Back in October 2019, in those days we fondly remember as "before Covid" I joined RHP, a relatively small social housing provider based in South West London that provides around 6,500 rented homes to people in the area in which I've lived for the last 17 years. I have learned a huge amount in that … Continue reading On housing
Category: Management
We don’t really talk much about finishing jobs. There’s a whole industry about starting new jobs - the first 90 days and all that jazz. But how to finish up - well… Searching the World Wide Web it’s notable how starting a job is framed positively, yet if you search for finishing up an old … Continue reading On finishing
On a reasonably regular basis, I get asked to speak at events. I mean, I'm not deluged with offers. And none of them pays me. But it's nice to be wanted. However, requests in the last few months go something like this: Me: Thanks ever so. I'd really like to take part. Full disclosure, though. … Continue reading Crossing the divide
A few weeks ago I posted something vaguely witty on Twitter. This is such a regular occurrence that I can't even remember what it was. It was probably funnier in my head than it was on screen. But some people responded to it. Some Likes. Some Retweets. These aren't important to me (of course they … Continue reading Forget about the bloody water cooler
Over the course of what I self-deprecatingly refer to as my "career" I've worked in and with a large number of different organisations in a very varied number of industry sectors. The sociologist in me finds learning about new organisations utterly fascinating, and quickly being able to pick up the nuance of a new setting … Continue reading Trump cards
The buy versus build debate is one of the constants in the tech industry. Should you get a product off the (virtual) shelf, or invest in developing something bespoke to your needs? I was recently asked my views on the question, and thought it worthwhile to note where my head is currently at on the … Continue reading Buy versus Build
It struck me last week that organisations claiming to be “data driven” might as well describe themselves as “electricity driven”. Whilst on the face of it a data driven moniker might express some sort of rational futurism in the culture of an organisation, it doesn’t really, ultimately, say anything at all. I think implicit within … Continue reading Data driven?
Do you remember when the fax machine ended? No? No, neither do I. I remember having to scrabble around with a PC that still had a modem in it back in around 2011 to send a fax as part of a mortgage application. I remember around the same time receiving someone else's details in a … Continue reading The end of phone
The history of industrialization is a history of finding scale. Automation of processes so that capital investment in machinery could lead to increased productivity that would, in turn, deliver a return on the capital investment through cheaper to produce, better quality, higher volume goods. The "build it for the exit" model of digital business has … Continue reading Minimum Viable Volume
At the beginning of this week, I was lucky enough to be the Chair of the Inside Housing Connected Futures Summit. It was a housing sector event that covered a broad gamut of subjects related to change, technology and what to do about it. Rather than give a blow-by-blow account, here are a few reflections … Continue reading Connected Futures
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