Posts from Awesome Folks #67

A weekly round up of blog posts I've been reading

Author

Emily Webber
June 30, 2023

Hello folks,

I’ll keep it very brief as I have a busy morning.

This week has mostly about getting stuff printed or designing stuff to be printed, T-shirts, various stickers, books and posters.

In this highly digital world, there is still something nice about a physical object - just take a look at the laptops many of us love to cover in stickers that show our interests. Something worth remembering if you want people to feel a part of something.

Anway, on to the links, enjoy this week’s selection and Happy Friday,

Emily

People and Culture

Half of women in tech drop out by the age of 35

Tech diversity champions Code First Girls have teamed up with Tech Talent Charter (TTC), a government-supported group of over 775 leading UK businesses and organisations, to identify and provide recommendations to address the UK’s tech talent shortage and diversity crisis.

By Business Matters

bmmagazine.co.uk/in-business/half-of-women-in-tech-drop-out-by-the-age-of-35

Stop using the phrase 'soft skills,' says millionaire bestselling author—here's what to do instead

Calling traits like emotional intelligence and work ethic "soft skills" implies they're optional in the workplace — and they're not, says author Seth Godin.

By Rebecca Picciotto

www.cnbc.com/2023/06/23/millionaire-author-seth-godin-stop-using-the-phrase-soft-skills.html

Community = relationships

Easy to forget. And yet the essence of all community weaving work.

By Fabian Pfortmüller

medium.com/together-institute/community-relationships-fa23210497ad

To Be A Better Ally, Focus On Everyday Actions

Valuable insights from experienced people leader, consultant and author, Karen Catlin, on how to create more inclusive workplaces.

By Finn Bartram

peoplemanagingpeople.com/interviews/karen-catlin-inclusive-workplaces

Organisations and Systems

To make better services, make better service organisations

Modern design and product development processes weren’t designed to scale. Processes design for scale and complexity weren’t designed to learn what actually works before it’s ‘too late’.

By Kate Tarling

www.linkedin.com/pulse/make-better-services-service-organisations-kate-tarling

PD Sessions: the Service Organisation

Last Wednesday Public Digital hosted its first PD Sessions event presented by Kate Tarling with PD’s Lara Sampson and Tom Loosemore. The event was the first in a series which aims to broaden our conversation about digital and organisations beyond our clients and in doing so generate a community of practice.

By Christine Draper

public.digital/2023/06/27/pd-sessions-the-service-organisation

Stories of systems

What is the role of stories in systems practice?

By Houda Boulahbel

medium.com/systems-thinking-made-simple/stories-of-systems-f38a11a18aae

How to Find the Time to Connect with Colleagues When You’re Very, Very Busy

A consequence of our often never-ending to-do lists at work is the loss of camaraderie among coworkers. While productivity is important, the balance between task completion and taking the time to connect with your team is essential in avoiding burnout and making work more enjoyable.

By Elizabeth Grace Saunders

hbr.org/2023/06/how-to-find-the-time-to-connect-with-colleagues-when-youre-very-very-busy

The Four-Day Workweek: How to Make It Work in Your Organization

Andrew Barnes, a presenter at MIT SMR’s Work/23 symposium, answers questions about reducing the length of the workweek.

By Andrew Barnes

sloanreview.mit.edu/article/the-four-day-workweek-how-to-make-it-work-in-your-organization

Outcomes and Objectives

The Science of Strategy

I told people on LinkedIn I’d read ‘Good Strategy Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why it Matters’ by Richard Rumelt. It got a surprisingly large reaction. I particularly enjoyed the challenge laid-down in one comment: ‘what’s the short version?’. Here it is:

By Scott Colfer

scottcolfer.com/2023/06/25/the-science-of-strategy-good-strategy-bad-strategy.html

Other Things

How to make hard decisions: even/over statements | Lara Hogan

We face decisions every single day, big and small. Sometimes those decisions have tradeoffs that feel impossible to decide between, which naturally will feel particularly hard to settle on.

By Lara Hogan

larahogan.me/blog/even-over-statements