Where do you stand on body language? Hopefully not slouching and with your arms crossed? Body language has become big business. There are many “experts” appearing on TV and in the press who analyse body language in interviews. They tell us what a particular celebrity or politician was thinking, but not saying. In a business […]
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Mastering the art of leadership: qualities of a good leader
As a recruiter of leaders and senior managers, I’m often asked “what are the qualities of a good leader that you look for in candidates?” At this level, it’s often the case that most candidates I meet can probably do the job, at least to some extent. The interview has to confirm that they have […]
Read MoreWork life balance: how do we restore it as we come out of lockdown?
It’s around 15 years since I ran my first workshops on remote working and “Managing remote workers”. The company was looking into how it could cut office costs, but the Managing Director and others on the board were nervous about letting people work from home. They wanted to know how they could move to remote […]
Read MoreAre there too many business experts?
The world – and LinkedIn in particular – seems to be full of business experts. People who have the ultimate solution to your problem, whether about leadership, coaching, sales, hiring, AI and technology, and countless other issues we all face as business owners, employees and individuals. Some of them, no doubt, have earned their expert […]
Read MoreLockdown Employment Survey – the results
Almost 1200 people completed the bfpeople Lockdown Employment Survey during June 2020. We received responses from most industries and most job roles – people who were employed (working on site, working from home and furloughed), self-employed and unemployed. Their views offer a snapshot of employment in Lockdown Britain in 2020 – more than 99% of […]
Read MoreDeath of a (good) salesman?
Having just spent several long days at a sprawling trade exhibition, I’m left with the sense that good sales skills are harder to find than ever. It’s seems that we really are witnessing the death of a (good) salesman to paraphrase Arthur Miller. New business is tough to find. Almost every company I speak to wants to […]
Read MoreLocal government leadership: council bosses lead the way
The results of the latest leadership research carried out by bfpeople shows that bosses in local government have better leadership judgement than those in other industries or professions. Council chief executives achieved the highest overall leadership judgement in the analysis of more than 17,000 professionals who completed the Leadership Judgement Indicator (LJI) a psychometric test widely […]
Read MoreBad sales calls
It’s early in the morning and I’m in the office – the only one here. The office phone rings, so I answer it: Caller: “Mr Hamilton, please”Me: “Yes, that’s me.” There follows several minutes of scripted monologue from the caller about how I “can’t afford to miss” the opportunity of entertaining 10 guests at a […]
Read MoreRecruitment Lessons from the Scottish Referendum
In 48 hours or so, I (and around 4 million others) will cast our vote in the Scottish Independence Referendum. A simple “Yes” or “No” stating whether we believe Scotland should be an independent country. I make binary, Yes or No decisions every day. Many are important – my decision whether to reject or shortlist someone […]
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