The Northern Lights of PTHR
The enterprise I work for celebrates ten years of operating during September! This is a post dedicated to my colleagues.
PTHR is an ever-evolving-constant.
To be ever evolving whilst being a constant may seem a contradiction in terms. A paradox. Yet at PTHR, it is not.
We have stability whilst being adaptable.
We have safety whilst being transparent and authentic.
We have autonomy through self-management, with infinite peer support.
We have a place where we can be rather than just a place we go.
This place we can be is our virtual workplace; our practices, systems and culture we co-create. When I joined the team as a freelancer we were five. And are now a team of 18. We continue to grow not just in team size, but as an enterprise gaining credence for who we are, what we do, but most importantly what we stand for.
Our team is a constellation of employees, freelance consultants, side-hustlers and “guest transformers; all very much connected by our mission to create Better Business For a Better World. We all believe it and strive for it every day; whether that be in our four hours a week that we work, or the 30 hours we do. We believe it as PTHR’s founder leads with heart and stays true to our guiding principles. And in doing so, the heart of PTHR is a steady one, always beating strongly with the infrequent healthy palpitation of creative innovation!
I see this mission of ours — not wholly unique but impactful in intent — resonating with more people than ever. Our world of work needs a reset; and to pay due respect to our environment, so does our perfect planet, Earth.
If you can follow me down memory lane (for when thinking about a path to where we are now, the mind often wanders as to how we got here).
Looking back to October 2012, and sat in the office of the organisation I worked for at the time, Benchmark for Business (Aberdeen/London):
“Have you invited Perry Timms, Kirsten?”
“He will be coming with Big Lottery Fund allocation, surely?”
“He’s set up his own business, People & Transformational HR”.
“Oh interesting, that’s a big change! Consider Perry added to the delegate list”.
Fast forward three months or so….
Renowned authors, thought-leaders and a charismatic pairing; Jim Kouzes & Barry Posner are the guest speakers at the event that I helped to stage, and the event Perry attended having just established PTHR.
I can’t help but to prod deeper into memories…
… a 23 year old me, in my second job out of University, helping to shape executive education programmes for organisational leaders. I am reflectively and presently grateful that Perry was one of these leaders.
Some people you meet, and you always remember. Others you meet, remember them, but the recollections are granularly detailed. The details can include conversions had, feelings felt and settings surrounding; for no tangible reason, other than what I can deduce… these rare meetings are meaningful. They have been in my life, anyway.
With the hope of making places of work better; where conventional leadership is challenged and people given opportunities through liberation to grow, Perry and I said we would work together. It took a few years, I gained the experience I needed, and now we are doing just that.
Our time and place in space coincided. As it has for us all at PTHR. And as with all convergences in life, you either see the opportunity and synergies; or you don’t. I am infinitely glad that I did, when it comes to joining Perry’s — but now our — small, ambitious and progressive enterprise. Being part of our team and the work we do has been somewhat transformative in both my personal and professional growth.
In the decade since my first meeting with Perry, and in celebration of PTHR’s 10th birthday, here is a list of some memories that elicit those details so specific, they are meaningful:
- Reconnecting in person with Perry in August 2019, in London, with my four month old son, running through torrentially tropical rain! The first outing for me as a “working mum”.
- Our first team Zoom call, as seven in January 2020: before Zoom became the most used platform in 2020!
- The heartbreak felt when Covid hit and our pipeline near depleted: yet the support and pride felt throughout lockdown.
- Crafting our Sustainability/ESG and Impact strategies, and bringing these to life!
- Speaking proudly about our remote, self-managed, leaderful practices with Catalina and Maddy to the European Commission! Twice.
- We. are. A. B. Corp; celebrating our certification in October 2021!
- Every Team Retrospective held — six monthly — where we take time to celebrate and appreciate individual contributions.
- Finding contentment, continual motivation and positive challenge from my non-linear path to organisation design, whilst having the space and understanding to the best mum I can be.
For me, the meaning behind our work at PTHR is paramount. It’s my North Star. Our commitment to purpose-led business and sustainability will ensure we are here to make the impact we aspire to; not just for now, but for the long-run.
As an expanding constellation of people seeking to create Better Business for a Better World, I feel lucky to be connected to you all, on a planet and during a space in time that humans really do need to be guided by leaders with heart, with eyes opened, ears attuned, and us all, united. We have our north star, and as a group, you are the aurora borealis. Energising, captivating, and unforgettable.
*The title of this article pays homage to a song from my city, “The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen”, which feels so very apt. (However any request to sing this as a PTHR version, will not be met!)
“The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen
Mean Home Sweet Home to me.
The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen
Are what I long to see.
I’ve been a wand’rer all of my life
And many a sight I’ve seen,
God speed the day when I’m on my way
To my home in Aberdeen.”
