Entries with tag leadership .

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Blair McPherson
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12 Sep 2019 - 15:21

null Character is Destiny discuss

A leader’s character flaws/ weaknesses will eventually lead to their downfall. Well that’s the way Shakespeare saw it (Lear,Macbeth, Othello ) . As  Cassius says in Julius Caesar, “The fault dear Brutus lies in ourselves not in our stars”. Arrogance, over riding ambition, lack of wisdom, the absence of a moral compass, an inability to recognise injustice, envy and jealousy don’t seem... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
10 Sep 2019 - 20:01

null Are you a manager or a player ?

 “Manager “ in this case does not refer to the responsibility for big  budgets or large staff groups but the way the individual just about gets by -manages- despite the difficulties. As opposed to a “player “ who is someone significant, who thrives on the challenges, influences the way the game is played and so must be treated seriously.  Blair Mcpherson former Director ,author and... See more
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Blair McPherson
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30 Mar 2019 - 14:04

null Backwards to a Glorious Future

     Where change has failed, let there be continuity. This is how one national news paper described the significance of a new person in charge in Manchester. That is Manchester United Football club but it could have been a reference to new leadership in any one of a number of Local Authorities after years of churn and unconvincing change. Instead of retuning to the attaching football... See more
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Blair McPherson
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25 Mar 2019 - 13:43

null Sometimes the Leader is to Blame

As a senior manager I always signed up to the view that when something goes wrong we should resist the temptation to find out who was to blame. It’s not just that a blame culture makes people afraid to make decisions,  inhibits innovation and risk taking it’s unfair because when something goes wrong there are usually a range of reasons why. But sometimes the leader is to blame.... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
04 Feb 2019 - 12:35

null The Plan

How long do you stick with a plan that isn’t working? At what point should you bend to the pressure to change the way you do things? How long is long enough to prove your way will deliver?  Great leaders have the happy knack of knowing when to stubbornly persist and when to listen to the critics, change direction and tactics.  Having a good plan is not enough. Do the team... See more
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Blair McPherson
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25 Jan 2019 - 11:50

null Praise in public criticise in private 

That’s the received wisdom yet recently two very successful and high profile managers have publicly criticised their staff one going as far as to single out individuals. Was this a calculated man management strategy or a momentary lapse, a result of frustration, disappointment and the pressure to deliver? In one case it seemed like a conscious decision because it was repeated. In the second... See more
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Blair McPherson
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24 Jan 2019 - 12:48

null Humility

Amongst the many qualities associated with being a great manager, a leader, humility is not the one that comes to mind first. And yet great leaders are separated from simply successful leaders by this very quality. Humility provides the ability to learn from your failures and all leaders have their failures.  To be a successful manager you must have self belief. Leaders are decisive and... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
19 Dec 2018 - 17:20

null Even the special one can get the sack

It’s not such a disaster and certainly not a disgraced to get the sack. Provided it wasn’t for accessing porn on your work lap top or making a racists joke at the office Christmas do.  It’s a myth that being forced out of one authority you won’t be welcome in another. In my view if you have never been asked to leave you probably haven’t been trying hard enough. The reasons they wanted you... See more
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Blair McPherson
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25 Nov 2018 - 11:25

null The Dark Arts 

So you think leadership is about vision, taking responsibility and inspiring others. Leadership is about holding on to power.  We talk a lot about leadership qualities but we tend to skip over the darker skills used by leaders to defeat challengers. I’m referring to isolating, undermining and intimidating.  Getting people on your side in order to isolate any challenger. Emphasising... See more
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Blair McPherson
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12 Nov 2018 - 18:35

null Intmidation

David Attenborough appears to be demonstrating that apes have much in common when it comes to leadership. Perhaps it’s not so surprising that chimpanzees and naked apes should take the same approach to gaining and retaining power. May be you find it reassuring to learn that it’s not just humans who resort to bulling, scheming and ganging up to get to the top of the hierarchy. Personally I found... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
26 Oct 2018 - 13:00

null Lo Ego Leadership

These days to succeed an organisation must promote team work and embrace collaboration there is simply no room room for big egos or there shouldn’t be.  Lo ego leadership is not generally what you expect from a chief executive or chair of the board. Leaders tend to think they are important and their contribution is more valuable than that of others. This can and does get in the way.... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
23 Oct 2018 - 17:55

null Making decisions is the easy part 

You pull a lever and nothing happens. Tony Blair said this about his period in office but I think he was quoting President Bill Clinton. The point being that despite occupying very powerful positions both were frustrated by the long time delay between making a decision and seeing some action and on occasions pulling the levers of government and seeing no action. Cabinet members and Senior... See more
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Blair McPherson
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23 Sep 2018 - 13:09

null Are leaders born or made?

Can any one become a leader?  Can leadership skills be leant?  Are some people just naturally followers? Is it true that in any group a leader will emerge? Can followers become leaders and can leaders follow?  Can you have too many would be leaders? 
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
14 Aug 2018 - 13:44

null When leaders refuse to lead

By which I mean paralysed by indecision, unwilling to make an unpopular decision, reacting rather than anticipating, being tactical but not strategic, investing only in holding on to power rather than using power to progress the vision, having no vision, constantly changing direction to follow the line of least resistance, seeing potential  threats everywhere therefore trusting no one and... See more
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Blair McPherson
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20 Aug 2018 - 12:51

null Can you climb the mountain again and again?

In football they call it the difficult third year. Despite your success in the first two years you get the sack in the third year. It’s as if everyone had given all they had and now you can’t get any more from them. You weren’t able  to build on your success.  I have heard the same speech from a team manager to their front line staff and from a chief executive to there senior... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
17 May 2018 - 15:10

null The Management Delusion 

Every baffled new senior manager goes searching for answers in management/leadership books- but what these authors / management gurus really offer is the reassuring fantasy that there is a formula for success. When I took up my first senior management post I was under no illusion that I knew what I was doing. My progress up to this point has been based on my skill and experience as a... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
04 May 2018 - 11:11

null “Managers take too much credit when things go well and too much blame when they don’t.“ Brian Clough. 

  The best place to read about leadership and management is not the business section but the sports pages. If you want to understand about performance, if you want to see how big data can be used, if you want to know what motivates teams, if you want see how an expert manages a hostile  media and a critical  public, if you want insights into the relationship between a manager... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
01 May 2018 - 10:25

null I’d be a foolish manager if I didn’t listen to my team

Things are not going well. Moral is at rock bottom. Performance against a number of key indicators has drawn criticism from all quarters. We are at the wrong end of the league table and our prospects for improvement are described as, “poor”. Some are questioning the strategy I put in place, others complain of budget pressures and cuts that have limited our options. There is a view that we... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
09 Apr 2018 - 08:18

null To the mananager who says I don’t need to explain

To the manager who says I don’t need to explain my decisions . I say you do. When things don’t work out, targets are missed and decisions are questioned the manager needs to respond. Simply saying it’s my job to make the decisions and I take full responsibility is not enough.  Managers need to communicate their thinking not just their decisions. The team is more likely to accept the need... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
05 Apr 2018 - 13:56

null Confrontational Leadership 

Managers don’t have favourites. Managers don’t castigate individual team members in public. Managers don’t pointedly slight an individual in front of their colleagues. According to received wisdom managers should praise in public and criticise  in private. Those who don’t follow this rule are considered either poor people managers or a bully. And yet there are some well known highly... See more
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Showing 41 to 60 of 251 entries.