IDU NEWS

End-of-year reviews used to make sense. They are a bit of a chore, but ultimately useful, and, if things have gone well during the year, can be very encouraging. They’re a great way to take stock, see where your organisation has under- or overspent, as well as consider your wins (hopefully many) and losses (hopefully few and attached to valuable lessons). And finally, an end-of-year review forms a useful template for plotting your way forward into the next year. Not any more

The business world is a bewildering, fast-moving place right now. But don’t fall into the trap of bunkering down and doing nothing, because this will cost you in the long run, says Kevin Phillips The largest enemy of change and leadership isn’t a “no”, it’s a “not yet”. “Not yet” is the safest, easiest way to forestall change.’ –  Seth Godin On a recent trip I took to New Zealand, the Auckland airport was closed down and its operations curtailed when the pipeline delivering j

Being a leader in software development, being cutting edge when things change so fast, is absolutely what you want need to stay ahead of the pack; being a leader in business often means the opposite. “Leadership” seems to imply leading on all fronts, stepping into the unknown, going first. But realistically, business leaders have wide ranging responsibilities, putting this approach at odds with good business practice. Leaders have to hold back, watch, learn and then follow, p

Power has an important role to play in the business world, especially in the context of leadership. Leaders need power in order to get results, but they also need to be accountable for the results of that power and understand the value in empowering others. In broad strokes, power can be used in two ways, for good or for evil, and we are all familiar with the great examples of power and leadership found in the annals of superheroes. There are lessons to be learned from all th

Leadership is evolving with the next generation. The way things were done in the past, from pyramid corporate structures to top-down budgeting have slowly fallen away as new generations come along with their own views on how things should be and where the generation before has gone wrong. This is nothing new – it is a cycle that happens over and over in life as every generation strives to improve on what has come before. The generations who will come to leadership over the ne