James Wickham

Multitasking – is it a good or bad thing?

Yesterday I learnt that the term “multitasking” came from the introduction of computerised technology, in that a processor could work on multiple tasks at the same time. Humans then related it to what they can do with their brain, undertaking two, maybe more things at once. This is often seen as a strength, and IContinue reading “Multitasking – is it a good or bad thing?”

Trusting the process

Earlier this week I made a post about my son now walking to and from school, on his own. Update: All is going well, and we can already see the spurts of more independence flourishing (good and bad). We, as parents, never knew how it would be a couple of days in, but we trustedContinue reading “Trusting the process”

How do you manage a huge change?

Today my son walked to school on his own. As of tomorrow, he will walk back on his own too. What happens if he hurts himself? What happens if he’s late? It’s frightening, but also a proud moment! He is growing up and wants to be independent. I adopted, without knowing it, a kaizen approach,Continue reading “How do you manage a huge change?”

What happened to the ☎️?

For remote workers, does every meeting have to be via video? Old story, especially since lockdown and all the promotion of “walk and talk”. I’ll apply the 80/20 rule in that 80% of your meetings are via video and 20% are via phone, although I reckon I’m being generous. Surely, if it’s just a chat,Continue reading “What happened to the ☎️?”

Are you being productive?

A question I have often tackled whilst procrastinating on the question. After many years trying every single app on Windows, Mac and iOS I have worked out a method that works for me. It works! When I tell you I’m thinking of trying a new technique, please say, James, don’t! Feel free to experiment butContinue reading “Are you being productive?”

How was your journey this morning?

Did you have to go somewhere earlier today, maybe work or possibly a shop to grab a coffee? If not, imagine you did (it’s more fun that way!). How did you get there? Did you have to drive? Walk? Cycle? Public Transport? A mixture of the above? Were there any checkpoints e.g. buying a ticket,Continue reading “How was your journey this morning?”

The customer experience: 25 years and we still haven’t got it?

Or have we? In 1997, Steve Jobs answered a question where he nailed the modern-day philosophy regarding customer experience, that this should be the starting point and technology if required, comes in at the end, only as an enabler. It is one of the most shown videos on LinkedIn, so I won’t hit you withContinue reading “The customer experience: 25 years and we still haven’t got it?”

How often do you get distracted?

Have I distracted you now? Do you, like me, try and turn off all the noise so you don’t get distracted? But then you do get distracted, maybe by you thinking about last night’s match, or, in my instance, a loudly meowing cat. And now you’re in a loop. Of course, some distractions are goodContinue reading “How often do you get distracted?”

“Let’s take technology out of the room”

I sometimes say this when I am with the sponsor / senior stakeholder when I am trying to understand what the requirements are and what outcomes are identified. Working out what is really needed, without trying to guess what solution you are probably going to go for (my good friend Frank McGeady used to callContinue reading ““Let’s take technology out of the room””

What legacy do you want your strategy to have?

A positive legacy is very important and I always, with my sporting hat on, relate it to the Olympics. Notably, Barcelona in 1992 and Athens in 1996 were heavily criticised for creating ‘white elephants’, meaning they built infrastructure for the Games that were, unfortunately, hardly / never used again. Your strategy needs to be moreContinue reading “What legacy do you want your strategy to have?”