Weeknote v4.3

Week beginning 10 June

My focus for the week

Thinking about how we create great projects. We had three different events that contributed to this: the design day on citizen action, our supplier breakfast and the Dragons’ Den. The week was also marked by lots of conversations about resourcing and prioritisation. Whilst it isn’t directly related, it’s certainly part of how we make sure we’re doing the right things and have the best possible prospects for success.

I’m pleased that . . . .

. . . everything, really, this week. It’s not been easy for everyone but the range and quality of the things we did this week is really impressive. Particular kudos to:

The digital design team who were ambitious and brave and not only generated strong concepts but tested and validated them too, in a single day

Nic and all the teams involved in the recruitment event which attracted more people, a more diverse and curious group than I thought possible

Cate and the apprentices for selling the benefits of the programme to other

The Requests for Information team and the champions and senior colleagues, for improving our FOI response rate

LOTI launched to provide an enabling capacity for cross-sector collaboration

Susan, Nic, Mark, Paul and Marian for participating in the Dragons’ Den pilot to consider how we test our thinking when projects are being designed

The teams that had to work hard on problems and day-by-day requests which gives us the credibility and space to try different things

Things I’m thinking about

We need to think big and act small, but we have to do this with the whole team. How do we ensure that as we test new ways of doing things, we share the process with people to avoid developing an opinion independent of colleagues across the organisation?

I’ve been thinking about how we ‘do resourcing’ without creating a prioritisation process, adding bureaucracy or losing our ‘Yes, If’ culture. I’ve synthesised the conversations some of us have been having to frame some more thinking and experiments.

How have I performed?

Have I been an advocate for the team?

Explaining what the team has achieved and helping to influence demand for our services

I got a chance to do this in a couple of different meetings, and particularly enjoyed the show & tell for Repairs Hub. I also used the strategy show & tell to remind colleagues in our teams that they can all have an obligation to be advocates for what we’re achieving.

Have I been an advocate for residents?

Ensuring user need is at the heart of decision making

We had a useful discussion at the show & tell about the word ‘dwelling’ (rather than home) appearing on the Repairs Hub. I suspect some colleagues thought I was being picky, and I was. But I hope I didn’t labour the point.

Have I been a coach rather than a solutioniser?

I arrived in situations requiring adaptive leadership curious not prepared with an answer

I’ve tried hard to organise our thinking around resourcing rather than promoting a solution. I also worked hard in the way that I set-up a couple of conversations so that we were getting the best out of the time.

Have I been ambitious and shared my vision

I helped colleagues understand the art of the possible and explore different perspectives

Not sure. There was one occasion where I didn’t invest in being ambitious and sharing my vision. I suggested that all of the Dragons’ Den concepts could be more ambitious, without explaining how. So this might be #fail this week.

Have I been honest?

I’m honest about how I see a particular situation and I’ve provided specific, affirmative feedback.

For various, boring logistical reasons I haven’t said a proper thank you to too many people this week. I did, though, spend time preparing detailed feedback in two scenarios. If I combined both, I’d have put in a good performance.

Focused

I’ve set myself a goal and tried as hard as possible to meet it

I was lucky that the resourcing conversations were on the same theme as my focus for the week, or it’d have been an epicfail. As it was, I got away with it.

System-aware

I’ve been conscious that our actions will have an impact on a wider system and I’ve helped others understand a situation from broader perspectives.

I was pleased at the way we worked with colleagues through Dragons’ Den (but not with project sponsors, which was my mistake).

Generous in the community

Being generous to the community by sharing what we’re learning but not advocating for one approach above another.

This goal encouraged me to summon the energy to do a couple of things that I’d have otherwise swerved but it was a tangential part of my week.

Related posts:

Looking at Student Mental Health Through Stasis

With college mental health issues continuously increasing, it’s causing problems for students with their academics, social lives, and overall wellbeing. Students seem to face a lot more challenges… Read more

3 tips on how to convince Fintechs banks of their solution

The goal of many Fintechs is the cooperation with a bank. And more and more financial institutions are open to such cooperation in order to increase their innovative strength. For a successful start… Read more

Not Your Poster Child

The subject of gender has dominated the zeitgeist over the past few years, in large part due to the spectrum of opinions it reveals. Men, women, cisgender, transgender, nonbinary, gender… Read more