In this episode I talk to Daniel Murphy (no, not the alcohol bloke!), owner of the very successful and growing Movement Therapy group.

In a strange twist, I used to manage music festivals, and Dan is definitely a connoisseur. We use music festivals as a case study in the different between "operational excellence" and creating customer magic. We walk through: 

• Unnecessary organisational (and literal) "fences"
• The gap that can often exist between "well run", efficient, and "good" customer experience
• How to get your team to reach for magic 

Thanks to Bensound for our jaunty intro and exit music, and to Fina Charleson for her production support.

Saffron Meade, founder of branding agency Saffron & Co. Creative, joins me to talk about her colourful ride experiencing "bosses", and then becoming "boss" herself. 

We unpick some lessons along the way including:

• How overwork cultures are often linked to fear
• How important getting "stability" right is for the experience of your workers, including:
  • the emotional stability and predictability of leaders
  • the basics, including pay and legal compliance
• How we use "stories" to approach conflict through a organisational "we", rather than right/wrong perspectives that is "owned" by you
• Understanding the drives and motivations of your people, so that you can create an environment that meets their needs
• Getting around respect and "family" first, so that work is part of your worker's wider flourishing
• Not wanting minions: "What's the point of having a team if they can't contribute properly?"
• The link between employee voice and business stagnation

Thanks to Bensound for our jaunty intro and exit music, and to Fina Charleson for her production support.

Podcast host Dean Williamson and Megan Storey from Human Systems Co. get together to discuss their own work stories (for a change), and what led them into the world of self-management, Teal, New Ways of Working, org change and culture.

Thanks to Bensound for our jaunty intro and exit music, and to Fina Charleson for her production support.

In this episode I'm joined by Tom Landon-Smith and Abhinandan Willis, who built Ultra-Trail Australia from humble beginnings into the world's third-largest endurance and trail running festival.

It might seem like a strange place to talk about work, but we walk through gathering a team of great humans around a purpose, self-transcendence, trust, autonomy and much more. There's a lot here for leaders around scaling and organising principles if you choose to listen.

Thanks to Bensound for our jaunty intro and exit music, and to Fina Charleson for her production support.

This episode we get into the concept of self-management, which is a step towards improving a lot of the issues we've heard about in previous episodes. We hear from Jess and Doug from Aquadec, a commercial irrigation company, about how they've approached self-management in working with us at Human Systems Co, 

We talk about how leaders often need to change to bring about change, about honesty and transparency, and about how changing how you approach finance can change how you run your company.

This episode I'm joined by the extremely talented (and famous!) international journalist Ann Deslandes.

We hear about how the independent gig life stacks up as a survival strategy, and also what it's like trying to get paid when you're outside the system(s).

I just loved this chat - she is witty and funny and hopeful, and I could've talked for so much longer! 

This episode we get inside the often-spoofed (for good reason, we find out) world of creative agencies. Hear how a lack of clarity and purpose can turn them into laughable shambles - the conversation about "we don't have enough work/we have too much work" killed me. We';; also cover "disguised" meetings, how to NOT do staff engagement, and building tents in open plan offices.

Thanks to this episode's guest, "Roger", for his story.

This week we get up close and personal with bullying at work. It's not a fun one to start, but Mitch is sufficiently recovered to tell a story with wit and humour (how's the hidden Wild Turkey economy?) about how a workplace can condone or endorse bullying, and hear the toll it can take on you.

I get into some of the costs and consequences of bullying, and why it's usually a good business idea to make sure you create a safe workplace.

Thanks to this week's guest, Mitch, for his story.

A quick intro to the Better Work Australia podcast.

Host Dean Williamson talks about why he's doing the podcast, and gives some sneak peeks into Season 1's episodes.