How much should a leader know about their team?

More from Working It

1. 

   S2 · E76 · 6 Aug 2024 · 56 min

   Coaching Real Leaders: How can I set the right boundaries in a new job?

   Working It is taking a break this week, so we’re bringing you a podcast we think you’ll enjoy: Coaching Real Leaders, from Harvard Business Review. The show takes you inside real-life coaching sessions with veteran leadership coach Muriel Wilkins. In this episode, Muriel speaks to ‘Sarah’, who has experienced burnout in more than one of her previous roles. Muriel investigates the causes of Sarah’s burnout – and points her to new habits that may stop her burning out again. To take part in the FT audience survey and be in with a chance to win a pair of Bose wireless headphones, please click…

2. 

   S2 · E75 · 30 Jul 2024 · 20 min

   You messed up at work. What now?

   There’s plenty of finger pointing taking place following the CrowdStrike software outage that took down millions of computers all over the world earlier this month. So what’s the best way to deal with big mistakes in the workplace – and can you win back trust after a huge error? Senior editor Hugh Carnegy, who administers the FT’s corrections and complaints process, tells host Isabel Berwick how he handles mistakes by editors and correspondents, and Sandra Sucher, professor of management practice at Harvard Business School, joins the conversation to talk about how trust is lost and regained…

3. 

   S2 · E74 · 23 Jul 2024 · 20 min

   ‘Power hours’: how to make the most of your working day

   We all experience peaks and troughs over the course of a working day. Knowing how to manage them can make us much more productive. Isabel Berwick speaks to Daniel Pink, bestselling author of books including When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing , about why people work best at different times of day – and how we can harness those differences to do our best work. Later, producer Mischa Frankl-Duval speaks to Aaron Levie, CEO of Box. Aaron is a committed night owl. He explains his unusual schedule, and how it affects his leadership. Want more? Free links: Fewer meetings, more memos:…

4. 

   S2 · E72 · 9 Jul 2024 · 16 min

   How to make your mark as a new leader

   When you step into a senior job, your in-tray is stuffed (just ask the new UK prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer). People who work under you are trying to win you round; the colleagues you beat out for the top job may be looking to sabotage you. And, as guest Laura Empson – a professor in the management of professional services firms at Bayes Business School – tells guest host Andrew Hill, some staff are even complaining about the chicken sandwiches. Laura explains how to cut through the noise when you start a new job, and the importance of throwing “live chickens” to the crocodiles. To take…

5. 

   S2 · E71 · 2 Jul 2024 · 14 min

   How to know when it’s time to quit

   We’re conditioned to believe that persevering in a tough situation is more noble than quitting. But decision strategist (and former poker champion) Annie Duke tells host Isabel Berwick that that’s not always the case. Too often when we’re faced with a stick-or-twist decision at work, we underplay the positives that may come from a change – and overplay the negatives. Want more? Free links: Quitting is underrated Quitting a job does not make you a failure Why living experimentally beats taking big bets Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The…

6. 

   S2 · E100 · 28 Jan 2025 · 26 min

   Finale: How work has changed since we started this show

   After more than three years, and 153 episodes, this is the final Working It podcast. Isabel Berwick gathers three colleagues (and friends) to discuss what they’ve learned about the world of work since the show first launched. So please, if you will, join Isabel, Andrew Hill, Emma Jacobs and Anjli Raval in the kitchen for a slice of ‘Working It’ cake, and a heartfelt goodbye to the podcast. Subscribe to the Working It newsletter here. Presented by Isabel Berwick, produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval, mixed by Simon Panayi. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s head…

7. 

   S2 · E99 · 21 Jan 2025 · 15 min

   Why being a CEO is so lonely (and how to fix that)

   Running a business is rewarding in plenty of ways – not least in terms of salary. But it can also be extremely lonely. Having friends at work becomes complicated (or even impossible), and you can’t be sure if people like you, or if they’re just saying what they think you want to hear. If you’re the boss, how can you learn to live with those downsides? To find out, Isabel Berwick speaks to Allan Barton (former MD of the waste disposal firm Shanks), and Tiffany Gaskell, co-CEO at the coaching consultancy Performance Consultants International. Subscribe to the Working It Newsletter here . Want…

8. 

   S2 · E98 · 14 Jan 2025 · 18 min

   The science of better workplace conversations

   What can we learn about the way we speak by analysing thousands of everyday conversations? That’s a question that fascinates Alison Wood Brooks. Alison, an associate professor at Harvard Business School, and author of the forthcoming book, Talk: The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves joins Isabel Berwick to discuss her research. She explains how to plan a conversation even when you don’t know who you’ll be speaking to, how we misunderstand apologies, and why there’s no such thing as too many questions. Want more? Free links: What we talk about when we talk about the…

9. 

   S2 · E97 · 7 Jan 2025 · 18 min

   Why are some bosses infuriating (and others inspiring)?

   When you’re a leader, colleagues look for hidden meanings in everything you do. That can make gentle suggestions sound infuriating – and amplify the effect of even off-hand compliments. So how can a leader make sure their words and actions are understood as intended? To find out, Isabel Berwick speaks to Adam Galinsky, a professor at Columbia Business School, and author of the forthcoming book ‘ Inspire: The Universal Path for Leading Yourself and Others .’ Adam has asked tens of thousands of people about what makes a leader inspiring or infuriating. In this episode, he explains the perils…

10. 

    S2 · E96 · 24 Dec 2024 · 22 min

    Best of: How to master the art of schmoozing

    This week's episode of Working It – the last of the year – is a repeat of one of our favourite episodes. It features a masterclass in chit-chat from Matt Abrahams, a lecturer in communications at Stanford University, podcast host, and author of the since published book Think Faster, Talk Smarter . Good conversation is an essential tool of self-promotion in the office. So what do we make of Matt’s advice here at the FT office? Host Isabel Berwick gets the views of award-winning FT columnist Pilita Clark and Stephen Bush, who writes the FT’s daily Inside Politics newsletter. Want more? Top…

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