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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:35

null There are many ways to get rid of a Director

You don’t have to wait till the budget is over spent, the savings not delivered, a critical inspection report, performance targets missed or a negative and highly personalised local media campaign against the “cuts”. The simplest way to get rid of a director is to undermine the individual because once members have lost confidence in them the end is near. The easiest way to do this is for the... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:42

null Racism in the office and in the staff room

We don’t have a problem with racism here. I am not a racist nor are my colleagues. I don’t believe our staff are racist and I don’t believe our managers deliberately discriminate against people. Just because we don’t have any Black senior managers doesn’t make us racist. And just because some staff occasionally use inappropriate language well I don’t think they mean any offence by it. As a... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:22

null 2012 the year for UnLearning management

It is very clear now that the changes taking place in the public sector will make it a very different place to work. For staff there are unwelcome changes in job security, pay and pensions. For managers too there are big changes as HR, Finance and IT support is out sourced, fewer services are directly provided as more are purchased from the private sector and the full impact of management... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 13:11

null Why do you keep banging on about Equality and Diversity?

We live in a modern world so I was not surprised to be contacted by a student through Face Book. She was doing a presentation and referring to an article I had written on Equality and Diversity in Health and Social Care. She asked if I could tell her what my motivation was for writing the piece. This is what I said in reply. I wanted to say that Equality and Diversity is not an optional... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:28

null Who are you calling a racist?

Stephen Lawrence was attacked because he was black. Eighteen years after his murder two of his killers have been sentenced to life in prison. His murder and the inquiry that followed not only highlighted the level of hatred some white people directed towards black people but that police intentionally or not treated black people differently. Black people were treated with suspicion and assumed... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:42

null Can you make a racist remark and not be racist?

According to Manchester United footballer Patrice Evra you can make a racist remark and not be a racist. Was he just saying that the opponent who he accused of repeatedly racially abusing him was not racist to appease his fellow professionals? Did he mean look this guy is not a wicked person just ignorant and insensitive? I can understand the reluctance to call someone a racist, it is after... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:28

null How to maintain morale when the future is so bleak

The public sector is to foot the bill for economic recovery. The price to be paid in reduced take home pay and job losses will be felt by all those working in the public sector. The news paper headlines warn of six years of austerity. This year’s budget cuts were painful, next year’s budget cuts are already being drawn up and it is clear things are only going to get worse. As staff fight to... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
20 Jan 2015 - 13:38

null Managing gay men

This is a work in progress. An attempt to further the discussion on managing a diverse workforce. I am seeking comments and suggestions and I am not afraid of a little controversy.  They thought gender was no longer an issue but the statistics on women in top jobs proved that wrong. They assumed race had been over taken by faith in the be careful what you say category but were still... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
19 Dec 2018 - 14:40

null Casting out demons

 You would not be surprised to be told that some people with mental health problems claim to hear voices and be possessed by demons. You might be a little surprised to be informed that the church still carries out exorcisms or “deliverance” (from evil) as they are now known. You probably would be surprise to learn the NHS uses exorcism as an alternative form of treatment for mental health... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
20 Jan 2015 - 13:32

null Culture eats EQUALITY strategy for breakfast

Culture eats equality strategy for breakfast, well that’s my experience as a senior manager with lead responsibility for equality and diversity. So we shifted the focus away from policy, procedures and targets and the implied criticism of managers’ performance. We set out to help managers deal with the day to day issues in managing a diverse workforce. The young woman who finds... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
06 Jul 2020 - 15:34

null Culture eats strategy for breakfast

We changed the policy .We introduced new procedures. We set targets and introduced monitoring arrangements. We developed a training programme. We provided senior management with regular progress reports. We held conferences, ran workshops and we blogged. We encouraged staff to say what they were really thinking, we challenged the myths, ignorance and stereotypes. We didn’t shirk from... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
18 Jun 2020 - 21:57

null The Americans think they do it better

The Americans think they do it better, no surprise there, but would you be surprised if a European research team concluded that American firms were the best managed in the world? A group including professors from the London School of Economics has found that American firms make more money, grow faster and survive longer. The global survey of 10,000 firms in 20 countries found that... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
17 May 2022 - 15:26

null Praise for local government deputies

This article appeared in todays Guardian(Public leaders network) ttp://www.guardian.co.uk/public-leaders-network/2011/may/09/local-government-deputies-praise
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
24 Nov 2021 - 13:49

null Make them laugh

Make them laugh Whoever the audience, whatever the topic it helps if you can make them laugh. Humour can defuse a tense situation and it’s hard to stay angry if you’re smiling. People like a laugh and they like people who make them laugh. But it’s risky as the PM found out. Service cuts and redundancies are no laughing matter so your joke may be seen as flippant and be taken to... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
10 Mar 2017 - 01:43

null Bigging it Up

Am I lying or just overselling?  Am I bigging it up?  Making more of it than is justified?  Am I making something routine and commonplace sound different and innovative?  How else do I explain the manager who previously worked for the organisation who claims never to have heard of it or the manager still working for the organisation who states they have never experienced... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
20 Jan 2015 - 13:29

null Are you gay? Do you have a disability? What is your religion? Equal opportunity monitoring.

Equal opportunity monitoring.   Most organisations don’t know how many disabled people they employ, how many gay people work for them or which faiths make up the staff group. All they do know with any degree of certainty is the age and gender profile of their organisation plus may be some information on ethnicity. The reason for this is that staff have proved very reluctant to... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
19 Dec 2014 - 14:41

null Mentoring as a way of developing leadership skills

Mentoring as a way of developing leadership skills  One very effective way for a manager to continue their development is to identify a mentor. A management mentor is a guide, someone with greater experience and the wisdom that comes with it, someone who can offer impartial advice and support. Many senior managers find their own mentor often someone outside of their own organisation,... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
19 Dec 2014 - 14:44

null Coaching and mentoring as a way of developing leadership skills

Coaching and mentoring as a way of developing leadership skills Employee surveys plus an analysis of harassment and bullying complaints revealed that many staff thought their manager had poor people management skills.  The Directorate set out to improve managers' people management skills stating that all managers should have leadership qualities that is the ability to inspire their... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
18 Dec 2021 - 16:51

null Management in 100 words

Management in 100 words The England football manager claims he only needs 100 words of English to manage the team. On the understanding that like the England team your team understands the basics what would your 100 words be? I came up with Yes, top priority, well done. After some thought I added No, not good enough and stay in budget. If you don’t do the small talk about... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jun 2020 - 11:06

null Leaders expect to be criticised but...

How high your heels are, how often you change your hair style and how much your designer handbag cost are not the type of observations you expect to read about in a serious article about a chief executive of one of the biggest  local authorities . Then again this article was only masquerading as serious journalism when in fact it was a general criticism of the pay of chief executives... See more
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