Entries with tag leadership .

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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
09 Mar 2015 - 13:06

null Trained to feign indifference

The receptionist came out from behind the desk, spoke to and then stroked each one in turn. She clearly likes dogs. Not surprising you might say being as she works at a vets. Not so, we have been going to our vets for years and they are far more professional, they never smile, keep conversation to a minimum and never ever come out from behind the counter. Clearly the receptionist at the first... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
21 Feb 2015 - 17:25

null Beware the Hippo

The most dangerous animal in Africa  is not the lion or rhino or even the bull elephant it is the hippo. This animal causes the  deaths of more people than all the others put together. The hippo is a very large animal, it is not carnivorous but it can quickly turn from mild mannered to aggressive, it submerges itself grazing on the river bed and surfaces without warning causing... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Feb 2015 - 11:49

null You don't want to know the answer

Effective leaders ask good questions but too many people in charge don't ask questions. After all if you don't ask the question you can always deny knowledge. The Americans call this plausible deniability; we call it wilful blindness and selective deafness. "I didn't know some of my very senior managers were walking away with £million pay offs. I didn't ask the details of individual... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Feb 2015 - 11:05

null An Organisation in denial

"They denied that there had been a problem, or if there had been that it was as big as was said. If there was a problem they certainly were not told. They were no worse than anyone else. They had won awards. The media were out to get them". They were more concerned with the reputation of the organisation than they were in discovering what was really going on. The leadership did not expect... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
05 Feb 2015 - 13:13

null The End Game

It takes a leader to transform a service(s) to build, to innovate to inspire but what happens when the task is to dismantle, to scale back, to down grade? Is it still leadership if you are dismantling the empire rather than building it? When the dynamic talk of creating a fitter, slimmer more efficient organisation is replaced by talk of no longer providing services, no longer employing... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
26 Jan 2015 - 11:45

null The Tudors are trending

 First their was the prizewinning book Wolf Hall now there is a critically acclaimed BBC adaptation. The central character is Thomas Cromwell who is undergoing a modern day rehabilitation of his reputation. He is no longer the cold blooded,cynical manipulator behind the throne of  Henry V111  or rather he is but to modern audiences being a ruthless pragmatist is a recognised... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
26 Jan 2015 - 11:39

null My wife's driving is inceasingly alarming

"My wife's driving increasingly alarms me but attempts to discuss it with her meet with her hostility". These are not my words I hasten to add but those of a husband seeking advice from a problem page. "A trip with her at the wheel feels uncomfortable and erratic boarding on the reckless at times". "She shows scant regard for the speed limits is easily distracted and makes me very nervous".... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
16 Jan 2015 - 14:02

null Why not make a drama out of this crisis

The president of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, David Pearson, spoke on various BBC news programmes last week, to discuss the crisis in the NHS. On the BBC’s Breakfast show last Thursday, the GP interviewed before Pearson had used the opportunity to get a simple message across that the government had failed to train and retain enough GPs. As a result, surgeries could... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
14 Jan 2015 - 12:26

null An Unreliable Witness

If you listen to senior managers particularly in organisations where things have gone badly wrong it's not difficult to see why they might be unreliable witnesses.   I want to put the record straight. The politicians and the journalists have past judgment, my former colleagues have distanced themselves and even those I trusted most have spoken out against me.    ... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
13 Jan 2015 - 11:59

null Reasons to be fearful

There is never much sympathy for senior managers from the rank and file who view the higher ups as detached, over confident and over paid. If the general public have a view on the reduction of management posts in the public sector it is probably that there were too many in the first place and government ministers have picked up on popular disapproval of large redundancy payments for senior... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
08 Jan 2015 - 11:29

null In difficult times what type of manager will make it to the top in 2015

These are difficult times for public sector managers some people think the business can do ok with a lot fewer of them. Managers must deliver savage budget reductions, cut services, make people redundant and keep the remaining staff motivated whilst their wages are frozen. When this has been achieved they will find themselves working for smaller and very different organisations and they will... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
31 Dec 2014 - 11:52

null 2015 What's the worst that could happen

At the start of a new year it's fun to speculate about what the future holds. More elected mayors, more power to the cities, more budget cuts, more  services outsourced, more contracts to place, more scope for corruption, more bankruptcies and emergency takeover squads.    Elected Mayors with the power to make our cites work,  to cut through the bureaucracy, the... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
30 Dec 2014 - 12:32

null The medium and the message

 As we get excited about the potential of social networking and the social media for local government how do we ensure the message is not lost in the preoccupation with the medium? A recent example would be the US presidential debate on TV aired live in the US and covered worldwide. The TV, the medium for carrying this debate encourages the viewer to look at body language, tone of... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
23 Dec 2014 - 16:11

null Christmas message from the Boss

  The Boss traditionally uses his Christmas message to thank staff for their hard work and support over the last 12 months. Not this year. He used the social media to thank staff but he was very critical of senior managers claiming many had lost their humanity, they had forgotten what public service was all about and they no longer seemed able to inspire optimism in their staff. He... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
19 Dec 2014 - 15:02

null Pot holes

It is nearly  5 years since my boss came back from a budget meeting and said this level of cuts is no longer about reduced services it about a totally different county council. At the time most of us didn't believe it was possible to take nearly 50 percent out of the budget yet that is what happened. Libraries and day centres were closed, grants to voluntary groups were cut, services... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
19 Dec 2014 - 14:26

null The powerful make things happen or do they?

Tony Blair complained that he pulled levers and nothing much happened. It's a common complaint by leaders in a democracy that they have status and authority but not enough power to make things happen. Margaret Thatcher thought  it was the dead hand of the civil service that stifled radical change and the trade unions, she was determined to reduce the power of both. In local government... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
17 Dec 2014 - 12:44

null Tis the season to give and receive

Five more years of austerity, it sounds grime. More services out sourced, more redundancies, more service reductions, it sounds inevitable. But here is  a reason to be jolly, corporate Christmas parties and lavish presents from new business partners. What better start to the festivities than a weekend in London, a posh dinner dance and an overnight in a swanky hotel. Just think how... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
08 Dec 2014 - 11:39

null When things get nasty,and they will, you don't want a nice guy in charge

When things get nasty, and they will, you don't want a nice guy in charge He is intelligent, a commanding public speaker, politically astute and unlike so many council leaders he has insight into how his behaviour effects others. Despite a 40 percent cut in the budget, compulsory redundancies, a wage freeze, the closure of most of the councils libraries, the out sourcing of most of the... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
28 Nov 2014 - 16:21

null Make them laugh

 Make them laugh Whether face to face, in your blog or through your tweets, 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. Service cuts and redundancies are no laughing matter so your joke may be... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
20 Mar 2015 - 11:39

null Pornography and the work lap top

Three Judges are dismissed and one resigns caught viewing pornography on their work lap top.   Does the social media enable staff to share knowledge and experience or share sexists cartoons and racist jokes? The internet opened up a world of information, and  easier access to pornography. Facebook and Twitter allows fiends to share photos and the minutiae of their day, and... See more
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Showing 161 to 180 of 262 entries.