The Wisdom of a Dragon | Issue #19
This week, I recommend a book from one of the newest Dragons in the Den, discuss staff salaries, entrepreneurship education and more.
Welcome to the latest edition of The Leadership Bulletin.
One of my personal highlights since the last Bulletin was attending the launch at the House of Lords of a brand new report on entrepreneurship education. How do we ensure that the next generation of young people have the skills and the know-how to set up vibrant businesses? That’s one of the things I’m thinking about this week and something I would welcome your thoughts on; you can email me at any time on lee@edfolio.co.uk.
We start this Bulletin with the wisdom of a Dragon…
LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM SARA DAVIES MBE
I've really enjoyed reading Sara Davies's memoir, We Can All Make It. It's a very readable story of how she found her niche - crafting - and turned it into a very successful business. In spite of Davies’s very rapid success, the memoir includes its fair share of mistakes (as any honest life story does) and how she overcame them - sometimes unbelievably! Perhaps the most remarkable part was how she, her friends, family, and anyone who they could get to help, fulfilled one of their first major orders.
The thing I admired most about Davies’s business journey was that she has stayed so committed to the North East. There has been an unfortunate trend in this country that, for a whole range of reasons, once you hit the big time you move to London. But Davies’s home and business remains firmly in the North East, where she is creating great new jobs in a part of the country too often overlooked. This is an example other business leaders could follow, especially if we’re to achieve our great national mission of Levelling Up. If you want to read this book for yourself, you can get it from my favourite bookshop, Blackwell's, for £14.36. Click here.
EDFOLIO PREPARES TO LAUNCH A NEW E-LEARNING PROGRAMME
I’m pleased to share with you that my business, Edfolio, is preparing to launch a new e-learning programme for leaders and managers in the next few weeks. The programme, called ‘Six Months to Great Management’, is a timed programme covering the 25 key competencies we believe all leaders and managers need (see our graphic below). We’ve launched a waiting list for people who want to be the first to know when the course goes live; as a thank you for your interest, anyone who joins the waiting list will benefit from special discounts and exclusive content and resources, not available to anybody else. Click here to join the waiting list.
WHY YOUR STAFF MAY NOT FEEL WELL PAID - EVEN THE VERY WELL PAID ONES
There is an interesting article in the latest New Statesman by Anoosh Chakelian and Michael Goodier, including the finding that more than half of people with above average household incomes think their incomes are, in fact, “about average”. (For context, the median household income in the UK, after direct taxes, is £31,400.) Perhaps more surprising still, 62% of households with incomes in the £60,001-£100,000 range believe their own circumstances are “normal”. It only goes to show that what you think is normal for everyone is usually just normal for you. For leaders, it’s a warning that even your well paid staff will not necessarily think of themselves as being particularly advantaged by their salary. Read the whole piece here.
THE IMPORTANCE OF ENTREPENEURSHIP EDUCATION
As mentioned above, I was pleased last week to attend the launch at the House of Lords of a brand new report from The Entrepreneurs Network and the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Entrepreneurship. If we're to meet our ambitions for growth as a country, then we need to make sure the pathways to setting up, scaling and selling a business are clear and open to everyone. I think entrepreneurship education is an important way of making that happen - especially in regions like the North West, where I live and where we need to close the gap on growth and productivity with London and the South East. The report is available by clicking here and well worth a read if you're interested in these issues.
ARE STRIKES EFFECTIVE ANYMORE?
We may be facing a summer of strikes. RMT railway workers were on strike a fortnight ago; Royal Mail workers balloted for strike action last week. Each of us will have our own opinions about whether or not the strikes are justified and I’m not seeking to make any comment about the strength of workers’ claims. But I am left asking: are strikes still effective?
Last week's railway strike had less of an impact than it would have done just five years ago, due to the widespread adoption of working from home (or the ability to work from home if necessary, even if it isn’t your default). So if you’re a business - unless it is your own workers who are striking - I suspect the ability to get around major strikes is much greater than it used to be. Was your organisation badly effected by the recent railway strikes? Or were you able to work around them? Let me know.
DOES YOUR COMPANY’S MARKETING LACK IMPACT?
All brands need an image - but do they need an impact, too? This is the thrust of a new report by advertising giant Ogilvy. Their report discusses how brands now show empathy for people and why brands should shift from being aspirational to inspirational. It’s a fascinating read that may inspire you to have some interesting discussions with those in charge of your marketing. Click here to read it.