• Welcome to globalNEWS!
• About the format of globalNEWS
• Brainstorming: a powerful leadership tool
• Does e-mail work?
• Making meetings work, and fast!
• How to avoid death by meeting
• The first one hundred days in a new leadership role
• Seeking feedback

Welcome to globalNEWS!
This inaugural newsletter is distributed to alumni of Global Learning programs, iMEET! workshops, and anyone interested in effective leadership and teamwork, strategic planning, sustainable futures, experiential and organisational learning, coaching and mentoring, and getting the best out of meetings, workshops and conferences. You'll find interesting and pithy articles, with best-practice tips and insights - and information about events and programs. Each issue will be archived online for future reference. [more...]

About the format of globalNEWS
We've chosen to keep this newsletter as informative as possible, yet accessible. The delivery mechanism is lightweight (plain text e-mail), but flexible (available as an RSS feed, and via our website). We won't be clogging your mailbox with PDFs, JPEGs or attachments: we want the experience to be smooth and fast. And by keeping each article brief, you'll be able to digest it more quickly. Some issues will focus on a single issue, but in general, we'll keep it as varied and interesting as possible! [more...]

Brainstorming: a powerful leadership tool
Brainstorming generates ideas and creative solutions from the whole group, without making decisions or making an on-the-spot evaluation. Although researchers say that quality and quantity is not necessarily improved by brainstorming, it strongly engages people working as a team to strengthen their relatiohships. It has been used since the 1930s, and adpated to work in 'World Cafe' environments, and is increasingly captured by electronic tools such as iMEET! - making the process faster and more efficient. Some simple rules: don't censor, explain, or defend ideas, don't evaluate or criticise others, and save the discussion and evaluation for later.

Does e-mail work?
It is estimated that 171 billion e-mails are sent every day [two million e-mails every second!]. A survey of internal communication conducted by Watson Wyatt revealed that communication effectiveness is a leading indicator of financial performance. Companies that communicate effectively are four times more likely to report high levels of employee engagement; and are 20% more likely to report lower employee turnover rates. The question remains, however: is e-mail a contributor to effective communication? [more...]

Making meetings work, and fast!
Whatever happens to all of the butchers paper, post-it notes and hand-written reminders wrapped up and taken back to the office after the conference/strategic planning meeting/workshop? Answer: not much, other than a lot of time, money and energy is spent trying to decipher it all. iMEET! - a platform designed specifically to support meetings, workshops and conferences - eliminates butchers paper, captures all ideas, discussions and decisions, and makes meetings more rapid, accurate and inclusive. Developed in Australia by Global Learning, iMEET! has streamlined hundreds of meetings and workshops. Call us for more information on 02 6249 1344. [more...]

How to avoid death by meeting
In 'Death by meeting: A leadership fable', Pat Lencioni writes about one of the most painful problems in business: meetings. His fictional narrative outlines the lessons that can be learned and how to make meetings work (since they are critical to business success), from identifying the types of meetings, to being sure that meetings aren't held just to gain consensus or give status. Try his online quiz, too, at http://www.tablegroup.com/team_assessment/meetings_quiz.php - there's a downloadable version for your whole team, too! [more...]

The first one hundred days in a new leadership role
What happens in a new leadership role during the first one hundred days? To Tim Green of the Boston Consulting Group, what makes a new leader effective is that they follow the same methods: they ask, 'What needs to be done?', and 'What is right for the enterprise?', they develop action plans, take responsibility for decisions, take responsibility for communicating, focus on opportunities rather than problems, run productive meetings, and think and say 'we' - not 'I'.

Seeking feedback
Let us know what you would like to read in future broadcasts. E-mail your feedback to us, and if you like globalNEWS, let your friends know and invite them to subscribe, too! Subscription details (and how to unsubscribe) are found here: [more...]