I presume that: Examining assumptions Good advice in one context may be poor advice in another. For example, the injunction to ‘never assume‘ may be sound advice when applied to making assumptions about people and their motivations. It is likely to be poor advice however, when applied to strategic planning and project management. Not that… Continue reading Working with assumptions – risky but necessary
Tag: strategy
How effective is your board? – Part 6
This post concludes the series on board effectiveness evaluation with a somewhat disparate collection of observations and reflections. Some of the ideas and charts included here might have been quite relevant in earlier parts of the series, but if they were not available at that time, their inclusion here acts as an amplification and reinforcement… Continue reading How effective is your board? – Part 6
A question of skillful questioning
Asking the right questions in the right way One of the shorthand ways of explaining what governance focuses on is to say it’s about ‘Doing the right things in the right way’. This post offers a reflection on one essential aspect of governance, that is used by every director at every meeting. Skillful questioning is… Continue reading A question of skillful questioning
Prompts and algorithms for people (not just AI)
There has been a flood of material published lately on the many varied uses that can be made of AI tools like ChatGPT, Chatsonic, YouChat, and MidJourney. The more helpful material, I find, focuses on the intelligent framing of prompts to engineer optimal responses from the AI tool. The notion of prompt ‘engineering’ is not… Continue reading Prompts and algorithms for people (not just AI)
Prioritisation of everything, everywhere, all the time
We prioritise every time we make a choice of any kind. We prioritise: Every one of the thousands of decisions we make every day reflects a (priority) choice between available options. Conscious and unconscious choices Prioritisation may be unconscious, in that we have previously attached importance or value to an activity and it has become… Continue reading Prioritisation of everything, everywhere, all the time
Regret: your improvement catalyst
In my work with nonprofit organisations, and with mentees across a wide range of commercial and nonprofit settings, I see regret quite often as a drag on innovation, productivity, and improvement. One of the key steps involved in moving my clients forward, therefore, is to help them shift from feeling somewhat stuck in regret, to… Continue reading Regret: your improvement catalyst
How long is your governance ‘year’?
Need for a key dates calendar Some of the smaller associations and community groups I have worked with have no staff, so volunteer directors and committee members are charged with doing all the work involved in running the organisation. I recently assisted one such group with the establishment of a Governance Committee, and part of… Continue reading How long is your governance ‘year’?
Identifying with purpose
When working with mentees, one of the key things I listen for is any statement beginning “I am …”. Such statements are a good indicator of how the mentee defines their personal identity. “I am …” statements often arise when discussing a mentee’s goals. I might first ask them to clarify their goals, and perhaps… Continue reading Identifying with purpose
Double-edged swords and paradoxical choices
‘Either/or’ choices Most board deliberations and policy analyses are conducted using an ‘either/or’ approach. A set of (usually three or four) options is devised, from which one is to be favoured over others. You can have the answer in one of the red, blue, or green boxes – but you can’t have two or more… Continue reading Double-edged swords and paradoxical choices
The Art of the Doable: Feasible, Pragmatic, and Capable
When making decisions about new projects or initiatives, many considerations are involved. Where the project or initiative is strategically significant, say due to the scale of resources required to deliver it, questions of feasibility will be involved. Decisions described as ‘pragmatic’ may, on the one hand, be sensible in the circumstances. Alternatively, in the pejorative… Continue reading The Art of the Doable: Feasible, Pragmatic, and Capable