“Theft is theft. So sack ’em, right?”
Theft is a severe offence and is normally viewed as gross misconduct at work. The outcome seems pretty clear (after the obligatory disciplinary procedure). Take the the theft of a laptop from the office. It’s high value; the evidence is caught on CCTV; there’s reliable evidence to suggest that the employee sold the laptop at […]
Confidence when meeting customers!
Hi All I've recently been asked to design a half day workshop for staff moving into a new building. They are used to interviewing customers on some quite sensitive issues in very formal meeting rooms. Now they will be required to complete these interviews in "meeting pods" in a large open plan office. Their manager is […]
How to break down persistent silos and connect your organisation – is L&D helping or hindering?
A recent study of over 500 HR managers showed that silo working continues to hold organisations back and that our approach to talent development is perpetuating, rather than solving, the issue. Silos are nothing new, and an understanding of their impact on organisational performance is widely recognised. So why do we continue to experience them, […]
Life’s Little Instruction Book
Many years ago I happened upon a lovely gem of a book that was written by a dad when his son, Adam, went off to college. Called “Life’s Little Instruction Book“, it contains such memorable, honest and accurate advice as: “never turn down a breath mint when offered” and “before taking a long trip, fill […]
Don’t Buy Fiat Drivers a Christmas Present
I loved last week’s excellent Managers’ Library Insight from Frances, ‘A Different Perspective’, and it inspired me to revisit a human trait that disappoints and fascinates me in almost equal measure. I’m talking (again) of Confirmation Bias, that strange phenomenon that goes some way to explaining stereotypes, prejudice and ill feeling, and which, importantly, also […]
Organisational design: here’s the dirty little secret
Whilst a plethora of books have been written about the right way to link the strategy of an organization to the work that people do and how they are organized to do it, our latest research suggests that the reality on the ground can be very different indeed. When interviewing for our research, we were often […]
The Road to Innovation, or bust
One of the great things about Christmas is the reappearance on the TV of all those old films which you first enjoyed as a child. The Sound of Music, The Great St Trinian’s Train Robbery, Monty Carlo or Bust; whatever your personal favourites, the chances are that a bit of channel hopping will bring at […]
2017 – The year of the Next Generation
What’s it going to take to lead in 2017? Will Brexit and the change in US President bring fire fighting to the fore or will all those foretellers of doom and gloom be proved wrong once again as 2017 turns out to be a year of unprecedented growth? No I’m not a fortune teller either […]
Mindfulness for leaders: new research shows sustained benefit
Just 10 minutes of mindfulness practice a day can have a significant impact on a leader’s ability to be more resilient, collaborative and equipped to lead in complex times. This is one of the key findings of the world’s first wait-list control* research study to look specifically at whether mindfulness can help leaders become more […]
Training introductions – like “creeping death”?!
My partner is a great advocate for training! "I hate that bit at the start where we all have to say who we are and what we do." I can empathise. I'm self-employed and not a huge fan of networking meetings where each entrepreneur stands up and does their sixty-second "pitch". It's like "creeping death" around the […]
Performance Review / Appraisal
I'm working on a project at present within the public sector. The project is to review the current appraisal process with a view to recommending a new model. I'm keen to know what similar organisations are currnetly doing, whether you've decided to scrap the annual appraisal process in favour of a continuous development / monitoring […]
Getting the best involved in a mentoring programme
I just saw a similar query on our LinkedIn group and thought it was a good question – if you're running a mentoring programme, how do you ensure the best managers get involved, rather than those with bad habits? Or do you think by involving all managers in mentoring that it can iron out any […]
Do sweets help evaluate training?
One wet Friday I delivered an interpersonal skills training course. The manager who hired me popped into the training room at 5pm whilst I was clearing down and said: “Bryan, good job done. I’ve just had a quick word with some of the participants and they were over the moon about the training. They really enjoyed it and loved […]
Ten Practical Cyber Security Tips For L&D Managers
Cyber criminals and robots could be hacking into your organisation right now – to steal yours or your customers’ data. Although criminals can attack anyone, QA’s new research shows that it is the easy targets that organisations are focussing on educating in cyber security – to reduce their organisation’s vulnerability. Employees rarely have the most […]
Learning futures: our brave new world of learning
We are living and working in a technologically connected, digital and globalised world. Yet it often feels as if the world of education has not caught up with this reality. Education and learning is still being delivered in a very traditional mode, especially when we look at universities and how young people access and receive […]
How can you build a Next Generation culture?
What does the future look like for those organisations which are looking to cast off the shackles of the past and embrace a more proactive and innovative culture? This is the first part of our 'How to build a Next Generation culture' series, where we're taking a look at all the aspects that go into […]
Curveballs
The nights are drawing in, the clocks have gone back; the heating has gone on. Venturing into town the shops are, unsubtly, reminding me that Christmas is just around the corner and with it comes the realisation that we will soon say goodbye to one year and hello to another. As I ponder on the […]
Why every workplace should have a happiness strategy
Change is one of the most common causes of stress inside organizations. Leaders struggle to inspire their teams amongst constantly shifting priorities, while individual employees feel uncertain about the future resulting in higher levels of anxiety. There are many reasons that change occurs in an organization, but it may feel like the amount of change […]
The Iceberg of Change
There are always a million reasons NOT to change and this graphic captures some of the most common reasons or 'excuses' for not innovating or initiating new plans. Being aware of how certain mindsets can prevent us from grasping opportunities when they arise can be one of the first steps in moving forward. Making people […]
Uber-problematic – reflections on taxi drivers and the “agents of de-skilling” of the modern world
Have you ever had a conversation with the driver of a London Black Cab? I know the stereotypical conversation is all about Arsenal’s title chances, outspoken political opinions or a list of celebrity passengers. But if you get the chance to move beyond, “Guess, who I’ve just ‘ad in the back of me cab?” there is a […]
