A lot has been written about building a great team: Trust, communication, relationships, and shared goals. Less is said about accountability. While trust may be the bedrock of any good team, being able and willing to hold each other accountable…
Update: Supporting your team’s mental health
I first published this article in July 2020. At the time, Victoria had just started its long lockdown. We were getting used to a hybrid workforce. It was still all new, we were still figuring out how to work in…
Why you need to make friends at work (even when you’re the boss)
Early in my career, I made some great friends at work. People who I still speak to regularly after 20 years. People with who I have shared big moments with marriage, babies, breakups, deaths. Then when I became a manager,…
Why you need to work somewhere that matters
If we learnt anything from the last year, it’s that connections can be made regardless of our geographical location. The people we work with and what we do together matters. When you can’t travel, can’t leave the house, when all…
Keeping up team morale
It’s a month into 2021 and let’s be honest the world is not looking that much better. We just passed 100 million cases of COVID worldwide. The UK and Europe are in the strictest lockdown they have had, and Melbourne…
A 2021 challenge: personal development
I didn’t realise how important it was to do personal development until I had to pay for it myself. When working in government I took it for granted (I see that now) that I could do a course or attend…
How to be a great leader: Advice for new managers
It finally happened. You have been an APS staff member for years, and you finally got the promotion you have been waiting for. You finally made it! OR maybe you weren’t expecting it. Your boss left, and you got asked…
Leadership communications in our new normal
As 2021 begins, people are starting to float back into the office. Most businesses are adopting a hybrid approach, with people working from home and in the office. Let’s be honest as the manager you still never really know where…
Take time to reflect as a team
This week I ran a workshop for a team in the ACT Government. The team has had a hectic year and wanted to take time out to reflect on their shared experience and look at how they could continue to…
Working from home: Team leader communications
How should you be communicating to your team over the next few months? In some states, people are starting to float back into the office, but really you never really know where anyone is on any given day. You have…
