Are we all just hustlers?

I went to see American Hustle last night. Along with Gravity it leads the Oscar nominations (10) with 9 going to 12 Years a Slave. I am not entirely clear why. But it is still packing in the people several weeks after it release. At two and half hours long it is certainly gripping and apart from the fact that none the of the car parking meters outside the cinema were working (which gave me a small nodule of anxiety throughout), the time just slipped by. It tells an engrossing story: I really cared about the characters. Oddly, given the events, I had huge sympathy for the mayor but maybe that is because I am local politician too!

The acting is top notch and the late 70's setting, very well done. The art of the comb-over is fully explored as are dresses that appear to defy physics. But somehow, it did not quite pass muster. I guess I was hoping for a more elaborate and convoluted story that would leave me scratching my head for days, in the same way as The Usual Suspects did. But it did not and I was not surprised by the ending. So overall, not a film I would recommend for the cinema: but do see it when it comes to the small screen.

At one point in the movie, one of the characters says that everyone is a hustler, just trying to sell themselves, sell an idea or indeed sell a con. I left the cinema pondering on this. It is not a new idea: after all the world is but a stage, and we the players. Are we all engaged in subterfuge and merely acting to get our points across. Is this what leaders are good at? Are leaders not much more than hustlers of ideas: new objectives, new aims, new ways of working?

I think it all depends on how real we are to other people and indeed to ourselves. The character played by Jennifer Lawrence is achingly real, as you can see from the picture above. Her plaintive character plays it straight.

So I think this is the choice that leaders have: you can play it straight, real and authentic or not. If you choose not then you probably are a hustler and you may well succeed on many levels. But if you choose the path that can be raw, real, and vulnerable, you will need to keep an eye on yourself but you will not lose your ethical integrity.

How real are you?


... I cannot write this blog today without just recording my great sadness at the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He was a great actor. My thoughts are with his family and friends. 

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This is the eleventh of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

The power of a push bike

Wadjda is quite honestly one of the most amazing films I have ever seen. It is the first ever feature film, directed by a woman, to be made in Saudi Arabia. Yes, you read that correctly. The film tells the simple story of young girl who falls in love with a bicycle and enters a school competition to win the money needed to buy it. But that is where the simplicity ends.

I know people films critics talk about films being 'richly layered'... but this one really, really is! Woven around the simple story is what is happening to her mother, the headteacher should have a film made just about her and there is the poignant love of the boy who just wants to help his friend.

This films inspires, educates, delights and entrances.. and more. This film will make you ache, smile, laugh and wonder. I saw it at the FilmPlace here in Buckingham (one of our town's hidden gems) last Friday night. I hope it is shown on TV soon or be available from one of the DVD distributors. If you get the chance, go see it. I will be watching it again as soon as I get the opportunity.

This is a film about hope, liberation and calm defiance. If the world could handle the fictional and true power of more girls like Wadjda and Malala, heaven knows what we could achieve. I think it is all of our responsibilities to do what we can to facilitate, step out of the way of and support this power from such girls and boys.

Leadership is ultimately all about letting go and enabling more leaders to do the same. Just like the job of a good classroom teacher is to just allow children to learn and show them where and how they can do this, the leader's first job is to give up any idea of controlling people.

There is too much controlling in the world. A good leader finds way to knit chaos by empowering and enabling emergence and creativity.

How much do you seek to control? 

How good are you at enabling, empowering, nurturing and facilitating new leaders?

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This is the tenth of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

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Ethical pizza delivery

I saw Delivery Man last week, possibly against the recommendations of several friends who are not wild about a) Vince Vaughn's acting b) schmultz c) remakes of already good films in a foreign language. I know a number of people who are very principled in their movie going habits. But now, especially with my unlimited cineworld card, I get to see whatever takes my fancy: even the films looked down on by some people.

And it was really good. OK. I am an old romantic and this film does deliver schmultz by the van load. But that is not the only reason. You cannot compare the acting in this to 12 Years a Slave, naturally. But the acting is authentic and believable. The characters mostly work (although I am not sure how a radical vegan ends up working in a butchers quite so quickly...) and the story is contrived but is an engaging thought experiment. How would a man react to being told he had over 500+ offspring? Of course there are many unanswered questions and consequences not explored but you know what... it doesn't matter. I just enjoyed the film because it has a huge heart. And it is about family bonds.

Go see it!

And what does this film have to say about leadership? For me one of the main messages of the film is taking responsibility. Vince Vauhgn's character David, is all about someone who does not take responsibility. The film is about his 'journey' (you know what I mean...) to stepping up and doing so.

Leadership though, is about knowing the difference between accountability and responsibility. People are routinely held accountable for that which they are not responsible: short sighted leaders conflate the two. If someone's performance (for which they are accountable) begins to slip, poor leaders lurch into holding them responsible without investigating just what is causing the reduced performance. It may well be due to several other factors outside the responsibility of the accountable person. In such an instance, punishing that member of staff for that which he/she is not responsible is at best pointless and at worst cruel and ineffective bullying.

In the film, David is confronted by his accountability and finds a way to be responsible for what he can be responsible for. A good leader who wants to improve performance finds the ways to help their staff recognise their accountability and take responsibility for that which they can. Good leaders help people narrow the gap between the two.

What are you accountable for... and what are your responsible for?
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This is the ninth of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Wolves are beautiful creatures

Watching The Wolf of Wall Street is an uncomfortable experience. Don't get me wrong: it is a darn good movie and DiCaprio has deservedly received an Oscar nomination for his performance. It is a film that you should see.

But it will disturb you.

I am imagining that Terence Winter and Martin Scorsese stuck closely to the autobiography on which the film is based. It depicts a man driven by the hunger for money which in turn drives him to excess and over the edge. The lead character, Jordan Belfort, is not a man I would have around to tea: he is not a beautiful man. At times the film portrays an enterprise run with all the ethics of the dying days of the Roman empire. This is a desperate, avaricious and hypnotic story that will take you over and draw you in to almost as being as much in love with Belfort as his staff seemed to be. But steel yourself and go.

Essentially this film is a study in charisma. 

Often people think that without charisma you cannot be a leader. Without doubt, Jordan Belfort shows just what can be achieved with it: he inspires a loyalty amongst his followers that is almost unbreakable. But like the commander of the Light Brigade, he leads them into very dangerous and choppy waters.

But do you need to be charismatic to be a leader? 

In my view, charisma can sustain a bad (using both the ineffective and ethical meanings of that word) leader. A good leader can be boosted by charisma. But I think a person can still be good or excellent leader without charisma. Because in the end what sustains good leadership are ideas: ideas that people want to follow and build on. 

So what ideas have you had today?

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This is the eighth of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

12 Years a Slave: the myriad of small acts

12 Years a Slave is destined to be one of those films that clings to your soul and becomes part of the way we see the world. It is a stunningly courageous film is so many ways: unflinching in its depiction of slavery and tireless in its cinematography. The intensity and depth of the acting from every single person in the movie is humbling. Even though like the Titanic, we all know (roughly) how it ends, the narrative grips you in a way that made me hear my breathing and that of everyone around me. I spent the film wishing, so wishing, this had never been true: the same way that I watched Schindler's List.

There are moments in the story of extreme brutality. In a way, I was more saddened by the smaller, almost casual, acts of cruelty & inhumanity that filled the gaps between the larger excesses. It was the myriad of these smaller acts that I think did much to enslave the minds of the slaves.

So (with a bit of a handbrake turn, I know) as leaders, we may think that we only have to get right the big set pieces: where we can showcase our good leadership.  Of course, leaders need to be able to front staff meetings, set strategy that draws on key influences and so forth. But most leaders are known by and remembered for the small acts of listening, enthusiasm, kindness and courtesy. It is also in the myriad of 'small' actions that leaders take which evidence the leadership that counts.

What small acts of leadership will people remember you by today? Will they feel liberated (and emancipated?) to innovate and deliver superlative results as a consequence?

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This is the seventh of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Dancing on the Glass Ceiling

Ten years ago, I was beginning to plan a series of Open Space events with the Metropolitan Police. I led the team from the Office for Public Management to work with Denise Milani, Carole Howlett, Catherine Crawford, Des Stout, Martin Wilson and (now Sir) Bernard Hogan-Howe (among others) on the design and process of the events.

The 4 workshops were held on four corners of London and involved over 800 women. There were one hundred and fifty seven separate discussion groups held over the four events.

You can read all about the events here in this archived entry from the Metropolitan Police Authority. You will see that a number of key points are summarised under various headings including:

To address the macho culture, which consists of a range of norms and behaviours from working long hours to tacit acceptance of sexual harassment and assault, sexist language and behaviour and the use of gender specific language.

So that was ten years ago. The question I have now for women and men from the Met is: have things improved for women working in the Met Police since then? (I really hope so.)

...

Personal note: It is an odd and poignant coincidence that I happened to be thinking of this piece of work today. I dug out the information because I am looking into bidding to do some similar work for another client. The link to that tender arrived to my inbox this afternoon. My colleague and good friend Kate Dixon was part of the OPM project team. Indeed Kate, as "event historian", led on producing the report of the events.

It is with the saddest of ironies (the events were also about the service provided by the Met to London women) that Kate was a victim of domestic violence last year. She was killed by a former boyfriend who appeared in court today to plead guilty to manslaughter. (Time will tell as to whether he is finally convicted of that or murder.)

Kate was simply the most amazing person and touched the lives of many people. Her funeral was attended by the leader of the council, the Chief Executive, the night security staff and everyone in between. Islington Council (where she was working) have planted a tree in memory of her. She is very sadly missed by her family, partner, friends and colleagues. RIP Kate.

Railway reconciliation

I saw The Railway Man last night. It is a poignant, harrowing and uplifting true story of one man's quest to end his own personal war. The acting is superb: understated and authentic. This is not a film for a fun night out. But it is a film if you want to reflect on what war does to people, and on how those effects last years and decades afterwards. It is a film about heroism, brutality and despair. Go see it.

I have visited the war graves in Thailand and been to the war museum at Kanchanaburi. I have also travelled for 3 hours on the train from one end to near the Burmese border. It was a memorable day for me. To cite the wikipedia entry:

Forced labour was used in its construction. About 180,000 Asian labourers and 60,000 Allied prisoners of war (POWs) worked on the railway. Of these, around 90,000 Asian labourers (mainly romusha) and 12,399 Allied POWs died as a direct result of the project. The dead POWs included 6,318 British personnel, 2,815 Australians, 2,490 Dutch, about 356 Americans and a smaller number of Canadians and New Zealanders

The film brought back many memories of my visit to the 'death railway'.

The film is brimmed full of leadership, good and bad. I could write about anyone of a number of themes. The one I will highlight is that becoming a leader is a personal journey that no one can do for you. But (and this is a huge but) you are wise not to do it alone.

Being a leader is, almost by definition, a lonely job. You have to make decisions about your own fate and those whom you lead. And deciding not to act (and allow...) is as much a decision as deciding to intervene and how to intervene. These are decisions that a leader can only make alone. But some leaders interpret that as having to do everything alone. And what the film shows us is that Mr Lomax can only make his lonely journey with the support and love of his wife and friends. He is both alone and never alone.

So as a leader, who helps you to be both alone and not alone?

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This is the sixth of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

The Ron Burgundy approach to innovation

It would be very easy to dismiss Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues as a schlock & corny comedy which employs its 1980 setting to excuse some sexist and racist humour as ironically funny. But many of the anarchic threads can be traced back to Mad, Python and Rowan & Martin's Laugh In. There is a good pedigree here. The film made me laugh and cringe in almost equal measure.

But actually what I think the film is really about: the necessity for courageous innovation. There is the oft quoted phrase: if you're in a hole, stop digging. In this film, this command is turned on its head and says: keep digging because you never know what you might unearth!

So it is a film about letting go of convention, weighing anchor(mans) and embarking on a voyage of creative discovery. It is a story which is based on the idea that innovation inspiration can arise from desperation, exasperation and perspiration!

As a leader, how often do you put yourself in a situation where you simply have to come up with something new that could be about saving your business, or just be about making that improvement that really needs to be made? Do you put yourself under pressure so that you have to innovate? Or do you procrastinate since innovation is something to be done… tomorrow.

And, as a leader, how do you create these same conditions for those whom you lead? Can you ‘steam cook’ your team without over cooking them? How do you find just the right temperature that will produce al dente innovation and not a splodgey mess of exhausted, angry and demotivated staff?

In an odd way, does Ron Burgundy have something important to say about the leadership of innovation? Watch the film and let me know what you think. 

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This is the fifth of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.

Bilbo's performance review (SPOILER ALERT)

So Bilbo, you are two thirds of the way through your project (or quest as I think you might prefer to call it). As team facilitator & journey adviser, how do you think you are doing?

Well, it has not been easy. We have had a whole heap of orcs, elves, dwarves and a wizard that keeps going off piste to contend with. You may say two thirds in but in actuality, it feels like I have hardly left the Shire. 

That is in fact the issue I wanted to pick up with you. Whilst I commend your enchanted ability to stay alive, given the odds sometimes stacked against you, what would you say that you have really achieved?

I have lots of material for my book! Indeed, probably more than I will manage to fit in to what will be a children's book. I have found a rather useful ring.

Yes. The ring. Found?

Not exactly found... I managed to procure it from a non-traditional source but I would say that it is very much mine now. 

Any ethical issues here, Mr 'Burglar'?

No. None at all. The ring is mine. All mine. 

So, back to your achievements. Tell me more.

Truth be told, everything has been a bit of train wreck really. There are quite a few people who are pretty unhappy. Darkness is enveloping the world. Smaug was darn unreasonable. Gandalf has disappeared who knows where. Team work has not been brilliant. Thorin's project leadership style is very hard to predict. I have tried talking with him but he seems overly focused on this stone. And as for the elves, I thought they were meant to be helping us! So we haven't got very far really. Sorry. 

What are you plans now? How do you intend to improve things here on in?

Well, I am going to step up. I will start with Thorin and sort out his leadership. Then I will find Gandalf and remind him of our health & safety, lone worker and risk management policies. We may have to let Smaug go. And then a bit of team building between the dwarves and elves. And maybe somehow we will manage to sort out this darkness thing..? It is not looking good though.

And the ring?

What ring?

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This is the fourth of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. 

Frozen out

I would like to be able to say some really warm & positive things about Frozen, the Christmas offering for children from Disney, but it is difficult. I agreed to go on the recommendation of the 15 year old daughter of some friends of mine who adored the songs in the film. And the songs are good. But I am afraid that Disney's attempts to create new fairy tales, never really work for me. Frozen was another example.

The people at Disney do best when they interpret and re-craft old favourites, in my view. I know I am not in the demographic that the film is pitched at, but there was very little in there for the parents who take their children (in the way that there is with the Shrek oeuvre, for example). Some of the characters were irritating (Olaf, the snowman) while there were a couple who were adorable (Sven, the reindeer and the head troll). I could say more, but I do not want to spoil the story too much!

And the leadership message? I asked my 15 year old friend what she thought it was. She said it all about families sticking together. And this is certainly true, the film's narrative pivots on this point. Good leaders certainly need to invest in creating a feeling of family loyalty to a business. And this is not easy.

I would like to highlight another feature of the film however. Like many films, Frozen is about the journey to finding your true self and being at ease with the person you find. To say this is a cinematic cliché would be cliché itself! So I won't say that...

But the leadership thought that this film left me with was that if leadership is a journey, then how well do we recognise the various nodes along the way? Is your leadership journey like crossing the arctic: it just goes on and on? Or is it like crossing London, with lots of interesting stops along the way?

What was your last stop... what will be your next?

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This is the third of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks.

New Year: New Words

Happy New Year! The fresh new year of 2014 dawns and I trust that you, dear reader, had a couple of weeks of festive fun with friends and family, full of the wealth of good cheer and the warmth of great conversation.

However, it has come to my notice that certain words are being overused. The BBC has helpfully put together a list of said words here. So I thought it was time to offer you some replacement and additional words to use in the coming year.

2013	Optional historic word	The 2014 word?
Twerk	Jitterbug	Shiffle
Selfie	Daguerreotype	Look
Passion	Commitment	Promise
Look	Focus	See
Robust	Strong	Bendy
So	Therefore	Here
Delivery	Outcome	Difference
Project	Initiative	Action
Hashtag	Meme	Connection
Amazeballs	Amazing	Shining
Doing	Having	Making
Absolutely	Surely	Yes
Fail	Incorrect	No
Responsible	Accountable	Serious
Anyway	Okay	…
Yeah-no	Possibly	Yes/No/Maybe
Legacy	Consequence	Change
Hipster	Hipster	Follower
Geek	Nerd	Technologist
Iconic	Totemic	Unique

And half a dozen new words for 2014:

• Tecknowledgist: someone who uses technology to build knowledge for all in an accessible and inclusive way
• Wickivist: someone who takes action to address 'wicked' social problems (rather than just analyse, moan or sign online petitions about them)
• Honetitian: a politician who answers question honestly, personally and authentically, unshackled by dogma, being 'on message' or fudgey finagling 
• Vervacious: having the quality of intense life affirming confidence that makes others feel confident too (Beyoncé is vervacious)
• Paxic: an approach to change & disturbance which looks for common ground first (second, third...) and finds points of agreement on which to build peace and community integration
• Frission: the power, warmth and energy that happens when friends come together face to face and talk (rather than just remotely text/gram/chat)

What is your new word for 2014?

Walter Mitty & secret beauty

Reviews of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty have been mixed. As it happens, I think it is one Ben Stiller's finest movies (he directed it too). As it is (loosely) based on the Thurber short story, it is fair to say that the narrative is pretty uncomplicated. Although the film contains some troubling contradictions (would a highly skilled skateboarder become a negative images manager?), it ends up delivering a thumping good message interspersed with comedic magic (the helicopter pilot) and some quiet moments of Zen (the leopard and the football game).

Go see it. I think you will find it warming and poignant. It should make you laugh and smile lots too.

As to the leadership lesson, it would be too easy to focus on the 'Change Managing Director' who looks like a cross between the heavy baddie in Superman II and Alvin. His style of leadership is so bad as to be chillingly realistic, I worry.

But instead I would like to focus on beauty and the power of what we see that can take our breath away and make us think: what is really going on here? Without giving too much away, the film treats us to some sumptuous cinematography of places that are not widely known for their beauty. In this way, the film cleverly makes us think about how we should always go beyond the obvious caricatures of places (or people) and look instead for their secret lives too.

So in this respect, I want to suggest that good leaders never take anything at 'face value'. Good leaders seek to uncover the beauty beneath and what the real story is all about. Good leadership is about digging, exploring, revealing and finding the beauty that is always there to be found.

What beautiful thing have you noticed today?

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This is the second of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks.

The redemption of Mr Banks (and Mr Disney)

I am not sure when exactly I realised Mary Poppins is all about fatherhood. It was sometime since I saw and loved it as a child and long way before Saving Mr Banks came along. It suddenly hit me like a forceful palm to my forehead. It was all about being redeemed as a father, with dear Mary Poppins being the gentlest and sunniest of facilitators.

And since I realised this, I now only ever see the film backwards. In other words, everything is building up to that moment at the end when a kite is made and flown. Saving Mr Banks mirrors this, since of course we know the end from the beginning: Mary Poppins is made and becomes one of the world's most charming and adored films of all time. So I watched for clues as to how this 'kite' is eventually made since so much of the time in the film, it is lying in pieces. Mrs P L Travers seems robustly resistant to letting Mary Poppins fly.

And in the end, not only is Mr Banks saved but so is Walt Disney. I won't reveal how: but redemption is all around in the film.

Which got me wondering, how many leaders can truly redeem both themselves and others too. 

Redemption may be defined as "the action of saving or being saved from sin, error, or evil". In part, this is what leaders should be doing all all the time: taking action to save their people, their organisation and their business from error if not evil.

But how do you become a 'redemptive leader' like Mary Poppins? It cannot just be about magical chalk drawings or being 'practically perfect in every way'. (Although they can help...) Instead I think it boils down to three things:

• Humble non-attachment: the recognition that what is achieved is due to collective effort and is never down to just the one person
• Bright determination: the commitment to making a difference but in a way that is wholesome, upbeat and courteous
• Knowing when to go: ultimately we all redeem ourselves and so while leaders can help this happen, these leaders must also step aside to let the full process occur

What else does it take to be a redemptive leader do you think?

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This is the first of my new series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I am doing this. Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks.

Leadership actually

I was very fortunate to receive a wonderful Christmas present from my wife: an unlimited movie card for the Cineworld cinema in Milton Keynes.

Over the next twelve months I can now go an see as many movies as I wish, and as many times each as I wish to see them! Fantastic! 

Regular readers of this blog will know that I have written several times before about the leadership messages contained within movies. So now you can expect many more of these blogs since I have my unlimited card! Love Actually remains a favourite film of mine (even despite this rather funny and rather scathing review) and contains the line given the PM (Hugh Grant):

Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaky feeling you'll find that love actually is all around.

I go along with that. But I also think that leadership actually is all around too. Just as government policies come and go, business strategies become popular then fade, companies are turned around or fail or departmental heads just want things to improve (etc)... the common ingredient in all of these is leadership. Nothing much happens in business and organisational change without good leadership. And a heck a lot of things go wrong with poor leadership.

So, I will be dedicating the many film based blogs over the next year to uncovering the good, the bad and the ugly leadership in the films I go to see. I look forward to debating these cinematic takes on leadership with you.

What was the last film you saw and what leadership message did it contain for you?

Seasonal greetings!

Dear reader, here is my Christmas Card to you:

My word and theme for next year is 'Being' (This blog post explains why)

May 2014 be all that you wish and hope for. In this complicated, busy and beautiful world, may you find peace and joy this Christmas. And long may it continue.

Jon

My visit to Number 10

Yesterday I had my first (and probably only ever) opportunity to walk through the doors of 10 Downing Street.

I was there for a meeting of the SME Panel. I have blogged about this before but in summary I have been part of smallish group of SME business people over two and half years advising the Cabinet Office on how to make government procurement more 'SME friendly'.

The essence is this: SMEs can provide far better value services and products to government based on lower overheads, more innovation and better quality. This can lead to some staggering reductions in cost to the taxpayer as well as helping the British economy to grow. It is the proverbial 'no brainer'.

However (and this is a rather large however...) many (most?) government procurement departments at all levels and in many agencies seemed to be wedded to processes that favour larger organisations. And the only winners are these large companies: not the taxpayer, not the growing economy of smaller businesses and not the citizens (as the beneficiaries of these services). Frankly it is a huge scandal and it has been my pleasure to have been a small part in this government's attempt to turn the procurement tanker around in the English channel, as it were.

Anyway yesterday, we were graced by the presence of Lord Young and Nick Hurd MP, Minister for Civil Society. They both listened carefully to all the points made by the panel members present. We also had some useful information given to us by Stephen Allot, the Crown Representative for SMEs.

Here are some of the points that were made:

• We were introduced to the "Small Business / GREAT Ambition" strategy of the government.
• The measures in this include abolishing PQQs for low value tenders (less than €200k), putting all public tenders onto a single site (Contracts Finder), a trip-advisor type feedback mechanism for purchasers to rate suppliers and vice versa... and more. 
• The G-Cloud level playing field has shown just what SMEs can do: "as of the end of October 2013, 56% of of total public sector spend by value through the G-Cloud framework had gone to SME suppliers" (from Stephen Allot's blog)
• One of the suppliers around the table declared that they had just won a contract with a bid of £6m. A large well known IT supplier had also submitted a bid (and lost) of £100m. This points to the vast improvements in taxpayer value that can be achieved by procuring from SMEs
• Many parts of government are pursuing this strategy with verve and alacrity while other parts (sometimes even within the same Department) are still living in the 'dark ages'... paying out to over priced contracts because the procurement processes were not SME friendly
• A system will be introduced to shame government purchasers & large primes who fail to pay their suppliers on time

Nick Hurd challenged the group to come up with a list of actions that can be taken before the next election to institute irreversible change in how government procures, beyond what is already planned. That will be the subject of a future blog...

Being: my word for 2014

Every year, I adopt a word from I CAN, the children's communication charity.

This charity helps children who struggle with communicating to get the support they need. My work and activism depends on my being able to communicate well. So this charity has a special importance for me. And it helps children too. Why wouldn't I shell out £15 to adopt a word...?

Last year I adopted "Childlike" (you can read why here). And in previous years the words have been "Perspective",  "Prosperity" and "Abundant".

This is my word for 2014:

I have ordered an apron too!

But you may be wondering why "Being"....

This has been a difficult year for me: I have been to more funerals this year than ever before. And this isn't just because I am getting older. Many of my friends, family and neighbours who died this year did so under unexpected and very tragic circumstances. I am still grieving. I have no intention of going into details but this year (if it has taught be anything) has made me appreciate the present, the now, the being here now...

Sometimes at this time of year, we risk becoming very acquisitive and thinking about what we have rather than who we are. In all the eulogies I have heard this year, I have heard only talk of the people they were. When we die, we are remembered for who we were not what material possessions we accrued. 

And so by picking this word, I am resolved to being here now, to worry less about what I have and focus on being in the present. To savour each day, each moment... not like it could be my last (even though it could be) but just because it is a moment, a day that will never happen again...

And with this blog post, please accept my seasonal greetings. May I wish all my readers an amazing 2014 which I hope is full of good moments for you and your loved ones.

Leadership priorities for 2014

In issue 378 of Police Professional, there is an article entitled A Challenging Future which features some very useful unpacking of the presentation given by CC Mike Cunningham (Staffordshire Police) to the Excellence in Policing conference, on what kind of police leadership is needed for the future. I recommend the article to you as his slides (now uploaded) only present a smidgeon of what the article reports him as saying.

To summarise, CC Cunningham asked more than 200 personnel at Staffs Police what they thought were the key leadership issues for the future. This helped him identify four priorities:

• Ensure lines of communication with staff and officers are open
• Welcome challenge and understand how the service can respond
• Develop early intervention strategies, spotting problems as they emerge
• Spend time discovering the fears and concerns of staff and officers: a step change in staff/officer engagement

I like this. I always like lists of priorities when they number under ten and I like lists of four even more! And I think these four are useful.

But the question is, as we turn towards the end of this year... what do you think should be the leadership priorities for police (and other public service) leaders in 2014? 

I have posted blogs like this one in the past (see this link for the 2013 list, and these for 2010 and 2012). So please post below, tweet or email if you wish

So to repeat the question:

What do you think should be the leadership priorities for police (and other public service) leaders in 2014?

UPDATE 031213|2312: Thanks to Suzanne Thompson ‏@Suzze05 for these five priorities

1. Open & transparent leadership - visible & approachable
2. Be intuitive & responsive to the 'informal work culture'
3. Be open to genuine innovation & collaboration opportunities to improve practice & add value.
4. Welcome positive change but do not be afraid to openly challenge change based solely on ideology & not evidence based.
5. Listen..no really, really listen, not just pay lip service & go through the motions as staff know the difference

UPDATE 041213|0920: Thanks to Roger Nield ‏@rogernield2703 for these priorities

• Listen to what the public want.
• Do something about it - not just do what's easy or what interests your organisation.
• Tell them what you've done.
• Do this without arrogance, fear or favour and without thought of reward.
• You can boil this down to "Do Good"

UPDATE 081213|1628: Thanks to Annette Hill ‏@familyhrguru for these priorities

UPDATE 121213|2108: Thanks to Sukhvinder Stubbs ‏@Sukhvinder2011 for this observation

What have the Romans ever done for us?

I am just about to zoom off to Aylesbury Vale's annual business consultation meeting at a hotel on the edge of Buckingham. I am optimistic that this won't be like last year when we were talked at for over 80 minutes. Having met with the Deputy Chief Executive the other day, it sounds like it will be much more two way. (I will let you know...)

Meanwhile I have pondering on what AVDC (and perhaps other local councils) can do to help local businesses thrive. This is in all our interests! Here is the list that I have got to so far:

• Buy from us! In other words where the council is purchasing materials or services, go local first!
• Set up your procurement so that it is SME friendly (there is plenty of guidance on that available from the Cabinet Office which, as it happens, I have had a small hand in creating)
• Make business rates transparent: let everyone know what money is collected and how much of it ends up in local council hands
• Use some of the Neighbourhood Homes Bonus and Community Infrastructure Levy to support local economic development
• Make the council 'business friendly' which includes paying great attention to infrastructure development, supporting safe practices at work and promoting the eating establishments that are top notch when it comes to hygiene (see what is happening in Wales) among many other measures
• Make it easy for businesses to hire apprentices and offer work training through connecting people together
• Don't try to compete with local businesses: let your income generation innovation have only a benign impact on the local economy!
• Use local business innovative and entrepreneurial spirit & insights to support the transformation of the council to a leaner, fitter and more effective local public service: we can help!

What else is on your list?