Articles

WHAT, ACTUALLY, IS “INCLUSION”?

I came across a LinkedIn post about Queen Maxima of The Netherlands delivering a keynote address at the European Investment Conference organized by Morningstar. I found it very interesting, as Her Majesty was highlighting that 2.5 billion people in the world do not have access to financial services. She advocated having inclusive financial practices so that these 2.5 billion people would also have what people in the so-called “developed” world (my paraphrase) have in terms of those financial services, and which they take for granted. She said that this was something which the financial services sector ought to take note of and prepare for. Read more…

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THE TOUGH OLD ART OF MANAGING SELF.

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stressIt may come as a surprise to you to hear a leadership consultant talking about management, but it really shouldn’t. The terms “leadership” and “management” have been compared to each other and “management” has always taken a beating, been vilified and sidelined, as though “management” were inferior to “leadership”. Nothing could be further from the truth! You need to remember that management is but a subset of leadership. Management is one of the competencies that a leader had better possess, just as a manager had better have great leadership qualities! In other words, management is one of the expressions, or one of the functions, of leadership. Read more…


 

UNIFORMED SERVICE – WHY ARE THERE ONLY A FEW GOOD MEN?

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Introduction.

News of misconduct or incompetence involving people in uniform always sadden me. It doesn’t matter if they happen to be of people in the Armed Forces, Home Team, Civil Defence of other uniformed organization, they are still about people in uniform. During the month of July 2013, news concerning prison inmate deaths, assaults on Prison Officers by inmates, murders committed by a Singapore Police Officer and some others were found in the news. No one looks forward to seeing news of this sort, but they do happen. Read more…


 

THINKING STRATEGICALLY? HOW ABOUT JUST THINKING? 01 APR 2013.

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ChessIn many ways, people seem to think of strategy and execution as two very different things. “Strategy” seems to conjure up an impression of castles in the air, ivory towers and those sorts of things. “Execution” seems to have more sympathy with the majority, who seem to think of themselves as those who “Make Things Happen”, and without whom those giving strategic direction could not possibly function, let alone thrive. Generally, people seem to prefer clear-cut boundaries, “This or that”, “Us or Them”, “Now or later” sorts of thinking. Dealing with continuums and flexible courses of action based on the Unknown is, surprisingly, quite unthinkable to most. Perhaps that is understandable, for thinking is one of the hardest of tasks, is it not? Think of all the times you have heard someone say things like “I prefer it like this, no need to think…” Perhaps you have that line of thinking yourself! Read more…


DIDN’T WE ALMOST LEARN IT ALL – OURSELVES. 30 DEC 2012.

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Internet LibraryWe live in an age where vast treasuries of knowledge are available to almost anyone at the click of a button.  No one seems to have any monopoly on any particular body of knowledge anymore. Just Google or Youtube it, and you’ll have tons of answers. Not to mention sites like “Ask”, “Wikihow”, “Ehow” and so many others. Indeed, the challenge is not a lack of information, it’s how to extract the relevant information. Even after we’ve extracted what’s actually relevant, we might still have a hard time making sense of it simply because of the sheer volume that’s available. Read more…


 

IT’S COMPLICATED. 17 DEC 2012.

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Relationship-Status-its-ComplicatedIt’s complicated. Something I used to see quite often on the status updates of people on Facebook. It seems that it was also a film about life, love and convoluted relationships. No wonder some people can say “I am my own Grandpa”! Read more…


 

SOP – STANDARD OPERATING PRINCIPLES. 03 DEC 2012.

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Introduction.

You probably know what the acronym “SOP” stands for. “Standard Operating Procedures”. “Statement Of Position”. “Same Old Problem”. Here, of course, we refer to “Standard Operating Procedures”. We all know they are essential for the efficient workings of any organization that employs more than one person. So why introduce this term called Standard Operating PRINCIPLES? Read more…


SO, WHAT 9 THINGS SHOULD A BOSS SAY TO AN EMPLOYEE? 26 NOV 2012.

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Someone shared this article on LinkedIn, and it happened to catch my eye. You can read the article here. I thought that the nine things NOT to say to your employees were a good reminder for bosses. Then I thought that they ought to be complemented by 9 things Bosses OUGHT to say to their employees to make a complete picture. Here they are. Read more


Self Esteem In Leaders. Overused? Vilified? 06 Nov 2012.

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~ No One Can Make You Feel Inferior Without Your Consent ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

If you are a leader, read this with a view to being better equipped to grow yourself. It is only when we grow that we are able to help others. If you don’t think you’re a leader, I’ve got news for you – you had better be, because you are already a leader if you know people younger than yourself! Read more…


 

For Whom The Bell Tolls. 04 Nov 2012.

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~ The deadly effects of the bell curve on the concept and practice of leadership development and sustainment in business, and what can be done about it ~

I often ask participants at workshops I conduct whether they have gone to school, and this of course is greeted with cynical laughter, as participants give me the look of “Ok, so what’s next?” Of course we’ve all gone to school, we’re all products of our society. If you are reading this and have not been to school, you have come to live in a very different society indeed! Our experiences in school have shaped us and the ideas we have gotten stay with us to either buoy us jubilantly upwards or haunt us, depending on what they were, how we imbibed them, and how we have responded to these ideas.

 


 

Wisdom. Why we STILL need Leaders. 22 Oct 2012.

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The Age of Information.

With the rise of the internet and the proliferation of mobile devices permitting us to be connected to vast information resources from virtually anywhere, “downloading” of information from person to person may seem to have taken a back seat. Read more…

Making Ourselves Redundant Enthusiastically. 24 Sep 2012.

I guess I could also call this “An Advocate For Deliberate Redundancy”. The term “Redundancy” is probably about as anathema to the average business leader as anathema can get. We are constantly exhorted to get rid of redundancies. People involved in business processes, logistics, supply chain management and similar operations look out for and squash redundancies whenever they are detected. Read more…

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