Q & A with Christine Armstrong, Expert in Human Behaviour and Performance

 

Christine Armstrong is a writer and consultant specialising in the future of work, workplaces, leadership and company communication. She is the author of The Mother of All Jobs: How to Have Children and a Career and Stay Sane(ish). She also co-founded the communications consultancy Jericho Chambers and now leads her own consultancy helping businesses to operate in an uncertain, disrupted world.

 

 

In her keynote speech at APM’s Think Differently conference on 22 September, Christine will cover the following topics:

• The impact of the last 18 months, acknowledging the challenges for women specifically
• What trends are now emerging, particularly for women in work
• Tools, frameworks and ideas that can be used to approach what comes next with confidence, such as having impact remotely, how to protect your time, and how to reflect on lessons learned during the pandemic.

Here Christine speaks to APM ahead of her session.

What can project professionals, in particular women, expect to take away from your session at Think Differently?

A fresh and energising perspective on how to have the maximum impact at work. 

What advice would you give to women who are returning to the workplace and juggling career and work post pandemic?

Firstly, figure out what you learned during the pandemic, and then use it to inform how you want to work now and picture an ideal way of working. 

Then figure out what you can change to move in that direction. We will be discussing this in more detail during the session.

Do you think the pandemic has helped or hindered women wanting to get ahead in their careers?

On average, women at work have been hit harder by the pandemic than men: they are more likely to have been furloughed, made redundant or had their hours cut.  They are also more likely to have taken on an increased domestic burden. There is much to be done now to counter this!

What can organisations/businesses do to ensure they are building happier more gender-equal teams, and inclusive cultures?

The most important thing is to be honest about where they are now and to then set clear goals about where they want to be and then work together to make a plan to achieve these goals.

What has been the biggest project you have worked on in your career so far?

I launched a company called Jericho Chambers, an early example of what we now call hybrid working.

To listen to the live session virtually on Wednesday 22 September at 3.30pm, and the chance to ask Christine a question book your place here