10 Top Manchester Roam-Working Venues. (Mindfulness at Work)
I’ve always been classed as a Maverick, never more so than with interviewing. It’s led
to my biggest career arguments spanning 20 years:
- My interview training back in 1994 that insisted interviews were a scientific process.
- The 60+ yr old Executive Search stalwart in 1999 that reprimanded me for being conversational, and smiling, during an interview.
- The recruitment MD that insisted interviews were all about wrestling control; promoted their interviews as being the toughest around; and held a WWII plane-side tally of Executives their interview style had ‘broken’ in an almost Luftwaffe/Alfred Grislawski fashion.
But I disagreed. And I’m still right. The biggest question my clients ask at Shortlist is “What is he/she like….?”.
Providing an answer that “they interview well”, or that they didn’t “break during a Nazi-esque interrogation interview”, won’t answer that question, or give insight into what each candidate is like.
By the time a process has whittled over hundred targets down to a shortlist of 4 or 5, ability to do the job is a foregone conclusion, the only question to answer is that of cultural and commercial fit.
As I described in my blog Think Different. Think Chemistry Fit. (No Such Thing As Bad PR),……it is all down to Chemistry Fit! A control-fought, scientific, Luftwaffe interrogation (without smiling) isn’t going to uncover that.
Think Different.
Steve Jobs maintained Think Different at Apple. My different is my focus on Chemistry Fit, and for that reason, when I started my business, I took the decision never to interview in an office again. Nor in a suit/tie.
My objective is to understand the interviewee. To see their true personality, not their defensive, over-cautious, interview personality. Keeping them in their comfort-zone is important. By the time I interview for a role, I have spent at least a day with my client, in their offices wherever confidentiality constraints allow, all in the name of understanding the business, the people and it’s culture. The Client side of the Chemistry Fit equation. Matching Candidate-side Chemistry Fit relies on the ability to gain insight into natural, not adapted personalities.
Mindfulness.
…..but there is more. I discovered the principles of Mindfulness some time ago (watch Andy Puddicombe’s brilliant 9min TED Talk if you don’t know what I’m talking about).
A key aspect of Mindfulness is to break conscious and subconscious routines (and the interaction between the two). Changing where you work, even changing desks, is a great way of doing that. I discovered changing where I worked had huge gains to my productivity, the quality of my output, and my own well-being. The same thing applies to candidates in interview. Having them in a different, more unusual setting, is like a defibrillator for the conscious mind.
Roam-Working – My Top 10 Manchester Locations
The growth of Mobile Connectivity has brought infinite possibilities for general working whilst out and about. No longer do we need to find office space or business centres to be effective when not in the office.
All that places need is WiFi, power, workspace and ideally coffee/refreshments on tap. Few places struggle to tick all boxes, but what are my favourite Manchester locations to work, and even more so, interview (in no order!)
Inside Club Brass
Club Brass at Hotel Gotham
Private Members club above the new Hotel Gotham, top of King Street. This place is tailor-made for Roam Working, and for Maverick HeadHunters. Only £500 per year membership, but it brings great quiet, refined, high-class and discreet surroundings, fast WiFi, numerous charging points, ample quiet spaces, perfect selection of high quality drinks and food (and it’s outstanding restaurant, Honey) and it’s pièce de résistance, three outdoor terraces, 7 floors up, all with views across the Manchester skyline. It also brings an aura of exclusivity being a Private Members Club, and gives an automatic concierge to greet guests.
Manchester House
Manchester House, Lounge on 12
Very similar to Club Brass, without the Private Members Club exclusivity but with the now familiar and well proven Living Ventures excellent execution. Similar level of service to the Hotel Gotham club, numerous different areas and seating arrangements, rooftop views and a strong range of refreshments (although Gin selection could be better….!). Sat atop Aiden Byrne’s Michelin Star vying Restaurant, option for food is arguably better – but public accessibility means that daytime/afternoons can be busier and louder.
PKB – Pot Kettle Black
A true favourite. Quirky but an extremely homely artisan coffee shop in the Barton Arcade. Founded by St Helen’s Rugby Stars, Jon Wilkin and Mark Flanagan, they mix great informality with great coffee and a different approach to bland international coffee shops. Loads of charging points and great WiFi (and the added privacy of their Wing-Backed chairs if you need), PKB is a superb informal meeting spot and Hot-Desking/Roam-Working favourite. They even run BootCamp training sessions, early in the morning on the roof of Barton Arcade…!
San Carlo Gran Café
The latest of San Carlo’s Manchester offerings, found in the basement of Selfridges. Italian flair, to say nothing of Italian coffee and a range of Italian desserts & Torte (try the Tiramisu!). San Carlo Gran Café is also home to the finest Full English Breakfast in Manchester – a steal at less than £8. Good wifi and a lack of power outlets make this a more relaxed meeting place than a top Roam-Working venue, but with gastronomical delights like this, you’ll want to share the experience.
Rapha Cycle Club
This may be a new one for most. Rapha, market leader in Cycling gear have a café on King Street. No really. OK, so it overlooks King Street, but with it’s entrance on St Ann’s Passage. Just have a look above Crombie on King Street, you see a tell-tale Team Sky bike in the window. The café is very cool, quick WiFi, great coffee and a very unusual set up, especially for the cycling fan (although the shop that you walk through can be a dangerous gauntlet to run). The only downside is the lack of power sockets leaving it a short-haul stay, unless you have a full and well-functioning Mac/Laptop battery.
The Alchemist
Long-term favorite of mine, recently extended to give a more varied offering. My favourite window-side sofa has gone, but the flexibility of seating options has increased. Busy at lunch and post-work, but with opening hours from 10am, it gives a great, bright and central meeting point in the middle of Spinningfields.
Great John Street
Another little gem tucked away to the south of Spinningfields, a boutique hotel set in a converted school. Several character filled rooms – especially the Library; service as you would expect from a leading 4-star boutique hotel and a great rooftop terrace, again offering views across Manchester/Castlefield.
Manchester Escalator
A more unusual space, set up almost exclusively for Roam-Working, but with a public coffee shop and a full presentation auditorium. Set under the arches of the Great Northern Warehouse complex, the Manchester Escalator is a Barclays funded project offering the Roam-Worker a full office set up from meeting rooms to collaborative working. Class leading technology and the ability to host events of any nature make this a compelling, very different option
Yes there are only eight above. Watch this space for more recommendations…..
…..or send me your favourites for inclusion here!
Further afield…..
The Snug
The Botanist – Alderley Edge
Perennial favourite of mine, again recently extended with a new upstairs area and now includes a fantastic ‘snug’ upstairs which has fast become a favoured spot for interviewing as well as Roam-Working. Fast WiFi, great service, full selection of food & refreshments (and Gin) and one of the most unusual surroundings and imaginative environments around – The Wild West meets Victoriana. Also boasts four separate outdoor areas.
Cook & Baker – Wilmslow
Independent Coffee Shop with a real flair and style. Centrally located, very good WiFi and plenty of power points. Full Coffee Shop refreshments and fantastic own-cooked artisan foods and cakes. Closes at 4pm but opens early. Be aware of the ‘Cheshire Yummy Mummy’ rush just after school run times.
Alderley Edge Café – Alderley Edge
Cheshire take on the ‘greasy spoon café’, but a very upmarket version of. Always busy, a real ‘it’ place for breakfast – more Cheshire business(wo)men can be found breakfasting here than at forced networking events. Great WiFi, owner-managed levels of service and Cheshire’s best Fry-Up plus the healthy alternatives (try the off-the-menu ‘Nick Bianchi’ Omelette) for those breakfast meetings….
CorksOut – Alderley Edge
…and at the other end of the day, this is a great option for late afternoon
onwards. What started off as an Off Licence with a couple of seats, has developed into a fully fledged bar, with outdoor seating area,…and a little boutique Wine/Spirit Merchant at the rear of the store. Fantastic setting, good WiFi (and the ability to piggy-back off next-door Gusto’s if needs be), a great selection of premium drinks (and a healthy Gin collection for consumption and off-sale), with the added benefit of having highly knowledgeable staff to introduce you to some unusual refreshments. Feels just like meeting/working in a high-class wine cellar.
Café Tuscano – Knutsford
Hidden gem in the centre of Knutsford. A true Milanese style café based on Regent Street. Bags of charm, great coffee, good WiFi and a ton of Italian flair, all based 5 mins from M6 Jct 19, perfect daytime meeting venue, inside or out….
Old Sessions House
…..then later on in the day, New Moon’s Old Sessions House is a perfect venue. Again good WiFi, loads of ‘nooks and crannies’ to work in, hide in, meet people in, all in a very welcoming atmosphere.
Crewe Hall – M6 South (Jct 16)
Firm favourite for southerly meetings, especially for US interviewees. A former 
17th Century manor house, build in 1612 by Sir Ranulph Crewe (who spent a fortune and 24 years building it). Now a Q-Hotel, but still retains its old-world charm….and very much like interviewing in Downton Abbey. Good WiFi and a typical ‘large hotel’ level of service and refreshments. Be aware of a ‘no-devices’ rule from lunchtime onwards in the main lounge so as not to disturb ‘Afternoon Tea’.
More Mobile?
Of course with the increase of mobility, so does Roam-Working portability. Back garden, holiday balcony and an increasingly useful option of using your iPhone 4G Mobile Hotspot to work from the back of your car between meetings (or while waiting for your daughter’s weekend dance class to finish….)
Holding meetings/interviews in some of the places above and Roam-Working in even more, holds huge benefit and means you get more of a buzz, and greater productivity when you get back to your traditional office:
garychaplin.com 
Great list Gary, and great to see why you work that way. I love Manchester House.
Where do you use in the NQ?
I was on the receiving end of one of Gary’s interviews earlier this week, at Hotel Gotham, as one of 3 recruiter interviews that day. His was the only one I actually enjoyed and felt had got and understood me. His is also the only process that I have been progressed for which I have little doubt is because of the understanding he was able to gain. My other interviews that day followed your early training! Well done on a great blog.
Thanks Peter. Good luck tomorrow.
Great selection Gaz. Some top places mentioned. Why did we ever aspire to having an office?
Interesting blog Gary. I concur wholeheartedly with you comments on the usual style of interviewing. I’m pretty sure I know the recruitment MD you mention from years gone by, and if not, have met their carbon copy. Such an outdated approach to adopt an austere and autocratic style to what should be an enjoyable and outright informative discussion. It is perhaps slightly relevant at a more junior level, but when you are operating at, or purporting to operate at a senior management level, such tactics turn execs off wholesale. Such a recruiter would never get my business as a potential client if such a totalitarian manner was adopted towards candidates. Well done for brining humanity to recruitment, and for such a well written and informative blog.
It was so interesting to read that Gary. I am always so nervous at interviews. Being quite a reserved person with those I don’t know, I do not come across particularly well. With me it’s all about the personality and soft skills I possess………..things you can’t learn on a training course and of course, most of those don’t come across in an interview. Yet everyone tells me how great I am and that I won’t be out of work long.
But I am a naturally modest person so those who are at ease with blowing their own trumpets often pip me to the post.
If only instead of interviewing me, all the people who I have worked with over the past 5 years could be interviewed – Asda House colleagues, ~Asda suppliers and my lovely customers, I would get a job tomorrow! Wishful thinking , hey?
Thank you Wendy. That is the exact reason why disarming interview styles are so effective. The days of getting a job based solely on how you performed in am interrogatory interview are, thankfully, long gone. Most nowadays want Chemistry fit above all else.
Places to interview? Who’s ego are we stroking here Gary? Call me old school, but an interview with a recruiter is a relatively recent phenomena (I am 56 yo) and from some reports is now on the decline. Unless I am applying to be a bar manager I don’t want to sit in an environment chosen by some hipster recruiter trying to stand out from other hipster recruiters. Your line “The same thing applies to candidates in interview. Having them in a different, more unusual setting, is like a defibrillator for the conscious mind” is pretentious crap that speaks volumes about you as an individual and how you view candidates. Cannot wait for your next blog “How the Apple Watch changed my life”.
Thanks for your comments Jeff. I’m sorry you see my approach as Ego-Stroking and pretentious, I can assure you it is not, but I can also not be all things to all men (although I do recommend you look into Mindfulness, those comments will make more sense). There are plenty of more traditional recruiters whose traditional approach will, I am sure, fit you better. Some people will never see progression and evolution as a good thing.
For your interest, Employment Agencies pre-date you, 1893 was the first (excluding Henry Robinson’s 1650 “Office of Addresses and Encounters“) thus the recruiter interview has been around for sometime. As for the recruiter interview being in decline. It may be, but against a backdrop of a booming market, more sizeable now that at any point in history, it only goes to show that those who DO interview all shortlisted candidates are a better breed.
Remember Winston Churchill’s quote Gary. “You have people complaining? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.”
Old people live their life to complain about change, then complain when people think they are out of touch.
What an amazingly arrogant reply Jeff. 56 years old and still stuck in the dark ages. Your bitterness stem from a career of rejection from recruiters by any chance? Perhaps try looking in the mirror before childishly name calling someone who has disrupted and brought innovation to the recruitment sector.
Rejected from one too many jobs jeff? Try shifting your attitude or swallowing a bitterness pill.
Jeff
I have experienced Gary’s interview style just last week and his approach is how the recruitment industry should be adopting. Shunning the autocratic approach of many of his contemporaries should be welcomed not blindly criticised by a dinosaur with an obvious axe to grind. Perhaps spend a little more time on your own approach to life and a little less time resisting any form of change might see your own successes improve.
DW
Grumpy old men. Fuelling age discrimination for a generation.
OMG. What a snotty response to a blog offering to help. A Bar Manager might be a bit beyond your reach Jeff with that attitude.
Just seen this from your Twitter feed Gary.
Jeff, you rude old man. All markets need innovation and if you read Gary’s points and get to experience one of his interviews (I have, as did the person that recommended him to me) you would see how the approach works and adds to the process. Having subsequently recruited through Gary, that difference becomes even more apparent when he is able to give in insight into the personality and cultural fit of each candidate to facilitate the selection. Tired old dogs remain tired old dogs.
Great blog Gary. I’m 58yr old and currently a Marketing Director within Pharma. I have commented for years that the agency interviews I have undertaken have benefitted no-one other than recruiter ego. Having some snotty-nosed 25yr old recruiter flex his muscles whilst reading a crib sheet and wearing a power suit and tie was comical last time I move jobs 5 years ago. Nowadays it is beyond passé. Your approach would be something I would welcome as a candidate, not that I am every likely to move jobs again with retirement beckoning. More importantly, as a potential client, knowing you treat your candidates in a human way, whilst giving them the best opportunity to sell themselves from a position of comfort, and being able to provide opinion on cultural fit would be enough for me to want to use you to recruit for us. You will always get naysayers Gary, as long as more people back you, you are on the right path. Glancing up on this blog’s comments, you are more than comfortable.
Roger
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You’ve got to add Central Library to that list as well. Free wi-fi, power and most importantly silence for when you need to concentrate.
Also I don’t end up high on caffeine at the end of the day, as I don’t feel obliged to keep the coffee flowing!