Why don’t we….
Binge watching means watching multiple programs, usually TV or a streaming service, in rapid succession. Something many might do if you are home sick, staying indoors in the winter or more recently when in lockdown as a result of COVID-19. Find the right show and you can whittle away hours of time in the story arc of the various characters. When it comes to professional development, we do not tend to do a lot of binge watching or learning, other than the traditional two- or three-day style conference with multiple keynote speakers and breakout rooms. However, things could change as …
Why don’t we plan more often??
Why is it that we spend more time planning a holiday than planning how we will write a letter or produce a spreadsheet that we, along with others, will rely on for information and decision-making? Many people will create an Excel spreadsheet, enter data and pass it on to someone else. The next person will enter some data in or make changes. Before you know it, mistakes have happened, formulas are incorrect and as a result data is wrong. The common reaction is finger-pointing. But the reality is that in our busy world no one has the time to go …
Hunger for Connection
On a Monday morning a few months ago (pre COVID-10) whilst sitting in a coffee shop writing, a man came in to get a coffee. What he said made me lift my head up from my writing. He said today he was working from home and whilst he had a coffee machine at home, he said he came in for a ‘coffee and a chat’. Business today is more ‘connected’ than ever. We can work from home, on an airplane, almost anywhere if we have an internet connection! Whilst technology provides the ability to create documentation, analyse information and process …
Reputation and productivity
The choices organisations make to manage their business and human capital in these uncertain times will not only impact on their productivity now but will have an even bigger impact on the future of their business in general. Whilst human nature is to go into protection mode in crisis and seek security, now is not the time for lots of knee-jerk reactions and decisions. The decisions organizations make, and the interpretation of those decisions by staff are going to have far-reaching consequences. The need to be careful, considered and communicate effectively to staff to ensure support and commitment both now, …
Unusual Times
We are in unusual times at the moment globally. A number of my clients are doing things differently in response to the changes and cancellations of face to face conferences and training. Rather than risking bringing staff together for face to face training, many are choosing virtual presentations. We’re experiencing increased demand for our virtual training offering. These types of solutions are a great way of meeting client needs, especially when they are geographically spread out. Limited access to the recording encourages teams to revisit the presentation and the training “lasts” longer than the live event, resulting in a greater …
Too much to do, too little time??
A recent Sydney Morning Herald article explored research that ”… Australian’s now do an average of 4.6 hours of unpaid work every week, adding up to more than six weeks over the course of a year.” Whilst “getting back” the average 4.6 hours each week may or may not be realistic in your world, getting back some time is better than nothing! When working with organisations and their teams, they get excited when they see a technology tool or feature that fast tracks a regular task. Their mind starts considering how this will impact their day to day and metaphorical …
3 Tips for teams working from home
One of the challenges facing organisations who have staff working from home is to keep them feeling engaged and connected rather than distracted and isolated. With no shortage of technology, we now need to leverage it to help guide and support our teams working from home in this time of uncertainty. What can we do? Utilise this down time to upskill how your team use everyday (Microsoft Office) software and encourage collaboration. Leverage existing technology to create connection and community in uncertain times Create a framework for your team to work collaboratively to solve their everyday problems Donna Hanson works …
The Power of Internal Knowledge
After completing an in-house workshop for a client, I conducted a number of one on one and small group trouble shooting sessions. In one session, a manager and his two team members came along with a spreadsheet they were working on. Currently, to calculate the priority of various works based on dates and a grading criterion, they did manual calculations. Although they knew there must be a more efficient way, they were hamstrung by lack of time and lack of availability to sit down together and consider and explore ideas. Having a metaphorical “line in the sand” in the form …