Blog

Education Revolution

Amazon revolutionised book selling, iTunes revolutionised record sales and EasyJet revolutionised travel. The digital revolution is impacting all areas of our lives and many commentators are suggesting that education will be next: BBC News – Online University Giant Gets Bigger.

We can access almost anything online - you can even gain a great education from the comfort of your own home.

TED talks, iTunes U, edx.org and the Khan Academy are taking high quality learning online. …

Why Hiring Goes Wrong – 7 Reasons Recruitment Fails

Hiring the wrong person for a role is estimated to cost the employer over £20k, with that figure multiplying when it’s a  management position.

When you're hiring staff, make sure that you follow our simple rules to avoid losing money...

Along with the recruitment costs and the time to process applications there’s productivity losses to account for.  And, if the error isn’t detected and dealt with speedily, the fall-out across other staff. …

Dump PowerPoint – Tell Stories

We all talk about ‘Death by PowerPoint’ yet the massacre continues.  There may be occasions when a picture, quotation or chart can help to reinforce a fact, but they rarely inspire an audience in the same way as a well told story. And still a terrifying proportion of highly paid execs continue to fall foul of the classic PowerPoint bloopers:

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Learning from Journalists – 15 ways to ask better questions

Journalists are among the least trusted of all professions, yet there’s still a thing or two they can teach managers.

Follow our 15 tips from journalists on asking questions and becoming a better manager

To manage effectively we need to have good insight. A primary source for insight is those around us, not just our own team but our peers, customers and those that lead us. …

Make it fun and it’ll get done

In the opening chapter of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer we see Tom persuade passers by to help him paint a picket fence: “work consists of what a body is obliged to do, play consists of what a body is not obliged to do” – Mark Twain.

Similarly the clip below demonstrates how commuters were persuaded to take the stairs in preference to the escalator, by making climbing the stairs fun.

Teams that play together, work together.

Less stress, more wine – the key to a longer, healthier life?

A BBC news report about the elderly population of the Greek island of Ikaria in the Mediterranean has highlighted the importance of a lifestyle rich in fresh food, wine, friends and family on health and longevity.  

Can the occasional glass of wine really help us live longer?

Research carried out by the University of Athens studied those aged over 65 on Ikaria. …

10 Resolutions for Leaders

As we begin another new year with good intentions to break bad habits, let’s take a moment to consider what small behaviours could make a big difference in our role as leaders.

The New Year is the perfect time to break away from those bad habits and behaviours...

Hopefully many of these already form part of your day to day routine, but which are missing?…

Playing with the Toy Makers – When Leapfrog came to Play

Earlier this year we worked with Leapfrog – a fast paced company making educational toys whose recent growth had brought significant changes, particularly among the leadership team.

The day focused on a colourful and fun construction exercise.

Our approach was to identify the potential of each member of the team using the Strengths Deployment Inventory, a questionnaire based on Jungian psychology that plots team members’ strengths graphically.  …

Is there more to life than happiness?

Much has been written and spoken this year on the subject of ‘Happiness’. The Prime Minister wants to measure it, schools are teaching it and most of us claim that when all is said and done we simply want it.

Happiness comes from the Greek 'Makarios'...

At this time of year a similar word comes to the fore in greetings cards and seasonal songs; that word is ‘Joy’.  As we reflect on the ups and downs of the year gone by it’s worth considering whether next year we should strive for happiness, or for joy….

Short Notice Team Events

January is a time for new beginnings, and many leaders will have scheduled time to review 2012 and talk through the challenges and opportunities for 2013 with their team.

If you haven’t put a date in the diary don’t worry we can provide a venue, facilitator and team activity during the first few weeks of the new year, and we even have some capacity in late December.  …