Insights Archives - The Management Centre

I’m Ok, You’re Ok – Assertiveness at work explained

Being assertive at work can be really hard, and this is something many people struggle with. Our insecurities, perceived weaknesses, motivations and goals can all stop us from being assertive when we need to be. In this article, Charlotte Scott explains why we need assertiveness, what it actually is, and how to be assertive. Why […]

4 Ways to put a Spring in your Step at work

Winter is finally over. The days are getting longer. The trees are blossoming and all around us cute, fluffy bunnies are happily hopping about as the birds sing hallelujah and lay chocolate eggs for Easter. …Not quite accurate? Are you struggling to find the joys of spring at work? Feeling a bit flat or stagnant? […]

Mentoring – a gift that keeps on giving

Over the course of my career I have been very fortunate to have support from some brilliant people. I genuinely would not be where I am today without the input, insight and inspiration from my mentors – and indeed, my mentees. A mentor can be defined as simply as ‘an experienced and trusted advisor’. But […]

Design your own training programme

Investing in developing your team or your whole organisation is a bold commitment. Choose the right training and it can help you improve productivity, achieve more goals and make a lasting difference to working life. Get it wrong and you’ve invested money from the shrinking (or non-existent) L&D budget and simply opened a can of […]

Developing teams for high performance during times of change

I’ve been working with managers and leaders in public sector organisations for some time now. It’s still a bleak picture for many: a lack of central funding and increasing demand means crucial services are under more and more pressure. In nearly every programme I’ve delivered I have been asked to help managers with leading their […]

Interview with the Internal Consultant

Working in local government has never been so tough. The economic, political and social context means more and more services are feeling the strain. The outlook is a bit on the bleak side, with damning reports from the UN on UK austerity highlighting a disconnect between policy and reality. For many leaders of councils, this […]

Failed resolutions? Here’s how to break the habit.

I’m a resolution failure. According to USA today you have already broken your new years resolution, along with almost everyone else. Apparently, fail day is 17th January. And it seems to me (admittedly from chats and straw polls, this isn’t science) that almost every year resolutions tend to be about mind, body, and not drinking […]

Unlock your potential – get reflective

How many times have you felt the stirring ambition to learn a new skill, get better at something, change your habits or behaviours? You enthusiastically book yourself on the next course that promises to give you all the new-fangled knowledge, skills and abilities that you desire. Or perhaps you order that new self-help book from […]

The Gift of Giving

The festive season is upon us and the annual question of gifting etiquette looms ever present. Work colleagues – do you give or not give? How much should you spend? Are you going with silly or serious? Is it appropriate? Phew. What a minefield. So what can you give that won’t cost you a penny […]

‘Tis the season to party – and polish your presence

Walk down any UK high street at this time of year and you will be bombarded with seasonal offers, treats, ideas and temptations. And one thing that always stands out in the shop windows is the vast amount of glittery dresses and sequined jumpers. It is the party season! Office parties, team parties, events for […]

=mc’s Seasonal Survival Guide

For your final =mc insight of the year, we sought advice from the leader of one of the biggest enterprises known to wo/man. Among other things, this inspirational figure is responsible for running a worldwide manufacturing and distribution service as well as maintaining a large and demanding supporter base. He manages a team of thousands […]

The 7 Challenges of Change

When organisations are experiencing change, we’re often called upon to help smooth the transition using various tools, techniques and training programmes to address the challenges. So you’d think that now things are changing here at =mc, we must be excited, full of beans and finding it all plain sailing, right? Not exactly. Just because we […]

Leaders – what are you doing about inequality?

If the answer is nothing, then be warned… I had the honour of convening a panel discussion about Women in Fundraising at this year’s IoF Fundraising Convention (#IOFFC). I was both shocked and inspired by the debate. The panel was honest, the audience was forthcoming, and the discussion produced very useful suggestions. What fascinates me […]

If you think it’s hard to manage projects – try being the project leader

It’s well recognised that project management is an essential skill for all of us these days – even outside work. Inside work, there is the added dimension of project governance – who sets the parameters for any project and who’s ultimately accountable – and this usually falls to a senior manager. This person will often […]

The Essential Guide for New Managers

7 Common problems for emerging managers – and how to overcome them Stepping into management is fantastic – sort of. A huge achievement and a massive career change, yes – but which for most of us is also pretty daunting. You’ll find plenty of blogs and articles online to help with the change, but where […]

Impact Report: Transforming leadership with blended learning at Sussex Training Consortium

Endorsed programmes drive Local Authority Leadership Development – in partnership with the Sussex Training Consortium The Sussex Training Consortium (STC) provides targeted, relevant, high quality training for all staff working in 12 Districts and Boroughs across East & West Sussex. It aims to ensure that any learning and development they offer the authorities is not […]

A leadership dinner party – who would you like to meet?

Imagine the scene: a trendy-yet-affordable restaurant in Kings Cross, a selection of delicious tapas to share, bottles of wine, and 10 well-known leaders discussing challenges they face and sharing solutions in how they overcome them. Who wouldn’t want to be a fly at that table? What could we learn? What might inspire us? At a […]

Why I love team away days (now)

There is something about the summer that brings on the desire for a team away day. Maybe it’s because it’s too hot to do all the usual things, managers want us to get together, get outside and have some fun. Or maybe the extra daylight inspires us to dream of a new way of working […]

Why I hated team away days (then)

There is something about the summer that brings on the dreaded team away day. Maybe because it’s too hot to do all the usual things, managers decide it’s a good time to get everyone together, get outside and have some fun. Or maybe the extra daylight inspires us to dream of a new way of […]

Identifiable Victims – ignoring the BIG stuff

Bernard Ross, =mc Director and co-author of the best-selling book Change for Good – using behavioural economics for a better world blogs about why the ‘identifiable victims’ principle is important to fundraisers. Maybe like me you were in one sense glad to see the attention the Thai boys trapped in the cave got. And at […]

The Joy of Effective Project Management – no, really, I mean it!

As a Learning & Development Consultant at =mc I have supported many organisations – from MS Society to the University of Reading to WWF UK – in developing their project management. Probably like many of you reading this, I also juggle several projects in the office. And like some of you, I have the advantage […]

IDEA value chain – how to embed your innovative idea

What’s the Big Idea? Management guru, Peter Drucker, has written extensively on the value of innovation and the need to avoid ‘the temptation to feed yesterday and starve tomorrow’. Third sector, public sector and even social business often have a false sense of ‘playing safe’ by sticking to what has worked in the past. But, […]

Stop listening to your supporters

They’re just trying to rationalise. (Tell you rational-lies!) Fundraising consultant Bernard Ross gets serious in part two of this #BlogOff, fighting the ‘no’ corner in the battle of whether you should listen to your supporters – or not. Read the opposing view from Dana Segal here. Fundraisers are an emotional bunch. They care a lot […]

Should you listen to your supporters?

In this #BlogOff, fundraising consultants Bernard Ross and Dana Segal go head to head offering different answers to one important question: Should you listen to your supporters? Dana says YES… It’s been a few weeks since the recent GDPR influx to my inbox; proclamations of love and a desire to keep in touch came from organisations […]

Delegate don’t drown!

“Being a manager means I have more on my plate than ever and trying to keep up with my own workload as well as those of my team is a big job. I’ve got too much to do and not enough time to do it all. What can I do?” On our management training programmes, […]

Social proof… it’s essential to influence… let me prove it to you!

In the Influential Fundraiser training, =mc uses its powerful five stages of influence model and teaches you the 15 tools you need to learn to apply systematically and sensitively for success. These techniques have been used to secure at least six £1M+ gifts in the last five years, as well as countless smaller ones. You […]

Keeping on track and stay in control – structure your negotiations for success

Negotiating with others, whether it’s at home with a partner over household chores, or at work with a colleague about help with in a project, is part of everyday life. And reaching an amicable agreement isn’t always easy. People often tell us they walk away from these situations feeling they either haven’t achieved what they […]

Do you suffer from FOLO (Fear Of Logging Off)? 5 ways to switch off

We’ve all been there. After a long day at work, in meeting after meeting, you look at your phone and see that dot. The FEAR begins. The one that tells you there are 87 unread messages. And you are itching to look at them – but you have to get off home. You get in, […]

How to handle your worries about change

Help! It’s all changing! Hardly a week seems to go by these days without someone asking me about change and how to manage change at work. The world is changing, our sector is changing and our jobs are changing. Whether you’re a manager driving change in your organisation, or a member of staff implementing change, […]

Case study: Partnership skills – encouraging a collaborative approach to data culture at UNICEF UK

UNICEF UK (UUK) is part of UNICEF’s global network. It raises money for their work with children and children’s rights worldwide. Accurate, up-to-the-minute information – data – is a key element in UNICEF UK’s very successful fundraising operation. And how that data is managed across the organisation is increasingly significant to their work. Challenge Supporter […]

Problems with Presenting? Get a grip!

In this blog, =mc Assistant Director and L&D consultant Yvette Gyles shares three top tips for giving memorable, impactful presentations that you can enjoy, rather than dread

Management is for softies – but it gets solid results: Bob’s story

When we put together management training, we like to involve potential participants in the design. This co-creation approach has some real benefits – participants are engaged early on, and we can understand exactly what their management challenges are and ensure the training is tailored to meet their needs. We also find out what their teams […]

Leave me alone! How do I know I’m making progress when my to-do list just won’t go away?

Whether you are a fan of the ‘to-do’ notepad, post-it piles, scrap paper, a bullet journal, or =mc’s Action Sheets – sometimes even looking at the number of things that need to be done can be utterly overwhelming. And make you hate the list that itself seems to be nagging at you. When you’re up […]

19 years after NAFS – is the learning still useful?

In this guest blog, National Arts Fundraising School alumna Fiona Mason, now a freelance writer, arts consultant and Development Manager for Pacitti Company, shares her story since attending the School. It’s a bright, crisp November day in 1998 when I arrive at the country house hotel outside Bath, Gloucestershire, for the National Arts Fundraising School […]

Case study: Engagement Strategy Development at Anthony Nolan

Anthony Nolan is the leading UK charity working in the areas of leukaemia and haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. It recruits individuals to a national donor register and carries out research to help make bone marrow transplants more effective. Their vision is to save and improve the lives of everyone who needs a stem cell transplant. To succeed in this ambition, […]

Stop ‘asking donors for money’ right now!

=mc Director Bernard Ross bucks against the latest fundraising trend… and with good reason. Sometimes I feel like I’ve been transported back into the arts and culture world of the 1970s. To be honest it’s not all bad. I mean I could live with the bad hair, the purple nylon velour loon pants, and even […]

Creating the Fundraising Ninjas at Northern Broadsides

In this guest blog, Kay Burnett, Creative Projects Development Manager at Northern Broadsides shares her experience on the National Arts Fundraising School. Right – Kay Burnett on NAFS 2017 Working for a company that has a small core of four full time staff means that we all wear many different hats. So, when the issue of […]

The appraisal is dead. Long live the appraisal.

=mc Assistant Director and L&D specialist Yvette Gyles blogs on the pros and cons of appraisals… A few weeks ago I was having dinner with a number of ex-colleagues, all in HR and working in the City in various commercial and professional services companies. Ever one to take advantage of a situation, I seized the […]

Case study: Building sustainability at Age Exchange

Age Exchange was formed in 1983 as a specialist reminiscence charity, and over the years has developed new ways of working to reduce loneliness and isolation. For the past 15 years, due to a growing older population, the charity has expanded its work with people who have found themselves as carers for older relatives and […]

Managing Project Stakeholders

Help! I need to manage my stakeholders and I don’t know where to start. As a project manager it’s important to know and understand who your stakeholders are and how to manage your relationships with them. People can make or break a project so handling your stakeholders well is essential. At =mc we define stakeholders […]

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