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The gift beside the rubbish bin

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I met Angelina (name & background changed for confidentiality) as part of a team coaching exercise with a health care provider in Singapore several years ago. She was the lead nurse in a high pressure, highly stressful ICU department. As the long and stressful shifts had started to take a toll, the coaching was targeted to find ways for the team to work more sustainably, whilst maintaining the kind of agility and good results the unit was known for.

As the coaching project progressed, I got to know more about the personal side of some team members. One stood out for me … the lead nurse, Angelina. She clearly was the centrepiece of the unit, supporting everyone, especially the younger nurses and doctors, in a caring way. At times, she could also be tough. For me, she was the “tiger-mum” of the organisation, making sure things got done and nobody was lost along the way

After one of the workshops, Angelina opened her heart and told me her story. I was stunned and, honestly speaking, quite taken aback. [Read more…] about The gift beside the rubbish bin

Avoid doing this in 2024!

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On April 11th, 1983, Dave’s band went to record their debut album In New York. Dave, a highly gifted guitarist, singer, and songwriter had been with the band for two years as their lead guitarist. But Dave’s aggressive behaviour and alcohol problems had taken a toll, and the other band members had had enough. They packed up Dave’s gear and drove him to the Port Authority Bus Terminal, putting him on a Greyhound bus bound for Los Angeles. He was expelled from the band.

Devastated and fuming with anger, Dave was falling further and further away from his dream. It was during these dark hours that he swore revenge. He would put together a band which would become better and bigger than his previous band. His new band would organise more successful tours in sold out venues and sell more records than his previous band mates ever dreamed of. [Read more…] about Avoid doing this in 2024!

Verzichte im Jahr 2024 darauf!

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Am 11. April 1983 machte sich Dave mit seiner Band auf den Weg, um in New York ihr Debütalbum aufzunehmen. Dave, ein hochbegabter Gitarrist, Sänger und Songwriter, war seit zwei Jahren als Leadgitarrist in der Band. Doch starker Alkoholkonsum und daraus resultierende Streitigkeiten hatten längst überhandgenommen, und so beschlossen die anderen drei Mitglieder, ihn aus der Band zu werfen. Sie packten seine Ausrüstung zusammen, fuhren ihn zum Port Authority Bus Terminal und setzten ihn in einen Greyhound-Bus nach Los Angeles.

Am Boden zerstört und kochend vor Wut, entfernte sich Dave immer weiter von seinem Traum, Kopf einer erfolgreichen Heavy Metal Band zu werden. In diesen dunklen Stunden schwor er Rache. Er würde eine Band zusammenstellen, die besser und größer werden würde als seine vorherige. Sie würde erfolgreichere Tourneen in ausverkauften Hallen organisieren und mehr Platten verkaufen, als sich seine früheren Bandkollegen jemals erträumen könnten. [Read more…] about Verzichte im Jahr 2024 darauf!

What is Your next SPRINT?

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In autumn 2007, while working as Supply Chain Director with Procter & Gamble, I applied internally for a job, which sounded interesting … and daunting. The role would be to lead the integration of the Wella business in Asia by harmonising all 1,500 employees onto P&G contracts and moving Wella’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system onto the P&G SAP platform. The job was far too big for me at that stage.

[Read more…] about What is Your next SPRINT?

Getting A Difficult Message Across

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You may remember the newsletter about a client of mine who worked through a highly emotional situation with “the dictator.” Only a short while later, I encountered another client with an even trickier situation.

Chris is a calm and friendly 35-year-old manager, who struck me from the beginning as someone who was very kind. In a “fast-track” career, he had risen rapidly through the ranks of a medium-sized Swedish consumer electronics company. Based in the UK, he was now leading its global supply chain operations.

Chris absolutely loved his job. He viewed it “like a hobby” where he enthusiastically “created top-notch service solutions” for his clients. His passion for the job had him working 60-hour weeks for the last eight years. By his own admission, he’d been close to burn out two times and was currently doing double duty… handling two important job assignments within the company.

It presented a massive challenge.

Chris was not getting along well with his interim boss, the Managing Director of UK operations. “He attacked me personally” Chris said. The strained relationship created an unprecedented level of emotional turmoil, anger, and frustration in Chris.

[Read more…] about Getting A Difficult Message Across

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