Leaders of the pack

Enhancing employee morale and increasing productivity is no longer reliant on outdated management techniques—if you want to get ahead, bring your dog to the office, advocates Sarah Todd

- Photographs by Mark Williamson, Richard Cannon, Anya Campbell and Matt Ankers

WORKING like a dog used to refer to a life of toil, evoking images of collies crossing testing terrain from sunrise to sunset herding their ward. Now, there are probably more 'working' dogs than at any time in our history. However, instead of catching rats, wrangling livestock or proudly standing guard, they are ensconced in offices the length and breadth of the country.

Undoubtedly a legacy of covid, the RSPCA reported that more than three million so-called 'pandemic puppies' were acquired in the UK during those dark days of the modern plague and, as shoulders returned to the wheel, many had to wave forlorn farewells to their canine companions.

Meanwhile, in the US, once lockdown was lifted, employers didn't pussyfoot about and, now, one in five American companies allow employees to bring dogs into the workplace. These aren't quirky little startups, either, but big hitters such as Google, Uber and Airbnb. Amazon's main campus in Seattle, for example, has a park for its 8,000 registered dogs. This transatlantic trend made its way across the pond and allowing employees to bring a dog to work is now considered (forget company cars) a perk of the highest order.

A Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) survey in the US revealed that 24% of people would consider quitting their job to move to a pet-friendly workplace. Back in the UK, Kennel Club (KC) research shows 70% of people believe dogs alleviate stress in the workplace, with 67% saying they believe canine company makes the atmosphere more friendly. Earlier this month, new KC research crowned Greater London as the region with the most dog-friendly offices, with two-fifths (40%) of dog owners confirming their workplace is open to dogs and almost a quarter (22%) having specific dog-friendly policies in place.