Last Word
Simon Burns
The MD of ICHF Events on what the transition
from family-owned business to part of a global
organisation means for company culture
anything that will help to keep
our staff healthy and happy. It is
great to be able to show our teams
that we value them.
What was the feedback from
employees?
How has the company culture
at ICHF changed?
Going from a family-owned
business to part of a global
organisation has certainly been
exciting but with the cultures
in both businesses so different,
there were a few challenges.
It required us to look at our
practices as well as update some
of our systems that were great for
a family business but didn’t fit in
with the systems at TI Media.
This process allowed us to
streamline some areas and
develop new ways of working,
change can be daunting when you
have an established workforce
however, four years on, I couldn’t
be happier with the current ICHF
team who now represent the
perfect balance of knowledge,
experience, great ideas and
enthusiasm.
What initiatives have you
introduced?
We are a close-knit team and
make sure that everyone is
50 — August
treated as an individual, we all
have our personal lives, and
commitments to our families,
hobbies, sports and so on which
is why we introduced flexible
working over three years ago.
This has transformed the daily
commute for many of our staff,
who had been sitting in traffic
and often arriving at the office
harassed and stressed because
they had been delayed. Having
an office within minutes of an
award-winning beach (sorry is
that showing off?) it is important
to make sure we encourage a
healthy work/life balance – I try
and lead by example, which is
why I always take a lunch break,
make sure I leave the office at a
reasonable hour and don’t send
emails to staff out of office hours.
Following on from flexible
working, we introduced a plan
to pay for medical appointments
(up to six per year) which could
be for a variety of treatments;
chiropractor, physio, reflexology,
counselling or sports massage,
100 per cent positive! It comes
back to treating people like
the professionals they are and
not micromanaging. We have a
strong senior management team
who are all focussed on their
own personal CPD (continued
professional development) and
encourage their teams to engage
in learning whether that is via
online courses, networking
events, seminars or classroom
learning. I am passionate about
CPD and strongly believe it
is important for everyone to
continue to develop their skills
and knowledge.
Is the 9-5 format realistic
for businesses in the events
industry?
It’s rapidly becoming outdated,
with more and more pressures
on us all these days, I believe a
modern working environment
must include flexible working
to allow everyone to achieve a
positive balance between their
working and personal lives.
The events business is not for
the faint-hearted, after more than
20 years in the industry, I am
committed to ensuring that we all
work hard when needed but that
must be balanced with time out
of the office to spend with family
and friends, have a lunch break
(did I mention we work minutes
from an award-winning beach?)
and support colleagues when they
are struggling. EN