You’d hear the rattle of the cups first. People would look up from their desks and say, “Ooh, lovely, just what I need” or “About time, I’m gasping”, depending on their disposition. The trolley would nose its way through the doors, with the the tea lady in tow. And we’d all stop work as she […] Read More…
The fatuousness of Dominic Raab’s argument in the Newsnight item that I talked about in my last blog was at least matched by the disingenuity of Mervyn King, retired Governor of the Bank of England, later in the same item when he said that he was now ‘part of the gig economy’. Yeah, right, Merv. […] Read More…
I caught a bit of Newsnight yesterday evening and there was a film on the future of work, comparing it with 40 years ago (it being the anniversary of the election of Margaret Thatcher in 1989). In it, they visited Shirebrook, a mining community that lost its colliery after the miner’s strike and now has […] Read More…
My favourite business book of the year is Be More Pirate by Sam Conniff Allende. It is a clarion call for change, for action, for us to ‘break the rules and replace them with better ones’. It is a movement for change and I just love the spirit it is written with. So I decided […] Read More…
I am starting out, rather uncertainly, on a quest. I want to promote heart-centred leadership, intuitive and nurturing in style. I believe this is what the world needs today, to create organisations for the 21st century that release the potential of the people within them rather than trying to define them as narrow functions within […] Read More…
If, like me, you are a fan of Simon Sinek’s book Start with Why and his idea of the Golden Circle, you will be familiar with the concept of understanding your Why. If you aren’t, then check out Simon’s hugely popular Ted talk or his Start with Why website. I have been using Simon’s online […] Read More…
There’s a lot of talk today about happiness in work. Organisations are urged to make their staff because happy people are more productive and happy businesses perform better. Individuals are told to follow their passion, to pursue happiness because they will be more successful doing something that makes them happy. There are any number of […] Read More…
There are many sound and compelling business reasons why we should be rehumanising our organisations, putting the people upfront and central to the whole enterprise. When you give people a purpose to work, treat them as whole human beings and trust them with the freedom and autonomy to decide for themselves what to do, there […] Read More…
Last week, a bit of my past came back and bit me in the bum. It was quite a surprise, even though it was more of a nip than a full bite. It showed me just how hard it can be to let go of things and how they can still hold you back, long […] Read More…
“Our people are our greatest asset” is a familiar statement that has escaped the lips of numerous CEOs and organisational leaders. It’s normally met with a sneering retort from said ‘greatest assets’ of “Oh yeah, like @*&! we are”. Sometimes, it is an insincere platitude and deserving of such scorn. Often, however, it is said […] Read More…