Leadership Decision Making Biases Part 2 - Confirmation Bias Confirmation bias refers to the tendency for people to favour information that confirms their existing beliefs whilst ignoring and filtering out data that contradicts those beliefs. If we are going to make good decisions it follows that we need to be aware of this bias to consciously avoid falling into
Leadership Decision Making Biases Part 1 - Overconfidence We all hope that we make rational decisions however we are almost always under an array of pressures that can impair our decision making. To be a better leader, it is important you understand how decision making biases can influence you. In this first of a series of posts, we
Leadership 5 Key Tips to Avoid Micromanagement at Work I was discussing this subject at length with a co-worker last week, particularly focusing on the negative impact on morale and productivity that this can have. We have all micromanaged at some time or other and have probably also had to suffer working for one. If however this is a
Coaching Can Business Coaching Help You? Have you ever considered working with a business coach? Here is an experience I had helping a senior level leader, let’s call her Sarah, who was struggling with managing her team effectively. Sarah had just been promoted to a director role and was facing difficulties with her deputy, who
Leadership Self Efficacy and Leadership: How to develop a team attitude that they "can make it happen". As an educator and business coach, one of the common issues I come across is an understanding of the importance of self-efficacy. Self-efficacy theory, developed by psychologist Albert Bandura, is the belief in one's ability to successfully complete a task or achieve a goal. Let’s use an
Leadership 5 Top Tips for First-Time Managers I have seen firsthand the challenges that new first-time managers can face when it comes to developing strong relationships with their teams. However, there are several strategies that can help you improve your interpersonal skills and build a strong rapport with your team.
Coaching Featured Imposter Syndrome: how to recognise it and beat it 70% of successful women experience imposter syndrome at some point in their careers. I offer coaching advice for business women to help tackle it.
Leadership Featured Achieving Deep Work Deep work is the ability to focus on a task and produce valuable results without distractions. In today's fast-paced and connected work environment, it's crucial to master this skill and I can help you on your way to achieving it.
Leadership The Great Lay-off : Possible impacts to higher education I have friends in the tech industry who have suddenly found themselves the wrong side of a dismissal letter as part of the “great lay-off” which is occurring across the tech industry. With circa 241,000 tech jobs lost worldwide over the past year [1], the market is awash with
change management About to lead a change program? Use a RACI matrix to ensure clear communication and coordination By using the RACI matrix, you can ensure clear communication and coordination among the various stakeholders involved in the change management program. It helps to prevent confusion, misunderstandings and conflicts, as everyone knows their specific roles and responsibilities
Agile The Charrette Procedure: A Brainstorming Technique The Charrette procedure is a great tool for effective brainstorming with larger groups or if you have multiple ideas to discuss
Leadership Amazon - A tale of leadership responsibility and authority mismatch This story from my time at Amazon is a salutary lesson in the need for leaders to match decision making authority with the responsibility they require from their personnel. Have you got the balance right?
Leadership Starbucks: Lessons in Succession Planning Starbucks chaotic CEO succession plan and the requirement to parachute in its past saviour Howard Shultz as an interim CEO provide lessons for us all. How do we avoid a similar experience in our organisations?
Problem Solving The Lotus Blossom Brainstorming Tool The Lotus Blossom Brainstorming Tool allows deeper ideation in a structured way and works very well for online collaboration by networked teams.
Leadership Power and Leadership Power is the ability to influence others. Follow this story of three new managers as their career paths rise or fall depending on their use of power.
Leadership Toxic Leadership: What to do about it. Although toxic leadership can be hard to spot, it's often easy to tell when you're working with a toxic leader. But what can you do about it?
Agile Design a Public Toilet: A micro learning exercise to improve your team's customer thinking Micro learning exercises like this one from my agile course are an ideal way to improve team engagement and problem solving capabilities - try it and you may be surprised how much fun you have
Leadership Unlock Your Team's Initiative With This Surefire Principle Have you heard of the 2Up Principle? It's used by high peforming organisations to allow their people to use their initiative, exploit opportunity and speed up decision making to the benefit of everyone.
Leadership 7 Shrewd Tips for You to Deliver "Turn-Around" Performance Appraisals Learn 7 tips which I have used to turn around poor performing individuals by use of the appraisal process.
