Day 170 – 8 October 2014 Are you enjoying Customer Service Week? Today was another big day for us as we held an ICT Awareness Day in the Durham Room in County Hall. We kept the Senior Leadership Team meeting to a couple of hours to make ourselves available for the event but having a … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 170
A year of work in progress – day 169
Day 169 – 7 October 2014 Thankfully the mist had lifted as I made my way down from the station, across Milburngate Bridge and up towards the Gala Theatre. It’s an odd thing but the Gala has been the topic of so many conversations in my time at Durham yet I have never been there. … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 169
A year of work in progress – day 168
Day 168 – 6 October 2014 Happy Customer Service Week! It doesn’t seem five minutes since the last one. Each year the Institute of Customer Service holds a week of events to try and raise the focus on customer service. I think that similar weeks are held in other parts of the world as well. … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 168
A year of work in progress – day 167
Day 167 – 3 October 2014 Have you seen the movie Parenthood? There’s a scene where Gil and Karen Buckman, played by Steve Martin and Mary Steenburgen, are talking about the way their lives are and Gil says how he hates messy. Just then Grandma comes in and says: “You know, when I was young, … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 167
A year of work in progress – day 164
Day 164 – 30 September 2014 The day of the restructure announcement was never going to be a good one. Getting to this point has taken an enormous amount of effort, not by me I hasten to add but by my team. There were some last minute things to sort as always, but it was … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 164
A year of work in progress – day 160
Day 160 – 19 September 2014 Dawn breaks on another day in history. It looks like Scotland has decided to stay after all though a significant number of the populace said yes to separation. Was it a genuine desire to see a split or just brinkmanship? Is the nation state an outmoded concept in an … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 160
A year of work in progress – day 159
Day 159 – 18 September 2014 I over-scored yesterday. Last night’s visit to the Teesdale Action Partnership put the seal on an already difficult day. I lost my composure and responded badly to some of the questions. I find it very hard to separate some of the things I do from who I am. I … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 159
A year of work in progress – day 158
Day 158 – 17 September 2014 Time wounds all heals, according to Groucho Marx and it is true that troubles ease as time goes by. It is certainly true for me of our ServCheck results. At first they seemed dire but now I’m much more positive and see them as an opportunity to improve. So … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 158
A year of work in progress – day 157
Day 157 – 16 September 2014 I’ve been in management for over thirty years. You would think that I would be quite good at it by now. It’s a cliché I know but learning to manage people is a journey, a one without end and that is what makes it so fascinating. You have to … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 157
A year of work in progress – day 155
Day 155 –11 September 2014 I struggled to get started this morning. I don’t know if it was because I gave blood last night or the mist that hung in the air. Today is pregnant with history, is it really thirteen years since the attack on the twin towers? The world seems to be caught … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 155
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 