Day 7 – 10 January 2014 About a quarter of our business is traded, that is with customers outside of the Council. Gaining and losing customers is a natural part of the business cycle. As long as we gain more than we lose then we will be OK. I don’t like to lose any business … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 7
A year of work in progress – day 5
Day 5 –8 January 2014 Today was a management meeting today. The Project leaders met in the morning, that is the wider management team and the Senior Management Team met in the afternoon. I was asked to give an opening talk to set the scene for the year ahead. This is an abrdiged version, a … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 5
A year of work in progress – day 4
Day 4 –7 January 2014 One of the problems with living north of the Tyne and working south of it is the daily commute. On most days it’s not too bad. Apart from the normal stand still around the Metro Centre the 34 mile trip is usually a straight run. But at this time of … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 4
A year of work in progress – day 3
Day 3 – 6 January 2014 The first real day of work this year and probably the first real day of work for several weeks, perhaps even since mid-December. It’s also the first day I’ve worn aftershave this year but I’m not sure these facts are related, odd though since I’ve decided to grow (wear? … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 3
Don’t take more tissues than you need
In the canteen at work there is a sign near the tills where the cutlery and condiments can be found. It says ‘Don’t take more tissues than you need.’ It is slightly menacing. There is a veiled threat that if you are caught with more tissues than is appropriate for your personal consumption something sinister … Continue reading Don’t take more tissues than you need
A year of work in progress – day 2
Day 2 – 3 January 2014 Boy was I tired. For the first time in ages it was the alarm that woke me. I’m not used to real work but I was back at Meadowfield this morning to help out in the stores once more. The schools come back on Monday and so we need … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 2
A year of work in progress – day 1
I’ve been inspired by Rachel Orr, A Head Teacher I have met and a blogger. On 1 January 2013 she set out to write a blog post every day for a year. You can find it here and it is some achievement: 365 days in my shoes. This year I’m going to try something similar, … Continue reading A year of work in progress – day 1
Doing Lean
I’ve been fascinated by the concept of Lean ever since I read the book ‘The Machine that Changed the World’. Its description of the Toyota Production System and the dramatic effect that this had had upon automotive production was, and still is incredible. This must be at least fifteen years now and ever since I … Continue reading Doing Lean
A leaky bucket
Imagine a bucket with a hole in the bottom. That’s how we manage the jobs that we get within the service, or calls as we refer to them, using a leaky bucket. It could be a shiny read bucket with a strong wire handle and comfortable wooden grip or an old galvanised bucket with a … Continue reading A leaky bucket
Channel shift – it has to be more than just about money
I’ve been to a conference on channel shift, encouraging your customers to move to different forms of interaction with your organisation. It was good, perhaps not worth the five hour train ride but you always pick up something interesting from these events. Lunch was nice too. But my gripe was that speaker after speaker talked … Continue reading Channel shift – it has to be more than just about money
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 