Some businesses move from year to year making small adjustments but never stretch themselves for the big achievements. Other more ambitious businesses, and their leaders, try to find a way to achieve leaps forward that at first sight look too hard or possibly foolhardy. Some succeed and others fail. Without setting ambitious goals, taking calculated risks, implementing careful strategic planning and proactive problem solving along the way, the big leaps are rarely made. I would like to draw an analogy with a group of middle aged mountain bikers that I ride with most weekends, typically covering 12-15 miles on local technical trails. There was a collective desire for a more challenging project to stretch us. Various options for a suitable longer trek were discussed at “team meetings” - aka post-ride drinks at the pub. This compares with business strategy meetings where ideas are floated, discussed, filtered, and prioritised. In January 2018 the … [Read more...]
>The Devil is in the Detail!
>Sport and business have much in common as each is about teamwork, discipline, hard work and, above all, success!At a recent seminar, Amy Williams, gold medal winner at the Vancouver Winter Olympics in the skeleton event, described the huge amount of research undertaken to help her gain those precious extra few hundredths of a second.This included the controversial design of her helmet, down to her body temperature prior to the start of the event. Research had shown that her body performed best at slightly above normal body temperature so Amy wore a thermal wrap (like we see marathon runners wearing after they have completed their run) under her jacket for the period immediately before the start. Research had also shown that muscles recover more effectively if cooled down rapidly after her event. This required Amy to immerse herself in freezing water for a number of minutes after each race. Amy acted on all of the research and guidance provided and the results spoke for themselves!A … [Read more...]
>The Devil is in the Detail!
>Sport and business have much in common as each is about teamwork, discipline, hard work and, above all, success!At a recent seminar, Amy Williams, gold medal winner at the Vancouver Winter Olympics in the skeleton event, described the huge amount of research undertaken to help her gain those precious extra few hundredths of a second.This included the controversial design of her helmet, down to her body temperature prior to the start of the event. Research had shown that her body performed best at slightly above normal body temperature so Amy wore a thermal wrap (like we see marathon runners wearing after they have completed their run) under her jacket for the period immediately before the start. Research had also shown that muscles recover more effectively if cooled down rapidly after her event. This required Amy to immerse herself in freezing water for a number of minutes after each race. Amy acted on all of the research and guidance provided and the results spoke for themselves!A … [Read more...]
