Summary : Take a moment and ask yourself: what do you stand for, and how do you want to show up at work? These are the two critical questions to address when you think about your identity. And if you feel a sense of belonging, a concept far richer and deeper than just inclusion, you’re going to feel that you can express your identity fully and openly. Creating the conditions for this requires deep listening to what people say, don’t say, how they express themselves, as well as the curation of gr...
Feb 02, 2022•37 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Summary : The world of business is packed full of terminology, jargon, buzzwords. I’ve probably used too much of it myself. But what do we mean by innovation, customer centricity, agility? Too often we’re not clear so we have parallel conversations, or simply people disengage leaving the important decisions to a clique or the dominant few. My guest in this podcast, Prof. Costas Markides of the LBS, is a stickler for clarity – he thinks that a lack of clarity is one of the biggest problems we hav...
Jan 26, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Being competent, solid, committed isn't enough in extraordinary times - of ambiguity, complexity and uncertainty. Impact players do far more than these typical contributors. They: 1. Do the job that’s needed 2. Step up, step back 3. Finish stronger 4. Ask and adjust 5. Make work light They have a healthy disregard for rules, although are savvy enough on how to garner support. Focusing their attention on what truly matters means they don't need to over-work. And they find ways to solve complex pr...
Jan 19, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Summary : Look around you in the worlds of business and politics. Think of leaders and organisations you admire. Or those that disappoint you. How honest are they in their intentions, and actions? How purposeful are they? In his book 'To Be Honest: Lead with the power of purpose, truth, and justice' Ron Carucci argues that these three elements are fundamental to an organisation's performance and positioning. He tackles how to eliminate the cultural conditions that prompt otherwise honest people ...
Jan 12, 2022•40 min•Season 2Ep. 1
For too long, strategy has been conceived and designed behind closed doors, at the top table. For leaders to invite others to contribute is often seen as a sign of weakness, diminishing the leaders’ stature, authority, and control. However, the reality is that leaders often find it difficult to develop imaginative ideas on their own, shackled as they are by their conventional wisdom and groupthink. It's no wonder that many fail. Opening up the strategy process through contests, crowdsourcing, co...
Dec 08, 2021•40 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Think of your favourite role model, superstar, elite professional. It may be somebody who’s won a Nobel Prize, won an Olympic gold, or flown to the moon. What can you, we, learn from them? Surely they’re out of league, in a different stratosphere, literally in some cases? Not so, we can actually learn a lot. They share similar mindsets and practices that helped get them there. When you hear the four elements you might think they’re common sense. And they are. But doing them, all of them, consist...
Dec 02, 2021•32 min•Season 1Ep. 11
What do inspirational leaders do? How do they think? And how do they look after themselves? They certainly have to be able to learn, and reinvent themselves. Build trust with others. They have to see the bigger picture whilst mastering the fine detail of their business. They have to be clear on what they stand for, and and take care of themselves so that they can perform at their best at critical moments. The model of top-down, command-and-control leadership - still prevalent in many large organ...
Dec 01, 2021•42 min•Season 1Ep. 10
What does it take to promote yourself in the best possible way? And how do you do it in a non-obnoxious way? Work on your self-awareness - explore your values, preferences and motivations. Get some insightful feedback (not forgetting your peers) on how you show up and understand what's valued by people who matter. Develop your executive presence, and your voice on topics that matter. And supercharge your strategic thinking. These are the elements of the Promotability approach pioneered by Amii-B...
Nov 24, 2021•38 min•Season 1Ep. 9
In complex times we've come to expect the future to be predictable, as strange as that sounds. Seduced by an algorithm or the prediction of a confident economist we think less, become more anxious, and lose some of our creativity and imagination. We become passive and gullible, relying on simplifications or false determinism. My guest in this episode is Margaret Heffernan, six-time book author, mentor and former CEO of three companies as well as a BBC producer. She argues that we must get comfor...
Nov 17, 2021•42 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Summary : If you’re an ambitious person, you’ll be working out what it takes to be exceptional at work (and everywhere). You’ll know that working super hard helps, but won’t be enough – and might eventually burn you out. Getting candid feedback on what you need to change is critical. It goes hand in hand with compassion, funnily enough. You’ll want to strive for something far better than you have, in order to work out how far your strengths take you. Only that way you’ll know how to fill the gap...
Nov 08, 2021•41 min•Season 1Ep. 7
How do you make difficult decisions under pressure? How do you avoid being "triggered" by some bad behaviour, choice words or a surprising event? These are important questions for any executive, professional or entrepreneur, daily. Managing your mind is critical. In practice, this means developing greater conscious of what you're thinking, what you're paying attention to, how you're feeling. Tapping into your inner voice - and an imaginary third party (you in the future, or a person you respect)...
Nov 03, 2021•40 min•Season 1Ep. 6
We spend a lot of our professional days trying to sell ideas to colleagues or clients, don't we? We may not like the idea of selling but that's exactly what we're doing. It might for support for an initiative or investment in a project - from a Board, Exco, or external investor. We'd like to think that do it well - describing its features, explaining how it works and selling the benefits. No doubt with conviction, emotion too. But sometimes the answer is 'no'. Perhaps it wasn't compelling enough...
Oct 27, 2021•36 min•Season 1Ep. 5
What does it take for a leader to think strategically? You’d hope you didn’t need to ask this question as it should be a core capability. It’s often not as they focus on workplace culture or commercial tactics, both of which are important too. But it’s critical to a clear view as to where the organisation needs to move towards, whom it should serve and how, and how to win you. That way you can build the capabilities, identify the resources and systems you need, and evolve your culture. In this i...
Oct 20, 2021•30 min•Season 1Ep. 4
An inspirational leader often creates a leap forward in the positioning, performance and profile of the organisation. They’ve been bold enough to look at a situation with new lenses - customer, outsider, new employee. They look for stimulus in the margins, listening carefully to new voices and those who are at the margins. And then they have the courage to take the leap forward. That means letting go of the past – activities, mindset, even people - and identifying the limiting assumptions you ma...
Oct 12, 2021•38 min•Season 1Ep. 3
How do you respond to a world that feels more complex, and uncertain? Put your head in the sand, do the same, peddle faster, hoping it goes away? As silly as that sounds, many executives and professionals do this even while they talk eloquently about their context. A better approach is to double down on your curiosity. At work this means being more curious about the needs and expectations of your customers, the dynamics of the workplace, the wider system you operate in and your own ways of think...
Oct 06, 2021•37 min•Season 1Ep. 2
In a job interview, a presentation at work, or a difficult conversation with your team leader; are you getting your message across? Communication skills are not just for public speaking. They are how you express yourself anywhere, to anyone. How can you speak clearly, confidently, yet still as your authentic self? That's the topic of my conversation with James Bryce, CEO and Founder of Speech Intelligence. James coaches leaders to improve how they communicate. He's also developed an AI-powered a...
Sep 27, 2021•36 min•Season 1Ep. 1
How well do you make choices? It could be about your career, the focus of your job, your life more broadly. Or it could be about the focus and direction of the organisation Too often we avoid making real choices, continuing with what we have because it feels safe, and comfortable to do so. Or we make a choice without considering all of the options? Choices are at the heart of strategy. Choices about where to play, how to win, and how to build the capabilities and resources required to get you th...
Sep 22, 2021•42 min•Season 1Ep. 1
