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The dangerous affliction known as ITS
As you can probably tell from the date of my previous post, I’ve been rather busy of late. In the last six to eight weeks Gatehouse has won a pile of work and my blogging has undoubtedly paid the price. I know this is a cardinal sin for anyone who wants to retain an online audience but, unfort…
Absence, stress & depression in the workplace – line managers may hold the key
A recent study from NICE, the National Institute of Health & Clinical Excellence, caught my eye. Reported on the Management Today website, it suggests that poor line management is responsible for rising levels of stress in the workplace. NICE reckons the total cost to the UK economy …
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CommsFlashMob – what on earth is it?!
It all started with an innocent throw-away comment a few weeks back… Anyone interested in social media and communications will know just how big Wikipedia is these days – a staggering 3 million entries and the seventh most popular website globally. But despite its huge reach and considerable…
MacLeod Review provides a timely reminder of the importance of employee engagement
Published today (16 July 2009), the MacLeod Review of employee engagement has recommended government support and more cooperation by UK businesses both large and small, to make sure the relationship between employees and employers is at the centre of successful business plans. Led by David Mac…
Random thoughts on… Audience
Inspired by the popularity of the new Gatehouse A to Z of Internal Communication – a slightly tongue-in-cheek look at the world of employee communication created by my colleague and consultancy co-founder Simon Wright – I thought I’d begin an occasional series of blog posts with my own, al…
Singing the praises of corporate choirs
A few years ago Ernst & Young, the big 4 accountancy firm I used to work for, launched a corporate choir in London. It went down a storm as I remember, with employees signing up in droves to sing together in sweet harmony. Their occasional performances were also extremely popular with fellow emp…
Edelman Barometer highlights global crisis of trust
The global PR agency Edelman has just released the findings of its 2009 Trust Barometer, which make very interesting reading. Here’s the Executive Summary. The global study, now in its tenth year, found that nearly two in three informed publics—62% of 25-to-64-year-olds surveyed in 20 countr…
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Three little words…
War On Terror. Handy catchphrase, strong metaphor, powerful political sound bite or something a little more sinister? It’s been interesting to watch the debate about these three little words – what is essentially a campaign slogan – re-emerge after UK Foreign Secretary David Miliba…
Are we delivering internal spam?
An interesting snippet caught my eye in Metro yesterday, though it may well have been an April Fool joke. The story was about a cyber experiement called "Super Spam Me" which will see 50 guinea pigs respond to all those dodgy spam emails to see whether they deliver on their promise. Appare…
Messages and music – evil holding tunes
Although slightly scared, I had to laugh. I phoned up a potential client today and, while I was being put through to my contact, was put on hold by the operator. The hold music kicked in. Nothing unusual there. Except the music. When you’re held on the telephone you usually hear dull but gener…
Are we getting too obsessed with strategy?
Sue Dewhurst has raised an interesting point over at the Black Belt Dojo, which I have just responded to. I won’t try to replicate everything here, but you might want to head over there and add a comment or two… It’s about that old chestnut of strategy versus tactics. Sue is passio…
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Hilary moment shows power of emotion
If you haven’t already read it, make sure you check out Mark Ragan’s excellent piece on the the great Hilary Clinton comeback and the lessons it provides for communicators. As well as demonstrating the enormous power the social media/video sharing combo now yields in the world of p…
What message does your festive bash send to employees?
Firstly, apologies for my radio silence over the last few weeks – we’ve been so busy at Gatehouse that I’ve really struggled to find time to blog. December is an odd month isn’t it? There’s always something rather frantic about it – it’s that last minute rush to complete projects (or s…
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A lesson in information security
Today’s highly embarrassing announcement by the chancellor, Alistair Darling, that HMRC has lost two discs containing the personal details of 25 million individuals provides a stark reminder of the need for organizations to educate their employees on information security. It appears that the b…
Financial education – part of our remit?
This morning I received an interesting press release from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). Headed "Stockmarket turbulence highlights the need for employer provided financial education", it was a timely reminder of the need for us to educate employees about the f…
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New McKinsey study on Web2.0
Those insightful folk at McKinsey have just published a new study looking at current and future use of Web 2.0 technologies. You’ll need to register to read the article (it’s free) but it’s well worth a read as it provides a good snapshot of the phenomenon and shows how tools like …
Don’t forget to check out the Talking IC archive
I’m away on holiday next week for some long overdue ‘down time’ – so apologies in advance for not responding immediately to any comments left here. As I was packing last night it struck me that I’ve now been blogging for over a year. It’s not long in the grand sch…
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IT, flexible working and employee engagement
There was something on Radio 4 this morning about today being national work from home day, or something like that. It was just after 0530am and I had just left home in the Midlands for another very long commute to York. That made me smile. I had no real reason to be so far from home today, other tha…
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Silence is not golden
Following a rather manic period in both my personal and professional life, it’s just dawned on me that I haven’t posted to this blog for almost a month now. That’s absolutely outrageous! As a social media evangelist, I’m truly ashamed of myself . Having committed one of the cardinal sins of …
You can call me Sir if you want to…
I don’t normally blow my own trumpet, but I thought I’d make an exception today. Alongside my good pal Liam FitzPatrick at Competent Communicators, I’ve just been awarded Fellowship of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations. And not a grey hair in sight (well, not many). There…
The tears of a clown
It looks like the next big thing in internal comms is, wait for it… happiness. A few weeks ago my mate at ICB Consulting, Howard Krais, sent me an interesting link to a blog/website called ‘The Chief Happiness Officer’. It’s based on a book called "Happy Hour is 9 …
A workplace revolution?
This week saw a number of leading businesses and organizations, including the CBI and TUC, join forces to encourage smarter working practices in the UK. The initiative, devised by Work Wise UK, is intended to increase the take-up of practices like flexible working, working from home, mobile an…
Blame it on the Boogie
Happy new year! My first post of 2007 picks up on a rather amusing story about the bizarre recruitment techniques of a well known DIY store here in the UK. According to news reports, wannabe van drivers for B&Q’s Norwich store were asked if they wanted to dance and pull silly faces before …
The power of ceremony
Ceremony. Ritual. Tradition. Three very powerful words. I experienced them all this week when I, and a few hundred others, graduated (check me out at 41.32!) from the University of Manchester Business School. Dressed in the usual graduation attire – cap, gown and hood – I rea…
We just don’t talk anymore
The CIPD have just issued another depressing survey on the state of communication in UK businesses. Comparing it to a marriage breakdown, they say that the relationship between employers and employees in many British workplaces is characterised by poor communication and low levels of trust. Am…
‘Crackberry’ and email addiction
This is going to be my week for moaning about the onward march of technology. Following my rants earlier in the week about Blackberry abuse, I stumbled upon a fascinating article from Anna and the team at The Source. It cites some research undertaken by Kings College, London, which suggests that e-m…
The devil’s gadget
Everywhere I go these days I see Blackberry-touting executives. No self-respecting corporate player can be seen without one. Whether in the office or down at Starbucks, they have to have them on show – slapped on the table so everyone can see just how important and powerful they are. I’m no Ludd…
Rooftop ramblings
I was at the Melcrum bash in London last night. It was a gorgeous evening in the capital and perfect timing for a rooftop BBQ (the Courthouse Hotel on Great Marlborough Street is a real gem). There were around 100 communication types there, a mix of senior in-house operators, fellow consultants and …
I want your sax
I read an interesting little piece in Management Today recently. It was all about the similarities between business and jazz. You can read it here. It’s not a new idea, but it’s one I really like. I remember the academic Mary Jo Hatch talking about jazz and branding in a similar way at t…
Authenticity – getting behind the buzzword
There’s a lot of talk these days about authenticity. Alongside transparency, engagement and a dozen other consulting favourites, it’s seeping into the lexicon of internal communicators. But I can’t help thinking that authenticity, which for me basically means being true to yourself and not bul…
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Asda strike
What’s happening at Asda? Distribution staff in 20 depots have just voted 3 to 1 in favour of strike action. Union GMB says it’s due to unpaid bonuses and the introduction of new technology that will "harm staff". Asda claim just 1.5% of staff voted. This issue has been b…
First post
This is my very first post. Until today I was a blogging virgin. But no longer… There’s so much talk about blogging in communication circles these days. The news of Robert Scoble’s (blog supremo) decision to quit Microsoft today has created a global media storm. This shows just how…