We were waiting outside the director’s meeting room in the upper floor of North Tyneside’s office in Cobalt. It was some time ago yet I can recall it vividly. A colleague of mine and I were waiting to be called into a meeting with the directors and neither of us had warmed to the prospect. … Continue reading Unfolding plans 193 – Buying or selling
Unfolding plans 192 – Google has got it wrong @sharemindfully @lldzne #GuerrillaWorking
Google has got it wrong apparently. According to a recent article in the Washington Post, the open office trend is destroying the work place and what is needed are more walls rather than less. It was a good piece yet short on supporting evidence and seems to have been based entirely upon the experiences of the … Continue reading Unfolding plans 192 – Google has got it wrong @sharemindfully @lldzne #GuerrillaWorking
Unfolding plans 191 – Great staff
Another day, another award ceremony. This time it was our very own Great Staff Great stuff awards. It is an opportunity for us to celebrate all of the great work that goes on in the Council. It is very easy to knock what we do and just as easy to highlight the mistakes, the failures … Continue reading Unfolding plans 191 – Great staff
Unfolding plans 190 – The world is my office
For nearly two years now I haven’t had an office or a desk. I have been a nomad, wandering from place to place. I go where the work is or where the opportunity lies. I try to be where I add most value. I get in and back out again before I get too bogged … Continue reading Unfolding plans 190 – The world is my office
Unfolding plans 189 – Scrum down
It looks like I’m going to get to use scrum. We’re going agile with our project methodology. Goodbye PRINCE2, farewell Managing Successful Programmes and hello modernity. Well, not quite but at least it’s a start. Project management is a bit like Enterprise Resource Planning systems. They work very well in certain environments but don’t necessarily … Continue reading Unfolding plans 189 – Scrum down
Unfolding plans 188 – Open Data
Is open data the same as big data? Well no, not really. Open data is stuff that is out there which can be freely used, shared and messed about with by anyone, anywhere, at any time and for whatever purpose they choose. It is the wildebeest of the data world, able to roam free across … Continue reading Unfolding plans 188 – Open Data
Unfolding plans 187 – Does it work?
A Frenchmen once said to me ‘I know it works in practice but does it work in theory?’ He asked me in English, though I was in Paris at the time and it seemed a very funny thing to say. It was a long time ago and I have only just come to realise what … Continue reading Unfolding plans 187 – Does it work?
Unfolding plans 186 – Dynamo think tank
Yesterday we had our first Dynamo North East think tank. It was held at Sage head office. They are the only technology led FTSE100 company and it is based right here in the heart of the region. More than twenty of us attended. Everyone was a member of the organisation and we had come together … Continue reading Unfolding plans 186 – Dynamo think tank
Unfolding plans 184 – Bananas for scale
I stole this from Graham. He wanted to do a light hearted bit about some of the stuff that we do at the presentations. We have some big numbers and they are difficult to grasp, unless that is you use bananas as a scale. ‘Bananas for scale’ is a bit of an internet phenomenon that … Continue reading Unfolding plans 184 – Bananas for scale
Unfolding plans 183 – Organisational fit
How do I know where I am going to be in five years’ time? I struggle sometimes to know where I am going to be tomorrow let alone that far ahead. Yet that is what I’m being asked to think about as part of our organisational fit or org-fit as we’re calling it. We’re thinking … Continue reading Unfolding plans 183 – Organisational fit
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 