60 seconds with Stuart Buglass

In the latest of our adapted 60 seconds with series, we speak with Stuart Buglass, Director- HR Advisory, in our Cheltenham office, to find out how he has been finding working from home on a full time basis.

3 facts about Stuart...

• Having not picked up a paintbrush for 30 years I’ve just rekindled a love for art which I am really enjoying.
• I cycled Mont Ventoux ( of Tour du France fame) three times in one week for a bet.
• I’ve always had rescue dogs – since being a toddler rescue dogs have been a part of my life and living with them is so rewarding.

How used to working at home are you?

Pre covid-19 my normal week was split 3 days in the office and 2 days at home , so it’s business as usual for me , albeit 5 days at home is a very different animal to 2 days .

What is your home-working set-up like?

I’m really fortunate that I have a separate office above the garage with a gym below. Its decked out just like a normal office and because it’s over the road from my house it feels like I’m actually ‘going to work’.

What practices work well for you that you think might work well for others?

Because my team advise clients on their HR issues most of the work we do requires same day responses . I’ve always found that roles that require  ‘putting out fires’ will naturally focus your mind away from dwelling on any negatives. If I have days with less fires to put out I still try and generate the same urgency and pace by setting tasks to be completed before the end of day and stick to it ( even if they don’t require completion that day)– when you work exclusively from home there is a real danger that work feels like an endless routine and I think it really helps to manage work in daily blocks , either by setting ‘ by end of day’ targets or having days with a different focus ( admin day , lead chasing day etc. ).      

How do you stay positive, motivated and productive in such an environment?

Mixing work with family helps me- there’s always lots going on. I’ve got twin daughters aged 15 and a son aged 13 . One of my daughters is a runner. Because she can’t get to a track we have had to map out distances in the local cemetery ( the only place with a circular path, convenient markers and very little footfall!) – so I get a break from work to be timekeeper most days. Understandably my son chooses to play on his x box rather than do his school work so he now also ‘attends’ the office for 2 hours of each day. My other daughter has kept a low profile quietly building an eBay empire from secretly selling her brothers old lego ( he’ll never know).       

What routines do you practice that help to keep you in the right frame of mind for the working day?

It seems my brain only functions on a morning if it has been subject to an hour and a half of traffic. Without the commute I need some other autopilot activity to start the day such as walking the dog. I then open my emails listening to music and drinking lots of coffee ….and then I’m ready to do the full on advisory stuff. It’s really easy to brainwash yourself into thinking a working day is back to back calls and emails but it really isn’t – a normal day in the office follows a natural cadence of banter after calls and a chat whenever getting a coffee. You need to ensure that you replicate this cadence as much as possible at home

During this time, what would you say has been the biggest challenge for you?

Given the nature of my work I have been on the frontline of managing redundancies for clients , including those employees that have missed out on furlough due to being on the wrong side of the governments cut off dates. During my career I can’t remember a time when I have had to advise on so many terminations , which has been pretty sobering.     

How have the services that you offer to clients changed during this crisis?

Whereas previously our work had more of a balance so that we were also dealing with the positive aspects of new hires such as contract and policy drafting., benefits set ups etc  the focus has definitely changed to the more negative side of HR. Our clients are having to swiftly engage on cost cutting exercises such as pay reductions ,a benefits freeze, furlough and redundancies in order to survive and they need a clear steer on the best strategy, which given that my teams remit is UK and international keeping apace with local government developments has proved challenging given the general lack of clarity.  

What are your top 3 tips for others working from home?

• Get a routine ( I even had to replace my commute with a walk !)
• Try and break up your week so it doesn’t feel endless – have days with a different focus and set ‘end of day’ deadlines
• See working from home as an opportunity and get the most from the things that you’ll miss when returning to normal - such as being more a part of family life , or the freedom to cycle for an hour midday etc .  

What stories or experiences can you share (good or bad!) about working from home?

My neighbours have evolved during lock down into two types –power washer obsessives and garden strimmer obsessives. It’s become the soundtrack of my week.