Author and Business Owner Jill Ladd gets flexible in person and at work!
Tell us a little bit about your business and your product or service:
I currently have 2 streams to my business; I am an Animal Flow Instructor and coach clients in group classes and one to ones and work with sports teams and small business providing Animal Flow and mobility classes online. I am expanding my business to collaborate with a local studio to provide in person classes and possibly provide after school classes to children. I also organise events related to animal flow such as retreats and seminars and one-off movement classes.
I have also just published a book called My A to Z of Life and have been working on the countdown to the launch and distributing some of the books. I am also planning on expanding this concept to produce products using the images and quotes and content from my book. I’m looking to employ more Mums who want to work flexibly and remotely as my business grows.
What made you want to be part of the London Mayors Parenting Programme with Successful Mums?
I have previously recommended successful mums to a couple of other small employers and know it had been a great success, so when I was in a position where I needed to employ someone to help me with my business, Successful Mums were my first stop!
I love the whole concept of the courses they provide to regain confidence in the workplace and the additional training such as social media and digital marketing, which makes the mums so valuable to both small and medium to large businesses.
“I believe that employees are far more productive and loyal if they are happy in their workplace.”
Tell us about your experience of the advice and support provided by Successful Mums as part of the Programme?
The information provided by Successful Mums was so easy to follow and was easy to put into practice and made me aware of the opportunities available but also the consideration needed when employing someone. I will use the logo on my website to show that I am a flexible employer and have already implemented the policies.
What 3 key pieces of advice did you take from the programme?
The opportunity to recruit an employee without the additional recruitment fees which of course was invaluable to a small business starting up – it also made me aware of the opportunities there were to employ the Successful Mum grads. It was easy to advertise and attract the right candidates for my part time role.
How would you explain the advice and support to others business owners?
For new businesses it gives you all the information you need to understand about the opportunities there are to employ Successful Mum grads and give you access to a pool of talent. The advice gives information about how you can adapt your roles to be flexible and be the perfect fit with the candidates.
Have you employed Successful Mum Graduate?
Yes, I have employed Catherine who has been amazing. She has helped automate the booking of my animal flow activities, helped me research for my movement retreat in July and been a fundamental part of the run up to my book launch and has been responsible for all social media, setting up the processes for ordering the books and is now about to complete my website for launching.
Why is flexible working good for business?
I have always believed that flexible working is good for business. As A mother myself, I continued to work flexibly in all the roles I had as a finance consultant from when my children were very young all the way to when they left home. It is so important that people can work in an environment where they can still share their talent and service while maintaining a busy family life. It works perfectly for my business and I believe that employees are far more productive and loyal if they are happy in their workplace and they can work in a flexible environment where they can feel confident that it fits in with their family life.
How can we find out more about your business online?
Website : Jillladd.com
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