Culture Blog Posts
The Coaching Habit Summary
Quick Summary A team member comes to you with a problem and you give them a solution. And you wonder why your day consists of constant interruptions from your team looking for help. The Coaching Habit. Say Less, Ask More & Change The Way You Will Lead Forever by...
Dear New Manager. Don’t Compare Yourself To Others
I used to be good at my job. As a new manager, have you ever thought that? You were good. Good enough to get the promotion to management. But this step up the ladder wasn’t just about getting through the interview process. Your head is now spinning with...
Being A New Manager Can Be LONELY! (Here’s how to change that)
You’re a new manager and I’m going to allow you a couple of minutes to feel sorry for yourself. Let’s get it out there. Being a new manager can be lonely, can’t it? I bet you thought about a lot of things when you got promoted. The new responsibilities, managing a...
How To Stop Your Employee Looking For A New Job
Have your team returned to work with enthusiasm and vigour? Or have they come back with a new year’s resolution and a freshly updated resumé? How do you stop your employee looking for a new job? ‘So how’s the job going?’ asks Joe’s aunt over drinks two days before...
Help! My New Hire Broke My Team
Your team has been ticking over just fine. In fact, it’s got to a point where you don’t worry about the people stuff anymore. And then you hire a new member of staff. You thought you’d got it right. You made the introductions. Heck, you even took them out for...
Employees Leave Managers – So Choose The Right Managers
Many years ago, I worked for a manager who had an unusual talent. He could suck the enthusiasm out of a room before he even got to his desk. It got so bad that no one booked vacation without first knowing the dates he would be away. When he wasn’t there we loved our...
How Would Your 21 Year Old Self Cope At Work In 2016?
I was chatting to my friend as he flicked through email on his phone. Suddenly he stopped talking and I could see the look of exasperation spread across his face. The young marketing assistant in his company had posted something smart on social media. Well,she...
5 Ways To Improve Employee Engagement In Your Team TODAY
Do you really want to improve employee engagement in your team? Well, the power is in your hands. Don't sit around and rely on the corporate initiatives. The annual employee engagement survey could be too late. That great team member may have given up and gone....
Want To Stop Your Great Employees Leaving? Fire The Bad Ones
Great employees leave when they have to work with ‘ineffective colleagues’. Should you fire the bad to keep hold of the great? And how can you do that if you are already short staffed?
How Good Is Your New Hire?
In my working life, I have had some moments of pure, unexpected luck. And those moments have, without doubt, made me look a lot smarter than I actually am. Thank you Lady Luck! Please drop by again soon. So my interest was piqued when I was listening to Professor...
An Interview With Alex Batchelor from Brainjuicer
Brainjuicer was formed with the purpose of re-inventing market research. And that was back in 1999. So they were ‘disrupting an industry’ way before it became the thing to do! Their goal for their clients is to turn ‘human interaction into business advantage’. So,...
Your Employees Are Leaving. But Do You REALLY Know Why?
It is always a little bit awkward, isn't it? The day your employee leaves. And that final moment. Everyone gathered around, shaking hands, maybe hugging with good luck wishes and promises to meet up soon for a beer. But freeze frame this moment right here. What...
Why Core Values Can Kill Employee Engagement
Sarah walks out of a meeting with her customer. She has worked hard to build that relationship based on trust and honesty. But she has just had to lie to them, because she had to follow the company line. She sits back at her desk, and the company core values dance...
How To Manage A Virtual Team (10 Lessons Learnt)
Leading a virtual team is a little like dancing with your eyes shut. You can’t see what is going on so there is a higher risk of you treading on someone’s toe. You can think you are in an amazing group rendition of the Macarena, when actually everyone else has sloped...
Introducing ‘An Interview With’ series
How do you maintain a culture that really works when the company is growing significantly and has offices in different countries? According to Paul Yarwood, it is about having non-negotiable core values. And even if you are incredibly good at what you do, but don’t...
7 Signs That Your New Employee Is Going To Quit
It is easier to see the signs when it is someone you know well. I am not saying they are always ‘slap round the face’ obvious. But the clues that your longer term employee is going to quit are definitely there. The opinionated team member who offers fewer...
Effective Meetings: Rescue the lost hours in your employees’ day
Some days I had such a deep feeling of despair when I looked at my Outlook calendar. Frequently there would be days with at least five hours taken up with back to back 30 minute meetings. Little time to prepare for them, even less time to reflect on what had been...
42 Little Things You Can Do Today To Improve Employee Engagement
One afternoon, the then CEO and Chairman of Shell UK, Chris Faye, walked into our office and sat on one of the desks. Well, this just didn’t normally happen. He was Shell royalty. And we were, well, we were not. It was about twenty years ago. I was in my early...
Recommended Read of the Week
Why Candidates Aren't Applying To Your Jobs by Vivian Giang for LinkedIn Talent Solutions. You really need to fill that post. It's getting really urgent now but no one is applying. How can that be? Well, Vivian Giang highlights three really critical reasons in her...
Recommended Podcast of the Week
Amazing Workplace (no. 10) : Design Your Company To Attract A-Players with Lena Requist How many times have you delegated an important project only to feel like you are having to babysit your team member to get it done right? You may have despaired that ' they just...