Doing The Opposite: Business Disruptors podcast

34:18

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Simon Alexander Ong . Simon is an international Keynote Speaker, Bestselling Author of Energize and Award Winning Life Coach. Through his coaching Simon helps leaders, entrepreneurs, organisations and celebrities to transcend perceived limitations and experience extraordinary transformations through the power of insight, perspective and energy management. Simon shares his career journey, candidly explaining that he began by running someone else’s race. He started a career in finance as that felt like what society expected him to do. Alongside his job he discovered he had a natural passion for helping people in their day-to-day lives; a passion which ultimately led him to becoming a professional coach. His success led to TV work and the publication of his book. Simon reflects that ‘when you pursue the path that lights you up, that brings you joy you begin to open opportunities that weren't there before .’ Simon argues that energy management, not time management, is the key to productivity, and that there are four dimensions of energy: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Mental energy is about your mindset, emotional energy is about how you relate to yourself and others, and spiritual energy is about meaning and purpose. Simon explains that if you are energy rich, even if you are time poor, you are going to get far more done in those hours and days than others might in months or years. Energy gives you the momentum to be truly productive. Simon discusses the impact of surrounding yourself with positive energy and inspiration: ‘the fastest way to make meaningful progress in any area of your life is literally to design an environment around you that makes it impossible not to succeed ’. He goes on to describe how you can achieve this and enhance your workflow. Simon shared the story of the Energise cocktail, created at the Connaught Hotel in Mayfair to compliment his book. You can see the cocktail being mixed here . Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
David Allison – Demographics are Nonsense! Values are Key in Properly Understanding People 35:28

há 51 weeks35:28

35:28

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Human Values Expert David Allison . David is focused on changing how we understand ourselves, the people around us, and those we hope to engage with in our work. As the founder of the Valuegraphics Project – the first global inventory of core human values – he has transformed human values into measurable data and created an entirely new type of human-centric insights. To what extent does your business or organisation rely on profiling your customer based on demographics? Are demographics an effective way of grouping people, or are factors such as age, race, gender etc broadly irrelevant when it comes to spending choices? David Allison discusses the limitations of demographic targeting and the importance of understanding and leveraging values in business and personal life. David shares his journey from working in an ad agency to founding the Valuegraphics Project, which profiles target audiences based on core human values. David emphasises that values are the driving force behind decision-making and that demographics are an ineffective way to understand people. Data can be incredibly powerful when it comes to deciding upon values. Values drive our every day decision making – if your business is struggling with staff retention, for example, the data could help you understand why. It’s very likely that your organisation’s values are not closely aligned with those of the staff who are choosing to leave. David also makes the case that an organisation can’t have values. “The conversation needs to be shifted away from pretending that this inanimate legal entity called a corporation can somehow have values. It can't” , David says. “It can have a set of behaviours that we all adhere to”. David’s book ‘The Death of Demographics’ is available now. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Matt Alder – Levelling up your recruitment practices to benefit both the organisation and the candidates 48:16

há 1 year48:16

48:16

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Matt Alder . Matt is a podcaster, author, speaker and consultant focusing on innovation and technology in HR and Talent Acquisition. He is the host of Recruiting Future , one of the world's most popular talent acquisition podcasts, and over the last 20 years has built a reputation as a global thought leader, working with employers to optimise their talent technology strategies. Matt explains how he discovered his passion for recruitment, and how he strives to utilise new technologies to make the recruitment process better for everyone – both businesses and candidates. Matt shares his wisdom and expertise on the subject of recruitment, talent acquisition and retention. How can businesses find and keep the best people in order to grow? Matt and Jeff discuss the bad practice in the recruitment industry, from scattergun approaches to repeatedly replacing a single candidate. Matt explains how have these practices have become prevalent and how is the industry changing. Matt offers a new approach when it comes to approaching recruitment. Matt suggests you shouldn’t hire a candidate purely on the basis of their skills or past experience, but also their ability to learn. “The shelf life of some technical skills is very short. So, if you're employing someone for the long term, it's their ability to fit in the context of that business, but also their ability to learn new skills and then grow within that business.” Furthermore, Matt highlights the importance of hiring people whose values align with that of the company. Matt gives examples of businesses who have taken revolutionary approaches to hiring. Timpsons, for example, hired people straight out of prison to give them an opportunity, whilst also filling positions in frontline retail which are notoriously hard to recruit for. It was a win-win, and studies have shown that people employed through an open-hiring program were at least as good as the people who went through a process filtering by skills or experience. Matt and Jeff also discuss retention – how business can better retain talent. One key area here is giving staff autonomy and flexibility when it comes to completing their tasks. Matt explains that many concepts surrounding our perception of work – such as the five day week – are old concepts that no longer apply. “We need a new operating system for work because we're working off something that may not be relevant for the world we now live in.” Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Richard Medcalf – How to combine opportunity, inspiration and empathy into a positive lasting legacy 44:15

há 1 year44:15

44:15

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Richard Medcalf , Founder and CEO of Xquadrant, which works to help elite leaders scale and create exponentially greater impact, enabling them to make a positive dent in the world without anxiety and frustration. Richard has advised business owners and C-level execs for over 25 years. Richard is all about strategy in business; helping leaders to achieve personally, professionally and for a greater good, ultimately leaving a lasting positive legacy. “If we have the opportunities, the resources, the skills, the ambition, the energy, - let's go and make a difference. You only live life once” Richard says. Richard is a firm believer that we should make the most of any opportunities we are given – not everyone will receive equal opportunity so you should make the most of whatever may arise. He tells the story of how he cared for his disabled sister, and how she became an inspiration and the motivation for him to achieve professionally. Richard discusses the three games of leadership: playing not to lose, playing to win, and playing to play. He highlights the need for leaders to be strategic and magnetic, inspiring their teams and creating a culture of collaboration. Medcalf also emphasises the importance of seeking feedback and continuously improving as a leader. He encourages leaders to do the opposite and challenge the status quo to drive positive change. Jeff and Richard discuss inspiration; how you can inspire your team and how you can become inspired yourself. You need to understand what moves YOU in order to be able to move others. Without being truly inspired yourself, you won’t be able to inspire your team. Richard’s book ‘Making TIME for Strategy’ is out now. You can also listen to Richard’s podcast ‘The Impact Multiplier CEO’. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Brendan McGurgan – Transforming and Scaling Businesses through Visionary Leadership 50:04

há 1 year50:04

50:04

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Executive Coach Brendan McGurgan . Brendan spent 16 years as Group MD of CDE where he steered the business through the financial crisis of 2008 and scaled the business at the same time. In 2020, co-founded Simple Scaling with the sole purpose of inspiring and enabling millions of ambitious leaders to scale with purpose. Brendan reflects on the successes he enjoyed at CDE and how they inspired the next chapter in his career – helping SMEs to scale. Brendan admits ‘I had no CEO experience. You don't go to CEO scaling school. Scaling actually wasn't even a thing back then. It wasn't in our business lexicon. But we were just innately wired to grow. ’ Brendan talks through the importance of understanding cashflow. ‘Sales is vanity, profit is sanity and cash is reality’ . Brendan makes the case that without understanding cash, it’s impossible for a business to effectively scale. He also shares an example of a business he was consulting, that were sceptical of him when he tried to extend the overdraft. He quickly dug the company out of its overdraft and the financial progress meant they then took Brendan seriously when he attempted to address other areas, such as purpose and vision. Jeff and Brendan discuss the misconceptions around service cost and remuneration; for example when a business may charge £40/hour for a worker who is paid £15/hour. That worker can become disillusioned but taking them through the cost journey and explaining the overheads can enhance their understanding and reduce anxiety or frustration that may come from that. You can buy Brendan’s book ‘Simple Scaling’ now, and listen to the ScaleX Insider Podcast . Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Morra Aarons-Mele – Achieving maximum performance by prioritising positive mental health 45:11

há 1 year45:11

45:11

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Morra Aarons-Mele , who is a speaker, entrepreneur, author and podcaster who prides herself on helping people to talk about hard things. Morra knows that taking your mental health seriously is a leadership strength. She hosts ‘The Anxious Achiever Podcast ’ and founded the award-winning social impact agency Women Online and created its database of female influencers, the Mission List. Morra is driven by the idea that people can be happier at work. She reflects on her career, from early dotcom businesses to US Politics, and the mental health struggles she faced along the way – even when mental health was not something that was openly discussed. She now works to help people better understand themselves so they can work in a way that better suits their temperament, their personality, and their character. Morra explains than managing expectations is a crucial part of managing your mental health. ‘We're driven by invisible expectations that stress us out and often make us really anxious. We don't understand other people's expectations of us. What is the goal here?!’ . Clearly defined, realistic expectations are essential in ensuring positive mental health. Morra highlights the factors that motivate employees most; studies show that autonomy and agency are more important to most workers than a pay raise. Also, ensure you utilise your staff effectively by placing them doing what they love. People will naturally be more productive and thrive in an environment where they can excel. Morra is also inspired by the mantra of Cali Yost that work/life balance is a fiction, instead you need to find your work/life fit! Make work work for you, whatever that may look like. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Ali Khan – How to take ownership of your own health 39:38

há 1 year39:38

39:38

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Ali Khan , Founder & CEO at SHAPE Global . SHAPE is the System for Health, Attendance, Productivity and Engagement. SHAPE help companies improve their productivity through their people by providing the instruments which assesses the need, and the strategies to optimise every employee’s desire and ability to turn up and perform. Ali’s career began as a wireless technology engineer before pivoting into healthcare, and has now made it his mission to change the way we approach healthcare. What if you could pre-emptively work towards preventing illness, stopping people from becoming ill rather than treating them once they are ill? How can you take ownership of your own health, rather than relying on medical experts? Education is the key, Ali says. ‘Taking control of your health starts from actually understanding it first’. Ali highlights five key areas where you can manage your own health: sleep, food, drink, stress, and exercise. If you can manage all of those – physically and mentally – you will live a healthy lifestyle, and it starts with education. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Doug D Gordon – From Near-death to a New Direction in Empathetic Leadership 45:09

há 1 year45:09

45:09

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Doug D Gordon , CEO of D&S Performance Optimisation - a training, consulting and coaching company. He speaks internationally on stage and has a radio show on Dublin City FM called Inspirational People. Doug’s story is one of transformation from a life marred by stress-induced health issues to becoming a beacon of hope and resilience. Doug explains how he was a board director at Fidelity, one of the largest investment fund managers in Europe, during the 2008 financial crash. The resulting stress, partly as a result of having to lay off so many workers, impacted heavily on Doug’s health ultimately leading to a near death experience. Doug talks about the relationship between consciousness and success, where consciousness comprises emotional intelligence, self-awareness, situational awareness, people awareness, social skills and effective communication. He also emphasises the need to understand your teams and the relationships therein; “I always break the ‘relationship’ word down into ‘relay’ in terms of conscious communication, your ‘tions’, your expectations, your intentions, your motivations, then make sure that everybody's on the ‘ship’ traveling in the right direction” . Doug and Jeff discuss how to approach difficult conversations with your team, and how to get the most out of them. Doug highlights that to be a good leader, you need to be a good listener. Often the most intelligent person in the room, is the person who listens the most! They also discuss purpose – learn how to discover yours by working to enhance the lives of others, through whatever your organisation offers. Doug’s book ‘Charge yourself up for success: Energizing your life, work and relationships’ is available now. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Mark A. Mears – The LEAF Model: Leadership, Engagement, Accountability and Fulfilment 54:12

há 1 year54:12

54:12

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Mark A. Mears , Chief Growth Officer for LEAF Growth Ventures- a consulting firm inspiring individuals, teams, and organisations to find purpose in fulfilling their true growth potential while making a positive, lasting difference in the world. Mark is a best-selling author, keynote speaker, consultant, and visionary business leader. Mark tells the story of how he turned around the fortunes of half-a-billion-dollar casual dining restaurant chain, making it successful and leading it through an acquisition, only to be immediately let go. Shortly after this setback he spotted a leaf on a previously barren fig tree; a symbol of his rebirth. He also noticed that LEAF could be an acronym for his strategy in business: Leadership, Engagement and Accountability. But Mark admits in his previous role he was missing the ‘F’: Fulfilment. From there, Mark has been on a journey to help organisations create a fulfilling culture for their teams. How do we foster a sense of belonging and love within a team? Mark emphasises the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion but he says, these are not enough. Safety, trust and acceptance are crucial for individuals to perform at their best. Mark teaches us how to create a trustful and unified community by being vulnerable and displaying love. Mark also reveals how having a shared sense of purpose can create a strong and productive team. Mark also stresses the importance of language when it comes to building inclusive teams. Imagine how empowered you would feel being a ‘team member’ as opposed to an ‘employee’ or a ‘worker’. Wouldn’t you rather have a ‘leader’ than a ‘boss’? In this episode, Mark mentions the free self-assessment that you can take online to help understand you can enhance your personal and professional growth as an individual and as a part of a team or organisation. You can take the self-assessment here . Mark has just released his new book - The Purposeful Growth Revolution: 4 Ways to Grow from Leader to Legacy Builder . Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
A panel discussion - Strengths and Strategies for Neurodiverse Workforces 48:50

há 1 year48:50

48:50

Imagine working in an environment where your neurodiversity is not only recognised, but celebrated. That's the world we're envisioning in this special panel episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, where Jeff is joined by three experts in the field of neurodiversity: Dr Jasmine Virhia is a Postdoctoral Researcher in Behavioural Science at The Inclusion Initiative , a research centre at The London School of Economics and Political Science. Angela Pretner-Smith is MD of This is Milk and Founder of Neve Learning; a platform helps training providers and large organisations manage and deliver professional learning in a way that includes neurodiversity and is aligned with a future-focused education framework. Angela identifies as autistic and has dyspraxia. Dan Maudsley is Senior Producer at the BBC who was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult and writes about his challenges as a neurodiverse employee. Our panellists explore what neurodiversity may look like in the workplace; how it may present itself and how you, as a leader, can embrace the skills and opportunities that come with it. Jasmine highlights the benefits that neurodivergent staff can bring to your team such as the ability to hyper-focus, or the ability to identify creative solutions to business problems that someone else may not necessarily come up with. Dan reveals the struggles he faced as an adult before his diagnosis and how the discovery of his ADHD changed his life at work and at home. “It was a real moment of clarity. I was suddenly able to do things I never, ever, thought I would be able to do. Angela takes us through the variety of ways in which all people (not just neurodivergent people) learn. What accommodations can we make to maximise people’s ability to learn and how can we reduce stress that some may feel in trying to learn? The traditional recruitment process for many workplaces doesn’t necessarily cater to neurodiverse applicants; interviews can cause stress and are often not an effective way of determining how well a neurodivergent person might perform in the job role. Jasmine offers some fantastic advice about how we could tweak the process to be more inclusive. “If you have an understanding of how their autism manifests for them in the workplace, you'll have a better idea of how you can really assess their skills in an equitable way, rather than judging them against other candidates or a skill set that actually isn't really measuring what they need to do”. A common thread that runs through the advice from all our panellists is that adapting workplace culture to support neurodivergent people will benefit everybody. “These people that are underrepresented will perform to a level where they can excel; they're more likely to collaborate, they're more likely to communicate and they're more likely to show up with authenticity”. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Dr Joan Fallon - Reshaping our understanding of Autism 42:07

há 1 year42:07

42:07

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Dr. Joan Fallon , Founder and CEO of Curemark, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for the treatment of neurological and other disorders. Joan is considered a visionary scientist who has dedicated her life’s work to championing the health and wellbeing of children. Her recent book Goodbye, Status Quo, equips readers with the tools to be agents of change: as entrepreneurs, leaders, and individuals. Dr Joan has been disrupting in her field her entire life. Born out of curiosity, she describes disruption as discovering ‘seams’ or ‘faults’ in our continuum; a desire to understand and question leads to disruption. This curiosity and tenacity to discover an answer has been Joan’s key driver throughout her research into Autism. “When we finally got to a place where I thought, ‘oh this could be a why’, then I had to go and test it and figure out whether that was right or not.” Dr Joan reveals the challenges she faced in trying to research and treat autism; how she managed to stay the course despite obstacles and pushbacks to become a trailblazer in medical innovation. She also reveals how she challenged the status quo in healthcare spending, and how often societal biases can influence healthcare priorities. Dr Joan’s book Goodbye, Status Quo: Reimagining the Landscape of Innovation’ is out now. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Dr Mark Goulston - Transforming Pain into HOPE (healing, optimism, perspective, and excitement) 47:33

há 1 year47:33

47:33

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Dr Mark Goulston , former UCLA Professor of Psychiatry, a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and a former FBI and police hostage negotiation trainer. Mark is the inventor of of ‘Surgical Empathy’, an approach that enabled him during his psychiatric career to reach highly depressed and suicidal people during which time none of them died by suicide. Dr Mark outlines the process involved in ‘Deep Coaching’; a method for people who have high amounts of potential, but something's holding them back. The process involves revisiting an extremely traumatic experience and using that to discover a breakthrough – changing your perspective on life with a dose of ‘healing optimism’. Mark also reflects on a campaign he started during the pandemic: #WMYST – What Made You Smile Today? Next time you have an interaction with someone, ask them what the highlight of their day has been. That interaction alone will make them smile and feel seen. Hear Dr Mark’s incredible stories about his time as a death and dying specialist, doing house calls to dying patients and helping them to make peace with their lives. The strategies he used led to some very powerful outcomes; strategies that can be applied to all of our lives. Jeff and Mark also consider the importance of healthy conflict and perceiving conflict as a powerful force for good. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Garry Ridge - Creating an Empowering Company Culture 35:30

há 1 year35:30

35:30

In this episode of Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors, Jeff Dewing speaks to Garry Ridge . Garry is a founder, board member, advisor, and professor with over 35 years of experience in leading, growing, and transforming global businesses and brands. Garry is best known as Chairman Emeritus of WD-40 Company, one of the world's most trusted and recognised brands. Garry takes us through his career journey at WD-40, from working in distribution to launching the Australian arm using a fax machine under his bed! Garry became Global CEO in 1994 and led the business for 25 years, growing the company six times in revenue and increasing the market cap from about 300 million to 2.5 billion. Garry’s proudest achievement though is that 98% of people at WD-40 companies said they loved working at the company. With clear purpose, values, and strategy, Gary emphasises the importance of looking after your people, especially in times of crisis like the Covid-19 pandemic. Discover how to replace fear with learning moments and create a safe, supportive environment that fosters growth and success. Gary's journey with WD-40 showcases the potential that lies in the power of people and culture. Garry introduces us to a character he created – Al, or Alice the soul-sucking CEO. Garry uses this character in keynotes to highlight the negative character traits in many managers. Everyone knows a boss like Al or Alice, but you have to avoid these behaviours in order to get the most from your team. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Watch the podcast on YouTube Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Doing the Opposite: Business Disruptors - The Best of Season 3 6:11

há 2 years6:11

6:11

SEASON FOUR IS COMING VERY SOON In the mean time, here's a little taster of some of the fabulous guests and insightful discussion with business leaders and game changers from throughout Season 3. Featuring: Sue Fennessey - Founder and CEO of WeAre8 Nazir Afzal - Chancellor of the University of Manchester, and former Chief Crown Prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service Simone Roche MBE - Founder of Northern Power Women Sheila Callaham - Co-founder, Executive Director, and Board Chair for Age Equity Alliance Dr. Vikas Shah - Entrepreneur, investor & philanthropist John Mullins - Associate Professor of Management Practice in Marketing and Entrepreneurship at London Business School Season 4 will be launching very soon, so follow for free so you never miss an episode. Hosted by Jeff Dewing Discover Cloudfm Group Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn…

1
Sue Fennessey – where there’s darkness, let the sunshine in! 36:30

há 2 years36:30