The John Lewis Partnership today is iconic for its distinctive business model: a partnership that is both owned and operated by its employees. However, this was not always the case. The transformation into this distinctive structure was initiated by John Spedan Lewis, the son of the founder. In stark contrast, the senior John Lewis had kept expenditure on wages and welfare as low as possible.
Internal communication played a vital role in Spedan Lewis’ new vision. Entrusted with the Peter Jones store in 1914, he began, to his father’s distaste, experimenting with a new approach to employer–employee relations. This approach was largely communicated and developed through the staff newspaper The Gazette, which was intended to give a voice to the staff rather than just being a tool for top–down management communication. From the outset, Spedan Lewis saw the newspaper as central to articulating a more inclusive and consultative form of business operation.
Upon the death of his father in 1928, Spedan Lewis gained full control over the John Lewis business. His new management style was extended to the whole business and taken further when, in 1929, he founded the Partnership. The John Lewis Heritage Centre still holds a vast collection of memos to or from Spedan Lewis. These offer a valuable insight into the strategic decision-making shaping the earliest forms of internal communication. Like May and June’s blog posts on the BBC, this blog post explores the behind-the-scenes strategising at John Lewis. It examines a collection of memos from 1918-26, when Spedan Lewis’ approach was being pioneered at Peter Jones, and in the final years of his leadership in 1953-55.
The John Lewis collection of shops on Oxford Street in 1885. Taken from Jonathan Glancey, A Very British Revolution (2014), p. 19.
Initiating The Gazette at Peter Jones
During his time running the Peter Jones store, Spedan Lewis extolled the importance of transparency, the efficient flow of information, and community-building. He was quick to recognise the importance of effective internal communication for the store’s operations and its workplace culture. He used The Gazette not just as a tool for disseminating information but as a platform to cultivate a partnership spirit among employees. He emphasised this vision in a memo to the editor on 28 June 1920:
‘To get a community spirit, you must create a sensation of community interests of as many kinds as possible. The Gazette without adequate reporting would be like a clock with one hand, only half as useful as it should be.’
John Lewis Heritage Centre, Memo 1920
The Gazette served several functions. Primarily, it was an avenue for keeping the staff informed about company affairs, policy changes, and operational updates. Memos from Lewis often detailed procedural changes, such as the handling of documents and correspondence within the company. These communications were not just administrative but strategic, intended to streamline processes and reduce the workload on staff, thereby enhancing overall efficiency.
Like other magazines of this era, The Gazette featured content aimed at enhancing the community spirit within John Lewis. It covered social events, sports, and other activities, helping to knit the workforce into a tighter community and reinforcing the concept of the business as a collective endeavour rather than just a workplace. This sense of community was crucial for fostering loyalty and a shared commitment to the company’s success.
A Transparent and Dialogic Ethos
However, certain aspects of The Gazette distinguished it from contemporary company magazines. Spedan Lewis placed a greater emphasis than most managers on his publication being a vehicle for organisational transparency. Regular reports on various aspects of the business were published, including detailed financial updates and trading figures. This transparency was likely intended to build trust and a sense of inclusivity, making employees feel more connected to the company’s fortunes and more responsible for its outcomes.
The Gazette was also distinctive for the extent of employee participation, with discussions about staff letters forming a major part of the newspaper. Spedan Lewis actively solicited feedback and ideas from employees, engaging them in the company’s decision-making processes. This is evident from his responses to staff contributions in the newspaper, where he corrected and commented on suggestions, fostering a two-way dialogue. By addressing employee contributions publicly, Lewis not only encouraged a culture of openness but also demonstrated that staff input was valued and considered at the highest levels.
One memo from 1926, at first sight, seems to contradict this ideal of two-way communication. On 12 April, Spedan Lewis wrote to the editors of The Gazette saying:
‘I wish the Editorial department could become more alert and resourceful in using the Gazette for propaganda’
John Lewis Heritage Centre, Memo 1926
However, this reflects the changed meaning of ‘propaganda’ rather than an intention for the newspaper to be a tool of manipulation. It goes on to say that all articles should contain contact details for readers to gain further information on a topic. At this time, the term meant the dissemination of information with an intention to keep staff informed rather than spread disinformation.
Nevertheless, Spedan Lewis’ management position did give him a greater voice in The Gazette than other members of staff and there are moments were he used his position to place restraints on certain members of staff. In a memo from 28 June 1920, he told the editor that he should not have published a certain letter from a member of staff:
‘There follows a foolish letter over the signature “Basil” which it was an error of judgment on your part to insert at all. When the Gazette asks for suggestions it means sensible suggestions sensibly expressed, not foolish suggestions expressed offensively.’
John Lewis Heritage Centre, Memo 1920
Through the memos, we also gain some insights into other communication channels that have not left a written record like The Gazette. Spedan Lewis discusses the relative feasibility and effectiveness of in-house telephones and messengers. His considerations include both the practicalities of solving day-to-day operational challenges, along with the broader impact of communication channels on staff morale and productivity.
John Spedan Lewis’ Final Years
With some reluctance, John Spedan Lewis stepped down as Chairman of the Partnership on his 70th birthday in 1955, as was required by the constitution that he had implemented. The Chairman still saw The Gazette as a vital part of his company and staff letters remained central. Yet the memos from his final years indicate how the culture of internal communication had changed across his time as chairman.
By his final years, Spedan Lewis’ relationship with the editor appears to have been one of intense scrutiny. He had always worked closely with the editor, but the wording of some memos implies that this relationship had been intensifying over time. In December 1953 he sent a memo to the editor taking issue with the magazine’s cartoonist including senior managers as the targets of their humour. Despite the extolled ethos of the Partnership and the newspaper, this suggests less editorial independence than was present in some contemporary company publications and one that had been weakening over time.
As well as interventions over specific matters such as these, the Chairman saw it as his place to direct the editor’s approach to the role in a more general sense. On 5 October 1954, he sent a memo to say that the ‘functions of an editor resemble closely those of a barrister addressing a jury’. He proceeded to reminisce about the work he had previously done with the Government to illustrate the need to say the ‘same simple thing again and again’. Aside from the scrutiny of the editor, the memo suggests that, although The Gazette had substantial input from staff, he saw its role, nonetheless, as one of reinforcing management messaging.
Even so, there are some cases of Spedan Lewis responding positively to suggestions from the editor. In a memo of 24 March 1954, he spoke in favour of the editor’s suggestion of including biographical notes of new appointments to junior posts within the Partnership. This suggests it remained a priority to humanise the organisation, to make leadership more relatable, and to foster a connection between employees at all levels. This move was likely intended to enhance internal morale and aid in the recruitment process by promoting an inclusive and transparent organisational culture.
Where to strike the balance between transparency and protecting sensitive business information was a matter that he still struggled with in his final years as Chairman. On 6 June 1954, he sent a memo to the Deputy Chairman expressing arguments, without reaching a conclusion, both for and against sharing the firm’s financial information with its employees:
‘If, when our Bank position looks very comfortable, we are going to publish that, surely it will be very awkward to refrain from publication when to outsiders the position looks bad? Then, again, if in the future you are preparing for some sudden great coup and you are anxious to move secretly, surely your secrecy may be impaired if other people see that your financial position is such that you may be dangerous in a particular direction?’
Memo from John Spedan Lewis to the Deputy Chairman, 6 June 1954. John Lewis Heritage Centre, Memo 38614.
Internal communication was a crucial element in John Spedan Lewis’ pioneering business model. Like other companies in the industrial welfare movement of the interwar years, he saw the value that a company magazine furnished in fostering a sense of unity and morale among employees. The Gazette, however, went further in its level of transparency of input from staff.
Yet it was far less independent than some other company magazines in terms of editorial freedom. Spedan Lewis’ strong views on how the magazine should function led to an increasingly intense scrutiny of the newspaper’s editor. Issues of transparency, free speech and control, which he wrestled with, epitomise a struggle seen in all organisations across the history of internal communication.