The HR director doesn't bat an eyelid, but seemingly unfazed by the intrusion, continues with her work. Emily takes a short break and then casually walks back out of the office.
Perhaps readers in 'traditional' workplaces might have read the paragraphs above as staff engagement and a management 'open door' policy gone beyond extremes; or even some unorthodox, new-age form of industrial action.
But Emily is a Staffordshire bull terrier cross and at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in South London, director of HR Carola Nunns and her team regularly share their workspace with Emily, or Toffee the terrier, because they are colleagues' pets and frequently hang out in the office, having been re-homed by the charity.
Nunns laughs: "We never have any problem getting animal-lovers to apply for jobs here. But sometimes they don't read the job description. They just say how much they love dogs and cats in the application - with nothing about the job."
As far as animal charities go, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home ("We launched in 1860 and have had cats since 1883," says Nunns) has become a household name in the UK. And its headquarters in the capital, nestling among the railway lines by Battersea Bridge, has become as much a London landmark as the neighbouring derelict Battersea power station.
It reunites lost dogs and cats with their owners, or cares for them until new homes can be found. The charity also educates the public about responsible dog ownership and has made a bold commitment to never turn away a dog or cat in need of help.
For a small voluntary donation, members of the public - who are perhaps unable to own pets - can visit the dogs and cats in its centres in London, Brands Hatch, Kent and Old Windsor, Berkshire.
In 2011, Battersea took in 5,941 dogs and 2,693 cats - an average of 14 dogs and 8 cats every day. It houses an average 450 dogs and 150 cats in its care at any one time across the three sites and in foster homes. It also employs 331 members of staff (and 700 volunteers).
"Having come from an NHS background before joining Battersea four years ago, I noticed an interesting psychological contract for staff," says Nunns. "They were all engaged with the organisation and the animals; and very committed to the goal of the charity - but some didn't even know how much they earned." She's serious.
When Nunns joined the organisation in 2007, it had been without an HR director for six months and the decimated remains of the HR department were on the verge of total collapse, with payroll reporting to finance and staff finding out about their wage increases through convoluted means: a green letter went to staff that would receive an increase; and a red letter went to staff that would not.
"The HR department was a support service to the organisation," says Nunns. Then she pauses. "It was actually more about policing staff. The first thing I wanted to do was build up the credibility of HR." Nunns dispatched her newly formed HR team of three ("We're very lean. Make sure you mention that in the feature," she laughs) to the three sites, to increase visibility. The HR manager moved out of the HR department to hot-desk in the customer service centre and the team asked staff what they wanted from their careers. Nunns also hosted directors' lunches after induction, so new staff could quickly become acquainted with senior management.
This was followed by the launch of a staff forum, where each member of staff was given a voice through representatives. Nunns explains: "The first staff forum meeting was taken up by employees discussing removal of pigeon poo in the kennel areas, but now we have moved on to talking about strategic and innovative ideas for Battersea and these meetings are chaired by the deputy CEO."
And the change in HR perception has been palpable.
"I report directly to the CEO and sit on the council of trustees, which is the same as the board," she says. "Everything within our organisation touches on people and it is through our people that we will move the charity forward. So I don't believe I have an HR strategy - I am working on a strategic direction for Battersea and am focused on how HR can strengthen and develop the charity." But in 2011, the intrepid HR director set out on her biggest challenge: a complete restructure of the organisation.
"I have been working on restructures for my whole career," says Nunns. "But Claire Horton joined the organisation as CEO in 2010 and asked me for a 'big bang' approach to change. This had to be different."
Previously responsible for the charity's 700 volunteers, Nunns devolved the training and management of the volunteer force to the organisation's operations department and set about restructuring departments for paid staff.
She explains: "We had three main departments in the organisation: behavioural training, animal welfare and customer services (responsible for finding homes for the animals). I brought these roles all together into one department of re-homing and welfare assistants.
"It is difficult to recruit experienced animal welfare staff and recruits come to us from zoos, animal training roles or even from working with bears or dolphins abroad. But people were leaving Battersea because they were not having enough career progression and we wanted to be able to give the increasing numbers of graduate recruits a career path."
Post-restructure, employees join a five-tiered scheme. They start in the kennels working with the dogs and cats, moving up to working with members of the public, before becoming team leaders, operations managers and potentially then advancing to director level.
Nunns has also rebuilt the 'drifting' pay and reward system, in a bid to make it more fair and transparent. Staff are rated on their teamwork, relationships with colleagues, how much supervision they require, as well as their timekeeping and attendance with regards to pay decisions. And, given it is crucial for the welfare of the animals that staff arrive at work for 8am in order to feed the dogs and cats, this connects to a wider agenda of reducing short-term absence.
In 2011, Battersea created its first training scheme, giving accredited training in dog care to staff, in association with the Kennel Club.
The modules, some of which have been created by Battersea, focus on practical, experiential learning in the rescue and re-homing of dogs. Due to their levels of aptitude, some employees will receive this qualification (which is the equivalent of an NVQ) this year and, for new members of staff, it will take five years on the job to complete. "We are funding this and have a Kennel Club assessor on site," says Nunns. "It will allow our staff to move their careers forward, even if they choose to leave us. Every member of staff who wants to complete it can and, so far, take-up has been good. We are pushing a hard sell, expecting all our new starts to complete the qualification."
The next step, in the third quarter of 2012, is to develop a robust analytics system for the HR team, to give it the data it needs to tackle issues in the business, including absenteeism, which have been time-consuming and complex in the past.
With the people strategy on track, the organisation is moving forward with its ambitious development. "We want to open new sites and increase our geographical reach," explains Nunns. "But this has to happen organically. We completed the construction of a new cattery three years ago, and we want to build new kennels in London as well. The board is also considering helping smaller charities through take-overs and, by doing this, we believe more animals will be re-homed."
But the future will not be plain sailing for Battersea, and controversial obstacles remain.
"More than half (54%) of our animals are strays," adds Nunns. "They come in with medical problems and our vets have to help them. They are brought in by members of the public or local councils. Because of our commitment to never turn dogs or cats away, we find ourselves taking anything that other charities can't.
"Also, 37% of our dogs and 45% of our cats are 'gifts', meaning the owner might have had a baby and the dog has become a danger around it; the owners might have had to move into a flat or a smaller property, or have to move abroad, meaning they can no longer look after their pets. We have to take these in. But we also receive dogs that have been used for fighting - or even as bait in dog fights."
Under the Dangerous Dogs Act (1991), four breeds of dangerous dogs, including pit bull terriers, are classified as 'dangerous' and therefore illegal to own in the UK.
Police officers visit the home to inspect the dogs each fortnight and, should they decide any animals fit into an illegal breed, Battersea has an obligation, by law, to euthanise them. Equally, if a dog is deemed too unsafe to re-home, the organisation has to take the same action, meaning 29% of dogs at Battersea were put to sleep last year.
Battersea is open and honest about the situation and has been campaigning to have the Dangerous Dogs Act changed, because it believes the level of danger a dog presents is down to how the animal has been trained and socialised by an owner. Battersea maintains any dog can be aggressive when it is in the wrong hands but, in the right environment and with the right owner, dogs such as Staffordshire bull terriers can make loving pets.
But, although not wishing to dwell on the topic, Nunns adds: "We have a legal responsibility and we have to re-home responsibly. We are working with the police to re-home German Shepherds, for example, as guard dogs or police dogs."
Battersea's commitment to take in and attempt to re-home every animal that arrives at its door - coupled with its ambitions to grow - has presented it with a challenge around funding - and the charity sector has naturally not been immune from the cuts of the recession.
The charity has guaranteed that 83p from every pound it receives will be spent on the welfare of its animals. A large amount of funding had traditionally come from legacy donations (left to the organisation in people's wills), but with house prices falling, these legacy values are weakening as well.
"I am very aware that the money I have to spend on HR has to be used wisely," says Nunns. "But if we invest in our staff, it goes towards the welfare of our animals.
"Staff work here because they believe in the cause.
"The charity sector pays less than private employers, I know - but staff are engaged and incredibly committed to what we are doing here. They care about the animals. Last year, during heavy snow, our employees at Brands Hatch, which is remote, walked for as long as four hours in the adverse weather to get to the branch and make sure the animals were fed. Some staff even slept there.
"If an animal is sick, our vets will visit late at night or an employee will volunteer to take it home and foster it until it recovers."
She beams: "This place and the animals really get under your skin - and for me as the HR director, although I am strategic, I will always take the time to listen to employees and I really believe in the importance of developing them, because of the work they put in."
But then with a cheeky smile, she flashes one final hint of her commercial nous: "Being from a charity does give me a bit of negotiating power with training providers and recruitment agencies. I don't think I have ever paid their full price," she adds…
