Management
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When the Person Who Keeps Everything Running Announces He’s Moving to Spain
Every company has one. The person who keeps critical systems alive through a combination of institutional memory, personal relationships, and a folder structure that would make an archaeologist nervous. His name doesn’t matter. Let’s call him Harry. Who Harry Is Harry has been with the company for 40 years. He wears a Queen Magic Tour…
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Why People Avoid Responsibility at Work; And What It Costs Your Organisation
Everyone has a colleague who has mastered the art of not being responsible for anything. Deadlines passed? “The brief was unclear.” Project failed? “We were waiting on approval.” System broken? “That’s not really my area.” Nobody sabotages an organisation on purpose. It happens one convenient excuse at a time, until the excuses become the process.…
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The Scary Takeover: The Day Your AI Tool Became Your Boss
We love talking about AI transformation. Keynotes, roadmaps, pilots, proof-of-concepts. Big words, bold ambitions. Every conference has a slot for it. Every board agenda has a line item. And yet, for all the noise we make about AI strategy, the most consequential shift isn’t happening in the strategy decks. It’s happening in the background, in…
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Stop Saying You Want to Hire People Better Than You
“Hire people who are better than you” is one of those management statements that sounds wise, generous, and mature. It is also often nonsense. Not because you should not hire strong people. You absolutely should. But because most leaders who say this are not making a serious statement about talent. They are making a flattering…
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Why Slow Data Still Makes Businesses Rely on Gut Feeling
We have spent the last decade building structured, data-driven systems. Our operational environments are now filled with automation, dashboards, and real-time alerts. In logistics, finance, and IT, decisions are increasingly made by algorithms or are at least heavily supported by them. And yet, when it comes to day-to-day tactical decisions, we still fall back on…
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Smart Grid Strategy: Turn Energy Data Into Decisions
You’ve got the tech. But do you have the tactics? Across Europe and beyond, organizations are investing heavily in smart grid infrastructure—smart meters, IoT sensors, digital substations, and AI-powered analytics. The promise? Real-time insights, predictive maintenance, and optimized energy flows. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: Many smart grids are just data collectors. Not decision-makers. The…
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I busted 12 Myths about IoT
Internet of Things (IoT) is for many technology enthusiasts the single most important thing that has ever happened. The impact of this technology on our lives is growing close to mythical proportions. Working in this industry for years has made me encounter some of the myths and irrational expectations of IoT. Some of these myths are…
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How I Use the Dark Side for Innovation
In my post about the Rebel’s Manifesto, I mentioned the Dark Side. That triggered a few questions. How would you actually use the “dark side” in innovation? Is frustration useful? Can irritation lead to better ideas? Or is this just a convenient excuse to behave like Darth Vader with a product roadmap? This article sheds…
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23 Things Engineers Say, and What They Really Mean
Engineers are a special kind of people. They play a vital role in building our disruptive, digital world. They design systems, solve complex problems, automate processes, and occasionally explain why something “should work” while everybody is looking at a broken screen. Engineers also have their own way of communicating. Over time, I noticed that what…
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Treat Your Team Like Children, and They’ll Start Acting Like Children
I’ll share an example from my own experience as a micromanager. I was organizing an event about a new and innovative methodology that, in my view, could revolutionize the engineering of complex systems. Preparing for the event meant creating in-depth expert content and developing targeted marketing communications. I assigned myself the task of delivering the…
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What is Slow Management?
Henry Mintzberg: “I’m not a human resource, I’m a human being!” Slow Management is a reaction to the cold, Anglo-Saxon management style, aimed at maximizing shareholder profit, supported by model-driven optimization, output maximization, cost-cutting, and short-term goals. Slow management advocates a new form of management that emphasizes quality, job satisfaction, trust, creativity, and authenticity. Slow…