A close friend of mine started a trial period in a small company in London. He was struck by how informal everything was: no project briefings, no team meetings (even though, apparently, there were teams), no paper contracts, no Health and Safety talks. Being laid back himself, this didn't worry him too much (and the … Continue reading Stepping into Other People’s Shoes

For those of you who find yourselves in meetings regularly, I would just like to let you know that I have finished the series Strengthening the Team with the final post After the Meeting, now ready in the Unusual Connections Leadership blog.Just click here to read it.

I posted this in the Unusual Connections "official blog" and I just wanted to share it here too.I would like to share with you an inspiring anecdote told by Alan Mullaly (CEO Ford Motor Company) to Peter Day in the episode of Peter Day's World of Business In Business "Back on the Road" broadcast on … Continue reading Fomenting Transparency

We often talk about building a culture of collaboration, of creativity, at work. We like to feel like our team members are free to raise their concerns, share problems they have spotted and seek help. It is not enough to think this or even to say that this is what we strive for in our … Continue reading Leading by example

Never mind whether leaders are born or made - the important thing for me is whether they want to do something about it.If someone is finding it difficult to be in a leadership or management position, then they have two options: to become better at it or to step down. Whether they have a talent … Continue reading Do leaders need to lead?

I've started reading Rupert Brown's Group Processes, first published in 1988. The first sentence reminded me of how quickly we can change our minds about what's important in the workplace. "For some years now, at least in the industrialized West, groups have received rather a bad press". I know he's talking about groups in general, … Continue reading On Fads, Trends and Shifting our Focus.

To say that the nature of business is changing is an understatement. Yet for those of us interested in making things happen, it is worth stopping to ask: in what ways is it changing? And why?What consumers expect from businesses has changed: we expect more transparency, accountability and sometimes we even look to see whether … Continue reading On the Nature of Business

"If we wait for the government, it's going to be too little too late;As individuals, it's just going to be too little,But if we do it as communities, together, it might just be enough, just in time."Spoken by Ben Brangwyn from Transition Network in Peter Day's In Business Podcast 'Growing Pains'. (Transcription into verse, is … Continue reading Towards Collective Accountability

I don't get many e-mails. "Lucky you!" I hear you say. I don't work for a large organisation and so, most e-mails are for my eyes only and include relevant content. But every now and then, I do get cc'd into a conversation. And then, what do I do?What's acceptable? Do I reply - "got … Continue reading Have you been cc’d today?