In any organisation, a certain amount of staff turnover is healthy. People move on, lives change, ambitions shift - it’s normal. But when you start losing your best people, especially to competitors, the impact is felt quickly and deeply. Energy drops, knowledge...
If you lead an informal group, a leadership team, or a growing business, there’s still a good chance you understand your numbers far better than you understand what’s really happening between your people. Not the organisation chart, not the financials, but the messy...
We all know how hard many of us are pushing. Revenue targets; margin pressure; cost control; cash flow: it can feel as if anything that isn’t directly linked to the numbers is a luxury. It often means conversations about culture, values and behaviour quietly slide...
Most business owners know they have a culture, but that’s where the clarity ends. It’s not unusual to hear things like, “We’ve got a good culture here,” or “People get on,” or “We don’t have politics.” But when you press for details, it turns out culture is something...
How old is your organisation? I don't mean ‘how long has it been in existence’, but ‘how old does it act?’ Strange question, maybe, but think about it and you will recognise the signs. Does it lurch from excitement and joy to upset and crisis? Is it very high...
I regularly meet SME leaders who are incredibly proud of their company culture. And often rightly so. They’ve built something that “feels different” - collaborative, high-performing, values-led, human. But when I ask how that culture was created, the answer is usually...
Have you ever sat in a meeting where everyone nods along, agrees what should be done - and then nothing actually happens? You’re not alone. Many businesses are full of ‘decisions’ that never turn into action. The uncomfortable truth is that decisions are worthless if...
You may resist thinking of your business as a 'brand' - and rightly so. The term feels too shallow, too marketing-focused, for something as substantial as the organisation you're building. But it deserves your attention: every organisation develops a personality,...
For many SME founders, succession planning is a pressing challenge. Whether retirement is on the horizon or you’re simply looking for a way to secure the long-term future of your business, employee ownership (EO) is an increasingly popular option. But is it right for...
Most founders I meet want their business to “feel like a good place to work.” But what that actually means changes dramatically as your business moves from the early days to something bigger, more complex, and – let’s be honest – sometimes a bit messier. In my work...
Find out how to create and manage a brilliant culture that underpins a truly successful growing business.
Find out how to create and manage a brilliant culture that underpins a truly successful growing business.