Plan V Reality
Does this picture resonate? It most certainly does for us here at Sladen Consulting!
We like a plan. Especially one that is simple, clear, and specific. What could possibly go wrong?
More often than not things come out of the woodwork, the unforeseen happens, change occurs that is out of our control.
Sometimes we’ve got to go backwards to go forwards.
Sometimes we’re going slower, or even we could be going too fast.
There are bear traps and hazards littered throughout the path. This is the reality of the execution of a strategy.
We’ve learned to expect the unexpected, by supporting one another, talking early, being nimble, and acting at pace helps overcome these obstacles.
In addition, we always have an eye on the end goal and celebrate mini successes (and the big ones!).
These are some of the things that help us navigate the reality of executing our well thought out plans.
Key Performance Indicators
Most of our long-standing clients know our triangle of success – to achieve superior results an equal focus needs to be put on processes as well relationships/ people.
Often we find it easier to focus on the processes: it seems more tangible and easier to measure and we see a change right away after a new system, decision tree or governance structure is implemented and followed.
And more often than not the real step change is made and movements created by a closer look on the relationship side.
Are we transparent and communicate openly so that our teams feel Informed and genuinely interested?
Are we building strong bonds of trust and have confidence in our teams to involve them in shaping our vision, strategy and decisions?
Most people that we have met get truly inspired and show a sparkle in their eyes when they feel they are the ones that move the needle. Because they have the autonomy, the empowerment, the trust and the confidence to make a difference and are appreciated for their individual contributions.
What is your secret ingredient to keep people inspired?
The Sladen Butterfly Fund
What gets you up in the morning?
Here at Sladen Consulting what gets us up in the morning is a daily opportunity to contribute to saving our planet. Embracing the 2030 United Nations’ Agenda for Sustainable Development we’re focusing on supporting two of the Sustainable Development Goals: Goal #6 Clean Water and Sanitation and Goal #14 Life below water.
To act upon these two special goals, 2% of revenue from all of our contracts goes into our Butterfly Fund. This fund is used to give our services to charities that cannot otherwise afford them.
That’s us giving what we do best to charities that are doing their best for the environment.
Are you one of these cool charities across the globe that addresses these two SDG goals and would really benefit from our services? Or do you know of a charity who could?
If it’s a yes please get in touch by emailing karina@sladenconsulting.com
Let’s create a positive ripple effect together!
People, Profit, Planet...and Proud!
We are exceptionally proud to announce (and shout from the rooftops!) that Sladen Consulting is now a Certified B Corporation®, joining a global community of businesses measuring our social and environmental impact.
As an organisation we have always believed that we need to be more than just a money making enterprise. That is why we already put 2% of our turnover into the Sladen Butterfly Fund, which supports organisations who are furthering the cause of our two chosen United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (Clean Water and Sanitation, and Life below water). But this alone isn’t enough, as a business that challenges itself to help create sustainable cultures, where people thrive, we wanted to walk the walk, not just talk the talk.
To us this meant joining a community of organisations who are reinventing business by pursuing purpose as well as profit, it meant aiming to become a Certified B Corporation.
With an aim to transform the global economy into an inclusive, equitable and regenerative economic system, the B Corp™ movement puts people and the planet on an equal footing to profit. It wants to conduct business in a way that understands that we are each dependent upon another and thus responsible for each other and future generations.
At Sladen Consulting we have always put people first and Sustainability is one of our five Guiding Beliefs which sit at the core of everything we do. To be a B Corporation requires more than that. It requires us to be the change that we seek in the world and to influence others to do the same. To consider more than just profit in all our business decisions and respect not just the communities that we work within but also the planet on which we all live.
We worked long and hard to meet the exacting standards set by the B Corporation and that is why we are overjoyed to share the news that Sladen Consulting has now been certified by B Lab®, a non-profit that serves a global movement of people using business as a force for good. We have met rigorous social and environmental standards which represent our commitment to goals outside of shareholder profit. We join a thriving community of 6,279 businesses globally who have certified as B Corps.
But the work doesn’t stop here, we are continuing to strive for Net Zero, working hard to reach out, through the Butterfly Fund, to support more and more purposeful organisations, and will continue to advance the cause and raise awareness of the B Corp Movement.
We want to help to redefine what success in business means, a system that no longer concentrates wealth and power but one that benefits all.
To find out more about B Corp please visit http://www.bcorporation
Ikigai
Do you know about the concept of Ikigai?
At Sladen Consulting you hear us talking a lot about being and acting in your ‘sweet spot’. In work and in life.
Take some time and draw your own Ikigai diagram and think about these four qualities?
Which of them are overlapping in your personal diagram -see our first picture?
What sits in the centre point where all 4 overlap?
What does it mean to you if certain areas do not overlap at all with one of the others – very much like in our second example?
Is there something you can and want to consider or change?
Grab a friend or colleague and talk it through.
Ikigai is the Japanese concept that means your ‘reason for being’. ‘Iki’ in Japanese means ‘life’, and ‘gai’ describes value or worth. Your ikigai is your life purpose or your bliss. It’s what brings you joy and inspires you to get out of bed every day.
The Westernised interpretation has used it more as a method of finding your ‘dream career’. The associated Venn diagram helps to visualize this concept by showing these four main overlapping qualities: The centre point where all four circles overlap is your Ikigai.
Creating a 'zing'!
Vision is NOT just a sentence plus an emotive photo.
It’s a picture and aspiration in the ‘mind’s eye’ that is a beautiful place in the future. A place that is rich with detail, colourful and vibrant.
It tells ‘micro stories’ and shows what people are doing, how they are feeling and what they are saying.
The picture answers the questions:
Why I should go there?
What can I do to support?
What will it be like?
How does it make me feel?
It draws people in, makes their knees shake, creates an emotional feeling – we also call it ‘zing‘!
These visions take time and collective thought and healthy debate to create and this week that is exactly what we have been doing.
Get ready for the big reveal of our Sladen Consulting Vision and Strategy picture in a few months!! We are tirelessly working on it with a brilliant internal team!
The Power of Visual Thinking and Visual Working
Wow! The power of visual thinking and visual working! We have been busy delivering in Geneva this week in a wonderful sparkling coworking space called #SpacesWorksCh.
An engaging, highly interactive, thought provoking, action oriented, intense full day workshop with a senior leadership team.
We discussed, debated, and created clarity through the formats we used and the combination of facilitation and scribing.
The result – a fulfilling, efficient and impactful day and a happy client.
Work Life Balance
The simplest 3 words ‘Work Life Balance’ that mask the complexities that we call Life.
What’s your secret to balance? Is there one?
With inspiration from our friends at Corporate Rebels
Sladen Bottles on Tour
It’s a sign of summer here in Europe; our Sladen bottles are on their travels again! We love seeing where they go and to know that some of the hardworking Sladen family are taking a well-earned break.
Rest assured we are not all on holiday! If you need any support from the team please do get in touch.
Elephant in the Room
Today we are spectators in the ‘business zoo’.
Addressing the elephant in the room is not always easy and many people tend to shy away from it – AND it can completely change the energy, dynamic and quality of collaboration in a team – and by this increase team effectiveness once the controversial or critical issues have been surfaced and solutions jointly initiated.
In the Sladen family we have an inflatable elephant as our companion that we regularly use in workshops and larger events.
When did you recently have a candid conversation in your team that was revealing and what was the outcome?