Straight Talking From Andrew Leigh of Maynard Leigh Associates

Approximate reading time: 2.6 mins

“The next big evolution for HR is equipping itself to become an insight-driven function...”  

This latest observation from the CIPD and its current thinking will form a roundtable discussion in September where the likely focus will be on the convergence between Organisational Development and HR.

Interesting though this will doubtless be, an even more challenging issue is the extent to which insight can actually be developed.  For many people, it can seem a mystical concept. Where does it come from, how do you encourage it, what gets in the way of acquiring it?

Approximate reading time: 2 minutes

How do you make sense of the vast outpourings in recent years on talent management? One of the most salutary experiences of writing a book on talent management has been trying to make sense of the seemingly endless reports, surveys, white papers, blogs and interactive tools devoted to the ever expanding facets of talent management.

I thought I had it cracked, until just the other day some kind person drew my attention to a 2009 report by Booz & Co. How on earth could I have missed it? Up till then I was sure I had nailed down the main thought leaders’ contributions, only to find that the more I dug the deeper in the mire I sank.

Just recently a strange e-mail invitation came my way. “Charisma is the secret of engagement” claimed the invite from Capita, to a forthcoming workshop on the subject of charisma.

Now apart from the fact that I have written a book on charisma which has been translated into 15 languages, I could see no obvious reason to attend this workshop. But I could see one major reason not to attend: charisma is NOT the secret of engagement!

Approximate reading time: 2.8 mins

“I play tennis for a living, even though I hate tennis, hate it with a dark and secret passion, and always have.” Andre Agassi’s belated and shocking admission explodes the myth that peak performers only achieve their results because they love what they do.

 Approximate reading time: 2 minutes

'How is your ethical compass?' is always worth asking in business.  The trouble is, ethics seems such a moveable feast that some people really are bereft of a compass that tells them when they are going off course.

Recently the Guardian described UK PR firms as fairly dodgy enterprises, earning large sums from burnishing the image of countries and governments that amount to “reputation laundering.”

What is interesting is the response from Neil Gibbons editor of Communicate magazine, which in this context must be regarded as akin to a spokesman for the PR industry. In the Guardian of 6th August he writes a hurt response to the feature but ends up showing just what happens when people lose their integrity compass.