Monthly Archives: January 2011

Thursday’s post discussed how difficult it is to make public sector processes more efficient. That goes some way towards explaining why public sector organisations find it so hard to make cost savings and productivity improvements. However, there are also wider organisational factors which can frustrate … Continue reading →

With the government demanding that the public sector do more with less, much has been written about public sector productivity and efficiency recently. I sometimes wonder if there are more people writing about it than actually doing it. That might … Continue reading →

The head of the government’s Independent Commission on Banking, Sir John Vickers, confirmed at the weekend that a break-up of Britain’s banks is being considered. The idea has widespread support from across the political spectrum. Nick Clegg called for such a break … Continue reading →

Editors of the British Medical Journal, Tony Delamothe and Fiona Godlee, have written a scathing assessment of Andrew Lansley’s proposals for the NHS. They are writing from a doctor’s perspective rather than a manager’s yet they draw almost identical conclusions to the ones I came … Continue reading →

Since I last did an update like this a number of new blogs have appeared on my radar. Richard Blogger writes Conservative Policies Dissected. No prizes for guessing his political views but what I like about Richard’s blog, that is lacking from … Continue reading →

In today’s Guardian Andy Beckett paints a picture of what Britain might look like in 2015, once the government’s reforms are in full swing. It is a balanced article and he has taken soundings from a number of people with varying … Continue reading →

Two articles yesterday claimed that bonuses don’t work. One from Simon Caulkin in the Daily Mail and the other from Aditya Chakrabortty in the Guardian. Both cite high bonuses in the financial sector, and the subsequent catastrophic collapse of many banks, as evidence … Continue reading →

David Cameron said yesterday that the government has “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to transform our public services”; “If not now, then when?” he cried. It’s rubbish, of course. Governments can reform public services whenever they like. The last government could, and should, … Continue reading →

The appointment of Neil Roden, former HR director of RBS, as a partner in PwC’s HR consulting practice provoked an angry two-post response from consultant and prolific management writer Paul Kearns. There seems to be some history between the two … Continue reading →

I’ve been away for a couple of days running a session on change management for some clients. We went through a number of models, tool and techniques. To demonstrate one of them I dreamt up a fictitious NHS trust. The trust … Continue reading →