Does trust have an economic value?

Posted on June 5, 2011 by Pippa Harrand

As a one to one coach I hear many conversations  about the merits or otherwise of ‘partnering’ in the construction industry. Debates about whether it is dead and gone, whether it was a nice to have not a have to have and now with single stage tendering and every bit of focus on cost – did ever have any real value. I see eyes light up at the thought of letting go of this ‘touchy feely’ mindset!

In an industry that is full of benchmarking processes, measurements and procedures very few organisations have measured the value of partnering- hence the current debate.     How can you value something that has not been valued?

“Partnering includes the concepts of teamwork between supplier and client, and of total continuous improvement. It requires openness between the parties, ready acceptance of new ideas, trust and perceived mutual benefit…. We are confident that partnering can bring significant benefits by improving quality and timeliness of completion whilst reducing costs.” Sir Michael Latham (Government advisor on partnering)

Sir Michael mentions ‘trust’ as an element of partnering and there is emerging evidence that trust can have benefits that will deliver value to your bottom line.

Sir Ken Blanchard makes the point that someone will face you if they respect you but be able to turn their back on you if they trust you.   This translates into behaviours that engender positive outcomes when relationships count – and when in business do relationships not count?

Hiscox, the global insurance company have developed their sponsorship campaign on Channel 4 all about trust.

In a world where we are no longer sure of anything maybe the opportunity in disguise is engendering trust in our clients.   They will give it when we demonstrate behaviours that warrant it.

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What happens when you want to lead, but few people want to follow?

Posted on June 5, 2011 by Pippa Harrand

What if you have a burning desire to see change happen but no one supports you?   What happens if you are passionate about something that you believe will make a difference, but no one wants to listen to you?  Sometimes it is lonely to stick to and shout about your different viewpoint.  

 Strong self belief,  determination to succeed, energy and an agile mind will all help.   Mental resilience or  ‘bounce back-ability’ is a secret ingredient of success.

Jamie Oliver a 34 year old chef from Essex, UK takes on the USA to argue that adding sugar to fresh milk drinks served to their children at  school  is a deadly choice.   It is a valid argument so why is he not inspiring people to change?  

 Jamie demonstrated his point in a dramatic and shocking way by filling a bus with the sugar that is being used in American schoolchildren’s milk – but why didn’t this make a huge impact?

Jamie, you need to win hearts and minds and use ‘whole brain’ arguments to engage everyone.   Your argument comes from the right side of the brain but it is only part of the whole picture.  You deserve to succeed as your message is powerful and will save many children’s lives,  but sadly changing behaviours and mindsets takes more than passion.

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Why does the ‘Big Idea’ work so well?

Posted on June 5, 2011 by Pippa Harrand

 Today in one of our leadership development programmes, we discussed the ‘Big Idea’ as a hook to hang the journey of a presentation on – a simple, practical method of designing a great presentation.   A focus of attention to develop a journey against.   

An article in the recent FT weekend magazine demonstrated how powerful a Big Idea can be.

Simon Kuper wrote about the Power of Respect.  He talks about Mandela, one of the greatest living leaders of our time.   He states that ‘great politicians focus on only one or two goals, the rest is just detail’.   Mandela’s Big Idea, that he never strayed from, was “a free nonracial South Africa” – he didn’t get distracted by the ‘right’ way to achieve this.  His goal was fixed but his tactics were flexible.

As leaders we can use a Big Idea to create clarity and inspiration for finding a way to achieve what sometimes appear to be unachievable goals.

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A great demonstration of how science can teach art some lessons!

Posted on June 5, 2011 by Pippa Harrand

Are you more of a scientist (left brain)  or an artist (right brain)?  Do you consider the ‘other side ‘ of the brain to speak a foreign language and not one that you particularly want to learn?!

This video on Ted demonstrates how we can use the scientist to support the artist and create some powerful learning.

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Lessons we can learn from Cuba

Posted on June 5, 2011 by Pippa Harrand

 Silvio  a young tourist guide in La Habana, Cuba who spent 5 hours showing us  around his city this April.     He is 30 and married and spoke excellent English and some French.    Silvio talked about his life growing up in Cuba and often quoted his father who he  obviously respected.   

Silvio was a professor at the University of Habana and taught English literature, his knowledge of both Spanish and English literature was amazing.    He understood the nuances of both languages and argued that neither should ever be translated into the other as so much authenticity was lost.

We asked Silvio why he didn’t write a book.   He had thought about it but his father told him that ‘you cannot write literature unless you include all of life, not just the good bits’.  Silvio said that he could not write about all of life because some parts were too painful to remember.   Silvio would make a great writer.

How often do we not do something because we are influenced by someone else’s words or judgements?   These messages from others can set up barriers and limiting self beliefs in ourselves.   We then make our choices based on the perceived truth of these messages.     I am sure Silvio’s father would be sad to realise that he stopped his son from achieving something great in life.   

How can we overcome these limiting self beliefs?  Becoming aware that you may be making choices in your life based on other people’s messages and judgements is a good starting point.

Silvio will probably never read this blog as the internet is not readily available to most Cubans.    There are no ‘superbrands’, Coca Cola, McDonalds and Starbucks have no presence in Cuba yet and there are no advertisements allowed.     It is quite a unique place in the world.

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