Tracy Wolstencroft, CEO of the global executive-search firm, explains the importance of authentic leadership, listening, and getting comfortable with being uncomfortable.

http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/leading_in_the_21st_century/heidrick_and_struggles_on_the_changing_nature_of_leadership

This might sound obvious, but if you want to build a more engaged workforce you need to, well, engage. That means, whether you are a CEO or a frontline manager, you need to be working hard to connect, face-to-face, with your people. That can mean anything from walking around and making pit stops in offices and cubicles to holding town hall discussions with your teams and staying to answer questions afterward. But most leaders simply can’t make time to sit down with every person in the company, in every office around the world, on a regular basis. It’s mathematically impossible. So what should leaders do instead?

https://hbr.org/2015/06/be-a-leader-who-can-admit-mistakes

When we talk to managers about what their workers are lacking, we hear a common refrain: “We need employees who can think, not just follow orders.” The complaint is usually followed by an observation about how the world is changing too quickly to predict customers’ demands, or that competitors are at their throats. The only way to thrive, or even survive, these managers conclude, is to find workers who can co-create value with customers and constantly improve operations.

https://hbr.org/2015/06/developing-employees-who-think-for-themselves

This research highlights the vital need for more to be done to improve progression routes in health and social care, as demand for those working in the sector is set to soar. The research findings show a poor prognosis for skills in health and social care, with employees finding limited opportunities to progress to higher level roles, and many younger workers leaving the sector as a result. It also shows a larger than average proportion of those working in the sector are aged between 50 to 64, further stressing the need for new talent as a large cohort of the existing workforce is set to retire in the years ahead.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/430137/Skills_and_Performance_Challenges_in_Health_and_Social_Care.pdf

Constraints aren’t the enemy of creativity—they make it more effective.

http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/innovation/the_simple_rules_of_disciplined_innovation

There are managers who coach and managers who don’t. Leaders in the latter category are not necessarily bad managers, but they are neglecting an effective tool to develop talent. We’ve been researching managers who coach and what distinguishes them. What has stood out in our interviews with hundreds of managers who do coach their direct reports is their mindset: They believe in the value of coaching, and they think about their role as a manager in a way that makes coaching a natural part of their managerial toolkit. These are not professional coaches. They are line and staff leaders who manage a group of individuals, and they are busy, hard-working people. So why do they so readily give coaching an important place in their schedule?

https://hbr.org/2015/05/4-reasons-managers-should-spend-more-time-on-coaching

Many people approach their work one task at a time, and concentrate on each until they complete it, however long this takes. Timeboxing is different because it encourages you to focus on time instead of tasks. To use this time-management tool, you allocate a certain number of hours or days, called a “timebox,” to each activity. You then use this time – and only this time – to complete the task.

Timeboxing is a simple and effective way to manage your own, and your team members’, daily workload.

http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/timeboxing.htm