Fit For the Future

Gihan Perera
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We have never faced us much uncertainty as we do now, and have never needed strong leadership as we do today. Navigate this fast-changing world with ideas and insights for leading through crisis, recovery, and growth, and being fit for the future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 2d ago

    Build Their Judgement

    You can’t empower your people just by telling them to take more ownership. You need to build their judgement step by step, so you feel confident letting go and they feel confident making decisions. Over time, you reduce how much they depend on you, avoid becoming the bottleneck, and build a team that can act more independently and handle change more effectively. https://swiy.co/go-build-judgement As a leader, what are you doing to be able to trust your people more? I was running a leadership workshop recently, and we were talking about trust – especially in an uncertain world, where nobody really knows what the future holds. Of course, to be an effective leader, your people must be able to trust you. Even if you can’t give them certainty, you can still give them confidence and clarity for the future. But, in this workshop, one participant said, “What you’re saying makes sense for my team to be able to trust me, but my problem is I often don’t trust THEM enough.” In other words, when she delegates a task to them, she doesn’t trust they have the knowledge, experience, or wisdom to do it well – especially if things change along the way. This is common, and she herself recognises it’s bad for everybody. It’s bad for her team members because they don’t get to develop skills and grow. And it’s bad for her because she is either overworked (taking on work she can’t trust delegating to somebody else) or a bottleneck (always having to micro-manage everything they do). Does that sound familiar? If so, what can you do? Well, the bad news is you can’t just click your fingers, send them on a training course, and hope they learn everything they need to know to gain your trust. The good news is you CAN do it – but step by step, not all at once. Instead of focusing on “trust”, think about building good judgement in your team. Part of the reason you’re a leader is because YOU exercise good judgement – that’s why your own boss trusts you. Now, it’s your turn to build that in your team. Here’s a simple activity that helps to build judgement – not in a training course, but in everyday work. The next time a team member asks you for your help, before you offer any advice, imagine saying: “I trust your judgement.” and then letting them do whatever they think best. You don’t have to know what they will do, but you trust them to do the right thing. Keep in mind you’re only IMAGINING saying this. If you can actually say it confidently, go ahead and do so. It will make your life (and theirs) better immediately, and reinforces your trust in their judgement. But sometimes you know it would be inappropriate – and possibly even negligent – to simply assume you could trust their judgement. In that case, of course you address their immediate need: Give them the answer. Show them the process. Pitch in and help. Even do it yourself with them watching to learn for next time. But don’t stop there. After helping them, ask yourself: “What do I need to do so that next time she or he comes to me, I CAN say, ‘I trust your judgement’?” Usually, you can’t trust their judgement yet because they don’t know what to do, don’t know how to do it, or something is getting in their way. So, you use this as a development opportunity, and work together to do what it takes to build their judgement for next time. This isn’t a perfect process. You might try something to build their judgement, but find that next time it still isn’t enough. That’s OK – you just keep doing this over and over again. Does that sound like a lot of work? Well ... maybe. But if you don’t do this, you’ll be stuck forever. More importantly, you’re building your CULTURE, which happens through consistent behaviour, not just one-off interventions. If you’d like to know more about building a culture of change, join my free online presentation, “Keep The Change”. Register here, and feel free to invite others in your team and network as well. Register for the virtual masterclass: https://swiy.co/go-build-judgement Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. Sep 8

    Your Tone Sets The Culture

    As a leader, you set the tone for how your team’s culture. The environment you create isn’t just about the physical workplace – it’s also about whether people feel comfortable sharing new ideas, trying different approaches, and adapting when things shift. And with so much change ahead, you want people on your team who don’t just accept change, but are ready to embrace it and even lead it. https://swiy.co/go-your-tone-sets-the-culture As a leader, what are you doing to build a culture where your team members thrive and flourish? I was in the Perth CBD recently for some client meetings, and then went to work for a few hours at Australia’s newest university campus: Edith Cowan University. This campus is only about six months old, and when they built it, they had the opportunity to build a very modern university, and that’s exactly what they did. The entrance is open, spacious, and airy; and it celebrates our Indigenous cultures and of course Edith Cowan. They have many options for student collaboration, with open tables, study booths, quiet areas, and many other options. Not surprisingly, digital options are also widely available, with chargers and powerpoints everywhere. The lecture rooms and seminar rooms all have high-tech digital facilities for presenting and facilitating; and I presume they also support recording and live-streaming for students who aren’t attending in person. So the physical workplace reflects everything you would expect from a 2026 university campus. And, if it’s used well, it can support and facilitate a thriving culture of collaboration, discussion, learning, and innovation. But of course that physical workplace doesn’t automatically CREATE that culture. It supports it, but the people create the culture. And the same applies to your team, too. As a leader, YOUR tone sets the culture. A major part of your role is to create an environment – physically and in other ways – where people thrive and flourish. They feel confident speaking up. They know how to respectfully challenge others. They go out on a limb, knowing somebody else isn’t going to saw it off. And especially, they are open to change – because we all KNOW we’re facing a lot of change in our future. You want an environment where people feel comfortable with change, are open to change, and ideally embrace and lead change. Look around at your physical workplace environment. If it’s supports and facilitates change, that’s a bonus. But that culture starts with the people. That might sound obvious, but many workplace cultures just don’t encourage change. In fact, if anything, they push back against change. And that generally starts from the leader. For more about building a culture of change, join my free online presentation, “Keep the Change”, where we look at the six kinds of change cultures, and I help you identify yours and take simple, concrete steps to elevate it. It’s free, public, and open to everybody. So register here, and invited others in your team and network, too. Register for the virtual masterclass: https://swiy.co/go-your-tone-sets-the-culture Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  3. Sep 1

    When Leaders Say No

    When your team brings you new ideas, do you embrace them or push back? If you push back, it’s probably for a good reason (time, money, resources, tried it before, etc.). But when your people hear “no” often enough, they learn there’s little point suggesting anything new – and will stop. https://swiy.co/go-when-leaders-say-no As a leader, are YOU the biggest barrier to change in your team? A few weeks ago, I spoke at a leadership conference about being a future-ready leader in times of change and uncertainty. Afterwards, a participant came up to me and said, “Look, I like your ideas, but ... I have a young, inexperienced team who are always suggesting new ideas. But they don’t know much about our industry and just don’t realise how impractical and expensive these ideas are. So I’m constantly having to knock them back.” It reminded me that a few months earlier, I had spoken at another conference. Again, a participant approached me afterwards to ask for some ideas about where to learn more about AI. I was happy to help, and gave him a list of useful resources. He then said, “Can I be honest with you? The reason I’m asking is because I don’t like my job, and I want to find something better. My boss doesn’t like new ideas, and every time I go to him with an idea, he rejects it.” So ... two very different stories, looking at two different sides of a workplace relationship. Now, if I was making up a fake inspirational story, it would turn out that, by coincidence, that boss and that employee were actually in the same team, and, say, the employee would build a successful AI company that discovered some miracle cure that would save the boss’s daughter’s life! Right? No, that didn’t happen! They didn’t know each other – and were from two completely different workplaces in different industries. But those two kinds of people are common in many workplaces. On one side, you have people with ideas who approach their manager or leaders with those ideas. And they often get knocked back. And it’s usually for a valid reason. The leader will say something like: - “We don’t have the budget for that." - “We’re too busy right now.” - “That’s not part of your job.” - “We tried that once, but it didn’t work.” As a leader, are you saying those sorts of things? If you are, I’m sure you’re doing it with the right intent. For example, if you say, “We tried that once, but it didn’t work”, it makes sense, right? Why would you waste time, money, and other resources on something you know hasn’t worked before? But – and this is really important – if you do that every time somebody comes to you with an idea, then after a while they’ll stop coming to you with ideas! Maybe not the first time. The first time they might go, “That didn’t work. I might try it again next time.” But if you keep doing that, eventually they’ll learn that there’s no point raising new ideas with their boss or manager because nothing’s going to happen. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But soon, and for the rest of your life. And then you’ll say, “My people just don’t take initiative. They’re just not proactive. They never come to me with any ideas.” Guess what? It’s because YOU created a culture where change and new ideas aren’t appreciated, let alone embraced. So, even though you didn’t intend it, YOU might be the biggest barrier to change in your team. Of course, you can’t embrace EVERY new idea – that would be irresponsible and negligent. But you must find the right balance. To explore this further, download my worksheet with ten things that leaders and managers say that stifle innovation and change. Work through it with your team to find more useful and responses. It doesn’t mean you can’t ever say those things again, but it will give you a different perspective, so you can choose when and where you say them. Download the worksheet: https://swiy.co/go-when-leaders-say-no Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  4. Aug 24

    AI For The People

    As you plan for an uncertain future, it’s easy to get caught up in new technology (AI, I’m looking at you!). But don’t lose sight of what matters most: people. Use AI to help your people – customers, employees, and others – so you can work better, make better decisions and achieve better outcomes for everybody. It must always be people first, AI second. https://swiy.co/go-ai-for-the-people As a leader, are you focusing on the most important thing for the future for yourself, your team, and your organisation? I spoke last week at the Planning Institute of Australia conference in Perth, talking to local and state government planners about navigating an uncertain future. Many of the planners in the room are already thinking twenty or thirty years ahead, so they know what it means to plan for the future. But – like everybody else – they need to plan for an unknown future in a world that’s constantly changing. How do they – and WE – do that? I love the theme of the conference the Planning Institute chose for this year’s conference (borrowed from Shakespeare): “What is the city but the people?” I reckon that’s a perfect lens for us all when we’re thinking about the future. It’s not just for planning cities, but for teams, organisations, families, and communities. Put people first, and then build everything around it to support people. This applies especially to technology like AI, which everybody wants to use (good!) but sometimes with a focus only on the technology (not so good!). Turn that around and ask: “What is AI but for people?” AI is there to help us make better decisions, free us to do better work, and support us in building better teams. For more about this – specifically around AI – come to my free, public online presentation “Next-Level AI”, where I’ll show you how to make this the focus of your AI initiatives and growth. It’s open to all leaders, so please register and share the link with others in your team and network, too. Register for the virtual masterclass: https://swiy.co/go-ai-for-the-people Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  5. Aug 18

    When AI Breaks The Rules

    Did you hear about the gym in Melbourne that was accidentally hacked by AI? As a leader, that should raise a warning about the training and guardrails you give people when they use AI at work. It’s your responsibility to make sure you’re protecting your data, your organisation, and your brand from AI that doesn’t follow the rules. https://swiy.co/go-when-ai-breaks-the-rules As a leader, do you know how much power you’re giving to AI when you use it at work? You might have seen the recent story about a gym in Melbourne that got accidentally hacked by AI. Yes, ACCIDENTALLY! A gym user, Andrew, created an AI “assistant” to help him with his admin, and asked that assistant to book some gym sessions for him, using the booking form on the gym’s website. Simple, right? To his surprise – and shock – he found the AI had hacked the gym website to accomplish the task! First, although the website only allowed bookings a few weeks in advance, the AI discovered a way to book sessions for Andrew months in advance. Second, when the AI found a session that was full and the three waitlist spots were also taken, it figured out how to cancel one of the waitlist people (without their consent, of course) to make space for Andrew. So what happened here? First, let’s be clear this didn’t have dire consequences, like loss of money or breach of privacy. But this story made international headlines because it showed a real-life example of the power of AI to go off the rails. Andrew gave the AI a task, and the AI figured out how to do it – even in ways that were never intended. Nobody said it wasn’t allowed to book months in advance or kick people off the waitlist. It simply discovered that it COULD, so it DID. And it wasn’t even trying to be “sneaky”, like somehow sending a virus or malware to the gym’s website. No, it just found two unadvertised “features” of the website software that it could use to achieve the task it was given. As a leader, this should make you sit up and take notice – for two reasons. The first is EDUCATION. When you and your people use AI at work, do they really (and I mean REALLY) understand the potential consequences? It’s bad enough having AI “hallucinating” information in a chat, but at least you can manage that by carefully checking and double-checking everything it says. But now we’re talking about autonomous AI agents you ask to do some work for you. Are you sure you (and your people) know how to clearly describe the task, explain what the AI is allowed to do, and – just as importantly – be very, very clear about what it’s not allowed to do? The second reason is SECURITY. Are you sure your IT systems are secure from external AI agents that could “hack” them – even unintentionally? You might say that’s mainly the responsibility of your IT department. And you’re right – it MAINLY is. But IT departments can’t control everything – for example, somebody carelessly leaving private customer data on a publicly-accessible web server. They might have put it there temporarily – say, to make it easy for somebody else to download it – and forget to delete it, somebody else’s AI agent could stumble across it. So, as a leader, be sure you’re educating your people and tightening your security – to protect yourself, your organisation, and your brand. For more about this, join my free, public online presentation about next-level AI. We’ll talk about this and other issues you need to consider as you’re embedding – and trusting – AI more in your organisation. It’s open to all, so register now and invite others in your team and network, too. Register for the virtual masterclass: https://swiy.co/go-when-ai-breaks-the-rules Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  6. Aug 11

    The AI Governance Gap

    The Australian Government has dropped the ball on AI regulation. So, as a leader, it’s your responsibility to create appropriate rules and guidelines for safe, ethical, and responsible AI use in your team and organisation. That includes privacy, confidentiality, bias, governance, and how people use AI in everyday work. https://swiy.co/go-the-ai-governance-gap As a leader, are you doing enough to look at the ethical, safe and responsible use of AI in your team and your organisation? This is a hot topic right now because the Australian Government has dropped the ball on AI. Anthony Albanese recently announced a new strategy for regulating AI. And we DO need to regulate it – including things like (to name just a few): - Privacy - Confidentiality - Discrimination in the workplace - Surveillance - Gender bias - Transparency - Accountability in decision-making - Risk management - Safety-critical decisions - Testing obligations - First Nations rights - Data governance - Data sovereignty - Human oversight - Contestability - Frontier-model risk But are we going to do any of that? Nope. Our national AI strategy is all about ... data centres. Don’t get me wrong – this IS an important topic, and one that directly affects our communities. But even in this area, the government is doing the wrong thing. Albanese SAYS it’s “in Australia’s interests”, but his explicitly stated goal is to “enhance our appeal to international investors, by delivering greater clarity and speed for approvals”. I’m not making this up – that’s an exact quote from the Prime Minister’s website. Whatever you think about data centres (and there’s both valid information and misinformation out there), many local communities in Australia, in cities and regional areas, are concerned about data centres popping up in their communities. And it’s happening without their consent, sometimes without their knowledge until it’s too late, and probably without any positive economic impact in return. What does all this mean for you as a leader in your team, organisation, or community? First, of course, as a local resident yourself, this affects YOU. So learn more about what that means for you and your community. For your team, business, or organisation, the big problem is this policy neglects the real issues with AI regulation – things like privacy, confidentiality, data sovereignty, and the other things I mentioned earlier. We should be regulating the tech bros, big AI companies, and AI startups selling their systems in Australia. If we’re forced to trust AI, at least we need strong rules protecting our rights. That’s what the government SHOULD be doing. But it isn’t. That means the responsibility falls on you. When you’re using AI in your organisation, it’s up to you to consider, discuss, and ask the tough questions – especially when you’re talking to AI vendors and suppliers. Make sure you protect your customers, your employees, your brand, and yourself. Our government has abdicated that responsibility. So it’s up to us. If you’d like to know more about this, come along to my free public online presentation, where we’ll explore how to take AI to the next level. Register here, and feel free to invite others from your team and your network as well. Oh, and also learn a bit more about what our government is doing – or isn’t doing – about AI. Register for the virtual masterclass: https://swiy.co/go-the-ai-governance-gap Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  7. Aug 5

    Reimagine Work With AI

    Most teams are already using AI to save time and boost productivity – and that’s a good place to start. The bigger opportunity now is to step back and ask whether to do the work itself differently. Don’t just use AI to improve an old way of working; use this opportunity to ask what you could eliminate, redesign, or replace altogether. https://swiy.co/go-reimagine-work-with-ai As a leader, are you just using AI for efficiency and productivity gains, or are you taking it to the next level? My local library has just reopened after a few weeks closed for major refurbishments. We now have new carpets, new furniture, new bookshelves, and everything looks nice and new. While they were closed, they also took the opportunity to reorganise the fiction books on the shelves. Instead of the traditional system, where fiction books are grouped alphabetically by author, they are now grouped by genre: mystery books one one shelf, thrillers on another, historical romance on another, and so on. That’s a great idea. For example, If I’m looking for a new mystery author, I can browse the books in that section. When I speaking to the librarian about this before it happened, she said most people were looking forward to it, but a few people grumbled. She pointed out to them that bookshops already organise their fiction that way, and libraries do it already for non-fiction books. She also said: ‘In five years’ time, we’ll look back and say, “Why did it take us so long?”’ I reckon the same applies to AI. Many organisations, leaders, and teams are using AI now to make their processes more efficient and more productive. That’s good, but don’t stop at that point. To take it to the next level, ask if you could redesign, change, or eliminate the process altogether. Don’t just mindlessly apply AI to your current processes without also asking whether those processes should exist in their current form at all. So many things we do aren’t relevant anymore. We hang on to them because we’ve always done them that way. But, like keeping books in alphabetical order when there’s a better alternative, we should re-evaluate them. In fact, we could have done this a long time ago. Use the AI opportunity as the trigger to think again. What could YOU do now that would let you say: ‘In five years’ time, we’ll look back and say, “Why did it take us so long?”’ For more about taking AI to the next level, join my next free public online presentation, which is for leaders and teams everywhere. It’s free, and you’re welcome to invite others from your team and network as well. Register for the virtual masterclass: https://swiy.co/go-reimagine-work-with-ai Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  8. Jul 28

    The AI Innovation Gap

    Most organisations now allow people to use AI to boost productivity, and that’s a good first step. The bigger opportunity comes from using AI to rethink the way work gets done, not just making it more efficient. But are you recognising and encouraging that – or penalising it? https://swiy.co/go-the-ai-innovation-gap As a leader, are you and your team applying AI the right way in your workplace? This year’s Work Trend Index report from Microsoft focused on the way people use AI in their workplace. And there’s some good news and some bad news! The good news is that most knowledge workers are using AI now, and it’s now with the blessing and support of their leaders and organisations. Those leaders encourage their people to use AI, especially for boosting productivity. That’s a really good use of AI – to be more efficient and more productive. The bad news is that most people who used AI in more innovative ways to change their workflows – not just improve them – weren’t rewarded for it. Only one in seven were rewarded for using AI. The other six out of seven were either ignored or criticised. They were criticised for rocking the boat because, “This is the way we’ve always done it” Their boss didn’t mind them using Copilot to be more efficient, but didn’t like people going further and ”messing with” the workflow itself. In other words, they were happy with people bring compliant, but didn’t want them to be innovative. That’s a mistake, because you only get surface-level gains from being more efficient. For next-level gains, you change your processes and systems, and maybe even consider whether what you’re doing is even needed at all. For example, if you use Google Maps to shave five minutes from your daily commute, that’s good. But what if you rearranged your work so you worked from home and didn’t have to commute at all? That saves 100% of your commute time! Obviously, changing or eliminating workflows and processes can take a lot more work. But that’s exactly what you should consider, not just the small efficiency boost from asking Copilot to draft a better email. If you’d like to know more about this, I’ll be talking about it in my next free public online presentation, “Next Level AI”, for all leaders and managers. Register here, and please invite others in your team and your network as well. Register for the virtual masterclass: https://swiy.co/go-the-ai-innovation-gap Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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About

We have never faced us much uncertainty as we do now, and have never needed strong leadership as we do today. Navigate this fast-changing world with ideas and insights for leading through crisis, recovery, and growth, and being fit for the future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Gihan Perera
  • Years Active
    2007 - 2026
  • Episodes
    407
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright Gihan Perera
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    Fit For the Future