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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
30 January 2019
Updated: 23 October 2020
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Blog by Louise Drake, Director of Programmes and Innovation at Clore Social Leadership
How often do you find yourself saying these things? Or secretly thinking this to yourself and feeling guilty that you haven’t achieved what you set out to achieve? Or taking work home that you never got a chance to do during the ‘working’ day?
If you say these things more often than you’d like, read on.
At Clore Social Leadership, our Leadership Development Framework starts like all great leadership frameworks, requiring leaders to learn more about themselves (warts and all) before moving on to consider the other complexities involved in leading people and organisations. ‘Know Yourself, Be Yourself, Look After Yourself’ is where we start, requiring a holistic view of the ‘leader’ as a whole person. Invariably, productivity, time management and work life balance are a few topics which arise in the ‘look after yourself’ element.
‘Productivity’ is a hot topic in many spheres, not least in understanding why the UK lags behind many other nations. Whole government departments are trying to understand the UK productivity gap and how to close it. So it is no surprise that on an individual and organisational level, it is something worth spending time reviewing. In my opinion, leaders should spend time considering their own personal productivity and that of their organisation, because it is fundamental to healthy, thriving individuals and organisations doing their best work, something everyone working for social change should aim to achieve.
As part of the programmes at Clore Social, we advise Graham Allcott’s Productivity Ninja in our top list of books you should read. This month, I have embarked on a deep dive review of ‘productivity’, attending workshops with Graham and Bat-Hen G, both inspiring individuals hacking their way to productivity. I share my key learnings and top tips below and hope it gives anyone feeling overwhelmed a sense that there are solutions, and at least some inspiration for those of you reading who may already be on the productivity journey.
1. It’s about attention, not about time. We live in an age where some of the brightest minds in Silicon Valley are working on how best to grab every inch of attention from you, mostly via your phone. Manage your attention, not your time. For more on this concept, read this.
2. Once you have conquered your attention, the next thing to realise is your attention across a 24 hour period is not equal. We are humans after all and not computers, so we have rhythms and we are impacted by our biology more than we would like to believe. Jump out of bed and love the morning? Get your best ideas at 1am? Lucky larks, the working world is built for you. Night owls, figure out the system that works for you. Watch Daniel Pink talk about time here.
3. Agility. Be OK with being agile, and by that I mean, being OK with changing your own priorities and, as a leader, those of your organisation. Tech companies have been working in an agile way for a long time and we’re all starting to catch-on. It’s still hard, if you make a ‘to-do’ list of things or goals for the day, giving them up can on some level feel a bit like failure. It’s not. We live in a fast paced work. In Bat-Hen G said in her session ‘tech start-ups are used to changing their priorities on a day by day if not hour by hour basis. You may have to review your priorities a couple of times a day, in such a fast paced environment’. I’d argue that in some social change organisations that is also the case, especially for those on the frontline. You can’t know what the future will bring and it’s OK to change your task priorities on a daily basis. Note of caution - be sure to have a structure to your agility, and communication is key here for leaders if you don’t want to leave your teams in a spin. Examples of agile working practices can be found here. An interesting review of agile working can be found here.
4. Create a second-brain system. Your brain is not built for memory - allow it to do its best work, which includes creative thinking and problem solving (the stuff you are employed for and I expect you really enjoy). Creating a ‘second-brain’ has many benefits but one I’d like to pick out for leaders is the concept of being ‘Response-able’, not responsible. Of course, as leaders you have responsibility, however it is your job to be Response-able. Leadership happens in times of crisis and opportunity. You should have a system and a second brain that allows you to know what is happening and needs to be done, so if there’s an opportunity or crisis you need to deal with, you can. You have the capacity and a second brain that you can turn to and delegate the appropriate tasks and roles. Especially in moments of crisis, if you try and remember all the other things that need to be done, you won’t. The second brain system will be your best friend in so many ways and will allow you the achieve top tip 3, but allowing you to be comfortable with being more agile. Read more about second brain here.
5. Essentialism. ‘Do the right things, not everything’. This top tip may sound like it is contradicting the two above, but stay with me. If you know the broader mission and vision you want to achieve, a question to consider personally and organisationally is ‘what is my/our highest point of contribution?’. By keeping this in mind, you can learn to say no to things that do not help you achieve your mission and vision at your highest point of contribution. You can be more agile in the day to day as you can be sure you know where you are headed without knowing exactly how you will get there. When working to achieve change, saying no can be the hardest word, but for your personal and organisational impact it should be in your top words as a leader. Read the 4 minute book summary of Essentialism.
I could go on, but in my attempt to be more ‘healthily’ productive I’ll stop now.
A lot of what we look at in leadership development is changing behaviours and habits, and some of these are heavily ingrained. Try a few of these out and if you struggle at first, try, try and try again. You won’t necessarily become a productivity ninja or time hacker overnight, but having a go at a few of the top tips may well start you on your path to feeling less overwhelmed and more productive.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
26 August 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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Do you run a charity or social enterprise? Are you a senior manager in the social sector wishing to take your next step as a leader? If so, and you are also committed to creating lasting social change, you should consider applying to our 2017 Fellowship programme.
The aim of our leadership programme is to find the next generation of leaders who have an appetite to develop their skills and bring back their learnings to their organisations to ultimately transform the wider community. We recognise that undertaking our 12-month programme requires a big commitment, so potential applicants need to understand how it will be of benefit to them, both personally and professionally.
Building networks
All of our 125 Fellows have told us that building their professional networks is one of the most important benefits of the programme. Our Fellows are from a mixture of organisations, so being on the programme gives people the opportunity to mix with peers who have a range of backgrounds and expertise, where they can gain operational insights, share contacts and potentially collaborate on new initiatives. This not only opens up networks for Fellows in their localities, but in the rest of the UK too.
Ideas sharing
Fellows are given the opportunity to share, debate and develop ideas. When attending programme residentials participants benefit from discussing some of the new innovations that are sweeping the sector, such as new technology and social investment. Despite huge advances, the uptake of new technology is still relatively low in the sector yet we’ve seen Fellows collaborating on projects in this technical space, often bringing these ideas to their respective organisations.
Get to know yourself a little bit better, warts and all.
We ask applicants to be as honest as they can when they complete their application forms. We want them to be open about the parts of themselves they are proud of and the aspects they feel might need further development. Without exception, all Fellows have told us that they recognise their self-awareness has dramatically grown as a result of being on the programme, and this in turn benefits them in the workplace and in their personal lives. This focus on self-awareness is enhanced by various aspects of the programme that asks Fellows to look at their working styles and those of their colleagues.
Broaden your skillset
The demands on today’s social leaders are complex and varied, with individuals required to not only run their organisations successfully, but to have multi-disciplined skills at their fingertips. Social leaders need to understand areas like governance, fundraising regulation and change management, in addition to mastering the more practical skills that come with running a charity or social enterprise. The programme gives Fellows the space to reflect on their skills and understand the areas they need to develop; they receive coaching and training to fill their skills gaps.
Experiential learning
Throughout the programme everyone has numerous opportunities to practically implement their new learnings, both with their cohort of Fellows and within their organisations. During the application process we ask people to demonstrate the social change they would like to make as a result of their time on the Fellowship, and to illustrate how they will make this a reality in their organisations. This gives participants a clear aim for their Fellowship, and hopefully as leaders once they finish the programme.
Applications to the programme are open until midday 5 September 2016, visit here to learn more and apply.
This blog from Shaks Ghosh originally appeared on Third Force News.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
19 August 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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It is a testing time at the moment for charity leaders in the UK - a ‘perfect storm’ of difficult events are bubbling up around them. With an uncertain political and economic climate, the landscape is changing for charities. There is more public scrutiny than ever, and more people needing their services; all of this adds to the challenge of their roles.
Leaders need to find ways to be able to communicate their message effectively, campaign hard, collaborate with others, inspire teams and win funds. For that, they need to grow their influence. What do I mean by influence? You can find a longer explanation here. Without having enough influence, they can’t have the impact that they want and their cause desperately deserves.
In my work as The Influence Expert, I regularly see both good and bad examples of charity leadership when it comes to influence. Good examples include things like being authentic so that beneficiaries, volunteers and funders really have the chance to know what the people at the top of a charity stand for. Bad examples include things like (to my mind) outdated ideas such as mistaking having a personal brand with ‘bragging’, when really it is simply about being clear about the things you stand for and are known for so that you have a chance to further your cause.
In this speech I gave at an international charity conference, I outline some of the ways that people working for charities can build their influence. As a former charity chief executive, I know that time is precious, but making a start to improve the amount of influence that you have needn’t take long. My LEAPS Model, mentioned in the video, gives 5 broad areas to focus on and improve:
L- Likeability - How do you come across to other people? How do you relate to them and empathize with them?
E- Expertise - What are you good at? What should you specialise in? Do others recognize you as an expert?
A- Authenticity - Do you come across as a genuine person? Do you walk the talk?
P- Personal Brand - Do you have a clearly defined and strong personal brand and do you know how to reinforce it both offline and online? Using online platforms, such as LinkedIn, effectively, is important.
S- Synthesis - Are you bringing all the other elements together and do you have a consistent plan to grow your influence over time?
Growing your influence is a marathon not a sprint. Over time though, it can transform the ability of a leader to make an impact on the cause that their charity is fighting for. Of course growing influence is not just about leaders at the very top: everyone in the organisation should be supported to grow their influence so they can be more effective in their roles and progress in their own professional lives.
Alex Swallow is The Influence Expert, helping you grow your influence to increase your impact. He is also the Founder of Young Charity Trustees and of the interview series, Social Good Six and has a background in the charity sector, including as Chief Executive of the Small Charities Coalition.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
08 August 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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Heather Black is Managing Director at Economic Change CIC a management solutions social enterprise.
As the leader within a non-profit it’s important to reflect and ask yourself the following questions:
- Are you effectively communicating with your different stakeholders to harness their energy, enthusiasm and engagement?
- Do you need to improve engagement with your stakeholders to help increase referrals, funds and resources?
- Do you have a strategy in place to communicate regularly with your different audiences e.g. your beneficiaries, funders, donors, volunteers, trustees, partners, influencers?
On a daily basis I help leaders develop stronger and more intuitive relationships with their community of stakeholders, through reviewing ways in which they can communicate, interact and involve them in the organisation’s success.
I achieve this by helping them segment their stakeholders, identify the messages they want to send or hear from each stakeholder group, and finally determine the best methods or tools to engage with them. Once this is decided, I work with the leader to embed the use of a good Client Relationship Management Systems (CRM) with integrated e-marketing tools to execute the strategy.
Below I have summarised five approaches that may be useful to your own organisation:
- Customer support management - Introducing a formal way to track, catagorise and analyse customer enquiries helps to identify if there are common issues, concerns or questions arising amongst your stakeholders. Introducing an online customer support form or call handling service with a clear case management process and/or a self-help Q&A forum can help improve and speed up standard communications. This also provides a way for customers queries to be heard, logged and monitored in a quality assured way, flagging areas to improve or develop for the organisation.
- Targeted e-communications – When I work with clients on a new CRM this is often is a catalyst for them to organise, update, cleanse and re-categorise their contacts into target audiences. This enables them to send out targeted and focused emails and newsletters to certain audiences via integrated e-marketing tools.
- Social media engagement – Engaging with stakeholders via social media is becoming increasingly important and as a result, my customers are now asking to track social media handles for both contacts and organisations within their CRM, and recording if they have completed the action to find and follow them.
- A community discussion forum – Introducing a community platform can enable different groups of stakeholders to share common interests, discuss ideas, thoughts and issues together. I have deployed community platforms for staff, volunteers, members, beneficiaries and learners to interact together.
- Ideas exchange – You could establish an online ideas voting platform, which lets stakeholders post ideas, vote on ideas and comment on them. This can support co-design and development of new solutions that are customer led.
If you are interested in streamlining your communication practices with stakeholders and implementing a good CRM using Salesforce with integrated tools for your organisation, contact Heather at heather@economicchange.co.uk for a free consultation.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
20 July 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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Caroline Mason CBE is Chief Executive at the Esmée Fairbarin Foundation. The Foundation funds our gender equality Fellowship on our 2017 Fellowship programme.
At Esmée we talk a lot about the importance of key people. As one of the largest independent funders in the UK, we place our trust and our money in the hands of some of the most brilliant, entrepreneurial and effective leaders in the social sector.
We have also supported organisations where the actions, and sudden departures, of leaders have failed organisations and their beneficiaries. So you might want to know from me, what do I think an effective leader looks like?
I've seen great leaders who have spotted something they want to change, and built up organisations from scratch to make that change happen for the most disadvantaged people in our society. I've met brilliant people who have moved over from the private or public sector, determined to use what they’ve learned there to help the charitable sector avoid the same mistakes. I've worked with excellent people with a long history of working for non-profits, who have worked their way up and have a huge knowledge of what works in our sectors. And I've met inspirational leaders who have themselves experienced hardship or prejudice, and set out to change the lives of people like them.
All these leaders can be effective - they can make a difference for their beneficiaries, inspire their staff and impress trustees. But they can also make the same mistake - which is to hold too much of the power and influence, too much of what makes their organisation great, within themselves.
Leadership is not about complementing your own strengths and weaknesses, it's about building a team who can shape, deliver, and own a shared vision together. In this sector it is often tackling an issues that affect many people. If you left your organisation tomorrow, would it be able to excel and deliver without you?
The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is a leading independent grant-making foundation in the UK who fund our gender equality Fellowship on our Fellowship programme. Rebecca Gill and Polly Trenow are our 2016 gender Fellows. Apply now to our 2017 Fellowship programme - the deadline is midday on Monday 5 September 2016.
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