Chris Donnelly: Workplace culture learnings with 'Britain's best boss'

Chris Donnelly is the co-founder of Lottie, the care home comparison platform that has changed the sector forever. Previously the founder of VERB, a digital marketing agency for luxury and premium brands, Chris has been on the receiving end of numerous accolades, including being named in Forbes’ 30 under 30 in 2020.

He hit the headlines across the country for giving staff the day off to go to the pub when the world opened up after a lockdown. But Chris Donnelly has a strong track record of cultivating a positive workplace culture. His employees get time off if they suffer a miscarriage or are going through IVF.

Chris is one of the most reflective and open guests we've had on the podcast. This is our conversation with 'Britain's best boss'.

Here's what we discussed:

• What was it like getting the title of 'Britain’s Best Boss'? (01:29)
• You let men and women alike take time off if they suffer a miscarriage, and you recognise IVF treatment and adoption as times employees can have time off too – why is it important to recognise these moments in the workplace? (02:20)
• Your business partner is your brother. How has the experience of running a business with a family been for you? (03:51)
• How do you vet care homes to ensure they aren't just paying lip service to residents? (08:07)
• Lottie is now valued at £45m and it was founded at the beginning of 2021. What is the secret to scaling so rapidly? (10:38)
• You recently acquired another company Found for £1.5m. Were there any challenges you faced during this experience? (13:40)
• Do you have any tips for people going through the process of an IPO? (16:24)
• You post a lot about workplace culture on LinkedIn. What kind of workplace culture do you try to cultivate and why is it essential for business leaders to consider culture as important? (20:49)
• Have you experienced backlash from your well-publicised incentives for your employees, such as having the day off after the lockdowns or letting people have time off for IVF treatment? (23:47)
• Where did you the motivation to start luxury marketing agency VERB? (25:59)
• You achieved funding for Lottie from some big names – (Angel and Zoopla exec David Wascha and former Airbnb and Facebook Director Caroline Hudack and Monzo founder Tom Blomfield to name a few) – how can listeners attract the attention of big-name investors? (30:11)
• What is the hardest thing about being a business founder? How have you overcome this challenge? (37:12)
• Answer the Internet: What do CEOs do all day? (40:08)
• What makes a great business leader? (41:30)

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