The Workplace Evolution Podcast

In this episode of Management Today's Workplace Evolution Podcast Business Psychologist Michael Costello meets with London Business School Professor & co-chair of the World Economic Forum Council Lynda Gratton to discuss the most significant change in the workplace for over a generation - hybrid working - and her latest book "Redesigning Work: How to Transform Your Organisation and Make Hybrid Work for Everyone"

This podcast explores:

· How long will the “one size fits all” hybrid model last (3 office days, 2 at Home)?

· How we can flex "Time and Place" in hybrid working to ensure we are productive and engaged in our work

· The importance of flexible and inclusive working in a hybrid era to the economy and the future of any organisation

· What businesses like Arup, Artemis, Microsoft, IBM, BP and Fujitsu doing to innovate in a hybrid era

· How hybrid working can help us access untapped talent pools worth billions!

· How we can ensure fairness when redesigning work for the hybrid era

Podcast notes:

In this very special podcast in aid of the Trussel Trust foodbank charity, we hear from Olympians Kate & Helen Richardson-Walsh, Rugby World Cup Winner Will Greenwood & Psychologist John Amaechi on how to maintain our well-being over Christmas. During the podcast you’ll also hear from the Trussell Trust’s CEO Emma Revie on the work the charity is doing and the challenges the UK faces right now.

As we travel through each guests' past, present and future we explore:

· How to managing the tensions that come with close friends and family visiting & enjoy the special moments over Christmas

· How we can be present for others & achieve our ambitions over the holiday

· How you can be at your best for your friends, family, colleagues and loved ones and what recuperation really means

· How reflecting on the future & mortality can be positive for our well-being

· Bonus Track: Find out what the guests get up to at Christmas, what John likes to drink whilst watching Columbo or Poirot and why Will has his Christmas dinner 20 minutes late every year and why Helen & Kate just want an "Average Christmas" for 2021!

In this episode Business Psychologist Michael Costello meets with two exceptional Olympic athletes to discuss their new book “Winning Together” and the incredible journey Team GB went on to winning gold in the Rio Olympics. Double Olympic medallist Kate Richardson Walsh is the most capped female British hockey player of all time and double Olympian medallist Helen Richardson-Walsh has 18 years of playing internationally with 4 Olympic Games, many world cups, European championships and commonwealth games. 

This podcast not only explored the incredible framework the GB team utilised to support them in winning Gold but also …

- The extremes of the past in GB Hockey’s culture & what had to change

- Where vulnerability & emotional intelligence sits in building a high performing team

- How setbacks & major injury were actually opportunities to uphold the team’s values

- What you can do to dial up your emotions when you really need them for yourself and the team

- What needs to take place for women to feel a little safer walking the streets of the UK alone 

- What leaders need to do to take on commonplace microaggressions towards women in the workplace.

Podcast Notes: 

Business Psychologist Michael Costello meets Will Greenwood and Ben Fennell to discuss their life lessons and new book "World Class: Lead, Learn and Grow Like a Champion". Drawing on insights from elite athlete & coaches such as Dan Carter, Kate Richardson Walsh, Rio Ferdinand, Helen Glover & Sir Clive Woodward as well as Business Leaders from Tesco, Unilever, Virgin Media the conversation explores what businesses can learn from sport and what sport can learn from business. 

This interview shares lessons learnt from

- The communications in the England changing room 5 minutes before the Rugby World Cup Final (winning the battle for hearts & minds)

- The good the bad and ugly of coaching during his three, yes, three, tours with the Lions (ensuring brilliance can create magic & "riff")

- How the team grew stronger not just through a player strike days before a test match but also a little conflict injected by the Royal Marines (England's 'Code of Conduct' and what leaders do to support the 'Disagree and Commit' process)

- And lastly Sir Clive Woodward’s incredible response to Will’s news that his wife Caro had been taken to hospital in England during the World Cup campaign in Australia (the importance of well-being, kindness and leaders investing in their character)

Podcast Notes:

In this episode Business Psychologist Michael Costello explores with Nigel Farage how he managed to lead radical change that impacted a generation and sent shockwaves around the world. Once the discussion gets past his "Booze Brand" & how the 'Great British Boozer' got voters on his side they explore the serious questions of: - How will history judge him & what will his loved ones say about him at his funeral? - How did cheating death three times impact his view on life & resilience? - What was it that engaged 2.5 million voters who had never voted before? - With UKIP members' extreme views on women, abortion, nationalities & homosexuality how was his views of freedom of speech tested? Lastly we touch on his new ventures in the financial markets with Fortune and Freedom where Michael asks “Why should the British public trust you with their money?“  Please remember to like and subscribe to the podcast or get in touch with any feedback or questions you might have. You join Michael & Nigel discussing how the 'Booze Brand' developed and worked in his favour….so you might also want to pour yourself a quick drink.  As always, enjoy the podcast!... 

Find out more: 

In this episode Michael Costello meets with BBC Tech Journalist Rory Cellan-Jones to discuss the most powerful invention in the last century - the Smart Phone and why we are "Always on” our phones! The big questions include 'How can we improve our relationship with our phone & overcome its' addictive nature?'. Rory also shares his experiences with the colossal tech & thoughts leaders - Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, Stephen Hawking and Tim Berners Lee. He has some pretty candid feedback for Elon Musk in the interview on his leadership ability and describes Mark Zuckerberg as “the boy who’s discovered he owns a nuclear weapon”.  

Stay tuned to hear his rallying cry for journalists online to and as he learns to live with his Parkinsons diagnosis (spotted by a BBC viewed) what his hopes are for progress in tech & healthcare (clue in the podcast notes - check out the UK Brain Bank!).  

Find out more about his incredible new book: 

This episode explores the career and journey of the former Met Police Superintendent Leroy Logan who’s life has recently been shared by Director Steve McQueen in the BBC & Amazon Prime Small Axe series (with John Boyega playing Leroy!). Leroy & Business Psychologist Michael Costello draw on the inspirational moments of Leroy’s new book "Closing Ranks: My Life as a Cop" to find ways in which a more inclusive and diverse culture can be created for the benefit of an organisation & society .  The interview covers (sadly) his father’s "savage beating" at the hands of the police in the 1980s as he joined the force & his personal experiences of discrimination and prejudice in the force…testing his own safety but also what Leroy calls “his calling” to change the force from within. Many would have walked away - Michael asks "What stopped him?" The conversation also covers Leroy' experiences with the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, the founding of the Black Police Offices association, and even the tragic death of Damiola Taylor. Black Lives Matter, apologies from British comedians, the Premier league are all explored as well as the state of the current Metropolitan Police force - ending with a powerful and sincere message to Met Police Commander Cressida Dick  

Podcast notes: Book: 

Business Psychologist Michael Costello meets one of the most influential thinkers on leadership of our era…Mr Jim Collins (who rarely gives an interview!).  Having authored or co-authored six books that have sold in total more than 10 million, Jim is releasing Beyond Entrepreneurship 2.0 to crack the challenge 'How do you turn your business in to an enduring great company?' Reed Hastings at Netflix stated that the original book had more influence on his leadership than any other person or any other book.  Jim shares his thoughts on his time with Steve Jobs (during Jobs's wilderness years at 'NeXT') but also shares lessons from leaders at Xerox, Gillette and Netflix on what they did to grow personally & challenge their business.  The conversation pulls on the leadership behaviours of George Washington, Winston Churchill and President Kennedy to break the challenging business issues of today & offer a perspective on what we need from the American President Joe Biden during the Covid Crisis.  

Agenda: 

• Bill Lazier / The definition of leadership / Advice for Joe Biden
• John F Kennedy’s decision making / The artistry of leadership
• Why Joe Biden needs to confront the brutal facts….and why its “Stockdale paradox time”
• Don’t bet against the US and the UK’s “Deep Resilience” during Covid
• “Who Humility” Culture to drive action after debate & George Washington’s Silence
• Jim Collins’ time with Steve Jobs’ “Totally in the Wilderness” / Steve Jobs 1.0 and Steve Jobs 2.0
• Abraham Lincoln’s Restraint (“Never Signed and Never Sent”)
• The Personal Touch in Leadership… “A Deep respect and love of your people”
• From IBM’s Thomas J. Watson Jnr’s Open Door to Tactile Leading by Zooming Around
• “The Window & the Mirror” of Steve Jobs
• What the greatest CEO’s do to get the Right People in the Right Seats
• Ever Forward…Alive & Kicking at Netflix & Amazon & the Future of Leadership
• Jim’s message to Business Leaders…Is this the time for Big Hairy Audacious Goals?!
• What’s the most important thing that Jim Collins has learnt?

Podcast notes: 

Business Psychologist Michael Costello meets Mr Motivator (Derek Evans) to explore how we can stay motivated during the challenging times of Covid or what he calls "Life's Hurricanes". The interview explores how he dealt with racism in his career, particularly from media network sponsors who told him "A black man doing fitness can't work".  

Recorded before the award of his MBE by the Queen for services to health and fitness, the interview also asks whether he felt he had received the recognition for his work in breaking down racial barriers. 

This podcast explores:

• How we can get our mindset right & feel energised before we set off to work

• The importance of drawing from our past experiences to sustain belief & motivation

• How he responded to Covid during 2020 & racism from TV sponsors in the 1990s

• The importance of the country moving forward together using lessons from the past

• The obesity crisis facing the UK & the recommended 20 minutes a day exercise

• Lastly, do you think Mr Motivator has ever taken a "Sickie"? 

Get your Lycra ready and make sure you're warmed up for this one!...

Podcast Notes:

If you feel that managing your inbox and attending meetings is becoming your actual job and that social media & long working hours is harming your mental health, this is the podcast you've been waiting for.

In this episode Business Psychologist Michael Costello meets with former EMEA Vice President of Twitter Bruce Daisley to explore the No. 1 # Times Best Seller "Eat Sleep Work Repeat" & toxic cultures that  lead to stress, burnout and unhappiness 

The podcast also provides a rare and unique insight into the culture at Google, Youtube and Twitter - Bruce's fight against the systems in place, the unconscious bias in place and whether the shop window of Silicon Valley is one big bluff or the real deal.

As always please remember to rate the podcast and leave a comment on whatever platform you are on. Your feedback is always very welcome!

Check out the podcast notes for Bruce's book and his social media links:

Podcast Notes:

Welcome back to the workplace evolution podcast. The podcast that aims to help employees and leaders with workplace challenges.

In this episode Workplace Evolution Director Michael Costello talks with the incredible Alvin Hall (broadcaster, author and financial guru most famous for his show "Your Money of Your Life") to help us during the lockdown and the many financial demands that have come with the coronavirus.

All the way from New York, Alvin talks with Michael in the UK about his life of poverty as a child, his mistakes (Alvin goes off the rails!?) and lessons learnt, his bounce-back from redundancy and 9/11 and how he achieved financial success in his career.

In an age where so many are promising us financial freedom for a hefty fee, Alvin now just wants to share his knowledge and wisdom with us all –  to get us through this challenging time - including "Knowing Your Financial Nut" and how to keep your clients engaged throughout the crisis. As always, send in your feedback and comments, stay tuned for our next podcast with Formula 1 Driver David Coulthard on Mental Toughness.

Podcast Notes:

This podcast episode has the pleasure of meeting with Andrew McMillan – Former JLP Head of Customer Services at the John Lewis Partnership. We cover a huge amount of ground together including The Unique Business Model of John Lewis Partnership Whether the profit sharing model is broken Building a reputation for service excellence The quest for consistency in customer service and the value of customer complaints Giving freedom and autonomy to make decisions on the front line and Whether John Lewis really is in crisis right now – can they weather the storm and what advice would Andrew give to new Andrew started his career as a management trainee with the John Lewis Partnership at Brent Cross in North London. He quickly moved up through the management ranks and led a number of selling teams in different branches, culminating in heading a department in the flagship Oxford Street branch. From there he moved to the head office to take charge of the department stores’ Intelligence Team. They acted as an internal business consultancy, reporting on competitive strategy, product differentiation and value, catchment area demographics for new branches and customer experience. In 2000 Andrew was asked to lead on customer experience for the department store division. 

The role saw him develop JLP’s market-leading culture and attitude towards customer experience and sales with the 20,000 customer-facing Partners in 26 John Lewis shops across the UK. That customer-driven culture is something that has now become synonymous with the John Lewis brand. During his tenure John Lewis frequently won awards for customer experience from Which? Verdict and Retail Week and were regularly cited in the media as a leading customer oriented organisation. He was also responsible for the management and resolution of the group’s customer complaints. Andrew advises many other non-competing organisations on their customer experience strategy and has become a recognised as an expert in the field.

Welcome to the Workplace Evolution podcast #13 - a special Christmas Bonus Podcast! During this episode Michael Costello meets with John Hackston  - Occupational Psychologist at the Myers Briggs Group.  We covered:

• What is Personality and Why is it Important?
• What is the MBTI Personality Framework?
• Who Enjoys Christmas the most?
• How Do Some Personalities Navigate Christmas? 
• How does Personality it impact our planning in the run up to Christmas?
• Well-Being and Mindfulness at Christmas
• What is Santa & Scrooge's Personality?
• How does goal setting in the New Year relate to our Personality? 

John Hackston is head of thought leadership at The Myers-Briggs Company. A chartered psychologist with over 30 years of experience of helping clients apply the insights of business psychology to the way in which they run their organisations, his experience takes in roles in management, consultancy, training and research. He regularly presents sessions at UK and international conferences and has written on a variety of topics such as personality and the gig economy, gender differences in self-confidence, what makes “Happy Leaders” and how personality could impact your exercise routine in the gym!

PODCAST NOTES:

Welcome to episode #11. We know you have all been working hard up until the end of the yeat so sit down and relax.  

This podcast explores the research of Hans Frankort and Argyro Avgoustaki to answer whether the hard work really pays off for us in terms of career outcomes and our well-being.  Also - why is it we have this worrying trend of 50% of employees working in their free time to meet work demands? Is the UK lagging behind other countries in terms of competitiveness because of a greater prevalence of overtime and work intensity in Europe? Lastly, what the threats are to our own well-being and also which countries are getting it right? This podcast comes with a warning though – it challenges the old mental models of the workplace which some listeners may find uncomfortable. 

Guest Profile: 

Hans Frankort is a Senior Lecturer in Strategy at Cass Business School, where he has been on the faculty since 2009. Hans leads strategy and quantitative methods courses across MSc, MBA, and PhD programs, including the International Consulting Week in the full-time MBA. The research has appeared in such scholarly outlets as the Academy of Management Journal, Advances in Strategic Management, Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, Industrial and Corporate Change, the Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Research Policy, and the Strategic Management Journal. The research has also featured across 200+ media outlets, including The Financial Times, The Guardian, New Scientist, Popular Science, Business Insider UK, Inc., Forbes, Entrepreneur, Capital, Le Monde, Le Figaro, City A.M., and the Daily Mail. 

Welcome to the Workplace Evolution podcast episode #10 with Onica CEO Stephen Garden. A very warm, sandy and sunny welcome to this podcast where we are given an incredible insight in to what is happening right now in the field of big tech in silicon valley and how the sector is shaping our world.  Chartered Business Psychologist Michael Costello discusses with Stephen the following:

• What is big tech and cloud computing?
• How big tech is shaping our world
• The responsibility of the sector to our planet and society
• US Government influence / the US Election
• The "Fear of missing out" culture in silicon valley
• The challenges the secotr faces 
• Diring a high performing team in the US and being able to "Switch off" in executive roles