Debrett’s Ask the Expert: How should I handle nepotism in my office? April 11, 2016 Q: My colleagues and I have noticed that many of the new interns and junior staff members at our office seem to be from the same circle of friends of one of our senior management team. I’m used to people’s children getting work experience at our office, but this seems like outright nepotism! Is there [...]
Appraising your boss: Is honesty the best policy? April 8, 2016 Q: Human resources have asked me to fill out an anonymous “360 degree” appraisal of my boss. Should I seize this rare opportunity to tell the truth (that he’s an aggressive glory seeker with one priority – himself) or would that be career suicide? This quandary – whether to tell the truth, or not, about [...]
This Chinese boss gave 10 employees Maseratis, then took them on the drive of their lives April 7, 2016 Thought an away-day to the local paintballing centre was exciting? Try working with Chinese boss Ni Hai Shan, who presented 10 of his employees with £98,000 Maseratis as their year-end bonus – then took them on a mad journey along China's "highway of death". The People's Daily Online reported that 29-year-old Hai Shan, whose family business [...]
High performing teams need a psychologically safe environment April 7, 2016 Have you ever been in a meeting with your superiors, disagreed with what is being said, but kept quiet for fear of being judged or, worse, dismissed? If you make a mistake at work, do you worry it may be held against you? Do you find that keeping your cards close to your chest is the [...]
What can the public sector teach firms about innovation? April 6, 2016 Effecting change can be difficult for all organisations, but particularly for established ones with an entrenched position. It’s exactly this struggle which makes it hard to react to a changing environment and to meet changing customer expectations. After all, standing still in any sector quickly turns into going backwards. So what can be done? I [...]
How to make far better judgements – and why the modern world requires a certain approach in business April 5, 2016 Judgement is one of the most vital aspects of business success – and is especially crucial when building a new venture. It is the mainstay in the face of ambiguity and uncertainty and is a valuable skill to have when experience and information alone may not be sufficient. The importance of judgement has become abundantly clear [...]
Fever Pitch: ROLI founder Roland Lamb talks pianos, philosophy and Hans Zimmer April 4, 2016 Since 1975, Moore’s Law has held that the processing power of a microchip doubles every couple of years. For musical instruments, however, the pace of innovation has been somewhat slower. “For the last 400 years, you have been able to control soft and loud by how hard you hit a piano key, but that has been [...]
Emotional intelligence: The bits you can learn and how they’ll help you in the workplace April 1, 2016 Many companies are becoming increasingly aware of the true impact that Emotional Quotient (EQ) can have within the business arena. Given that many professional or technical skills can be taught on the job, EQ is increasingly seen as a sought-after commodity. And research and anecdotal feedback shows that leaders and employees who have high levels of [...]
Heading for Silicon Valley? Having a degree pays in the tech industry March 31, 2016 The likes of Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg may have managed to build their sprawling tech empires without one, but most people who want to work in Silicon Valley will need a degree – and they'll be paid more for it too. That's according to research released this week by jobs market analytics company Burning Glass Technologies which [...]
The bringer of bad news: Tips for softening the blow March 31, 2016 Oh dear, the IT system has gone into meltdown, there’s no budget for a bonus, the star account director has resigned, the investment has tanked and we’ve missed the deadline. The merde has hit the fan and all that remains to be done is to deliver the news to the client or colleague. Hmm, perhaps [...]