plus+ presentations: Women on Company Boards

As part of further developing the relationships St Stephen Walbrook has with the business community in the City of London, we have begun a new series of events to explore the place of faith in the world of business. This new ongoing series of events is entitled ‘plus+ presentations’, as the series is one part of the way in which St Stephen seeks to add value to the City.

The format for ‘plus+ presentations’ is:

• 6.15pm: Evening Prayer (optional)
• 6.30pm: plus+ presentation
• 7.00pm: Drinks reception & networking
• 7.30pm: Close

As part of her talk on campaigns to see more women on company boards, Sally Muggeridge highlighted the examples of two remarkable woman. The first was Revd Paula Vennells. Sally said that "Paula happens to be Chief Executive of the Post Office and is an ordained self-supporting minister like myself. Prior to her present role Paula, like myself, had had a long business career, starting with Unilever in 1981. I listened to Paula speak last week as to how she manages to work at the heart of two national institutions that shape and support us in our communities all over the UK. Paula also has three Parishes in Bedford!"

The other example she quoted was that of Liza Strong, the group head of organisational talent and diversity at Royal Mail saying that: "Liza had put a whole new meaning into diversity when she asked a transgender champion to speak on a panel at an event for female employees, alongside the business’s CEO and a range of distinguished authors and experts. Liza said that she wondered if the organisation was ready, but she told me people loved it and Liza was the one who got all the questions afterwards. Other key signals were Royal Mail taking part in the Pride Festival in London for the first time, together with a Post Box at Mount Pleasant sorting office in the Capital being painted in rainbow colours."

Sally noted that Royal Mail has also pioneered balanced shortlisting, where any shortlist for frontline roles must have an equal gender split. To some, she said, these might seem small changes but from little actions, larger ones emerge, and it helps change the ethos of the workplace. 

The overall message has been that ‘Our CEO believes that employing more women will change the culture.’

The programme of plus+ presentations going forward is as follows:

• 9th November Barbara Ridpath, Director of St Paul's Institute, will speak on Transitions: how to make life-changing career changes by choice or necessity.
• 18 January 2018, our presenter will be Professor Richard Higginson (Director of Faith in Business, Ridley Hall Cambridge) speaking about Christian entrepreneurs living out their faith.
• 15 February 2018 - Revd Dr Fiona Stewart-Darling, Canary Wharf MultiFaith Chaplaincy.

Each plus+ presentation is preceded by Evening Prayer at 6.15pm.

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Karen Peris - First Days In The City.

plus+ presentations: adding value to the City

As part of further developing the relationships St Stephen Walbrook has with the business community in the City of London, we have begun a new series of events to explore the place of faith in the world of business.

This new ongoing series of events is entitled ‘plus+ presentations’, as the series is one part of the way in which St Stephen seeks to add value to the City.

The inaugural plus+ presentation was given by Douglas Board, founder of Maslow’s Attic, on 21 September. Douglas, who is a senior visiting fellow at Cass and also writes on management, faith, society and humour, as well as careers, share practical, intellectual and spiritual reflections on flourishing at work in a presentation entitled ‘In an open plan office, can anyone hear you scream?’

Douglas began by referencing a sense of loneliness versus connectivity as characteristic of digital age and workplaces. Managers have become attuned to giving pseudo-recognition but there are not often "authentic" connections between people as work. There is a sense of "investing in people" but the reality is usually different. This is often due to leaders lacking emotional intelligence. Loneliness in the workplace is a poverty of recognition. Genuine/authentic connections are needed, not the round-robin "well done" one-liner emails etc. Is there a role for church here? Listening, supporting? Outside of the politics of workplace and away from familiarity at home? He suggested the example of authentic listening as developed by Samaritans, as pioneered at St stephen Walbrook. Douglas talked about our "real" hierarchy of needs, not with individual/self at the peak - but relationships with each other: (Peak) Recognition (Mid Tier) Respect (Foundation Tier) Unconditional Love. What can we do to overcome the issues he addressed? More face to face contact, less reliance on email. More time to get to know people. Create space to talk.
The format for ‘plus+ presentations’ is:

• 6.15pm: Evening Prayer (optional)
• 6.30pm: plus+ presentation
• 7.00pm: Drinks reception & networking
• 7.30pm: Close

Going forward, we plan to run the plus+ presentations on the third Thursday of each month, although the remaining 2017 dates will be 19th October; 9th November:

• 19th October Revd Sally Muggeridge, Curate at St Stephen Walbrook, will speak from personal experience about campaigns to increase the numbers of women on Boards. 
• 9th November Barbara Ridpath, Director of St Paul's Institute, will speak on Transitions: how to make life-changing career changes by choice or necessity.
• 18 January 2018, our presenter will be Professor Richard Higginson (Director of Faith in Business, Ridley Hall Cambridge) speaking about Christian entrepreneurs living out their faith.
• 15 February 2018 - Revd Dr Fiona Stewart-Darling, Canary Wharf MultiFaith Chaplaincy.

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Peteris Vasks - Lord, Open Our Eyes.

plus+ presentations: adding value to the City of London

As part of further developing the relationships St Stephen Walbrook has with the business community in the City of London, we plan to begin a new series of events in the autumn to explore the place of faith in the world of business.

This new ongoing series of events is entitled ‘plus+ presentations’, as the series is one part of the way in which St Stephen seeks to add value to the City.

The inaugural plus+ presentation will be given by Douglas Board, founder of Maslow’s Attic, on 21 September (6.30pm). Douglas is a senior visiting fellow at Cass and also writes on management, faith, society and humour, as well as careers. Previously, he was consultant, director and then deputy chairman of Saxton Bampfylde, a top 10 UK search firm.

Douglas will share practical, intellectual and spiritual reflections on flourishing at work in a presentation entitled ‘In an open plan office, can anyone hear you scream?’

The format for ‘plus+ presentations’ is:

• 6.15pm: Evening Prayer (optional) 
• 6.30pm: plus+ presentation 
• 7.00pm: Drinks reception & networking 
• 7.30pm: Close 

Going forward, we plan to run the plus+ presentations on the third Thursday of each month, although the remaining 2017 dates will be 19th October; 9th November.

On 19th October Revd Sally Muggeridge, Curate at St Stephen Walbrook, will speak from personal experience about campaigns to increase the numbers of women on Boards.

On 9th November Barbara Ridpath, Director of St Paul's Institute, will speak on Transitions: how to make life-changing career changes by choice or necessity.

On 18 January 2018, our presenter will be Professor Richard Higginson (Director of Faith in Business, Ridley Hall Cambridge) speaking about Christian entrepreneurs living out their faith.

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Deacon Blue - Wages Day.

In an open plan office, can anyone hear you when you scream?

As part of further developing the relationships St Stephen Walbrook has with the business community in the City of London, we plan to begin a new series of events in the autumn to explore the place of faith in the world of business.

We are already marketing St Stephen Walbrook, and some specific business-related offers, using ‘plus+’ to talk about St Stephen Walbrook adding value to the City. As a result, this new ongoing series of events will be titled ‘plus+ presentations’.

The inaugural presentation in our new series of plus+ presentations will be given by Douglas Board, founder of Maslow’s Attic, on 21 September, 6.30pm, at St Stephen Walbrook

Douglas Board is a senior visiting fellow at Cass and also writes on management, faith, society and humour, as well as careers. Previously, he was consultant, director and then deputy chairman of Saxton Bampfylde, a top 10 UK search firm. Douglas will share practical, intellectual and spiritual reflections on flourishing at work in a presentation entitled ‘In an open plan office, can anyone hear you scream?’

The format for ‘plus+ presentations’ is: 

• 6.15pm: Evening Prayer (optional); 
• 6.30pm: plus+ Presentation; 
• 7.00pm: Drinks reception & networking; 
• 7.30pm: Close. 

There is no charge for the presentation/reception and no need to book. All are welcome – just come on the day.

Going forward, we plan to run the plus+ presentations on the third Thursday of each month, although the remaining 2017 dates will be 19th October; 9th November. On 18 January 2018, our presenter will be Professor Richard Higginson speaking about Christian entrepreneurs living out their faith.

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Arvo Pärt - Da Pacem.

St Stephen Walbrook: Autumn Newsletter

St Stephen Walbrook has just published its Autumn Newsletter. We have a very varied and exciting programme for the Autumn including a new initiative - plus+ presentations – which will explore the place of faith in the world of business, as a way of further developing the relationships St Stephen Walbrook has with the business community in the City of London.

The inaugural presentation in our new series of plus+ presentations will be given by Douglas Board, founder of Maslow’s Attic, on 21 September at 6.30pm. Douglas will share practical, intellectual and spiritual reflections on flourishing at work in a presentation entitled ‘In an open plan office, can anyone hear you scream?’

His presentation will follow a new monthly Evening Prayer service at 6.15pm and will then be followed by a drinks reception and networking. Please do come along to support this new initiative and tell friends and colleagues, particularly any who work in the City.

Our newsletter also provides information about:

• Open House London & The House of Sound
• Special Services: Autumn 2017 - Business Harvest Festival & Thanksgiving Service for The Lord Mayor
• Conference: Art awakening humanity
• Discover & explore: Rome, London & Christianity
• Art exhibitions  - Vision & Creations
• The Lord Mayor’s St Stephen’s Serenades
• plus+
• The Long long lunch
• Preludes & Vollenteries 1
• Walbrook Art Society lectures and guided tours

This Autumn we also welcome to the area our new neighbours at Bloomberg London. Their site includes Bloomberg Arcade comprising 10 independent restaurants offering a variety of cuisines and dining styles, seven days a week, and also the London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE. This anticipated cultural hub will restore the ancient Temple of Mithras to the site of its discovery, showcase a selection of the remarkable Roman artefacts discovered during excavation, and display a series of contemporary art commissions responding to the site’s history.

Our new series of Discover & explore services will focus on ‘Rome, London & Christianity’, as part of the City of London's 'Londinium' programme. Other history themed musical happenings at St Stephen include: The House of Sound (11-17 September), which recreates the sounds of the past activities of Walbrook and Watling Street, and Preludes & Vollenteries 1 (14 September, 6pm) exploring the dialogue between the great architecture of Wren, Hawksmoor and Hooke, and the work of the violin makers and composers whose instruments and music flooded in the London in the years after the Restoration.

We very much hope you will find things of interest and spiritual refreshment in our Autumn programme and look forward to seeing you whenever you are able to join us over this period. Please do pass on our newsletter and share information about services and events, so that others can also connect with these varied and exciting services and events.

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Peter Sheppard Skærved - B Minor Fantasie.

Light the Well and The Secret Chord

I will be giving the reflection for Bread For the World, 6.30pm, at St Martin-in-the-Fields on Wednesday 28 June. Everyone is welcome at our weekly informal Eucharist, an evening service with prayer, music, word and reflection. 

I will be reflecting on our ‘treasure in clay jars’ project, a community art installation. ‘Light the Well’, is a community art project which Anna Sikorska is undertaking together with the artists and craftspeoples group. The project involves making porcelain lanterns (glazed ceramic globes). The size, surface decoration and character of each lantern will differ, although the base material - and overall look - is consistent white ceramic, roughly made. The lanterns are made by laying strips of porcelain onto a round support. Porcelain clay glows with a transparency individual to itself. Once made, they are fired and the lanterns are then suitable for being outside. They develop cracks in the firing, through which the light inside will also be seen. In the Light Well at St Martin's these lanterns will be joined together with cord covering the stone floor in a random constellation. The cord also connects a light bulb within each lantern, so each one will shine from within. There will be a lantern-making workshop with Anna Sikorska after the service.

In my reflection I will refer to Leonard Cohen's 'Anthem' which includes the line 'There is a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in.'

I will refer to another Leonard Cohen song on Sunday at St Peter's Chapel Bradwell-on-Sea at 6.30pm, Peter Banks and I will lead an Evening Prayer based on themes drawn from our co-authored book, The Secret Chord. The book takes its title and key theme from Cohen's 'Hallelujah'. 

James Weaver and Peter Banks are Café Musica, who will provide music for the service. The combination of their two voices provide a rich emotion, drawing out the best in both the quirky covers and original songs they perform. With an essentially acoustic multi-instrument approach, Café Musica captivate audiences and listeners alike.

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Café Musica - Dark Side.

‘I am the Vine and You are the Branch Managers': Organising the Kingdom or Stifling the Spirit?

Those concerned about managerialism in the Church of England may wish to make their way to St Martin-in-the-Fields this Sunday at 5.00pm to hear The Revd Dr Sam Wells, Vicar of St Martins, address the issue of whether management is a helpful tool that can help Christians and the church flourish and fulfil their potential, or whether it is an insidious ideology that impoverishes true relationship and diminishes the life of faith?

Sam will preach on this topic in our 'Issues of our Time' series and as part of Lighten Our Darkness, our service of contemporary Choral Evening Prayer. The title of his sermon is ‘I am the Vine and You are the Branch Managers': Organising the Kingdom or Stifling the Spirit?

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Eternal Father, strong to save.