This is the story of how an empowered leader changed the direction of the business whilst his predecessor was still navigating from the back seat. Carl was the Managing Director in a food production business. The previous MD was the Chairman and still very much involved in day-to-day operations. The workforce of 750 people was […]

Employee engagement is a hot topic in HR learning and development so you’ll find lots of great tools and resources that will help you identify how engaged your workforce are and what to do if they are not.  But what about you, the business owner? Are you ‘engaged’? I acknowledge the struggle of hard-working leaders […]

You’re in the battlefield with a member of staff. You don’t how it escalated so quickly or what to do next to avoid making matters worse. They call in sick and you breathe a sigh of relief that you don’t have to face them at work for a while. But the issue doesn’t go away. […]

This is the story of the past 7 years of my working life. The time feels right to share it and draw a line in the sand. It’s a 5-10 minute read so feel free to scroll on, but if you are interested, grab a brew and your favourite treat and read on my friends. […]

You may already have a HR business partner or employment lawyer on speed dial, but are there gaps in their knowledge, advice and experience that mean you need the next level of support? Do you have an unmanageable employee relations issue that looks like it is going to blow? Are your internal resources too bogged […]

Are you a lover or a fighter? Anyone that knows me will know that I’m both; I’m very protective of my clients and will fiercely defend you if I need to…..but sometimes I will urge you to take a step back and avoid the fight. It’s not a sign of weakness to give up the […]

Sometimes, when the curtains are closed and we’re waiting to go on stage, we don’t want our audience to know that the lead actors have fallen out, the set is held together with gaffer tape, the orchestra conductor has called in sick and the director has turned up drunk again, do we?! We want the […]

Hi! I see you.  Going through the motions of being the boss of your business, in a role that you don’t enjoy anymore, but feeling like you have to do it. Because it’s your business.  This isn’t what you signed up for when you started this journey, is it? You’ve been successful and recruited a […]

You’ve got to stop abdicating YOUR responsibility for managing YOUR people to others! Yes, delegate people management to your management team but, for the love of G*d, please do your bit, which is: Share your vision; Hold your managers accountable for managing your tribe to achieve the vision; and Support them every day You have […]

Leaders are put under pressure to behave “like a leader”, but what does that actually mean?! It’s so confusing!! Be decisive but don’t tell people what to do. Be strong but make sure you show vulnerability. Set a clear path but make sure its inclusive to everyone. Be visible but don’t be arrogant. Sadly, I […]