Seeing Opportunities in a Crisis
Hi, I am Andy Smith, TransformWork Ambassador.
Before retiring, I was part of various Christian Workplace Groups at Rolls-Royce plc for 37 years. As well as leading a Christian Workplace Group I was also the co-chair of the multi-faith network for my final 7 years. In this world sadly we face many issues and at times the news can be overwhelming. The recent earthquake in Venezuela for instance is at a level that is difficult to comprehend.
When I worked at Rolls-Royce, there were several occasions when members of the faith community were impacted to the extent that they wanted to make a collective response. The New Zealand mosque attack in 2018; the Sri Lanka Easter Sunday church attack in 2019 and the Ukraine invasion in 2022 were some of the events that we responded to.
When several people felt a response was required, the idea was circulated amongst the relevant faith groups and/or leads and a proposal put together which was sent to the diversity & inclusion lead for approval and where applicable approval from other stake holders was also sought. Areas such as branding and legal as well as areas you did not even knew existed or what they do can get involved. As you can appreciate, this can take time, so realistic planning is essential. Seek advice from anyone who has done something before and see if you can contact multiple people at once, to speed the process up. When the go ahead looked promising, we were also blessed to have a member of the senior leadership team as our sponsor, so we liaised with their PA (top tip: if you have a sponsor, then get to know their PA) to find a sutable time for the event which either they or someone else from the senior leadership team could support. It is amazing how senior support produces additional support and attendance.
Most importantly, once approval has been granted and a date, time and location finalized, the event needs to be publicised. Get to know your local personal assistants. PAs often have local circulation lists and know the other PAs too who have their own lists. Get the message out on every available channel – email, company newsletter (if there is time), internal website.
Make sure people know what the event is about, generally what is going to happen and where appropriate any does and don’ts.
For the two attacks, it was a simple act of remembrance around the statue of Sir Henry Royce which included a message from one of the companies senior leadership team and in the case of the Sri Lanka attack, the Rolls-Royce chaplain also prayed. Ukraine required a different approach, buying 1000’s of samosas which were sold at a mark up across multiple sites raising £1000’s which required getting local site reps on board to collect their box and to return the cash – or if someone can set up some sort of go fund me page instead. People appreciated the opportunity to respond and talk about the issue.
One of the faith groups requested a vigil for those caught up in Gaza in 2023. Whilst this did go ahead, it was with May does (focused on humanitarian issues as civilians caught up on both sides) and do not (no flags, no banners/posters, no comment on right/wrong on both sides of conflict).
Depending on the company you work for will determine what sort of a response you can make, but can I please encourage you to do so. We are called to weep with those who weep and mourn with those who mourn. There is something powerful when people collectively participate in an activity in response to a difficult situation – the number of vigils on TV are a good example of this.
Some advice I would give is keep it simple; keep it focused and relevent and choose your opportunities. Sadly, there are many opportunities and there is always the risk of compassion fatigue. Issues do not have to be international. Something local like sending a card to someone who has recently experienced a bereavement letting them know the Christian workplace group is thinking and praying for them can be just as powerful as a mass vigil.
I hope this encourages you to consider what could be possible where you work and maybe it might encourage other Christians in your company to come alongside too.
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12/08/2026