For anyone who works in a large organisation this will resonate. You can back it up with comments you might have heard over the years, like; “meetings suck the life-force out of me”, “that’s two hours of my life I will never get back” and “that was a big waste tax payers / shareholders money”. Top […]
Good Enough is Good Enough, the law of diminishing returns.
Before I start this is not a rallying call for mediocrity or dumbing down. There are many people with deeply held views on ‘good enough is not good enough’. I’d prefer not to offend them. This a post prompted by frustration. Frustration at the ‘pursuit of perfection’, and how it slows down getting things done. […]
Dysfunctional organisations can turn a good person bad.
You may have heard the proverb “if you sup with the devil you need a (very) long spoon”. The idea is that if you mix with bad people you should be careful not to be influenced by them and start behaving badly yourself. It’s a very old sentiment that was mentioned as far back as […]
Self Organised Workgroups – Keystone Cops or Well Oiled Machine?
Recently my kids held a ‘garden party’, which has reversed many of my expectations. The end result has been a much neater garden; some repaired power tools and an enhanced reputation for me as a really cool dad. I’d like to say it was down to my supreme leadership, but actually I had very little […]
Engaged or actively disengaged employees. Where do you focus energy?
Here is a guest post from my good friend Ena Lloyd. A better biog will follow once I get some decent internet connection in Tuscany. Thanks Ena….. I also attended the IdeasUk Employee Engagement network meeting, hosted by the Wales Audit Office in Cardiff, where it was great to meet colleagues not only from the […]
Sherry and Twiglets vrs Fence Building. How shared action builds relationships, and why I want a walking coach.
This might seem like an odd admission but…… I have always dreamed of having a boss that would take me out walking in the Brecon Beacons once a month. There, I’ve said it. Now let me explain why…… I’ve got a new neighbour, who’s doing lots of renovation work on the property including fence building. […]
Gemba Walks, Kaizen the Elvis way…..”walk a mile in my shoes”
This is a prelude to a post on the Gemba Mat improvement technique I saw used an IdeasUK networking event at Ricoh in Telford. Gemba Mat is a beautifully straightforward and effective improvement and employee engagement approach that is worthy of a build-up so I’ll leave you in anticipation. Gemba is a version of the […]
Employee Engagement = Kaizen + Passion in the West Midlands (Ricoh Telford to be exact)
A while back when I was writing Kaizen! Toast v Beer, Who Wins? I came across this quote “continuous improvement is the result of continuous involvement”. I couldn’t remember where and ended up searching absolutely loads of websites offering advice on Kaizen, Lean manufacturing and employee engagement, including a few where you can buy it […]
Employee Engagement – is 150 the Magic Number, plus something else?
Is there such a thing as the ‘best’ or ‘right’ number of people in a successful organisation? Last week I was at the Cardiff University Distinguished Lecture Series where I listened to Professor Robin Dunbar explain that around 150 people is the optimum number to maintain the informal relationships and cohesiveness that allow a community […]
Parkinson’s Law 1. Work expands to fit the time available for its completion.
My treasured 1962 paperback version Why do we waste so much time on trivial things in work? This is an explanation I think should be on the syllabus of every management development programme and business school in the land. It’s like one of those fundamental truths that get overlooked, because it’s slightly inconvenient and uncomfortable. I […]
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