Logo Design
Let’s be clear about this… without creativity, there is no innovation.And without innovation, soon enough, there would be no business. So as we launch this new initiative Skillful Collaboration, we’ve also created a brand new logo. This wasn’t an easy task. Skillful Collaboration didn’t just appear out of nowhere. It grew out of the work […]
Reflections and Reflecting
I learn a lot through reflections and reflecting. On my morning walks with Ravi, our beagle, I often pause at the lake in the park. The sunrise, the trees mirrored in the water — it’s a reminder to stop, breathe, and notice what’s there. This week I’ve been doing the same in my work life. […]
Skills and Practice
On Saturday I was coaching my son’s soccer team and getting more and more frustrated. Every time our keeper had the ball, he’d pass it out — and five seconds later, the opposition had it back. This matters in soccer for two simple reasons: Possession is everything. And possession depends on skills. We lost 3–0, […]
Just Say “No”
“No. I’m not doing that!” That was the unexpected response I received from a team member while facilitating a strategy session. I had suggested that one person present the team’s strategy while the others role-played key stakeholders. I’ve used this activity many times. It’s a powerful way to empathize with stakeholders and test ideas before […]
Skillful Feedback?
Context, Source, Message, Recipient:“I think it’s better if you look for another job.” This was the ‘feedback’ I received from my first boss, 18 months after I had landed my dream job, age 22, as a Product Design Consultant. This feedback really hurt my ego. Since the start of high school, I’d dreamt of becoming […]
Welcome AI into Skillful Collaboration
Who have you enjoyed collaborating with so far this year? Earlier this year, I reached out to a few colleagues to have conversations about Skillful Collaboration. My starting point was simple: collaboration means “to work together.” The word comes from the Latin collaborare — col (together) and labore (to work). From there, the fun began. […]
Holon
I recently came across the term holon, created by Arthur Koestler. It describes something that is simultaneously a whole and a part. I love the artwork of the holon image (from Collaboration with the Enemy by Adam Kahane, illustrated by Jeff Barnum). To me it feels dynamic and complex — a perfect metaphor for individuals […]
Skillful Decisions
The most valuable task of a real team is when they make decisions together. Teams are almost always better at this than individuals — except in very simple cases where an individual can decide quickly and move on. In fact, research has shown that in “simple” situations, groups can sometimes make worse decisions than a […]
Community and Conversation
I just spent a few days visiting friends who live in a group of farmhouses in the beautiful rolling hills of Styria (Steiermark), Austria. It’s an amazingly calm place, surrounded by wheat fields, meadows, vineyards, and forests. The noise of farm animals and tractors occasionally drifts across the hills. Otherwise, you hear birds, insects, and […]
Skillful Conversations
I’m 53 years old — and only truly learnt how to have a skillful conversation a couple of years ago. I could talk from the age of 2. I was top of my class in most subjects at school. I went to university in the UK and France to study engineering, and even did a […]