Something I like about Donald Trump is he say's what he thinks without sugar coating it, a bit like Boris Johnson. Whether you agree or disagree with Trump or Boris' statements, they certainly get awkward conversations started! Sometimes, even if the initial comment brings controversy and you wonder why you even said it, in the end isn't it better to get things out in the open and flush out things which are bubbling under the surface? Matthew Syed writes extensively about thi

I'm a member of Vistage, a CEO leadership network, and in September last year at one of our Vistage retreats, Louis Parsons ran a 'VisionScaping' workshop. I was the grumpy one in the group who got quite frustrated with it all, feeling my paintings were dreadful. Winding back a few years.... at the age of 8 my dad bought me a motorised go-kart and ever since then I have desperately wanted to race cars and from the age of about 30 I've been able to afford to but I've never don

An organisation’s health can be measured by its ability to align around a common vision and achieve strategic goals, which are essential for long-term, sustainable business performance. However, many business leaders struggle to measure organisational health in a meaningful way, which creates difficulty for senior management in their attempts to improve it. Start with these four traits which embody business process: - consistency - improvement - empowerment - trust Assessing

Matthew Syed is absolutely spot on when he says "by adopting and encouraging certain attitudes and behaviours, leaders can create an environment that can allow innovation to thrive, it can be the result of simplifying a process, or even eliminating an activity that no longer adds value". I completely agree. Position process as the foundation on which everyone in an organisation can shape and improve the way that business operates. Someone comes up with an inspired way of doin

When I headed up my previous company, I hovered over my staff, keeping everyone’s movements within my sight, acting like a helicopter manager. I wanted to maintain vigilance, poised as a quality controller to point out the small errors, the niggling little things they had overlooked or not quite done to my standards. The more I looked, the more faults I found. I was effectively filling the gaps left by my team and taking responsibility away from them. In so doing, I was cre

Position process as the foundation on which everyone in an organisation can shape and improve the way that business operates. Give people a clear starting point and watch those opinions and ideas garner momentum. As soon as people see the word ‘process’ they immediately think, ‘Yeah, right. What you’re trying to do is take away my freedom and monitor me.’ This resistance is a great shame, especially given the negative effects of chaos and a lack of structure. Without an agree

It is important that the right applicant is chosen for the job, but there needs to be a more inclusive recruitment approach within an organisation to really benefit long term from the hiring decision made. It is imperative that you are be able to collaborate with people unlike yourself, to solve those complex problems and to gain a fresh view point. However, to be able to do this, you have to hire people who aren't all clones of each other. People who are able to bring a diff

I came across a short clip of Simon Sinek talking about how curiosity is not only a source of innovation but the ability to collaborate with others unlike you. Simon talks about how "organisations who think they are experts actually produce systemic stupidity because they loose their sense of curiosity. They think they have nothing to learn and can only see one thing, becoming dogged on that being the answer". I've read Simon's book 'Start With Why' and would highly recommend