Posts by Barry
What can we learn from the price of orange juice?
What can we learn from the price of orange juice? I shared a story at a recent client workshop about a soccer dad I met on the sidelines of a pre-season under 14s soccer training session. This soccer dad was a trader and he was good enough to share some of the strategies he adopts. Trading…
Read MoreThe five pillars of successful mentoring
The 5 Pillars of Successful Mentoring Mentoring is one of many options available for fostering commercial and cultural growth. Compared to consulting, training, or coaching initiatives, mentoring directly taps into and inspires the sharing and further development of, relevant experience and expertise already existing within the organisation. Improved retention, employee satisfaction, interpersonal skills, transfer of…
Read MoreCase Study: Weathertex
Case study: Weathertex Drawing out internal strengths through expert facilitation The Challenge Weathertex is a privately owned company that manufactures Australian hardwood weatherboards and architectural panels for local and overseas markets. Weathertex was first manufactured in Australia in the early 1960s by CSR. In 1998, current CEO Paul Michael purchased the business from CSR with…
Read MoreEvidence-based coaching
Evidence-based coaching Historically, organisational coaching has been something you just had to have faith in. You took it on because someone else recommended it or because you didn’t know what else to try to fix whatever you thought your problem was. While there are some obvious metrics (sales, profit, staff turnover etc.) these typically take…
Read MoreHave you got the right business culture for 2019?
Have you got the right business culture for 2019? (Because it’s frequently not the fastest car that wins the Championship!) A few months ago, Lewis Hamilton won the Formula One World Championship for the 5th time (only Michael Schumacher has more Championship wins now), and his Mercedes team won the Constructors Championship for a 5th Consecutive Year.…
Read MoreAnother year almost over…
Another year almost over… Christmas is coming quickly and it’s a natural time of year to reflect. Below is a snapshot of some of this year’s blogs to provide a summary of the key messages as well as to provide some reflection questions… Elon Musk’s wisdom: “One of the really tough things is figuring out…
Read MoreMen in leadership
Men in leadership – is there a crisis? What’s the issue? Do you really know where you stand today? Have you lost your way? Do you know where you fit in? There has been a lot of justifiable concern about how some men in leadership positions have inappropriately treated women (I’m referring here to campaigns…
Read MoreHow to avoid a stick mentoring mess
How to avoid a sticky mentoring mess Organisational mentoring programs, done right, are the most efficient and most highly leveraged investment an organisation can make. Really, truly, honestly! Done well, mentoring breaks down departmental stovepipes, builds communication, supports innovation, builds succession and skill development, shifts culture and wait for it… builds engagement, not just for…
Read MoreAuthentic Leadership
Authentic Leadership A few days ago I gave a 2-hour workshop on Authentic Leadership to 200 senior women leaders at the Uniting Churches National Women’s Conference. It was quite an incredible experience… Knowing that theological leaders are deeply philosophical and reflective, I knew I needed to dig deeper into this very deep topic (Harvard’s #1…
Read MoreJust ask the question!
Just ask the question! I’m reading an Elon Musk book at the moment and came across the following quote: “One of the really tough things is figuring out what question to ask. Once you figure out the question, then the answer is relatively easy.” I loved this quote because this is the premise of coaching and…
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