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The Office Tour
Whenever I visit somewhere new I am always given a tour of the offices. I am not entirely sure why. I have been in offices in Manchester, London, Glasgow and Swansea and they all look the same. More...
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Information Technology: Are you Just Hiding the Problem?
A tale of two officesThe first is a shambles, clearly the owner has no idea what is going on, he should be taken outside, sacked, hung, shot and generally persecuted for good measure. The second is a...
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Ten Ways to Improve Customer Service without Investing in IT
1. Agree with your customers what they want from you and when they want it. Clarify all the issues as you work through the discussion, ironing out any misunderstandings and highlighting things that...
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6 Ways to Avoid Endless Meetings
I spent 7 straight hours in meetings yesterday Have you ever thought to yourself that: you might just be able to do some of the things that you said you would do in one meeting if you didn’t spend all...
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Should you go to Work in Your Slippers?
How would it be if you could come and go at work just as you pleased? If nobody checked your hours, if you didn’t have to attend meetings and if the only stick you were measured by was the results...
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The Shocking Truth About Your Improvement Project
Yesterday I read that only 5% of the changes we make at work are changes for the better. Only 1 in 20 improvements actually improve things. Allegedly everything else we do is ineffective or, worse...
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The Sure Thing
Pain and despair Imagine you run a servicing centre. You have a staff of 100 who fill in forms to order things for customers. Maybe they process applications Maybe they fill in patient’s details Maybe...
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The “A” Team
The escalation What do you do when things get out of hand? When your staff are bombarded with queries that they can’t handle? There are two lines of thought… Management Model 1: First split your staff...
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The Productivity Equation
We all want more productivity… The world abounds with productivity experts of one sort or another: Outsource this Streamline that Squeeze the other We obsess about reducing our cost base. Taking out...
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Management Beliefs
Do you believe in self-help? One of my favourite quotes is from Henry Ford: Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t — you’re right Personally I am all for a bit of self belief, but does it...
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Productivity for Productivity’s Sake
The obsession We love to make things more productive. We strive to be cheaper, more efficient, higher yielding. It is the holy grail, taking up most of our working hours. More for less in itself isn’t...
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Does All That “Structure” Help?
Organisations are complicated They have: Customer requirements Partner requirements Legal requirements Compliance requirements Legacy systems Specialist teams Obsolete databases Competitive pressure...
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Clear Desks and Other Management Claptrap
Busting management myths I love social psychology, it fascinates me. I particularly like experiments. It is one thing to put forward a theory about why people behave the way that they do; it is...
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Outputs and Outcomes
Similar but not the same It may be semantics, but I think we confuse outcomes and outputs: A call that has been answered is an output A query that has been resolved is and outcome A “finished...
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Should you go to Work in Your Slippers?
How would it be if you could come and go at work just as you pleased? If nobody checked your hours, if you didn’t have to attend meetings and if the only stick you were measured by was the results you...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Shocking Truth About Your Improvement Project
Yesterday I read that only 5% of the changes we make at work are changes for the better. Only 1 in 20 improvements actually improve things. Allegedly everything else we do is ineffective or, worse...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Sure Thing
Pain and despair Imagine you run a servicing centre. You have a staff of 100 who fill in forms to order things for customers. Maybe they process applications Maybe they fill in patient’s details Maybe...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The “A” Team
The escalation What do you do when things get out of hand? When your staff are bombarded with queries that they can’t handle? There are two lines of thought… Management Model 1: First split your staff...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Productivity Equation
We all want more productivity… The world abounds with productivity experts of one sort or another: Outsource this Streamline that Squeeze the other We obsess about reducing our cost base. Taking out...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Management Beliefs
Do you believe in self-help? One of my favourite quotes is from Henry Ford: Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t — you’re right Personally I am all for a bit of self belief, but does it...
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