SAE

#SAE March – A short poem about life

Through the month of February, the wonderful Steve Chapman has been running a daily artistic event #WTFeb. On February 18th the challenge was this: Today’s challenge is to create a minimalist three line poem to express your own instructions for living a life inspired by the wonderful Mary Oliver poem “Instructions for Living a Life” … Continue reading #SAE March – A short poem about life

Other Stuff

Educating myself

For the last 18 months or so I've been on a conscious, if somewhat haphazard, path to read more about issues of inequality and privilege. I'm white, male, straight, middle-aged, middle class and relatively wealthy. That's about as privileged as one can be in Britain in 2021. I was also brought up in the 1970s … Continue reading Educating myself

Weeknotes

Weeknote 523 – 5 days

This week I have learned: the appeal of Japanese fox-based metaphors (cheers Mr Wilshire!)the power of listening to the stories customers want to tell.that The Bullingdon Club really are the crème de la crème.that Data is moving up the agenda.that you really need to know why.that standing is the new sitting. Or something. Next week: … Continue reading Weeknote 523 – 5 days

innovation, Management, Technology

Lists, maps and strategy

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about a distinction between two types ofthinking - map thinking and list thinking. In a chance' conversation this week with a former colleague Mark, we started to explore how these two mindsets might apply to the thorny world of strategy. To start off, there are many interpretations of … Continue reading Lists, maps and strategy

General

The hierarchy of meetings

In the years BC (before COVID) there was a strict hierarchy. Meetings in the same room as one another were supreme. People who weren't in person could dial in. The people dialling in felt like interlopers. They were peripheral to the discussion. Often people in the room forgot the people on the line existed at … Continue reading The hierarchy of meetings

General

Weeknote 521: teletext retro

This week I have learned... the power of the House Trainerthe term "toxic positivity"that it's about creating environments where evolution happensthat bad things can happen when things that should be outcomes become inputsthat it's chuffing coldthat Gather has some legs (but not on a mobile)that I value being asked to be part of groups almost … Continue reading Weeknote 521: teletext retro

collaboration, culture, design, innovation, Management, Technology

Evolution, not intelligent design

Eight or so years ago, I found myself at a software developer event organised by the US company Twilio. If you are not familiar, Twilio provide software that allows other people building apps to connect their products and services to the telephone system. They enable you to integrate with voice and text messages without the … Continue reading Evolution, not intelligent design

General

Weeknote 520 – a decade’s worth

This week I have learned... the value of flotsam and jetsamhow much I enjoy running a workshoplists is what they were afterthat perhaps we should say "iterative or linear" rather than "agile or waterfall"that getting back into the book-writing is just about making a bit of time again that peer nudges helpthat the World Cup … Continue reading Weeknote 520 – a decade’s worth