Organizational culture is important. While we know that, most people (and to be clear, most organizations, executives and managers) struggle with just what culture is.
Pragmatic Practices—Not ‘Best’ Practices
I have long abhorred the term ‘best practice.’ What are labelled as ‘best practices’ often aren’t, or are only particularly useful and relevant in specific circumstances. The phrase is often used as a not-so-thinly-veiled effort at micromanagement, imposing the way someone wants something done through insinuating that not doing it that way would be in […]
Editing, Insight & Meaning
We are all editors. By that, I mean that throughout our lives we disclose—or don’t—material information. The challenge of editing in all aspects of life is a significant one. We choose what to leave in—and what to leave out—in many areas of our lives. Telling stories. Reporting findings. Presenting research. Writing reports. But how does […]
The Unbearable Madness Of Being: Our Quantified Selves
There is a lot of pressure to perform already. So why do we add to it? Without question, there are cultural influences behind the unrelenting and increasing pressure to achieve. The two aspects that I have explores so far—technology transformation and the improvement imperative reflect our response to societal changes. Certainly you can argue that […]
The Unbearable Madness of Being: Improvement Imperative
Why do we obsess about—and in fact embrace—notions of eternal busy-ness? That was the question that was raised in the first article in this series. One aspect that I outlined was the role that technology has played in providing constant access to near-ubiquitous information. This article continues those themes, exploring our eternal obsession with improvement.
Management Ideas: Lost In Translation
I had an interesting discussion with a colleague yesterday. We were discussing the evolution of management practices (as one does over a late Sunday brunch) and I made the observation that there were a number of useful, valuable and entirely relevant management practices that were being explored in the 1990s, that have pretty much since […]