nef launches new magazine

nef consulting launches its new magazine, Perspectives, this week, with an evening of debate and drinks on the theme of inspiring positive performance at work.

The first issue of the magazine picks up the theme, with articles including:

• Organisational consultant Ian Hadden and writer Rupert Widdicombe present a sweep through the tricks our brains play on us. They build on behavioural economist Dan Ariely’s idea that we’re predictably irrational…

• Neuroscientist Dr Tali Sharot explores our tendency to be over-optimistic about our futures, and how organisations can harness these insights to benefit the workforce…

• Philosopher Julian Baggini makes the case that organisations – like people – are messy and fragmented sets of competing factions, with no overall control centre…

nef economist Suzie Steed and nef consulting colleague Jonathan Schifferes show how unlocking motivation relies on understanding organisational culture informs, but is also formed by, personal behaviour…

• Jonathan Rowson, who leads the Social Brain project at the RSA, highlights practical tools to help organisations tackle adaptive challenges…

nef’s ambition for the magazine is to better understand what makes organisations effective, using experts in the fields of neuroscience, philosophy and behavioural economics to help us make better decisions. The evening’s gust speaker is workplace wellbeing guru Nic Marks, who will lead a debate on ‘how we experience our work is a personal responsibility’.

Suzanne Quinney, AP co-director, says: ‘We’ve found nef’s work on wellbeing to be a very helpful resource in our own OD work; Perspectives brings wellbeing even more firmly into the organisational development field. Appreciating People use AI as an approach to inspire positive performance in the workplace, and a focus on wellbeing sits naturally within that approach.

You can read all of the articles online on the Perspectives website.