Every organisation starts with a person or people. And in the early days of existence, founders (aka people who do the starting) understandably provide an outsize impact on its doing and being. Hopefully for the better, and recently, all too often for the worse. So, when it’s for the worse, can...
Every organisation starts with a person or people. And in the early days of existence, founders (aka people who do the starting) understandably provide an outsize impact on its doing and being. Hopefully for the better, and recently, all too often for the worse. So, when it’s for the worse, can...
A friend Sue (not her real name) lives in a rental house that’s up for sale — in our overheated real estate market, it’s a common story.The landlord warned her about it late last year, so she wasn’t surprised when the real estate agent Dan (not his real name) got...
After a recent talk, an attendee came up to say thanks, and departed with the comment: “I’m off to so some of the unheroic work you mentioned.” If you’ve read anything I’ve written in the past few years, you will be familiar with the phrase. I first came across the idea...
An article about Michael Cohen’s testimony to Congress may seem like an unlikely place to stumble upon a truth about the relationship between promises and forgiveness. However, while invoking philosopher Hannah Arendt, The Atlantic’s contributing writer Quina Jurecic made the following observation: “The act of forgiving, in her view, is the necessary counterpart...
In the article titled “Culture Grows the Way You Feed It” I challenged you to look at what’s in your pantry. This week, we’ll go one step further, because not all food is created equal and if you want a different brand result (than you have), a place to start is...
A friend advises a business which keeps getting distracted by new opportunities before the old ones have a chance to take root. He calls it “shiny object syndrome”.And while each business area will have their version of shiny objects, it’s a term I have used to describe the way organisations...
It was a shambolic few weeks in Uber land. And the task they faced was one I refer to as turning around the Titanic with a paddle.That’s what trying to change an organisation’s well-entrenched culture can feel like — not impossible, but hard to do. And one reason is the...
It started with a conversation: Me: “You don’t need to exceed expectations, just do what you say.”Them: “So, under-promise and then over-deliver.”Me: “No, set expectations, whatever they are and meet them — that’s it…”I recommended they read the Harvard Business Review article ‘Stop Trying to Delight Your Customers’, and while the...
In the laboratory, scientists take a rigorous approach to growing cultures.Aware the environment around them has many species that can pollute early efforts, they maintain sterile equipment and scrupulously clean workspaces. They use the right media to optimise growth (plates, test tube or liquid), ensure the ideal temperature to promote...