The IKEA Effect in the workplace A research team Michael I. Norton of Harvard Business School, Daniel Mochon of Yale, and Dan Ariely of Duke, first named the IKEA effect in 2011. They described the IKEA effect as “labor alone can be sufficient to induce greater liking for the fruits of one’s labor: even constructing a…

12 inclusion nudges to manage a remote team  – feedback from the teams! With enforced lockdowns in many geographies, organisations have had to switch quickly to remote working. In some cases, they have been scrambling around to get the tech in place and even hardware. Not all employees have a company lap top. I know…

Personal workplace relationship have always been a hot topic in any organisation and an equally hot potato for HR. I have been running workshops on sexism and harassment for organisations way before all of this became a hashtag thing and the question is always posed. Many professionals today work very long hours. They tell me…

I was chatting to a long-standing client on Friday and she touched on the sensitivities of politics and workplace culture. As HR Director of an international and multi-cultural B2B organisation, they are trying to address issues impacting diversity, inclusion and gender balance. She is finding the polarisation of political views which are problematic in our…

 Will you lighten your load in 2019? 2018 was a year with a lot going on. Some of it wasn’t great for many, with unexpected shifts in the political and economic landscape that will make the up-coming months uncertain. Brexit is is creating stress and uncertainty for 5 million people. I will be impacted for…

Many recruiters and hiring managers are plagued by skill set shortages, both hard and soft skills. There is a very strong temptation to compromise to fill an open assignment rather than reject candidates that “will do.”. But very often the wrong hiring decision can be more expensive than keeping the vacancy open and continuing with the interview…

And when did respect become political correctness? Have you ever noticed how people apologise for political correctness or pour scorn on it as somehow  it’s something we have to justify. We frequently hear sentences starting with “I know this is politically incorrect but…..”  They then go on to say something mildly or even extremely offensive.…

Executive Presence Rules are confusing! No kidding! We’ve read a lot recently about executive presence and the hype associated with those indefinable characteristics  style, substance and character or charisma, communication and appearance.  A veritable industry has been spawned to define and navigate this amorphous concept which apparently is perceived to contribute by 26% to successful career progression. So is there…

What is executive presence? Do you have it? What are the intangibles, the “je ne sais quoi” or X Factors that make the difference between being the person who stands out and commands a room, or who disappears and becomes invisible in the crowd?  How is a person able to inspire confidence and trust of those around him or her, to become a respected…

One of the key messages across the board at the JUMP forum in Paris was gender communication differences and the impact this has on workplace mis-communication. Not one, but multiple speakers raised this issue, with a particular emphasis on over communication.  Hmmm.. I thought I need to listen this. Although for a woman I am reasonably direct and brief,…