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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 12:54

null Over managed or over stretched?

  There is a reason why there are more management posts in the public sector and it's nothing to do with bureaucracy or inefficiency. The new leader of the council was fond of making comparisons from his background in industry " over managers and under occupied". He had no doubt that an easy and relatively uncontroversial way to save money was to cut one in five management posts. It... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:25

null Man marking

  Man marking like many management expressions originates from sport. To man mark is to follow    your designated opponent around the field of play, wherever they go you follow never letting them out of your reach. Man marking is the practise of employers closely scrutinising the work of an employee. It is different to the close supervision and support a manager gives a new... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:39

null Public Health is safe with LA's. Is it ?

  So everything is ok now that Public Health comes under Local Authorities and Directors of Public Health now work in local government . Or so you might think reading the director of public health in Haringey as she writes in the HSJ. We don’t talk about it anymore but there was a time but there was a time when local authorities were ambitious for their populations and felt their... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:32

null How do you follow a great leader

  Following some one who has failed  is not so difficult. You distance your self ," my priorities are not  the same , I don't do things that way, my management style is different as are my methods, I will listen more, I appreciate the need to take people with me, I understand the history and sensitivities." Following on from a success story is more difficult. Do you simply do... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:39

null People of colour

  Do you know how to tell which type Irish pub you are in? Ask for a whiskey. I learnt this when I asked for a Bushmills in an Irish pub in Birmingham. The relevance of which will be delt with later.   Today I noted that in two articles in the Guardian on the topic of race and racism the expression "people of colour" was used as opposed to "black" or "ethnic minorities ". Has... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:25

null Developing political skills

    It is assumed that you acquire political awareness and sensitivity on your way up the career ladder and if you don't then you don't move up. Managers are all too often left to learn by their mistakes. Unfortunately in a political environment  those mistakes may mean that members lose confidence in them making the manager considerably less effective.   Despite... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:25

null Sometimes you have to ignore the sat nav

Sometimes you have to ignore the sat nav common sense tells you you're going the wrong way.   Driving around Florida was made a lot easier by the Sat Nav we took with us. Pre loaded with all our destinations,hotels, museums and restaurants. We thought it would be particularly helpful in finding our way out of Miami and through the series of spaghetti junction like motorway... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 13:08

null I'm not being racist just amusingly ironic

  What have a Cambridge varsity ball, a history teacher and a board game got in common? Why would a group of students think Gone with the wind would make a great theme for a university ball with it underlying subject of slavery and racial stereotypes? Why were only three black people accepted on the post graduate history teachers training course in stark contrast to the 506 white... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:32

null The USA way

The land of marketing over substance, where everything is over sold and routinely under delivered has done a fantastic job of convincing us that they do it better. The politicians look to the US for inspiration particularly on how to win elections. The business community has also bought into the idea that US companies are more competitive and efficient.  In fact we have all been sold the... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:39

null Tomorrow's world

  I have seen the future. It is Florida. It is not Miami or Orlando. It's palm trees, white sandy beaches and the crazy golf of the costal communities.The future is full of old people. Happy hour , 5 till 7, is people in their 70s and 80s sitting on bar stools drinking cocktails. In the future no one cooks it is cheaper and easier to eat out or get a takeaway way. In the future no one... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:39

null Leaving a lasting legacy

We all want to leave something behind us, something to be remembered by. Managers in different sectors have different ways of managing their legacy.   The voluntary sector, for instance, places greater emphasis on continuity, to ensure the organisation's core values and culture are retained. Departing chief executives get a say in naming their successor and there seems to be a... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 12:54

null Weekend food parcels for school children

  Another school fund raising event nothing particularly unusual in that we have all got use to the idea that parents are expected to do their bit to help hard up schools. Except these parents and pupils walking round the athletics field have given up their Saturday morning to raise money for weekend food parcels. The school started offering pupils food parcels when they realised that... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
10 Jun 2015 - 10:16

null Carers' Week-Caring for carers

  It was a conference for our staff who were also carers. The idea was to identify those members of staff who cared for a family member or relative and enlist their support in coming up with ways we could be a better employer. To date people had been reluctant to identify themselves as carers. In general people kept quiet they didn't mention it at interview for fear that it would be... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:18

null Love over fear in absence management

    Happy staff have less time off sick so why when staff surveys report rock bottom morale are absenteeism levels falling? Fewer staff are throwing a sickie because management has introduced new tougher policies and procedures to sack people with poor attendance records. So is it better to be feared than loved?   Happy staff are more productive,they take less time of... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:32

null Sacked and the last to know

"This is not a crisis it's a period of transition". The dream job is turning into a nightmare. You knew this was a high profile job in a high profile organisation. You knew the previous chief executive had been in post for ever and had acquired almost mythical status. This was the top job in one of the biggest and most successful organisations in the country. Success last year meant the... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:18

null You may never know the name of your assassin

  In board room battles a full frontal assault is rare as it is in your average team meeting. It’s not the person having a stand up row with you that you need to worry about. The plotters and schemers tend to do their whispering in dark corners and behind closed doors. And you may never know the name of your assassin. I never knew mine.   Did I see it coming no not until it... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 13:02

null Jobs for Mates

Margaret Thatcher used to ask “are they one of us." Tony Blair was accused of surrounding himself with cronies and now Michael Grove is said to be firing people who don't agree with him. But it not just politicians who want to get rid of the awkward squad, the dissenting voices. Most of us would prefer to work with like minded people, so if you get to chose your own team why wouldn't you... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 12:55

null Does your organisation pass the Blue Badge test

  You may have thought it was the year on year budget cuts, you might imagine it was the rock bottom morale of a workforce that feels undervalued and much maligned, the over ambitious performance targets, the constant negative stories in the press, the gap between what the politicians promise and what can realistically be delivered, the constant stream of policy initiatives and the... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 13:02

null Why are you asking

  It’s a dangerous question. It is a provocative question. It’s a question politicians like to ask. It’s a question newly appointed chief executives ask to unsettle their new management team. It’s the question senior managers ask in defence of their own budgets. It’s a question I was repeatedly asked as a senior manager responsible for support services. It’s a dangerous question... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:32

null Psychometric tests and top jobs

  The treasury select committee was told this week that the disgraced former chairman of the Co Op Bank was appointed to the post because he did better than rival candidates in the psychometric tests. Well I don't believe it. I have had lots of involvement in the recruitment of senior managers and psychometric tests are frequently used as part of an assessment  centre approach... See more
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