Why Do Meetings Go in Circles — Even with the Best Intentions?
Most meetings don’t start badly: People show up on time, there is an agenda, everyone wants to move something forward. And yet, an hour later, there’s a strange feeling in the room: We talked a lot — but did we actually decide anything? Sometimes we leave with a list of actions. Sometimes with more questions. Sometimes with quiet frustration. And very often, what happened is surprisingly simple: We mixed up the problem , the options , and the solution . When everything happen
3 min read
Why Is It So Hard to Disconnect from Work Without Fear of Judgement?
Recently, during an employee satisfaction survey with a client, one result stopped me in my tracks. Only 60% of employees felt they could disconnect from work without fear of judgment during weekends or outside working hours. At first glance, this felt puzzling. Because when we looked closer, many of the right things were already in place: no emails expected over weekends, no last-minute after-hours requests with “tomorrow” deadlines, no messaging tools used outside working
4 min read
Why Middle Managers Matter Most in Times of Change
When change arrives in an organization, the visible shifts tend to take centre stage: new processes, new structures, new systems. What is less visible — and often far more decisive — is what happens to people . Change destabilises. Even when it is necessary, well-intended, or exciting on paper, it disrupts routines, identities, and informal certainties. And when that happens, people do not turn first to strategy decks, project plans, or leadership statements. They turn to tho
4 min read
Should Transformations Be Delivered For Organisations — or Built With Them?
In almost every large transformation I have been close to, a familiar question appears sooner or later: “Should we bring in a consulting firm to run this — or should we build the capability inside?” The question is usually framed as a binary choice. Either we outsource the thinking and delivery to experts, or we struggle internally and hope people learn along the way. In practice, this framing is too simple — and often unhelpful. What matters more is how external support is
4 min read
Rethinking Feedback: Why Positive Reinforcement Matters
Why leaders often underestimate the power of recognition, focusing on mistakes instead of reinforcing success.
3 min read
