Starting Up and the Art of Surfing

Anyone starting a new business could learn a lot from surfing. It's not just about how you perform on the wave, it's also about how you get on the wave in the first place. Alan recalls his teenage years.

Letting go of those scary leadership issues

It's is often exhilarating to get promoted. Being handed a challenge is uplifting and motivating. But it can also be scary. Alan talks about the common fears that managers face and what you can do about them.

Breaking out of a rut

All of us can sometimes struggle with inertia. Here are some simple ideas that can help you, your team or your business start leading from the front.

Do incentives and bonuses actually work?

Incentive payments often boost the quantity of output but they don't necessarily do much for its quality. In fact research indicates incentives are counterproductive in a lot of situations. What sort of incentives actually work?

Charisma: Can you manage without it?

There is a lot of talk about "charisma" and it's role in management. But too often we confuse charisma with celebrity. Truly charismatic leaders base their power on their character rather than their personality.

Social Investment

It is getting harder and harder to get money from the government for any project, even really sensible ones. To get a hearing, you need to be able to offer some help with public finances. Alan looks at an innovative financing project in which disadvantaged families save the government money by improving their own lives.

How to keep agile

Rapid change is now a constant in the business environment and you need to be highly flexible to cope. What can you do to stay agile?

Disruptive Strategies

There is nothing new about the term "disruption". Business have been coming and going for hundreds of years. What is it that makes some new startups so disruptive that even major corporations are destabilised by them.

Getting results from negotiations

Negotiations never go exactly to plan. Often they are scary and confronting. But just as often their outcomes are pleasantly surprising.

Introverts can be good at selling too

The ability to maintain a good sales record isn't confined to extroverted people. Often they are more erratic. The strengths of more introverted styles often form the backbone of a solid sales team.