Critical Thinking Critical thinking is one of those gnarly concepts that is used in academia and by professional bodies to somehow suggest that normal ‘thinking’ in normal life is somehow flawed because it doesn’t create new understanding and by failing to do critical thinking we are unable to form a total new basis from which…
Thinking about innovation As a British citizen, the image I have of innovators is the kooky inventor working on some mad cap idea in a cluttered shed at the bottom of their garden. Though it is true that the eccentric genius is very much part of innovation, in truth many of the challenges that organisations…
Everyone has a past The news reports regarding Ollie Robinson are relating to something he posted on twitter 8 years ago. The comments were wrong then, and they are wrong now. He has apologised. Robinson also said he had “worked hard” to turn his life around “over the past few years” and had “considerably matured…
Navigating the NHS This is not a criticism of the magnificant work that the staff in the NHS have done and keep on doing. We rightly applaud the work of these wonderful people. Rather it is an observation that years of managerialism in the NHS has lost sight of the principles that the NHS is…
How will we be judged by history In the midst of navigating lockdown we probably haven’t had much time to think about posterity. There is no doubt, however, that THIS period that we are living through will be recorded in the history books and future generations will have been taught as part of landmark history…
This report was written by Ioan Llewellyn-Foster, a Year 11 Student at St Joseph’s Catholic and Anglican High School, Wrexham. It examines the impact of lockdown on climate change. Download
What impact will 5G technology will have? Increase in bandwidth = more speed and more users Can serve more devices in a dense area with higher rates of data transfer But… signal is more easily disrupted May not reach rural areas and buildings will block signal Simpliar for small devices to connect What are the…
The past 12 months has firmly put the spotlight on the effectiveness of political and business leaders’ communication skills, both in terms of style and content. Political leaders have had to inspire nations to deal with unprecedented lifestyle restrictions during the global pandemic.
Business leaders have had to rally their colleagues to overcome very challenging business environments. During times of volatility and uncertainty people follow those people they trust.
So how do leaders communicate in a way that inspires others to action?
They use the Language of Leadership: a secret set of verbal, vocal and physical cues to signify power which has remained largely unchanged throughout the course of history. This secret code originated in ancient rhetoric but it still determines who rises to the top in politics and business today.
The past 12 months has firmly put the spotlight on the effectiveness of political and business leaders’ communication skills, both in terms of style and content. Political leaders have had to inspire nations to deal with unprecedented lifestyle restrictions during the global pandemic.
Business leaders have had to rally their colleagues to overcome very challenging business environments. During times of volatility and uncertainty people follow those people they trust.
So how do leaders communicate in a way that inspires others to action?
They use the Language of Leadership: a secret set of verbal, vocal and physical cues to signify power which has remained largely unchanged throughout the course of history. This secret code originated in ancient rhetoric but it still determines who rises to the top in politics and business today.
The role of influencers and echo chambers Can a bad influencer have a good impact on society? Always had them – but always knew it was an advert before social media People have lost sight of their own values Would BLM have had the global impact it had if it was for the influence of…
Core Question What communal and leadership tools can we develop to help individuals and communities live harmoniously with each other and the environment? Changes inspired by core question Can we restrict ourselves for the sake of our planet? What is our assessment of risk based on, Science or conspiracy theory? How do we get to…
The Daily Grind I worked out that to date I have been in lockdown for 32 weeks out of the last 11 months… or 65% of the time. Living in Wales has meant that we have been in lockdown longer than some parts of the UK, but even in making that calculation I am pretty…
Career challenges Pandemic accelerating trends and widening gulf between different career paths Loneliness of working from home Managers with low emotional intelligence Unstable, harder market market to search for jobs, blocking career choices Insights are breeding uncertainty Proactively reorientate careers and career management Ask deeper questions about career and life Consider where you career would…
Your values shape who you are, and how you lead. If you are a Take That fan you will recognise the latter part of the title of this blog. It is the title of one of their songs. Never forget where you’re coming from. I am a bit of a fan of their songs, and…
How to deal with Toxic Positivity Toxic Positivity is more prevalent than ever right now. Everywhere we look, particularly towards social media, we are told ‘positive vibes only’. This element of masking our true feelings and emotions is damaging and whether we are doing it to ourselves, having it forced onto us or we ourselves…
How’s your mindset health? Most of us know only the basics of what truly constitutes a growth mindset (believing that our natural talents and skills can be developed through life), yet it goes so much deeper than that. This video explores the importance of not only that, but where we are putting our focus, in terms…
Core Question How do we create an environment where EVERYONE can engage meaningfully in dialogue to increase shared understanding and improve critical thinking? Changes inspired by core question We need to hear and listen to things that make us profoundly uncomfortable We need to put ourselves more in other people’s shoes We need to make…
How to have camera confidence at work In this brave new-ish world of remote working and ‘Zoombies’, this video shares five tips that can immediately strengthen your mindset and confidence in front of the camera for remote meetings, virtual presentations and online learning. Introducing Chris Mooney Mindset and resilience is what gets me excited. I…
Who works to their strengths? Not enough – Gallup – only engaged 40% of their tim People are not productive because they are in the wrong jobs. Approx. 50% of Strategists are not being utilised by the business Defining strength? Ability to deliver consistent, near perfect performance in a given activity. Talents are your naturally…
Learn how to manage inner critic and stop doubting yourself We all have an inner critic, and many people will tell us that we need to ’silence’ it. This video considers how our brilliant brain does so much to keep us safe it often hinders our mindset strength and why we need to listen to…
By Andrew Bevington – Managing Director at DR1V “The world has really changed” And I agree, but we are often led to believe that this change has come about in the last 12 months. COVID has certainly driven a huge social shift in thinking, that’s for sure; I ponder, ‘will we be a cashless society…
Boris Johnson’s decision last night to put England in Lockdown was less a surprise and more a confirmation that he is once again behind the curve. Wales has effectively been in Lockdown since 17th December, and Nicola Sturgeon had already announced the Scottish lockdown proving she is always one step ahead and setting the agenda. …
As we gear up to see in the New Year there will be plenty of people who will be glad to see the back of 2020. Our New Year celebrations are being curtailed with many areas of the UK now in Tier 4 restrictions and many public events cancelled. The fact that we end 2020…
As the days get darker and winter deepens I look forward to the 21st December because I know once the winter solstice has passed we have tipped over into the journey back towards Spring and each day is one of more light and less gloom. In our lives we don’t always have the luxury of…
The 4iforum thinking masterclass is a dialogic session designed to get leadership to go beyond their immediate business reality and disrupt the status quo. The thinking masterclass is designed without a topic or agenda to provide space for the participants to discover questions to issues and problems that they have not yet thought about. The…
As I was putting together a new workshop on a Business Resiliency Design, something startling began to dawn on me.I was looking at a fairly standard risk framework that I was using that defines all of the risks that companies need to consider, especially operational risk which is historically where the bulk of business resiliency…
Story telling is deserving of some focus in this expert insight, because it is a central aspect of engaging stakeholder in change efforts. As long as there have been humans on earth there have been storytellers. The reason why stories are so important to the data collection is because it is through stories that we…
The 4D approach in AI (Stavros and Cooperrider, 2003) refers to the four parts of the AI cycle Discovery: Identifying those moments in the past and present of the organization which are excellent, core values of the organization and the best practices; Dream: Envision positive possibilities for future success; Design: Cultivate and create the structure,…
AI is not a new technique in the field of organization development (OD) having been introduced in a seminal article by Cooperrider and Srivastva in 1987. AI is a dialogic approach to OD with links to strength-based and positive organization studies in human development and organizational change, which focus on what successes and strengths an…
2020 continues to present challenges and opportunities, and workplace outcomes will be decided by multiple factors. Leaders need to embrace the unknown and develop new approaches to change, in order to ensure a constructive evolution. The 4i Symposium aims to uncover new thinking about a major emerging change in the world of work.
This premium blog analyses empirical research data, which was undertaken to address a management competency shortfall via reflective practice documented in individual learning logs.
In these incredibly challenging times, it is easy to become stressed and not notice the affect it is having on you, and those around you. It can cause friction both at home and in your work life, so it really should be tackled.
In these incredibly challenging times, it is easy to become stressed and not notice the affect it is having on you, and those around you. It can cause friction both at home and in your work life, so it really should be tackled.
I for one, do not mind conflict, if it moves a situation forward. In some cases, I actually encourage it. I really believe that some internal combustion can deliver more sophisticated solutions if handled properly. In the previous blog on this subject we began our exploration of conflict in terms of resolution. In this blog I would like to look further into the mechanics, whether you like it or not!
If you Google, David Mitchell-Passion, you will find a great video sketch depicting people who are indeed, passionate about tax optimisation. The sketch is a really great comedic rant about what people declare they are passionate about in the workplace. There is little doubt that if everyone in a business was passionate then productivity would probably, be really good.
The staggering truth is, that 80% of the global work force is not.
I ran a workshop recently with a large corporate on the topic of Strength Based Leadership. It was really interesting in so much that not one single delegate really knew what their innate strengths were.
Amongst the most widely-used algorithmic outputs is one which is so ingrained in our lives and in our societal experience that most of us never notice it. Yet this algorithm has pernicious effects on the lives of some people, delaying their development, disadvantaging them in their careers, and denting their self-image. What is this source of injustice, hidden in plain sight?
Biggest impact on your organisation in next 12 – 18 months Us election – market volatility and social unrest Brexit and potential of no deal Mass firings/redundancy Reorganisations and streamlining Self service economy and automation Jobs not making meaningful contribution Debt repayment challenges The young adults whose GCSE’s and A-levels were interrupted by CoVid entering…
Core Question How do I challenge my thinking processes so that I can learn from this situation to be the best version of myself today? Changes inspired by core question Manage my self talk Distinguish what thoughts are fears and phobias Develop tools and techniques for thinking without fear Recognise and remove limiting beliefs Ask…
I don’t know whether it’s simply a case of 2020 fatigue but I have definitely noticed a shift in the conversations I have been having with business leaders.
Debi Garrod and Ann Longley run a collaborative forum on how to build organisational resilience in your company. This forum ran on 27th October 2020. The recording is available to supporters and employees of our patron companies. Please log in or sign up from only £1.
You probably noticed a few weeks ago all the posts for Mental Health awareness day on 10th October. My first thought was why Mental Health Awareness day was on a Saturday. Probably not the go to ponderances for most people – but Saturday. In the past when I have struggled with work related stress Saturday was my most well mental health day of the week. I wasn’t at work, and it wasn’t imminent.
I witnessed an interesting exchange between two people on a diversity and inclusion workshop recently.
‘You gotta know when to hold em’
I was amazed at the behind the scenes celebrations in the England Rugby Squad changing room after they had beaten Ireland in the six nations championship. Obviously, I was not surprised by the celebration but perhaps I was, by their chosen celebration song.
So there we were. Our big kick off symposium. The most important marketing event of our fledgling, 6 month old, business. We’d gone to so much effort to make sure it was slick, well rehearsed, organised and highly professional. And then, Boom! A major technology issue after 10 minutes that took us completely off track.
People Dialogue Sparks Irresponsible to frame AI as threatening jobs – it offers opportunities and innovation for different jobs to growth Fear driven by leadership who have not been bought up with AI – may be holding AI back? AI creates efficiency but many jobs can’t be replaced by AI Many people using AI every…
Do you know what you want, and are you prepared to go and get it?
The headstone on Spike Milligan’s on his grave reads ‘I told you I was ill.’ Even after he was gone, he left a befitting legacy of his great comedic talent.
When we came back from our first annual holiday to our kitchen being overturned to create a laundry room and our bathroom being remodelled, you’d think life would be good. But for our dog Bailey it was a nightmare. She barks if anyone walks past our property.
The chaos created by the CoVid-19 pandemic on the learning sector means that many learning providers are having to pivot from a delivery model focused on face to face learning interventions to one that relies heavily on virtual learning.
The path of least pain
I am sure that most of us would agree, it is quite unlikely that when the time comes and we have finally retired we would utter the words ‘I wish I had worked harder.’ Given our working life again, wouldn’t it be good to ensure that we made best use of our time and were more productive?
Core Question How do we tackle the problems that lead people to intentionally avoid making hard decisions that they are accountable for? Changes inspired by core question Promote dynamic institutions Imagine if countires no longer had to waste resources on the military Algorithmic decision making Drive increased transparency Tap into voice of people online to…
Current leadership thinking Principles of trust, delegation, humility and accepting our own ignorance Have to unlearn things when you become a leader Personal motivations and situations Perspectives based on known reality Job or purpose? Experience is a key principle in guiding your leadership style The current leadership environment Need for humility and being personable Emotional…
Radical change in IT strategy Difference between cloud hosted and cloud native Removal of traditional capabilities Innovation happening at the perimeter Inertia unblocked, accelerated strategic change Remote working driven by CoVid has meant that things that were happening anyway are now happening faster. IT’s value in this new world Different view of value – reposition…
The difference between motivation and engagement Motivation is the Why, engagement is the how Motivation is personal, engagement is goodwill Engagement is the means, motivation is the end Engagement gets the work done Is is critical that we listen to employees, get feedback and take action. Positive engagement and motivation leads to an empowered, supportive…
Have you ever thought about the impact your preferences have in the workplace? There are plenty of management development tools out there that are capable of measuring preferences. Perhaps more important than the measurement, is to better understand the interplay between your preferences, and the preferences of others.
What is holding diversity and inclusion back? Fear around language Miscommunication – people are uncomfortable talking about diversity Low rate of diversity disclosure Lack of training around language and how to listen We all make mistakes when it comes to treating those in protected characteristics inclusively, but we need to improve corporate cultures to let…
Working with the 4iforum team has been fabulous. You couldn’t hope to find a more welcoming, supportive and intelligent group of people.
Yet despite all these ‘little-grey-cells’, we often struggle with how to succinctly describe what we do and why it’s important.
When the UK’s Chief Medical Officer, Chris Witty intoned that we face “a six-month problem that we have to deal with collectively” the chances of the eased restrictions remaining in place appears tenuous. For many industries they have only just started opening up again, and they are the sectors that are being hit as local lockdowns are put into place.
4iforum is probably the best kept secret in the development space right now. Like many businesses, communicating our message is our biggest challenge. We are getting better at articulating who we are and what we do – in short we are here to help leaders think. But the challenge isn’t just what we communicate. It’s…
Do you know what you want, and are you prepared to go and get it? Spike Milligan’s headstone on his grave reads ‘I told you I was ill.’ Even after he was gone, he left a befitting legacy of his great comedic talent. For me, Spike’s headstone is surpassed by a famous blues singer in…
Sometimes you do need to know the small details When I was in the military the common belief was that all leaders needed to keep an appropriate distance from those they were leading. The basic idea was that you should not get too get too familiar and blur the lines of command. This was thought…
Ethical behaviours will be essential The scale of the next financial downturn could surpass all that have gone before. No-one could have predicted the financial impact of Covid-19. Getting beyond this current situation will require tenacity and courage from everyone. Business leaders will have a significant part to play in our economic recovery and we…
I have a lot of conversations about diversity and inclusion. With experts, with professionals, with passionate advocates and, less often, with people who have little interest in the subject. Especially at the moment, where the whole new world of work is beginning to highlight some intriguing questions about what that future world might look like.…
You don’t have to wait for a drama to do something new If you have not seen the video clip ‘Evolution of Dance’ on Youtube by Judson Laipply (2006) I would like to watch it in a moment. When you are watching the video, I would like you to ask yourself two questions: How many…
There is little doubt that that the immediate future is going to challenge business leaders in every aspect of their practice. Getting the best out of everyone in any business is going to be essential if the business is going to thrive in a post Covid-19 world. Delivering excellence with and through people requires outstanding…
The chaos in the learning sector means that many learning providers are having to pivot from a delivery model focused on face to face learning interventions to one that relies heavily on virtual learning. Part-time and virtual learning environments are not new but was is difference is that the location of learners in a physical…
How do we start getting men more engaged in diversity and inclusion? So you had a brilliant international women’s day, huh? Maybe you got good attendance from across your whole team, men and women. Or maybe not. So how do you get more men to come along and have a serious conversation about gender equality?…
Telling the whole story is really important Storytelling is one of the greatest ways of making a lasting impact and sharing important learning. The best stories are truly memorable and therefore are passed on for generations. However, many stories are told incomplete and their impact diminished because a vital component of the story is missing,…
The lack of women working in IT, particularly software engineering, is well documented – just google “why women don’t work in technology”. There are a number of reasons that these articles put forward as to why and most of them have merit. It is certainly true that a number of them feel like they have…
Effective leadership and management unleashes ‘people potential’ When reviewing some major client projects, I had a light bulb moment. It struck me that, whenever I have the opportunity to involve clients’ leadership teams in training or development for their business, the return on investment (ROI) is invariably higher. This is due to a few simple…
I’d never heard of Isaac Asimov until a co-founder of 4iforum shared a MIT Technology Review about a 1959 Essay he wrote On Creativity In the article Asimov posits the idea of cerebration sessions not as a place where new ideas will be created but as somewhere where individuals can educate themselves “in facts and…
Is it really that difficult? I was sat in the coffee shop checking my watch for the third time. In strolls my client 25 minutes late. ‘Is that the time? Sorry I’m late, my eleven o’clock ran on a bit.’ he explained. Without further elaboration he pressed on with the meeting as if all was…
“Ignorance is not such a bad thing if one knows how to use it” – Peter Drucker I can hear the inward groan at the divisive propagation of conspiracy theories. Whether it’s about COVID, Mask Wearing, 5G, Bill Gates, Vaccines and Soros. “They are so ignorant.” It doesn’t matter which side you are on: the…
Why do they not understand me? The boss finishes his rousing strategy speech to warm applause and then asks the inevitable question, ‘Any questions?’ None are offered so he packs up his notes, satisfied and leaves the podium heading to the airport. He ponders in the taxi why he had worried about the speech. It…
Towards the end of our first 4i dynamic forum on Diversity and Inclusion, someone suggested that it was “maybe it’s time for organisations to raise or fold”. At the time, the question in hand was “what action could you take that would make the biggest difference in companies to support greater inclusion”? The conversation was…
Emerald Publishing commissioned a global report on inclusivity as part of our ever-evolving understanding of what inequality feels like and how we may start to tackle it, they commissioned a global report on inclusivity.
This is a small step in understanding the challenges people face and that we must face into in order to create a fairer, more inclusive society.
It really is ok, to admit you are not super-human. I have spent most of my working life either subjecting others to, or being subjected to, vastly varying levels of effective leadership. I have been fortunate to be part of a long research project dealing with this complex issue and am only now beginning to…
In a recent dialogue it was suggested that one way for managers to take more responsibility for inclusion in organisations was to abolish the HR function. I confess as a HR professional my internal response to such a notion was to leap to the defense of HR. Confession time, I am a Fellow of the…
This report provides practical pointers for action from leaders, people managers and individuals at all levels, to build inclusive cultures, circumvent unintentional gender bias and promote equality of opportunity. Author Jill Armstrong, Bye Fellow at Murray Edwards College and lead researcher on the Collaborating with Men programme. Download
This research report shows that despite widespread mentoring initiatives, women perceive they have less access than their male colleagues to key forms of social capital. Networking (often informally) Sponsorship This report goes on to present individual and organisational actions to tackle women’s more restricted access to informal networking and sponsorship. Author Jill Armstrong, Bye Fellow…
The return of character and integrity If you tap the word ‘Leadership’ into any of the internet search engines you will offered somewhere in the region of 2.5 billion pages of information for your perusal. By any standards that is a bewildering number of articles to make any sense of. The key question is:…
“If the truth were self-evident, eloquence would be unnecessary.” When the quotations offered by forum members come from Cicero and the insights come from years of senior engagement in industry, it’s clear to me that we’re in the company of people who think at a strategic level. A Peer Forum is a 4iforum session style…
The well-trodden career patherways of yesteryear have been decimated, and those that have survived are no longer predictably progressive. Today ambitious individuals must become masters of their own destiny and organisations need to support talented individuals by creating an environment where mobility, flexibility and adaptability become the new norm. The CoVid-19 pandemic and the economic…
This e-book provides a guide to becoming a commercially aware HR practitioner, supporting the HR practitioner to apply his or her HR knowledge pragmaticallyand sympathetically to the context within which his or her organisation is operating. Download
This e-book aims to support managers in taking the role of the coaching practitioner building upon the necessary understanding and coaching skill base required to enable managers to effectively engage with their direct reports in the workplace. Download
This e-book positions high-quality learning, teaching, and learners’ experience as a cultivation and blend of social interactivity alongside the sharing of knowledge, feedback, and experience. Download
This e-book challenges the narrow focus of traditional talent management processes, offering the Expanded Boundary-less Talent Model as a conceptual framework to capture the talent potential available to the organisation. It goes on to provide the practical steps managers can take to increase the utilisation of human potential within their organisation. Download
This e-book examines how OD can offer organisations tools and techniques to combat these challenges by harnessing the human power and creativity within the organisation to deliver sustainable organization performance. It offers a human approach to an industrial problem. Download
This e-book examines the theory and practice of organization design in conceiving an organisation or a team as a holistic system of people working together. Download
This e-book proposes that a well-designed management development program can contribute to the effectiveness of the management team’s ability to direct the activities of the organization and create an environment for sustainable performance to be achieved Download
This e-book reviews the roles and tasks of the organisation development (OD) practitioner as a change leader and the use of self in the change process. Download
This e-book explores key aspects of HR strategy development to enable HR professionals to focus on developing their strategic thinking and developing practical plans for implementing HR strategy in their workplace. Download
This e-book explores the practice of appreciative inquiry (AI) as a positive approach to change, which uses a collaborative and constructive inquiry process. Reviewing the AI change method in the form of the 4-D cycle—discovery, dream, design, and destiny phases—this e-book will examine the foundational principles of AI and the research that demonstrates impact on…
This e-book explores the idea of Human Resources (HR) from the perspective of a line manager and the influence that the practice of Human Resource Management has had on line management and the management of business in today’s environment. Download
This e-book explores the components of agile leadership and how a leader can develop their agility. Download
The current BLM protests are creating some interesting conflicts of perspectives that exist in our society. Whether you are for or against removing statues, the divisiveness in society makes it difficult for people to listen to different perspectives. But challenging our perspective is really important for our personal development, growth, and improving our understanding of…
A key element of being a disruptor for 4iforum is to be conscious and curious about the language that people use during dialogue. The language we use creates meaning, and a shared understanding within our culture, whether that is in our organisation or society at large. Within our lockdown bubble, there has been a push…
A great question was addressed in a recent 4i Thought Forum What “work practices” are needed to operate successfully in the new world? It’s a great question because it addresses so many elements of what we don’t know about the world of work right now. Whether it is examining the way we develop workable and…
There should be no false distinctions between the real world and the digital world, there are certainly none in the minds of learners; what is important to note is that technology is enabling an enhanced learning paradigm to emerge. Technology in learning is important, not only because it provides an efficient vehicle to support the…
