November 13, 2017
‘We are living in a climate where to be accused is now enough to be deemed guilty’. In one sentence Michael Colgan erases all pretence of ‘apology’ to those he has ‘hurt’. It may not be worth the paper it was written on but, we were all played in waiting…
October 1, 2017
Meetings are an essential part of organisational life, yet research suggests that just 40% of CEOs’ meetings achieve their objectives. Try the following tips for a more successful outcome next time. The objective: Clarify the purpose of the meeting. Is it decision-making? Information sharing? Brainstorming? Planning? You should be…
September 12, 2017
We tend to think of organisations as rational places. Places in which decisions are made on the basis of external, observable data. Of course, they are partly that. But organisations are also emotional, chaotic, political and anxiety provoking places: they are both emotional and emotion generating. We rarely return…
September 4, 2017
Have you ever wondered why hiring the wrong consultant might often be the right idea? It sounds like a contradiction; yet underlines how organizations may begin to recognize what individual members suspect without any proof besides gut intuition. How do you to manage the mounting pressure to deliver when all…
August 30, 2017
The film Glengarry Glen Ross depicts two days in the life of four salesmen in a real estate office in North America. A ‘trainer’ (Blake) played by Alec Baldwin is sent by the owners to motivate them to increase sales. Blake unleashes a torrent of abuse, yells and screams profanities…
August 24, 2016
This short video from my UCD colleague Professor Niamh Brennan discusses culture and psychology in the board room. A useful primer for anyone sitting (or considering sitting) on boards.
May 14, 2011
Well perhaps not quite..but that’s the title of an interview with me in the Australian Financial Review. Fiona Smith and I talked about emotion at work and how rigidly enforced rules contribute to what’s acceptable and not express emotionally in organisations. The interview was conducted in advance of my trip…
October 1, 2008
This TED talk from Technorati’s Peter Hirshberg on how the relationship between TV and the Web has evolved is fascinating. There’s a lovely piece at the beginning where he interviews a group of ‘tweenies’ about which is more important TV or the web…you can probably guess the answer…There’s also interesting…
June 13, 2008
I’ll be appearing on the Ryan Tubridy show on RTE Radio 1 next Monday morning talking to Ryan about relationships at work – personal and social ones; how we manage them and don’t; the ‘rules’ and boundaries etc. I’ll post some of my thoughts here and a link to the…
May 17, 2008
How to remain visible in the face of death? Bringing Nuala O’Faolain on her final wish to see Berlin before she died was a sad and memorable journey, but also one of fun and optimism. For the writer whose memoir in German translation was entitled Just don’t become invisible, this…
