THE FACES THE FACES

The People In Action

What would Kaye Sotomi do?

A bad work culture can take hold in your salon before you’re even aware. But all is not lost, says Chop Chop London’s Kaye Sotomi. He explains how to spearhead positive change…

A BAD WORK CULTURE means toxicity. Your clients will know that your team aren’t cohesive or enjoy working together, and the client experience will suffer. Other things will suffer too; productivity for one, because resentment builds in different people for others in the team.

A culture void happens when you’re busy being an operator and want the business to succeed. You’re juggling different things and not saying, ‘okay, we need to first identify the culture we want’. You start missing monthly team meetings because you’re busy and then it rolls on, then nobody knows what’s going on in the organisation. It’s a slippery slope.

The culture issue starts from the very beginning with recruiting. If you’re only recruiting based on demand, you might bring in a person who is not a fit for the culture of the organisation. You need to stay consistent with the truth, regardless of the pressures that you’re feeling about having to bring people into your business. Then there’s the onboarding process. When you’re running so fast, you’re not taking the time to onboard people properly to get them into the essence of the business. Find out what they want to achieve then put them on a roadmap to get a sense of what things are going to look like in six to 12 months, and so on.

Building a good culture is something you must work at on a weekly and monthly basis until the system polices itself. Does the team take accountability for their own actions and make sure that everybody that comes onboard is following the process? Do they feel supported and heard and all the different things that are important? In a good culture, if someone hasn’t shown up for work, they send a message right away and there’s a group chat. Even from small things like that, you can see people understanding the impact it has not just on themselves showing up on time to work, but also the customer and, ultimately, the wider team. To solidify your culture, think about having a culture deck with something clear that allows your team to understand what you’re about and what it means for them working within your organisation.

@ chopchopldn

What Made Me Siobhan Haug

HAUG HAUS

@goldensiobhan

Once I had made my decision to start a hair apprenticeship, in theory the hardest part was going to be giving up the long summer that all my school friends were about to have. But from day one I was hooked.

From getting the timing right of when a client needed to come back to see a busy stylist, to blow-drying the stunning colours that were coming from the colour specialists, even as a first year apprentice

I felt like I was in part responsible for that ‘head swish’ clients do when they walk out at the door. I hadn’t missed out on something by not going to university, I had found something better, and I was part of something that made people feel great.

Over the time it took to get qualified, the group of apprentices I worked alongside were encouraging and so much fun. They taught me loads; from what particular clients liked or disliked to how to blow-dry and cover reception. But the biggest thing we had in common was a desire to learn as quickly as we could to start looking after clients of our own.

When I see apprentices today, I think nothing’s changed. They’re so hard working, so excited for their future and full of passion for looking after people. What a job!