A leader’s relationship with and support to team members obviously matters hugely. For academics the mechanical sounding “leader–member exchange" (LMX) has provided a focus for studying the drivers and benefits of a high quality relationship / connection that is characterised by trust, liking, and mutual respect. Better relationships will mean team members are more receptive... Continue Reading →
I had the good luck to mentor Krisztina, and Sara - two very enterprising students who took part in the University of East Anglia's Change Makers competition. Participation enabled them to develop and pitch their social enterprise NourishED promising wider access to affordable and nutritious meals. Up for grabs was a competition prize award and... Continue Reading →
The power of pairs More than a decade ago, one of my clients redesigned their organisation to support more innovation-led growth. A key part of this transformation was ensuring projects were led by a partnership of two innovation directors or managers—one focused on technical challenges and the other on customer adoption. This combination of expertise... Continue Reading →
Robots want to help us stay connected. The Dawn Café where customers mix with robot staff suggests future possibilities for social care. Each of the robots is a physical avatar controlled by a human via phone, tablet or eye-tracking device from their own home or even hospital. Creator Kentaro Yoshifuji explains his innovation as “teleportation.” Those losing... Continue Reading →
Landing the evidence needed to progress an innovation is a big challenge for the best of innovation teams. Stakeholders tend to seek a level of certainty that won't be possible without time, trial and error. Financial projections face benchmarks based on established products or services. Isolating the impact of changes can be particularly difficult where... Continue Reading →
Constructive dissent is critical for innovation and problem-solving. The generation of potential solutions needs to be followed by a critical evaluation of assumptions and challenge to determine the best choices. This requires a shared curiosity in available information and respectful consideration of conflicting viewpoints. The prize is the discovery of important insights, more informed decision-making... Continue Reading →
Kendrick Lamar has won 22 Grammys, a Pulitzer prize, achieved 9 billion streams on Spotify last year and will have reached a global audience of 150 million with his Super Bowl half-time show. In my HUMBLE opinion, Kendrick must offer some brand storytelling inspiration. (If you are Hip-Hop rejector do feel free to retreat now).... Continue Reading →
Any self-respecting brand manager will know a stretch to a new category or segment needs to be consistent with the brand's values and identity to prevent consumer disconnect and support success. The fabled* Colgate frozen lasagne story continues to remind brand managers not to overlook brand fit. Stretch success also depends on the business model... Continue Reading →
My favourite workshop in 2024 combined 10 public sector teams in a conversation on raising their collective performance. Following scene setting on organisational vision and the attributes of high performing teams the session moved to collaborative action. The first step involved reflection on strengths, successes and areas to improve. With these shared, each team was... Continue Reading →
I have captured some highlights from 2024's typically ECLECTIC portfolio of projects. Many thanks to everyone who approached me for help, contributed insights or bravely participated in my workshops. TECH-ENABLED CARE. The challenge was how to deploy 'tech-enabled care' solutions to sustain independence for adults seeking social care support. Recommended service model embraced the potential... Continue Reading →
Career development and destinations are common topics in my coaching conversations. With a lot of my clients leading innovation / transformation I decided I needed a point of view on the competencies linked to their leadership success. Recognising the diversity of roles, cultures and organisational contexts my pragmatic ambition was a model that a) was... Continue Reading →
To be honest I am much more comfortable describing the future of a brand or business than my own future. Despite this I took the challenge of visualising my future 'best possible self' late last year. Writing for just over 2 hours I responded to the instructions used by Laura King in her 2001 study,... Continue Reading →
Facilitation is core to my consultancy role and workshops range from problem-solving, to idea generation, strategy development or capability build. Agendas vary widely but they all share an expectation of a great collaborative experience that delivers excellent results. Here's 10 tips for wonderful workshop results 'facilitated' by my experience: 1. Start with a stretching (but... Continue Reading →
I have just finished two excellent books. The first is Angela Duckworth's Grit which explains the winning combination of passion and perseverance (or "grit") that powers high achievers. The second, is Daniel Coyle's Culture Code which reveals "the secrets of highly successful groups." Together these books offer learning to both nurture high achievers and create... Continue Reading →
Patrick Radden Keefe's Empire of Pain is a compelling read for anyone, but especially those involved in marketing. Extensively researched it explores the history of the Sackler family, their private company Purdue Pharma and the introduction of OxyContin. It highlights greed, corruption, failures in regulation and unrestrained, ruthless marketing among the contributors to the opioid crisis in... Continue Reading →
I have been exploring how organisations successfully drive innovation across horizons and deliver more than just incremental core growth. Alongside some clever consultants, I listened to innovation leaders from LEGO, bp, Essity, Hitachi, Nissan and Unilever. Their generous input supported some detailed findings and from this I have picked out six key core elements which... Continue Reading →
Octopus Energy has achieved 'double unicorn' status with a valuation in excess of $2 billion in just five years. It seems to be on track to be the world's leading renewable energy business. The foundation for this remarkable success is clever and agile business model thinking and here Octopus offers inspiration for start-ups and established... Continue Reading →
One of my most rewarding projects of late has been helping the Unilever ice cream business accelerate growth across delivery platforms such Uber Eats, Grab or Deliveroo and food-chain partners. Teams are dotted across the globe and manage digital communications to drive sales from their own virtual stores, grocery partners or from food-chain orders. Collectively... Continue Reading →
It is always good to see a brand that knows its distinctive assets. Magnum has for some time emphasised the chocolate cracking start of the Magnum pleasure journey in communication. It has also ensured the signature experience extends across flavours and formats. New visuals that place products on a cracked surface make a short sensory... Continue Reading →
Facilitate Success 