Welcome to November’s edition of The Pelorus: a selection of content and research Openside have discovered in the last month – which you may not have seen – which we hope will give you actionable insights that you can use in your own firm. We have written a summary of each article with a link to the full article if you want to read more.

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6 steps leaders can take to get the most out of feedback – Harvard Business Review

“It takes time, energy, vulnerability and courage to ask for feedback, and then go through the steps that are necessary to effectively process, learn from and act upon it”.

The focus for feedback tends to be around the transfer of data and less about how leaders should respond once they receive the data. The author, Jennifer Porter, suggests this is because the process often stops too soon – usually when leaders have read the report. In order to get the maximum value from feedback, leaders should take 6 additional steps. The return for those who invest in this process: gaining deeper insights on their strengths and gaps; building stronger relationships with feedback providers; having a greater impact on their colleagues and organisation.

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Performance management in agile organisations – McKinsey & Company

Organizations embarking on agile transformations cannot afford to ignore performance management. Performance management is tough enough in traditional organizations, however, in agile organizations adapting three core performance-management practices will be crucial for success:

1. Linking goals to business priorities
2. Investing in managers’ coaching skills
3. Differentiating consequences

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ROX: How to get started with the new experience metric – Strategy+Business

Leading firms are beginning to explore ROX, a metric that captures a company’s return on its investment in customer experience (CX) and employee experience (EX) and helps them track their investments, “giving them a company-wide view that offers more insight than siloed business-case metrics”.

ROX is developed in increments over time testing hypotheses, gathering data and building KPIs and although it can take a year or two to fully develop, there are advantages. The article cites PWC research showing companies that make experience a priority are able to charge a premium of up to 16% for their products or services, whilst a study by MIT finds that those companies providing a great employee experience are 25% more profitable. At a critical time for building and sustaining long-term client relationships whilst developing and retaining talent, ROX sounds like a worthwhile investment.

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Rehearsal initiates systems memory consolidation, sleep makes it last – Science Advances

We all know the benefits of getting a good night’s sleep for our health, general mood and focus. For a long time, it has been thought that systems consolidation of memory is affected by sleep. In this study, the role of sleep seems to go beyond providing additional rehearsal of what we’ve learned through “memory trace reactivation”. Researchers concluded that whilst repeated study induces systems consolidation, sleep ensures it becomes hard-wired.

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How people judge your personality based on your name – The British Psychological Society

Researchers suggest we have learned to associate certain sounds with personality traits and particular emotional contexts. For example, in calmer situations people use softer, sonorant sounds, so people with names like Lauren and Owen might be perceived to be more agreeable and conscientious. Alternatively, it could be more of a metaphorical relationship between sound and personality with the possibility that short abrupt sounds like Jack and Katie might bring to mind quick, bouncy energy of someone with a more extraverted personality.

It is unlikely the information we get from sounds in a name will impact how we judge someone in the real world. However, knowing how a sound brings characteristics to mind might help an author to decide on a name for their lead character. It might also be worth bearing in mind for your organisation when naming a new product or initiative.

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We hope you find these articles thought-provoking and that, where necessary, they have implications on the way you work within your firm. Please share this email with any of your clients or colleagues whom you think may benefit – there is a link to subscribe to ‘The Pelorus’ below.

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