Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, has voiced his concerns over the government’s new ‘rule of six’, warning that the temptation to ‘pull more decisions into the centre’ should be resisted. Meanwhile, Martin Simmons, managing director of Marsworth Computing, has provided timely advice for longterm business success.
Leadership in Focus
Martin Simmons began as sole trader just over thirty years ago and has since grown Harrow-based Marsworth Computing into a hugely respected business that designs and maintains high-quality computer networks for schools and commercial clients.
Central to the success, according to Simmons, is building long-term relationships. Writing in The Parliamentary Review, he said:
‘Our aim is to retain clients over long periods and many have been with us for over 15 years. We would rather tell a client that their systems are good for a few more years and retain them long term than just “sell them another box”.’
It is this aim that informs the firm's recruitment strategy:
‘We ask for full commitment, loyalty and absolute honesty. We are only interested in staff who are technically competent, have a service ethos, are ambitious, good communicators and self-starters.’
Simmons explains that the benefits of focussing on longterm relationships include a predictable cash flow, increased referrals, low staff turnover, and the development of real computing expertise in a variety of industries.
As Covid-19 and the resultant lockdown continue to affect sales in the majority of sectors, it is the organisations, like Marsworth Computing, who have built up enduring relationships over a number of years, who will be best placed to weather the storm.
Leadership Today
The Daily Telegraph reports on the Archbishop of Canterbury telling the prime minister that rule of six is ‘damaging’ and advising him to resist enforcing such restrictions on the country at large:
‘We are not immune to the temptation to pull more decisions into the centre, to feel that “something is being done”.
‘But it is a temptation that should be resisted. Often that “something” might not be as effective as what could be done locally. Scotland and Wales have shown that local public health is the best qualified to deal with local outbreaks. Local government, schools and voluntary agencies – including churches – can communicate well, act swiftly and measure risk and consequences on the ground.’
Meanwhile, The Times focusses on Mrs von der Leyen’s words at the European Commission’s annual ‘state of the union speech.’
Quoting a speech by Mrs Thatcher from the 1975 ECC referendum campaign, she said: ‘Britain does not break treaties. It would be bad for Britain, bad for our relations with the rest of the world and bad for any future treaty on trade we may need to make.’
Mrs von der Leyen added, ‘it was true then and it is true today.’
In the same paper, columnist and Conservative peer Daniel Finkelstein came out strongly against the government’s recent intimations that it would break the law in ‘limited and specific’ ways, warning that the move may be unpopular even among Brexit supporters:
‘Some people voted to “Get Brexit Done” as the next step in a war, but many others voted to “Get Brexit Done” because they wanted it settled, finished, over. And these people will not be impressed that, having been told by the prime minister that all they had to do was slam his deal in the microwave, they did as he said, waited for the oven to ping and found the deal was still frozen in the middle.’
Leadership in History
On this day in 1997, one day after google.com was registered as a domain, the technology firm Apple Computer Inc names co-founder Steve Jobs as Interim CEO.
