The opening lines of this 8 minute read drew me in immediately…
“Allow yourself to think differently about leadership for a moment, and imagine that the issue is not what you know but instead how you know.”
Posted by Cranfield School of Management, they quicky define the art of contemplation as…
“As a leader, it is impossible to make sense of intellectual, emotional and visceral intelligence connections without resorting to the ‘inward gaze’ of contemplation.”
The article introduces the concepts of making meaning
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Provoking start to this podcast where Dr David Rock questions the need to shift (post pandemic) from Psychological Safety to a greater focus on performance and accountability.
Whist I’ve done a load of work on accountability I was reminded that there are stigmas attached to the word (e.g. you need to be held accountable for that), as well the empowering intentions.
But of course this isn’t a question of either or, it’s 2 dimensional…
#enterpriseleadership
Whilst keeping a focus on the world at work it’s also important to consider wider references in society. One word that often shoves me in this direction is Culture. Pausing on strategy, purpose, values and behaviours etc for now. This article from The Honest Broker stopped me in my tracks. The reveal and moral of the story is well worth it, so not too many spoilers here.
The piece (The State of the Culture, 2024) provides a
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In a previous posting I referenced this podcast featuring Lucy Park, co author, The Activist Leader. Well the podcast did its job as I quickly consumed the book! As I was keen to find out more about purpose, culture, societal change and systems thinking etc.
Let’s start with this quote…
“It’s clear that the days of 2D leadership are gone: today’s companies need multidimensional leaders, capable of juggling demands from multiple stakeholders, taking on board constantly evolving environmental and social
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We are all under the demands of technological change. But what kinds of questions could leaders should ask when facing into these changes and AI in particular? Well with 2 minutes to spare that’s the question that this podcast addresses…
Daron Acemoglu in conversation with Matthew Taylor describes 2 different ways in which leaders can approach their workforces and organisations.
1) Don’t think of labour as a cost, something which can be reduced.
2) Instead amplify and enrich their
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Another great pod from Matthew Taylor (from the Forward Institute) who speaks to Lucy Parker, the co-author of ‘The Activist Leader’. A book which I’ll now have to read, provoking as the title might be. Especially given the hosts (welcomed) cynicism towards leadership/business books. Which just strengthens his own endorsement of this work.
Systems thinking and (major) societal change seem to be at the heart of the conversation. Whilst case studies of organisations can be a bit risky a quick
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I’ve just started Amy Edmondson’s latest book – Right Kind of Wrong: The Science of Failing Well. She’s arguably the go to expert on Psychological Safety.
I am liking the way she starts the book with definitions of failure and errors.
Failure is an outcome that deviates from desired results. E.g. failing to win a hoped for gold medal or over cooking dinner.
Whereas errors (or mistakes) are unintended deviations from pre-specified standards (such as procedures,
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In my first posting (last week) Cashman left us asking and answering Four Big Enterprise Questions. Circling through – purpose, vision, strategy & talent…
Purpose: The Big Why Question: Why Is It So Important That We Exist?
Vision: The Big What Question: If We Lived Our Purpose, What Can We Become?
Strategy: The Big How Question: How Can We Get There?
Talent: The Big Who Question: Who Will Get Us There?
Cashman, K. (2019). Enterprise Leadership: Five big resolutions
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“One of the toughest development challenges is to elevate a critical mass of talent from executive management to true enterprise leadership”. As well as citing the differences between executive and enterprise leadership, this short articles also describes the differences between controlling and creating. And of course rather than just thinking and behaving downwards, enterprise leaders must also make the critical and complex shift across – all functions, all geographies, all divisions, all teams and all customer groups.
Cashman presents
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This 1 hour webinar deals with one of the hottest (still) leadership topics – Psychological Safety. Furthermore it features 2 of the heaviest hitters on the subject – Dr. Amy Edmondson and Dr. David Rock. There were some useful links to threats, the SCARF model and hybrid working. As well as hearing more about the collaboration between the 2 of them.
It was a shame that Enterprise Leadership wasn’t specifically mentioned, so view this as a fairly
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