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Trust Unwrapped – A story of Ethics, Integrity and Chocolate

Back in a time when the public trusted banks and utility bills made sense, a diminutive Greek immigrant took a daring approach to establishing his restaurant in North London.

Read ‘Trust Unwrapped, a story of Ethics, Integrity and Chocolate’ by Dan Collins and David Thompson

In stark contrast to the surprise service charges and inflated wine prices common in the industry, this restaurant successfully operated a ‘Pay what you think it’s worth’ policy for over 20 years.  …

5 Ways to Love your Valentine

It was only after I bought my wife an expensive birthday gift that I learned that the way to her heart was not through extravagant gestures.

The 5 Love Languages Trailer from Dr. Gary Chapman on Vimeo.

10 years ago, Dr Gary Chapman, a marriage counsellor wrote a book entitled The 5 Love Languages. In it he suggests that each of us feel love in one of five different ways. Like language, we may communicate in multiple dialects but we will tend to favour our ‘first language’ over all others. …

5 Ways Play will Boost your Business

Dangerous pranks, hurtful banter and the risk of distraction, are probably the reasons so many managers clamp down on fun at work. In doing so they are missing out on a number of opportunities to save money, harness talent and make new discoveries.

Read on for our top 5 ways in which play can boost your business… …

The Price of Efficient Workplaces

Brand managers, accountants and numerous other roles were very different 10 years ago. Whereas now it’s hard to tell who does what, in an open plan office with scores of people all sat staring at screens.

We all strive for an efficient office - but is efficiency compromising our work?

Many employees, regardless of role spend their entire day sat in the same seat, staring at the same screen. perhaps occasionally moving to another seat to attend a meeting. All the while, efficiently working through a series of defined tasks. Rarely, if at all sharing a thought with a colleague or testing a new idea. Consequently, the efficiency we’ve striven to achieve has compromised our ability to innovate. …

Is the Office Redundant?

As the New Year fireworks echoed off the once iconic – soon to be redeveloped – Shell Centre next to the London Eye, we considered what 2014 might bring and what changes can we expect.

With wifi available in cafes and other, more comfortable places across the country, are our offices becoming redundant?

Wearable technology in the form of Beanie hats with in built speakers and microphones are just a click away http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bluetooth-Beanie-Headset-Stereo-Speakers/dp/B00GX9IAJA. 3D printers in the home may soon produce utensils, household gadgets, and even fashion on demand. Driverless cars are already a reality. …

Plotting What Makes Your Team Tick

Understanding what motivates co-workers can ensure a happy and productive workplace. The Royal Navy use the Strength Deployment Inventory to maintain harmony aboard ship, as do many leading businesses.

Find out what makes your team tick with our Strength Deployment Inventory

Like the Myers Briggs Type Indicator the SDI is based on proven Jungian Psychology.  By highlighting individuals’ strengths it serves to encourage team members whilst also graphically showing the spread of strengths across the team….

How Balfour Beatty Play it Safe

Fresh Tracks facilitated a practical exercise for Balfour Beatty...

3 Reasons Why Good People Will Quit in January

As we take time to rest and reflect over the Christmas holiday, it’s likely that some of your smartest colleagues will be making a new year resolution to switch jobs!

Ensure your employees aren't going to be making a fresh start at a new company, this coming January...

Here are the most common reasons why people might quit, and some ideas on how to keep hold of your talent:…

Trust your team… it’s blindingly obvious

Trust is a two way street, and developing trust within your team can be a key strategy to driving the business forward. 

Our blindfolded 4x4 driving course is a great trust exercise

We recently re-discovered this piece from the Times (March 3, 2005) about our blindfolded 4×4 driving course.  A perfect event for demonstrating and developing trust… and a lot of fun to boot….

Broken Leaders – How to spot them

An MBA at Harvard will set you back around $150k, at the end of which you’ll have a potentially good leader. Add to this ongoing training at upwards of £500 per day, the costs of selection, shadowing and a few failures and you should get a reasonable manager. Developing good leaders is a costly business.

Stress fractures can be hard to spot but if not rested will render the sufferer immobile

It’s therefore somewhat ironic that while we’ve got better at creating this precious commodity of bright talent we often fail to notice when cracks appear….