tragedy.
You simply do what’s right in the circumstances.
Following the death of a pensioner, send a handwritten letter of condolence to the next of kin and ensure that the company is represented at the funeral. If you knew the late colleague well, you should, if possible, attend.
Take the same approach if a colleague dies when they’re still working for the business. However, there’s more to think about and do.
Sadly, a few Timpson colleagues have died prematurely during the past three years – road accidents, cancer, a heart attack and fatal falls at home have combined to deprive us of some warm and talented people.
Top of your priority list is to support the colleague's family. Check if they want help in finding a funeral director and obtaining a death certificate. Explain any pension implications and death-in-service benefit (your pension trustees will have the delicate task of checking any letter of wishes and determining who are the beneficiaries).
Some widows and widowers have no cash of their own and find that they have no immediate access to their late husband or wife’s bank account, so the most practical thing that you can do is to lend money to pay for the funeral and immediate living expenses.
Give those most affected the chance to have a day or two off, to come to terms with their loss
Your second priority is to look after those who were close to the colleague. The empty desk and missing banter will have a profound impact, so give close colleagues the space to grieve. Don’t limit the number who can go to the funeral and give those most affected the chance to have a day or two off, to come to terms with their loss.
Eventually you will have to fill the gap in your team created by the tragic event, but don’t rush. This is an occasion when your business’s needs must take a back seat.
Q What's the key to a business brand? How would you describe the Timpson brand and how has it changed?
A Timpson doesn't have a marketing department. We never use market research and don't dream up mission statements, so I'm probably not the best person to ask about branding.
Our fascia and shop colours came from a visit that I made to Bath in 1994. I wanted to have a traditional look that gave the feeling of quality and reliability. I photographed all the shops there that I liked and, back in the office, pinned all the pictures on a wall and picked the best.
Perhaps it isn't surprising that Mary Portas, when rating our shops a few years ago, only gave us six out of 10 – we lost marks for our lack of design flair.
A long time ago we worked out that it’s the people who serve our customers who do the marketing. Customers aren't fooled by a fancy fascia, but they certainly recognise great service, so we’ve concentrated on recruiting great personalities, giving them the necessary skills and the freedom to serve each customer in the way they know best. That has become central to the way we run our business and, gradually, our management style has created our brand.
Our business has changed dramatically since 1994. Then we were shoe repairers that also cut keys. Now we repair watches and mobile phones, do dry cleaning and take passport photos.
We altered the layout of the shops to accommodate these new services, but the fascia is still the same. The biggest changes have been behind the scenes – more ways to support our colleagues (holiday homes, hardship loans and an extra day off on your birthday) and recruitment that’s strictly based on personality, including the 10pc who join us from prison.
Most strong brands have a distinctive logo, but with brands such as Body Shop and Pret a Manger, their business made the logo famous, not he other way round.
John Timpson is chairman of the high-street services provider, Timpson. Send him an email at askjohn@telegraph.co.uk.
