Leaders and managers often have to introduce change—perhaps they see the need, or perhaps their team members come to them with a problem and solution. But it’s important to check … Continue reading Change for objective reasons
Category: General management
Questioning our own motivation
A while back I told a story in which a team questioned why I wanted them to show their current work on a whiteboard. They thought it was because I … Continue reading Questioning our own motivation
Empathy from in-person working
A lot of people I meet—particularly very senior people, not so much others—talk about the efficiency and productivity benefits of working together in-person. For example, they talk about the ability … Continue reading Empathy from in-person working
Asking “What does that look like?”
I had a fun time a short while ago talking to Richard Atherton of the Being Human podcast. If you want to explore other people’s thinking on humanity and the … Continue reading Asking “What does that look like?”
Let’s be thankful for hierarchy
Gavin Barwell’s excellent book “Chief of Staff” is about his two years from 2017 in Theresa May’s government, and much of it is dominated by Brexit negotiations. In one chapter … Continue reading Let’s be thankful for hierarchy
Two sides of leadership
When you’re a leader, it’s fine to ask hard questions of your bosses. Maybe you even have fiery conversations with them. These are also fine in moderation (or at least … Continue reading Two sides of leadership
Unbiased questions for everyone
I was speaking once to a user researcher about her work. One of the things she mentioned was the importance of asking unbiased questions. When she said this she was … Continue reading Unbiased questions for everyone
Don’t just change what you know
I love brown bag lunches, when someone talks about an interesting subject while (traditionally) everyone else eats their lunch around a table (or on the other side of their video … Continue reading Don’t just change what you know
Neglecting the small stuff for lack of the big stuff
It’s true that producing stuff (eg developing a digital product) without an overall strategy is problematic. All that producing-stuff without clear purpose or direction is probably not entirely wasted, but … Continue reading Neglecting the small stuff for lack of the big stuff
Models as the basis for a conversation
The other week I sat down to work out what on earth was happening in our economy. At the time the (now former) Chancellor of the Exchequer and (now former) … Continue reading Models as the basis for a conversation
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