Blog

Musings on product management and organisational design.

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    Over the last few years, I've been watching the change at Liverpool Football Club with interest. It's not so much the success that intrigues me but more the change in culture that began with the arrival of manager Jurgen Klopp. Over the weekend, I listened to a great analysis of Klopp's leadership on the podcast Eat, Sleep, Work, Repeat. After listening to the show I think there are two critical elements that have supported change at Liverpool and I want to share these with you today.
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    Between September 20 and 27, a record 7.6 million people took to the streets and went on strike for climate action. It was the most significant climate mobilisation in history involving 186 countries, 73 trade unions and 3024 businesses.
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    In a world where we are always asking ourselves "what's next?" I think it can be equally, if not more, important to look back and ask, "how did that go?". At work, we run retrospective sessions regularly with our teams to allow us to reflect on the previous week. We share what went well and how we could improve. I find this such a powerful practice, but it's only recently I've begun to embrace retrospectives more personally.
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    BitMate was a web application that helped developers start new projects faster. Was, is the keyword in this sentence. I founded BitMate in August 2016, but nine months later, I was closing it down. Here are the mistakes I made and the lessons I learned through my experience as a founder. If you are thinking about starting a company or at the beginning of your journey, I hope this post helps you avoid making the same mistakes I did.
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    Productivity is a measure of output over time. All other things being equal, the more you produce per hour, the more productive you are. There are lots of ways to increase productivity, but I believe all increases in productivity fall into one of these five stages.
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    Today I was told a great consulting proposal should be made up of 70% questions and 30% answers. While it's a rough guide, it's surprising. Writing a proposal is a response to a set of problems you have been tasked with solving, yet this suggests questions are equally, if not more, valuable than answers.
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    When I first started kayaking seriously, I would rarely finish a session without having sore hands. The friction between my hands and the paddle would build up until it rubbed the skin away, leaving painful sores. Other kayakers would try different techniques to prevent this, but I found the only thing that worked was to let my hands harden naturally.
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    The world is changing at a faster and faster rate. It’s not our perception; it’s a genuine phenomenon that is explained by the networking principles that form the basis of our social systems.
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    Workplaces have traditionally encouraged people to show up with their "professional" self and to check all other parts of themselves at the door. This strange personality separation can lead us to some pretty bizarre behaviours.