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Red Tape and the Duke of Wellington

12 April, 2013 by James Lawther 2 Comments

Central Spain, August 1812 A message to the British Foreign Office in London from the Duke of Wellington: Whilst marching from Portugal to a position which commands the  approach to Madrid and the French forces, my officers have been diligently complying with your requests which have been sent by H.M. ship from London to Lisbon […]

Filed Under: Blog, Process Improvement Tagged With: bureaucracy, purpose

So You Want to be World-Class?

26 March, 2013 by James Lawther 5 Comments

World Class

Lots of organisations claim to excel They are: World class at “this” Have centres of excellence in “that” Apply best practice in “the other” I wouldn’t mind betting that yours claims it is the best in the world at something. Are they really all that good or is it simply corporate conceit? What does it take to become […]

Filed Under: Blog, Process Improvement Tagged With: focus, motivation, objective setting, purpose, world class

What can a Cherokee Indian Teach you About Management?

18 December, 2012 by James Lawther 9 Comments

The Cherokee Indians of North America have long believed that success relies on three things: Purpose: clarity over the task you want to complete and the tenacity to stick with it. Ability: the skills and methods to allow you to complete that task. Integrity: a task that lines up with your own beliefs and values, […]

Filed Under: Blog, Employee Engagement Tagged With: capability, Dilbert, integrity, nothing new under the sun, purpose

Do You Have the Best Job in the World?

6 October, 2012 by James Lawther 2 Comments

Moulding clay

Question 1: What was the best job you ever had? Think about that question for a while; write down the answer, what was so special about that job?  Be very clear. Now I will lay you a bet… I bet you that when you were doing that job it was a perfect fit for you: […]

Filed Under: Blog, Employee Engagement Tagged With: motivation, purpose

How to Motivate Just About Anybody

24 July, 2012 by James Lawther 3 Comments

Good Samaritan

Possibly the world’s worst job… Outbound telemarketing Trying to sell something to people over the phone Cold calling It doesn’t have a single thing going for it. Adam Grant studied a group of students who did it for a living. Their job was to raise money for a University.  To phone its affluent alumni and […]

Filed Under: Blog, Employee Engagement Tagged With: call centre, motivation, purpose

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