The end of conscious choice?

Two stories in The Times, 5/1/2105:

'Technology lets boss know who is longing to leave', by Tom Whipple, and

'The suit that reveals when you are lying', by Nadeem Badshah

The first story is about employers using 'Big Data' technologies to analyse your posts on social network sites and other sources of information to highlight when a employee turns from engaged worker to disgruntled employee, who may then start to think about a new job with a new employer.  Apparently, data analysis shows that the existing employer has approximately 3 months to turn the situation around (should said employer wish to do so!).  

The second story is a short piece describing research conducted by a team of scientists from Cambridge, Lancaster and Utrecht.  They have developed a suit containing multiple sensors that can detect fine changes in physiology, allowing it to out perform the more traditional forms of lie-detectors.

What is striking about both of these stories is that we are now developing technologies that can tell what a person is thinking even before they might be currently conscious of that thought.  There are many more examples of this (For example, apparently, Amazon are developing algorithms that will predict a buyer's next purchase even before they know it themselves, thus improving efficiencies around delivery).

What does all this mean for our sense of autonomy, our belief that we are responsible and conscious about the decisions we make?  What implications does this have for personal development, or even legal responsibility?  Are we in the process of creating a self-fulfilling prophecy, where instead of 'Computer says 'No'' we start believing we wanted something, just because it arrived in our post-box?

Any thoughts?

If your new year resolution is to find a new job...

We've been saving this one up, maybe just so you can have something to smile about on return to work!

Metro (9/10/14) ran an article on things job hunters have included in their applications and CVs. We've posted up some of our personal favourites:

'The idea was a gift from God, so unfortunately I am not able to share my methodology'  

(I would love to use this line when completing Request for Tender documents!)

'I have a lifetime's technical expertise.  (I wasn't born - my mother simply chose 'eject child' from the special menu)'.

'I have an excellent track record, although I am not a horse'.

'I want to be an astronaut but I think working in a call centre will help me gain confidence for talking to mission control from space'.

'I am a wedge with sponge taped to it.  My purpose is to wedge myself into someone's door and absorb as much as possible'.

'Please accept my application for the role of customer services director, which I appreciate may come as a surprise given I was fired from the position last month'.

'Previous experience:  Marijuana dealer and nefarious dude with an intuitive understanding of supply-and-demand economics'.

'I offer mediocrity at its best'.

'To utilise my creative talent in a mundane office'.

'I am able to show up at the office on time, not only during the first week but even after a year of employment'.

'My ruthlessness terrifies the competition and can sometimes offend'.

'Duties:  Pretending to be on the phone.  Trying to work out what the company did and what part of it I was supposed to be doing.  Hiding'.

If you have decided that you are going to enter the job market this year and you are feeling a bit out of touch, we strongly suggest you seek some advice!

Rik Mayall's rules for life

If, like me, you grew up watching Rik Mayall, in the Young Ones, you will have been saddened by his death earlier this year (9 June 2014).  There was a fitting tribute to this genius of comedy, shown on BBC 2, 20 December 2014.

The programme concluded with footage of his acceptance speech to graduates of Exeter University, as he received his doctorate.  We repeat that speech here:

‘Let me give you youngsters a present. Five mantras to carry with you through your lives.  These are mine:  

Number 1 – All men are equal, therefore no one can ever be your genuine superior.  

Number 2 – Your future is as bright as you make it.  

Number 3 – Change is a constant of life, so you must never, ever lose your wisdom.  

Number 4 – If you want to live a full and complete human life, you have to be free.  

And Number 5 – Love is the answer, love is the answer.  Bon voyage!’

You can catch the programme, 'Rik Mayall: Lord of Misrule' on BBC iPlayer for the next 20 days:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b04w7m97/rik-mayall-lord-of-misrule

A seasonal story

Here's one that we just had to write about.  It's trending in the news right now; there are several accounts and a good source is the 'i'

http://i100.independent.co.uk/article/the-student-who-raised-20000-for-a-homeless-man-who-gave-her-taxi-fare--ekoq383Ptl

A student was given money by a homeless person, Robbie, for her taxi home, after losing her bank card.  She was so struck by this act of kindness that she started a fund-raising campaign for Robbie.  Expecting to raise £500 the fund now stands at a staggering £20000.

The story is amazing in itself, but we were especially drawn to it, because it all took place in our local town, Preston, and the student, Dominique, studies at the University of Central Lancashire, an organisation with which we have had an association over many years.

We say, 'Well done!' Dominique and also to Robbie.  You can still donate to the fund and you will find details at the link above.

Just a little promo...

We missed out on contributing to the day of supporting your local/small business, so rather belatedly, here is our contribution:

We've just come back from a business planning day with our friends at Another Way Associates

http://www.anotherwayassociates.com

Apart from it being a fantastic four days of hard work with some people we really like, we had the opportunity to return to a place which is full of fond memories.  If you are ever looking for a venue in the north of England for training, team meetings or even a place for some peace and quiet, then Haybergill, near Penrith is well worth a look.  You will always get a warm welcome from the owners, Maggie and Mick.

http://www.haybergill.co.uk/

While we were there, we were introduced to a daily dose of Pilates.  Not something we've done before, and despite our bodies' best efforts to tell us otherwise, we rather enjoyed it.  So much so that we are going to continue.  Alas, it will be without our wonderful instructor, Debbie, but if you live in the Appleby area and want to give it a go, we would thoroughly recommend her.  Great teacher and a good role model if you want to aspire to greater flexibility and strength!

http://corefitnessappleby.com/

'Business bullying'

Following the recent reports in the UK news about suppliers being asked to pay to continue servicing their customers, comes a timely and insightful report from the Federation of Small Businesses that shows the nature and the extent of such practices.

You can read their summary at

http://www.fsb.org.uk/News.aspx?loc=pressroom&rec=8838

What are your own experiences of this?  Is it sharp practice, immoral or just tough business negotiation?

Updates to Hogan

For a while now we have been using the Hogan suite of inventories (HPI, HDS and MVPI) for executive coaching, leadership development and team facilitation.  We were very interested to hear about the launch of the new subscales for the HDS (Hogan Development Survey).  You may have already heard about this survey - it's the one that shows your 'derailers' when you are under stress or are complacent.  We've always liked this questionnaire when working with executives and leadership teams because it gets to root cause quickly and in a way that establishes an effective dialogue, while minimising resistance.  

The new subscales allow greater depth of analysis in two ways.  Firstly, for each derailer, there are now three subscales.  In the same way as the subscales work for HPI, you can now identify whether any derailer is made of components that support the overall direction or whether there are contra-indicators.  For example, someone scoring as 'high risk' in the 'sceptical' derailer may find that they also score high in the three subscales, 'cynical', 'mistrusting' and 'grudges'.  But equally, another person who also scores high on the same derailer may score low on one of the subscales and this will cause the derailer to be displayed differently.

The second way in which the new subscales help is that now, not only high scores can be interpreted, but low scores too.  As the white paper* says, 'Current wisdom around the topic suggests two important truths:  High risk HDS scores may get you fired.  Low risk HDS scores may get you passed over'.

You can find out more about the new subscales by visiting the APS website, a UK-based company who offer training and adminstration of the Hogan products.  We've found them to be extremely helpful and they offer a fast and reliable service.  

http://www.advancedpeoplestrategies.co.uk/default.asp

*From this site you can also download a copy of the white paper, 'Improving the Industry Standard for Assessing Derailers', Sahm, J., Lowe, J, (2014), which gives the rationale for the subscales and a description of each.