I’m not alone in believing that relationships are at the heart of effective organisations. Everyone, whatever role they are in, can benefit from developing skills that support effective listening, asking questions, empathy and reflection. When I began my role as Learning & Development Lead at London Borough of Camden I…

I think it was late 2020 or early 2021. It all feels merged around that time. The Teams meeting icebreaker was “what has been your lockdown song?” Mine was Sidelines by Canadian artist Peter Broderick. …

This is a tale (blog) with two morals: The human ability to really feel emotions for things that haven’t happened yet, or have happened to other people, is both a blessing and a curse. We need to read fewer management books and pick up more stories. Our imagined emotions guide our decisions In our home, we…

Early in my career, I used to ask two questions: - Am I making a difference? - Do I have the opportunity to learn? Later I added: - Am I making the best use of my skills and capabilities? These questions helped to guide the roles I applied for as…

I’ve just been elected Chair of Governors at Ferry Lane Primary, a wonderful single-form entry school in Tottenham. I’m really excited about supporting the work of the school but am also feel conflicted about taking on the role. Although I was voted in, I was the only governor who felt…

What is your initial reaction when you hear the term ‘middle management’? I’m guessing it isn’t 100% positive. There seem to be so many negative associations with the term. Middle management is seen as something to something to avoid or be ashamed of. It certainly isn’t aspirational to be a…

I’ve been struggling to succinctly articulate my ‘brand’. When I first went freelance in October 2021 I began work on a website. The idea was to have a place that lets people know a bit more about me and the work I can help with. I looked to other people…

When I was starting out in local government, I used to get frustrated with the people that said, “we did that 10 years ago.” Now I think I am one of those people, and I’m ok with it. This change has not happened overnight, but I became very aware of…

There are a number of conflicting priorities about what we should do in the next stage of our response to Covid-19. These differences of opinion extend to how we should name what we are doing. A lot of the options seem to begin with ‘Re’: recovery, renewal, rebuilding, reimagining, reformation… …