Greed is good… for culture change
Those of you familiar with our work will know that we are unashamed behaviourists: if you want people to change, change the rewards and the measurements! In the great debate about gender and financial performance, we already know that executive positions are more...
Women – confident or arrogant? It’s a choice
My heart sank recently when working with a group of young women. They were fantastic, talented, vibrant but yet again talking about how low their confidence was especially when it came to putting themselves and their ideas forward. Time and again women talk of this...
The four letter F word hiding behind every investor presentation
Investor Presentations – IPOs, Placements or PE Rounds – are both fascinating and depressing. Fascinating because the search for a better mousetrap never stops: in the last quarter, AIM has admitted companies ranging from online dating to animal genetics to pharma...
Building the best M&A management team: Survival of the Clearest
More than 60 per cent of European mergers still fail to produce value. A key reason is the inability to select and retain a high-quality management team. CEOs and boards look after themselves, but it is in the one or two levels below that where value is gained or...
Averil special guest speaker at M&C Saatchi’s : ‘IPA Women of Tomorrow 2016’ Campaign launch dinner
M&C Saatchi were working with the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) on an initiative that aims to identify and champion the next generation of female leaders in the advertising industry. ‘Women of Tomorrow’ is an annual scheme that recognises and...
15 pieces of cake? Averil debates happiness on Radio Five Live…
Averil on Radio 5 Live… Do we live on a ‘happiness scale’? Averil was recently a guest on Radio 5 Live, debating on happiness and well-being. With her Leadership hat on, she makes the point that people who are fortunate enough to be able to play to...
The end of hierarchy? Circles in the sky…
The way we work is changing, yet our organisations remain the same – for now. If you have followed our recent research or blog you will have noticed two things: The interests of Gen Y and women are converging: both ask us to rethink the nature of work. For example to...
Women leaving organisations : bathtubs & cupcakes…
“A tap takes 20 minutes to fill an empty bathtub. The drain takes 30 minutes to empty the tub when it is full. If both the tap and the drain are opened at the same time, how long will it take to fill the empty tub?” Women are still talked about as an oddity...
Neuroscience and Leadership: it’s all about behaviours, not pretty pictures
Modern Neuroscience rocks. It is described as the latest panacea in explaining ‘why we do what we do’. Conferences and books are adorned with colour scans of brains lighting up in real time when associated with certain emotions. All very entertaining, but also in...
In praise of imperfection
In the past week, every football manager involved in the World Cup has announced his squad. A mix of conservatism and daring. The story that gathered most headlines was that of the French coach Didier Deschamps omitting two stars from the line-up. Quite a departure...