Performance management is rooted in building an empowered and skilled workforce. When framing a performance issue, try asking yourself the following questions:
1. Is it a skill problem? (aptitude; training)
2. Is it a hill problem? (altitude; difficult task)
3. Is it a will problem? (attitude; motivation)
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Do you remember the first time you were seen as a leader?
I think that maybe I had some natural leadership skills as I was chosen as the Form Captain in my first week at secondary school. I’ve always been looking at problems and finding solutions.
How has your perspective on leadership changed over time?
I see my role as providing continuous support and vision to the team, but I don’t think that I need to be involved in everything.
What have you enjoyed most about leadership?
For me, it’s not about power! It’s about the working process and making sure the wheels are smoothly turning around. I have been described as a decisive leader, very good at making strategic decisions and at the same time I’m very good at getting things executed and building the right team.
“To whom much is given, much will be required.”
One of the first steps in solving a problem — data science or otherwise — is determining the right measure to gauge success. When we want to objectively find the best solution, we should recall the concept of Goodhart’s Law and realise that rather than using a single number, the best assessment is usually a set of measurements. By choosing multiple metrics, we can design a solution without the unintended consequences that occur when optimising for a narrow objective. Goodhart’s Law states: “When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure.” In other words, when we set one specific goal, people will tend to optimise for that objective regardless of the consequences. This leads to problems when other equally important aspects of a situation are neglected.
When using technology, people tend not to listen to their eyes and ears. Instead, a person is only making a judgement about a person through the distilled information. I have recently completed a digital marketing course and know now how to “game algorithms”. This has now convinced more than ever that in person meetings are a better gauge of a person’s integrity compared to looking at their social media feeds. When meeting face-to-face we can pick on mannerisms, for example, how the person speaks, how they appear, how they engage with their surroundings and a whole host of tangible and intangible behaviours.
Life is a balancing act, and social media has opened the world to the tensions of two forces: the ones measuring and the ones behaving. I think Goodhart’s Law is one of those paradoxes not to be solved but to be balanced. Contact me via e-mail when you are ready for an external perspective on your organisation’s measuring tools.
The general consensus for creative people is that discipline stifles creativity, I’m not sure that is the case. I think that in reality discipline allows you to focus on what matters. And when you to focus on what matters, you get more clarity and space in your mind to be creative. You should be seeking to solve the problems of the people you seek to serve. And the only way you can solve the problems of the people you seek to serve is to know what their problems are.
I think that marketing is not the same as advertising, marketing is not about hyping lousy stuff. Marketing is about telling a true story to people who want to hear it. In my experience marketing at its best is when we make things better that are seen and understood by the target audience. I think that if there is a person, cause, organisation or brand that you care about it’s because they do good marketing. Contact me via e-mail for a non-binary meeting about your organisations marketing engagement.
