Sir John Timpson CBE | Upside down management

2022-04-21

John Timpson is Chairman at Timpson, well-known as a high street brand for shoe repairs and key cutting which now has over 2,000 stores and makes £20million in profit. What is it that works so well? John sought to shake up the business when he originally became CEO, instilling a key principle of ‘Upside Down Management’. This means as much autonomy for staff as is humanly possible. He says there are only two rules to follow (which he shares) the rest is up to the individual to deci...

John Timpson is Chairman at Timpson, well-known as a high street brand for shoe repairs and key cutting which now has over 2,000 stores and makes £20million in profit.

What is it that works so well?

John sought to shake up the business when he originally became CEO, instilling a key principle of ‘Upside Down Management’. This means as much autonomy for staff as is humanly possible. He says there are only two rules to follow (which he shares) the rest is up to the individual to decide.

The faith that Timpson puts in people is most powerful when we consider that 10% of their workforce are ex-convicts. John talks about the difficulties people have coming out of prison and the high rates of reoffending when people don’t have a job. Timpson offer them a chance and it pays off for both sides.

John is very open about his own mental health challenges and struggles with depression. He shares openly about this in his writing and conversations with others. John is keen that we normalise this and that staff step up to support each other.

Indeed, he calls their area managers ‘social workers’ – it’s their job to support the people running the shops in both their personal and professional lives.

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