Episodit

  • You thought you were getting that big promotion – but you missed out. What are your next steps? Isabel Berwick speaks to Sarah Ellis (co-founder of careers consultancy Amazing If) and FT Management Editor Anjli Raval to find out. They discuss how to keep your emotions in check after suffering professional rejection, who you should turn to for advice, and why ‘squiggly’ careers are more popular than ever.


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    What can I do if I hit a career plateau?

    ‘The flattening’: tech sector calls time on middle managers

    A big internal move


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • It's the work Christmas party season: you're out of the office, and the alcohol is flowing. How can you make sure you don't embarrass yourself (or derail your career)? And how can you bounce back if you do go wrong? Isabel Berwick speaks to FT columnist and veteran party-goer Stephen Bush, author and comedian Viv Groskop and party-shy FT columnist Emma Jacobs to find out. Warning: contains drunken secret Santas, dancefloor embarrassment and toe-curling apologies.


    Got a Christmas party nightmare you’d like Isabel and Jonathan to help you with? Submit it here: https://telbee.io/channel/ygf7_gly04xgtckcb0g56a/ or to [email protected]


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    Workers and bosses opt for Christmas payments over parties

    The office grinch may have a point — it’s not fun if it’s forced


    Credits:

    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  • Many middle-aged women leave the workforce with plenty left to give. What can managers do to stop that from happening? Isabel Berwick speaks to Lucy Standing, founder of Brave Starts, a not-for-profit that helps older workers realise their potential. Isabel and Lucy are joined by writer and comedian Viv Groskop, who coaches and consults widely in the corporate world. Together, they discuss how women can ask the right questions about company culture, the factors you can’t fight at work, and why the last thing older workers want is another training course.


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    The perils of overlooking women of a certain age

    Too many women excel at their jobs but are ignored for top roles

    Advice to older workers: don’t be the office curmudgeon


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Most successful people will tell you that hard work and talent can get you where you want to go. Fewer of them will admit that luck is at least as important. Some of us are born into luckier circumstances than others; but we can all do more to make our own luck, and be ready to capitalise on it when the opportunity arises. In this episode, Isabel Berwick speaks to Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, professor of business psychology at UCL and Columbia, chief innovation officer of ManpowerGroup, and author of books including ‘The Talent Delusion’ and ‘Why Do So Many Incompetent Men Become Leaders?’ Along with FT work and careers writer Emma Jacobs, they discuss why luck is a taboo subject, how it helps the wrong people thrive, and what managers can do to level the playing field.


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    Why it’s often luck, not talent, that takes us to the top

    The rich have advantages that money cannot buy

    The untold career value of a little bit of luck at the outset


    FT subscriber? Sign up to get Isabel’s free Working It newsletter in your inbox every Wednesday: ft.com/newsletters

    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • The UK has a well-known problem with long-term sickness in the workforce – but it’s not alone. In several wealthy countries, the number of young people turning to disability benefits has risen. Why is that? What can managers do about it? And just how much could helping people back to work boost productivity? To find out, host Isabel Berwick speaks to John Burn-Murdoch, the FT’s chief data reporter, as well as Camilla Cavendish, FT contributing editor and columnist.


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    Out of work and unwell: the worrying rise of young people on benefits

    How companies can deal with in-work sickness

    Sickness and work is a disaster that must be fixed


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Isabel Berwick writes about how managers and workers can get better at their jobs. But that doesn’t mean she’s always been a perfect employee
 In this special episode, Isabel speaks to her former boss (and good friend) Michael Skapinker about how she’s changed over the course of her career, her professional shortcomings, and some of the run-ins the two of them have shared. Later, Isabel and Michael discuss nuggets of career wisdom from FT colleagues including Stephen Bush, Claer Barrett and Jemima Kelly: how important is talent to a successful career? Does anyone care where you went to university? And what if the biggest career decision you’ll ever make is really to do with who you marry
?


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    Starting out in work? Here’s what you need to know

    My first job: what I wish I had known

    My career race is in the home stretch, here’s what I know


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • We do not always associate bosses with kindness. But being kind to your team can make workers more engaged, more likely to stick around and more productive. So how can managers weave kindness into their daily work, even if they’re annoyed or dealing with a colleague they are not keen on? Isabel Berwick speaks to Graham Allcott, author of ‘KIND: The quiet power of kindness at work’, and Bonnie Hayden Cheng, a professor at the Hong Kong University Business School and author of ‘The Return on Kindness’.


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    How acts of leadership kindness make everyone better

    Kindness in the workplace too often goes unrewarded

    Is kindness a leadership superpower?


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Retirement used to be a cliff edge: you’d be working one week, and gardening the next. That’s changing. Now, retirement can mean working on the things you enjoy at a slower pace, and staying engaged with new ideas. Isabel Berwick speaks to author, columnist and Harvard Professor Arthur C Brooks on the science of flourishing in later life, and what older brains can do that younger ones can’t. Later, Isabel talks to former FT journalist Michael Skapinker about the importance of staying engaged with old colleagues and new ideas – even if you’re not doing the same thing every day.


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    It’s time we stopped talking about retirement

    The sun is setting on traditional retirement


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read the transcript of this episode which was first aired in December 2023 on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • The idea of networking makes many of us shudder. But connecting with colleagues doesn’t have to mean cold emails and awkward encounters. Alison Fragale tells host Isabel Berwick how ‘strategic socialising’ can help us make genuinely helpful connections at work. They’re joined by Natasha Wood, head of strategy at the FT’s events business, FT Live. Natasha explains how joining colleagues in an ekiden — or long-distance relay race — helped her boost her professional status after coming back from maternity leave.


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    Top ways to be a super schmoozer

    Workplace friendships should be encouraged not policed

    How do I get the most out of networking?


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Bankers and lawyers have long had punishing work schedules. Has the pandemic – and a widespread move towards flexible working – changed that? Guest host Bethan Staton speaks to Craig Coben, a former senior investment banker at Bank of America and Deutsche Bank, as well as Suzi Ring, the FT’s legal correspondent. They discuss why client satisfaction trumps work-life balance, why law firms can’t just hire twice as many lawyers to work half as hard, and what bankers actually do during a 100-hour work week.


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    The ‘80-hour circuit breaker’: Wall Street banks tackle workloads of junior staff

    High pressure, long days, crushing workloads: why is investment banking like this?

    London’s junior lawyers deserve their £150,000 pay


    Presented by Bethan Staton, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Corporate reorganisations can be hugely unsettling for employees, whose working lives can change overnight. What can managers do to make these periods of flux as easy as possible for their charges? Isabel Berwick speaks to work researcher Christine Armstrong, and Andrew Hill, the FT’s senior business writer. They discuss how to get ahead of gossip, why clarity is king when you deliver bad news, and the dirtiest office secret of all: that work isn’t your whole life.


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    Silent lay-offs are rarely as quiet as bosses hope

    We’re all busy again’, say UK restructuring experts

    The anatomy of a corporate turnaround


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Amazon has ordered its staff back to the office five days a week from January. Will other companies follow its lead? Host Isabel Berwick asks Kevin Delaney, the editor-in-chief of media and research firm Charter, what the data says about the efficacy of remote work. They’re joined by the FT’s Emma Jacobs, who argues being in the office is not the solution to every workplace problem.


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    Amazon orders staff back to office 5 days a week

    Amazon says workers need to be in the office. Most of Silicon Valley disagrees.

    The office is not the only solution


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Breen Turner. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Leaders are always under pressure – but the most successful ones know how to manage it. In this special episode, recorded live at the FT Weekend Festival in London on September 7, Isabel Berwick speaks to psychologist Dr Audrey Tang, who explains how managers can better resist the pressures of their work. Tang, author of books including ‘The Leader’s Guide to Resilience,’ tells Isabel about the importance of bosses modelling healthy behaviour, why skills (as opposed to strengths) can make workers unhappy, and how to know when a colleague is about to burn out.


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    The balance between idleness and burnout proves elusive


    How to avoid burnout and thrive at work


    Burnout and America’s great resignation: how employers can help


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Every career involves choices; every choice involves risk. But being able to size up those risks, and think coolly about which are worth taking, can make the process of choosing between options much easier. The problem? Most of us aren’t actually very good at evaluating risk. In this episode, Isabel Berwick speaks to statistician, writer and sometime poker player Nate Silver to find out how we can take better risks in our careers. Silver, founder of analysis website FiveThirtyEight and author of the new book On the Edge: The Art of Risking Everything’ explains why fear plays an outsize risk in our decision making, how to recover when a bet doesn’t pan out and why your 60s might not be the time to avoid risk.


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    On the Edge by Nate Silver — the risk-takers who beat the market


    We need to be better at predicting bad outcomes


    Interview with Nate Silver


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Lots of productivity advice tells you how you can cram more into your day, but accepting you can only do so much might be the only productivity “hack” that works. Oliver Burkeman, author of the smash-hit 2021 book Four Thousand Weeks, talks to Isabel Berwick about his new book, Meditations for Mortals, which lays out practical steps to living a less frantic life. Oliver tells Isabel why delaying our professional gratification can become a trap, how we should deal with our monstrous email backlogs and why pragmatism beats idealism every time.


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    How can you manage your time in 2024?


    Why I’m not tidying up before guests come over


    Endless to-do list? Here’s how not to waste your life


    FT subscriber? Sign up to get Isabel’s free Working It newsletter in your inbox every Wednesday: ft.com/newsletters


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • If you like your colleagues, the lunch hour is probably a highlight of your working day. But fewer and fewer of us are actually using it to, well, lunch. Since flexible working has become the norm, people have increasingly ‘banked’ their lunch hour, and spent their break time running errands, exercising, or seeing their kids. Stanford university professor Nick Bloom tells host Isabel Berwick. But is something lost if we don’t break bread with our colleagues? Is eating ‘al desko’ really so bad? And what’s the secret to a great homemade lunch? FT Magazine Food and Drink editor Harriet Fitch Little also joins to discuss.


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    Sour-and-hot silken tofu with avocado — a Fuchsia Dunlop recipe


    Recipe: The smacked cucumber salad chefs are obsessed with


    Bring back the business lunch


    Who picks up the bill for a business lunch?


    FT subscriber? Sign up to get Isabel’s free Working It newsletter in your inbox every Wednesday: ft.com/newsletters


    Credits:


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Jake Fielding. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Managers can’t get their heads around Gen Z employees. Why won’t they work late? Why do they talk like that? And do they even want to be here? But instead of emphasising points of difference with younger workers, we should get better at understanding their motivations. In this episode, Isabel speaks to researcher and futurist Chloe Combi, who has interviewed more than 20,000 young people about what they want. Chloe explains why Gen Z workers often clash with millennials (and how to give them better mentors). FT columnist Pilita Clark vents about her biggest Gen Z bugbear: the fact that they’re so often right about the workplace



    Want more? Free links:


    The most annoying thing about young people at work


    Making sense of Gen Z: employers seek answers on managing younger workers


    How to adapt your leadership to a multigenerational workplace


    FT subscriber? Sign up to get Isabel’s free Working It newsletter in your inbox every Wednesday: ft.com/newsletters


    To take part in the FT audience survey and be in with a chance to win a pair of Bose wireless headphones, please click here. For the survey’s terms and conditions, please click here.


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • You’ve worked hard all year, and the summer holidays have finally arrived. But it’s not like all your colleagues have downed tools. Would it be so bad if you checked your emails – just quickly – to make sure your team don’t need you? Well, yes it would, actually. In this episode, author and journalist Brigid Schulte tells Isabel Berwick why holiday work is a failure of management – and can cost employees their good health. Isabel also speaks to freelance journalist Oliver Balch, who recently asked senior executives about whether they really disconnect on their holidays.


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    ‘I’m going to get a spicy margarita and I’ll be back’: how executives approach work during holidays

    Did summer holidays make this week’s market turmoil worse?

    How taking a holiday went global


    To take part in the FT audience survey and be in with a chance to win a pair of Bose wireless headphones, please click here. For the survey’s terms and conditions, please click here.


    Credits:


    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • In most workplaces, expressing ambition is non-negotiable. We’re all meant to strive, to want more, and to summit ever more impressive professional peaks; but only a handful ever reach the top. Besides, does ambition really make us happy? In this episode, Isabel Berwick speaks to Stefan Stern, author of ‘Fair or Foul: The Lady Macbeth Guide to Ambition.’. They discuss why even the highest achievers can never accomplish enough.’ Later, Isabel speaks to teacher and former FT journalist Lucy Kellaway, who explains why tempering your ambition can be the difference between satisfaction and sadness.


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    Necessary but corrosive: Lucy Kellaway on ambition

    Is the age of ambition over?

    Why ‘post-ambition’ is the secret to career enlightenment


    To take part in the FT audience survey and be in with a chance to win a pair of Bose wireless headphones, please click here. For the survey’s terms and conditions, please click here

    Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head of audio.

    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  • Working It is taking a break this week, so we’re bringing you a podcast we think you’ll enjoy: Coaching Real Leaders, from Harvard Business Review. The show takes you inside real-life coaching sessions with veteran leadership coach Muriel Wilkins. In this episode, Muriel speaks to ‘Sarah’, who has experienced burnout in more than one of her previous roles. Muriel investigates the causes of Sarah’s burnout – and points her to new habits that may stop her burning out again.


    To take part in the FT audience survey and be in with a chance to win a pair of Bose wireless headphones, please click here. For the survey’s terms and conditions, please click here.


    FT subscriber? Sign up for the weekly Working It newsletter with one click here. We cover all things workplace and management — plus exclusive reporting on trends, tips and what’s coming next.


    Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.