Giant Talk: Where Strategy Meets Results

In this episode of Giant Talk, James and Roger discuss leadership strategies with Dave Joyce, CEO of Macrium. The conversation explores the importance of creating a self-sufficient leadership team, the vision for making the workplace irresistible, and the integration of OKRs into the company's operating system. The conversation explores the implementation of the OKR framework and its impact on organisational alignment and change management. It highlights the importance of connecting purpose and values, identifying growth opportunities, and the sources of inspiration that drive leadership development.You can find out more about Macrium at https://www.macrium.com/our-storyTakeawaysFocus on leadership autonomyCreating an irresistible workplace OKR framework enhances alignmentChange management requires clear purposeChapters00:00 Expanding the Podcast's Focus01:42 Introducing Dave Joyce02:21 Dave's Background and Experience04:44 Vision for Leadership Redundancy07:21 Evolving Leadership Roles09:39 Building a Self-Sufficient Team12:16 Creating an Irresistible Workplace15:30 Defining the Operating System18:58 Integrating OKRs into Strategy23:12 Transforming Strategy into Action27:05 Navigating Change and Resistance31:00 Connecting Purpose and Values32:26 Identifying Opportunities for Growth34:45 Envisioning Future Success40:34 Sources of Inspiration and Learning

The conversation covers the expansion of the Giant Talk Podcast, the introduction of a new guest in the OKR software market, Stephen's entrepreneurial journey with OKRs, the ROI of OKRs and research reports, the impact of leadership on OKRs, the quality of decision makingThe conversation covers the expansion of the Giant Talk Podcast, the introduction of a new guest in the OKR software market, Stephen's entrepreneurial journey with OKRs, the ROI of OKRs and research reports, the impact of leadership on OKRs, the quality of decision making and OKRs, and the realized and unrealized value of OKRs. It also delves into the challenges of leadership and OKRs, providing insights into the strategic alignment and operational aspects of OKRs. The conversation delves into the importance of leadership buy-in and role modeling for OKRs, the perfect OKR cycle, accountability, transparency, culture and change management, AI's role in OKRs beyond writing objectives, its application in risk management and forecasting, limitations in lack of context and collaboration, leadership's role in AI and OKRs, common misconceptions about OKRs, scoring and progress, the binary approach to OKRs, invisible key results, leadership oversight, and the future of OKRs.TakeawaysOKRs and StrategyLeadership and OKRs Leadership buy-in is crucialAI's role in OKRs is more than just writing objectivesYou can check out Stevens great OKR platform a research at https://www.okrstool.com/https://therebegiants.com/ - helping leadership teams align on what matters most, getting the whole business working together and turning strategy into measurable results.https://momentus.uk.com/ - Learning and Development for Businesses Committed to People and Performance

“Values plus behaviours times consistency equals culture.”Roger and James speak with Chris Wisely about how Atlas grew from a small cleaning business into a £400 million, 15,000-person employee-owned business. The conversation focuses on what changed as the company scaled, why culture and performance must stay linked, and how Atlas is keeping decision-making fast while adding more structure. Chris also shares the acquisition journey that reshaped the business, including the Emprise deal, the COVID-era pivot into protection services, and the move into hard services and Total Facilities Management. Alongside the business story, he opens up about the personal experiences that shaped his leadership and resilience.Key topicsAtlas began in 1986 as a small cleaning business in Mayfair and grew through entrepreneurship and acquisitions.The Emprise acquisition brought larger contracts, new sectors, and a stronger platform for organic and acquisitive growth.During COVID, Atlas launched Atlas VPS and rapidly mobilised cleaners for HMCTS work.Multiple acquisitions in 2022 and 2024 created significant integration challenges across finance, HR, and back-office systems.Chris explains how his leadership role shifted from hands-on problem-solving to creating the conditions for success.Atlas treats culture as a commercial asset, with its purpose defined as “creating happiness for ourselves and others.”The company uses the formula “values plus behaviours times consistency equals culture.”The Atlas Way and a judo belt framework help people understand cultural maturity and personal responsibility.Atlas focuses on health, wellbeing, communication, clarity, performance, developing people, and making it easy.Role frameworks, performance frameworks, and regular work chats provide greater clarity than traditional annual appraisals.Employee ownership has strengthened accountability, belonging, and pride across the organisation.Chris discusses resilience, frontline learning, and the leaders, books, and podcasts that have influenced him.He shares advice for founders and CEOs: build culture and clarity before pursuing sustainable growth.Timestamps00:00 - Giant Talk’s new direction beyond OKRs00:40 - Introducing Chris Wisely and Atlas02:18 - Atlas begins as a small Mayfair cleaning business04:06 - The Emprise acquisition changes the business05:31 - COVID and the launch of Atlas VPS06:25 - Mobilising 200 cleaners for HMCTS07:48 - Protecting jobs and funding future acquisitions08:18 - Expansion into hard services and TFM10:06 - Atlas grows from £35 million to over £400 million11:36 - How Chris’s leadership focus changed13:58 - Building a stronger, not just bigger, business16:19 - The relationship between culture and performance18:37 - Making values a lived experience20:57 - Acquiring people, not just contracts22:22 - Atlas’s purpose: creating happiness24:24 - The Atlas Way and shared cultural responsibility25:14 - The judo belt model for cultural maturity30:06 - Conditions for success and the importance of clarity32:01 - Business, role, and performance frameworks34:20 - Intent and context versus rigid instruction37:40 - Avoiding bureaucracy as Atlas grows39:57 - The impact of employee ownership42:43 - Chris’s personal leadership journey46:24 - Learning from frontline teams48:14 - The monthly happiness survey50:51 - Advice for founders and CEOs53:06 - The return on investing in clarity54:04 - Closing remarks and how to contact Chris

The conversation with Emily from Redmore Environmental covers the evolution of the company, the challenges of growth, management and leadership, horizontal alignment and working groups, personal transition and lessons learned, and future growth and strategy. The key takeaways include the importance of strategy and structure, as well as the impact of leadership and management style on organizational development.TakeawaysStrategy and structureLeadership and management styleChapters00:00 Evolution of Redmore Environmental02:49 Challenges of Growth06:11 Management and Leadership09:07 Horizontal Alignment and Working Groups12:11 Personal Transition and Lessons Learned35:08 Future Growth and Strategy

In the first of our new 10min "PodBlogs" Jo & Rog talk about the recent blog Jo wrote on the importance of people seeing themselves in the story when it comes to successfully navigating change. They discuss challenges of change communication, understanding the operational mindset, the role of coaches in bridging the gap, excitement about collaboration, and connecting work to a bigger purpose. It concludes with advice on approaching change differently.TakeawaysChange communication requires connecting individuals to the bigger picture.Coaches play a crucial role in bridging the gap between leadership and operational teams.You can find the blog here

Connecting Strategy to Results with Simon NorieJames and Roger explore how organisations can align their purpose, strategy, and customer experience to drive meaningful results. Simon Norie of Custerian shares insights on navigating organisational change, fostering alignment, and the role of leadership in achieving sustainable success.Key TopicsThe importance of understanding and articulating your organization's unique value propositionHow clear purpose and strategy enable effective alignment across teamsThe critical role of leadership in setting conditions for successful changeTechniques for engaging detractors and building organizational buy-inThe impact of technology, including AI, on strategic alignment and decision-makingPractical frameworks like journey mapping, force field analysis, and process mappingEarly signs of organizational transformation and metrics that indicate progressThe necessity of doing change with organizations, not to themCultivating curiosity and creating an enduring business for long-term sustainabilityTimestamps00:00 - Introduction to connecting strategy with results00:31 - Simon Norrie's background and organizational interest01:28 - Using data to understand and influence customer behavior02:13 - Translating propositions into customer value and the role of purpose03:34 - The importance of clarity in organizational strategy and customer experience04:27 - Building alignment through purpose and leadership05:20 - The chain of strategy to customer experience and the baton analogy06:12 - The significance of understanding roles and value in the organizational chain07:43 - Engaging detractors as a strategy for organizational health08:52 - The role of strategic understanding in customer journey transitions09:45 - How different strategies enable or hinder operational effectiveness11:11 - Leadership's responsibility in setting organizational purpose12:26 - Recognizing symptoms of misalignment and strategies for recovery13:52 - Early indicators of organizational change and success metrics16:31 - Common misconceptions about buy-in and leadership confidence18:39 - The importance of engagement, ownership, and shared solutions19:48 - Managing change resistance through genuine involvement21:18 - Tools like force field analysis and process mapping for change management22:58 - Human motivation drivers and understanding "why" in change initiatives23:37 - The potential and limits of AI in strategy and alignment25:09 - Risks of over-reliance on AI for strategic objectives26:33 - The necessity of human judgment and leadership in AI-enhanced processes29:17 - The first steps in organizational assessment and understanding30:44 - Techniques for deconstructing problems and fostering ownership32:28 - Ensuring sustainability and self-reliance post-engagement34:21 - When organizations face problems worth diagnosing and fixing36:50 - Scaling challenges in high-growth businesses38:15 - The power of clarity in purpose and simple value propositions40:01 - Reflecting on lessons learned and organizational curiosity42:48 - Connecting with Simon and key takeawaysResources & LinksCusterian WebsiteSimon Norie - LinkedIn

The conversation explores the shift in the Giant Talk podcast's focus, introduces Ian Turner and delves into his HR experience, transformation, and human-centered leadership. It discusses empathy, performance standards, and the impact of a CEO's disrespectful comments on culture. The conversation also covers OKRs, individual recognition, challenges in human-centered leadership, and the balance between ego and leadership approach. It concludes with a focus on authenticity in leadership.TakeawaysHuman-centered leadership emphasizes empathy and individual recognition.Authenticity in leadership is crucial for creating a positive and supportive work culture.Chapters00:00 Introduction to New and Improved Giant Talk Podcast01:12 Introducing Ian Turner and His HR Experience03:03 Transformation and Human-Centered Leadership05:38 Navigating Change and Resistance07:04 Authentic Communication and Transparency08:12 Human-Centered Leadership and Individual Recognition10:57 Empathy and Performance Standards15:16 CEO's Disrespectful Comments and Impact on Culture18:52 Normalization of Destructive Leadership Behaviors21:15 OKRs and Human-Centered Practices25:18 Recognizing Individual Contributions and Talents26:33 Challenges and Barriers in Human-Centered Leadership31:57 Balancing Ego and Leadership Approach36:06 Authenticity and Human-Centered Leadership43:25 Authentic Leadership vs. Inauthentic Leadership

After a bit of a (long) break, Giant Talk is back, with a new look, feel and a new co-host! Still the same focus - decoding what works in translating strategy into results.James Perryman of Momentus joins Roger to bring a new perspective to the conversations on Giant Talk. While he and Roger share similar outlooks on business, strategy and performance, they come at it from different angles - with James focused strongly on the leadership and management challenges. TakeawaysOKRs play a crucial role in improving business performance and aligning organizational goals.Senior management buy-in is essential for the success of training and development initiatives.Chapters00:00 Introduction to OKRs and Performance Improvement02:29 Transition to Organizational Development and Leadership05:59 Management Training and Setting Expectations08:38 Client Engagement and Business Impact11:27 Organizational Integration and Leadership Role14:07 Training Relevance and Senior Management Buy-In17:19 Podcast Evolution and Organizational Growth22:57 Challenges in Implementing OKRsStay tuned as they drill into this with a whole range of engaging and insightful guests over the coming season.Enjoy the episode!If you have 3 minutes and would like to see how your goal setting/OKRs could have more impact, then why not give our maturity assessment a try?  It’s free, you get your results right away and you can access it HEREIf you’d like to chat OKRs, then why not have a chat with our Founder, Roger?  He’s a massive OKR geek and could talk about them for hours!  You can fix up a call with him HERE

We're sure you've heard the acronym: OKRs - Objectives and Key Results. But somewhere along the way, the simplicity got lost in translation. In this episode, we ask: What if we stopped calling them OKRs altogether? Roger Longden, TBG Founder and Marc Applebaum PM2 OKR Consultant at PM2 discuss how goal-setting became over engineered, why rhythms matter more than rituals, and the power of intention over jargon. If you’re over hearing acronym over acronym but love what OKRs are all about, or if you've ever wondered why your team’s goals feel disconnected—this one’s for you.   Enjoy the episode! If you have 3 minutes and would like to see how your goal setting/OKRs could have more impact, then why not give our maturity assessment a try?  It’s free, you get your results right away and you can access it HERE If you’d like to chat OKRs, then why not have a chat with our Founder, Roger?  He’s a massive OKR geek and could talk about them for hours!  You can fix up a call with him HERE

  In this insightful episode of Giant Talk, Roger sits down with Sonia, an experienced HR professional and coach, to explore the critical challenge of organisational alignment. They dive deep into why strategic goals often get lost or diluted as they cascade through different levels of an organisation. Drawing from decades of experience at the board level, Sonia shares sharp insights into the disconnect between strategic goals and frontline execution. From her own journey leading blue-collar teams through transformation, to her mission to democratise coaching in business, this conversation uncovers the human side of alignment—trust, communication, confidence, and the critical role of first-line managers. Enjoy the episode! If you have 3 minutes and would like to see how your goal setting/OKRs could have more impact, then why not give our maturity assessment a try?  It’s free, you get your results right away and you can access it HERE If you’d like to chat OKRs, then why not have a chat with our Founder, Roger?  He’s a massive OKR geek and could talk about them for hours!  You can fix up a call with him HERE