The following is an extract from my new book! The Scenario Planning Guide is a comprehensive and insanely practical guide for leaders who are interested in using scenarios as part of their strategic planning process. I’m hoping to launch it mid-October, but if you’d like to be one of the first people to
I first studied economics nearly 30 years ago when I was still in high school. I have probably forgotten a lot of what I learnt at high school, but there is one foundational tenet of economic theory that I will never forget, probably because it troubled me so much. The
Between extreme weather events, political upheaval, regional insecurity, financial instability and global conflicts, there is a general feeling that the world is a little uncertain right now. But is the current level of uncertainty we’re experiencing different from the uncertainties of the past? For instance, are things more or less
**Beware, click-bait ahead** Research shows organisations are spending 36% less time working on strategy in 2022 than they did in 2021. Now I cannot vouch for the validity of that statistic* even though I believe it represents a deeper truth about our approach to strategy. That truth is what I’m
In manufacturing terms, ‘just-in-time‘ is an approach where you try and hold as little stock or spare inventory as possible. Ideally, you want a part to turn up ‘just-in-time’ for it to be added to the car as the car rolls down the production line (just-in-time manufacturing was pioneered by
We all crave certainty, to have confidence and conviction in our view of the world and what’s coming at us down the pipeline. Certainty helps us make plans for the future, build skills and do work that is enduringly relevant…and certainty also certainly helps us sleep well at night. And
It has been about a month since I released my four scenarios looking at the impact of COVID on the future of work out to 2025 (if you haven’t already read them, you can access them here). If you have read the scenarios, I’m keen to know what you’ve noticed
There is an increasingly polarising debate emerging in many workplaces as to the permanency of remote working. For many organisations, working remotely was not a strategic decision, it was just the only possible response to a global pandemic that shut down cities across the world. For many, it was seen
Although half of Australia are currently in lockdown it hasn’t stopped businesses thinking about what happens next. What will the post-pandemic workplace look like? Obviously, some jobs such as construction, manufacturing and hospitality are location-specific and those workers will be expected to return to pre-pandemic work arrangements as soon as
We’re going to do a quick exercise together. I want you to take a moment to close your eyes and try and imagine a future 10 years from now. [insert 30 second pause] How did you go? What did you experience? Interestingly, the first experience that most people have is
In 2004, I competed in a Sydney Hobart yacht race. The weather conditions that year were particularly bad and only about half the fleet made it to Hobart. Most of the yachts were skippered and crewed by sailors. Mostly amateurs, but sometimes professionals, who spent their time sailing in yacht
When it comes to physical events we understand that not all events are the same. We have everydayevents, such as our weekly stand-up with the team that we used to hold in meeting room six. Then we have our important events such as the monthly town hall or the training program where we’d
A couple of weeks back, I presented at my first physical ‘in real life’ conference in over a year. It was a joyous occasion with attendees, sponsors and organisers alike rejoicing at how wonderful it was to be back together again in all three dimensions (or four dimensions if you
One of the most powerful diagrams I have ever seen is also one of the simplest. It was shown to me when I was working as a Lean business improvement coach at Rio Tinto and it illustrated the difference between a Western and Eastern approach to change. Western organisations are
To say it’s been a rough 12 months for the corporate events industry would be the grossest of understatements. For close to a year, large-scale, in-person events were non-existent and suddenly virtual events became all the rage. But as we’ve emerged from lockdown and sense of normalcy has returned to our lives,
Last week, the interwebs were all a flutter with a video of a monkey playing pong. The video was uploaded by Neuralink, a start up backed by Elon Musk with the goal of creating brain/technology interfaces, and shows a nine year old macaque monkey playing the classic computer game pong using
Last week in a coaching session with some of my digital champions, we were discussing how to automate customer satisfaction surveys. They had recently implemented an SMS-based survey system that had impressive response rates but poor quality (it turns out people are not inclined to write long detailed survey responses
Australia is currently dealing with its second wave of COVID-19. And event organisers, many of who were hoping to ride things out until we return to normal, are facing the realisation that ’normal’ may be a long way away. Of course some have seen the current environment as an opportunity to
Understanding the future is the ultimate competitive advantage. Defining strategies and making decisions become a whole lot easier if you already know where the future is taking us. Unfortunately, knowing the future is incredibly difficult…but that doesn’t seem to stop us trying. People buy lotto tickets hoping they’ve predicted the
For the last nine months or so I have been working on a secret project. It would have been called a skunkworks project if I worked at Lockheed Martin, or a moonshot if I worked at Google, but as I work at neither of these places (and have a much
I first studied economics nearly 30 years ago when I …
Between extreme weather events, political upheaval, regional insecurity, financial instability …
**Beware, click-bait ahead** Research shows organisations are spending 36% less …
In manufacturing terms, ‘just-in-time‘ is an approach where you try …
There is an increasingly polarising debate emerging in many workplaces …
Although half of Australia are currently in lockdown it hasn’t …
We’re going to do a quick exercise together. I want …
In 2004, I competed in a Sydney Hobart yacht race. …
A couple of weeks back, I presented at my first …
To say it’s been a rough 12 months for the corporate events …
Australia is currently dealing with its second wave of COVID-19. And …
Understanding the future is the ultimate competitive advantage. Defining strategies …
For the last nine months or so I have been …
