One of my New Year’s resolutions was to study behavioural economics and with this in mind I have bought myself a couple of books. Well, you have to start somewhere. The first one is ‘Misbehaving’ by Richard H Thaler and I am enjoying it very much. In the book, he talks about how people have … Continue reading Sunk work
Ethics and Carillion
The subject of ethics in business is never very far from my mind these days. I am reading Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, which gives an exciting ride through some of the pros and cons of big business and its detractors, and had my first meeting with the board of the North East Initiative on … Continue reading Ethics and Carillion
What is government?
You would think that this is an easy question yet I have asked it many times to some of the brightest brains in the region (well, university students) and it has left them dumbfounded. It seems that government, like digital, is one of those words that we use over and over again yet don’t really … Continue reading What is government?
Strike
I have never been on strike, even when the councils where I worked were on strike I felt it was my duty to go into work. I was in two minds about the merits of striking then and, as I sit on a very cold platform at Morpeth station as the Northern Rail workers are … Continue reading Strike
The organizations we deserve
Businesses must operate within the law and within ethical principles. Ironically that is what the law states yet in the sordid grapple for money, status and power sometime things go awry. Motor manufacturers meddle with their emission figures to make their cars look better, online taxi firms undermine the working conditions of their employees to … Continue reading The organizations we deserve
#130story
I know James, I got involved with his Tech Diary and bump into him from time to time at Campus North and the various events that go on around the region. I also picked up on his great idea, #130story, created back in the day when Twitter only had 140 characters. The idea is to … Continue reading #130story
A visit to Port of Blyth
Just before the end of the year I visited a couple of places that I had passed many times but had never been to. The first was the Nissan Factory, an iconic place for the region. Is it in Washington or Sunderland? It could well be in both as it is a sprawling mass of … Continue reading A visit to Port of Blyth
My last blog of the year 2017
I always try to finish off the year with something special to say. All of my blogs try to say something yet the end of the year and the start of the new one is a strange time, a period of reflection and a opportunity for renewal. The world does not know any difference. … Continue reading My last blog of the year 2017
Hanging round universities
In my new life I seem to be hanging round the universities a lot. I was never a stranger as such when I was working at Durham but since then I find myself in all sorts of events at Newcastle, Northumbria and Sunderland University. I am off to Teesside in the new year as well. … Continue reading Hanging round universities
Dear public sector
Over the last couple of weeks I have had the pleasure of trying to get in touch with people in the public and quasi-public sector. Boy, has it been hard and this is from someone who, for a long time was inside the system. My efforts have been part of a Low Power Wide Area … Continue reading Dear public sector
Thoughts from a Retired Guerrilla Worker 