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In the second of our 4-part 'time to think' mini-series, we focus on the element that has a huge impact on our performance wellbeing at work: the relationship with our boss. According to Gallup, managers (more than any other factor) influence team engagement and performance. 70% of the variance in team engagement is determined solely by the manager (Gallup, 2021) but not all managers are easy to engage with!

We are thrilled to be joined by Jill Walker, author of the 2007 book Is Your Boss Mad? Jill is passionate about teaching people to deal with bosses who are bullies or who let us down. She shares tips to identify, from the interview process onwards, what sort of boss we may be letting ourselves in for.

Always practical, she shares some great tips to improve communication skills, boundary management and actions which are useful to reset an inappropriate power dynamic. Bosses are humans too, so this also has some great tips to focus on getting the best out of a challenging boss who may be under pressure themselves. A useful and uplifting listen for anyone who is finding leadership dynamics a challenge at the moment. Bringing this to the modern realities of AI, hybrid working and intergenerational differences, through understanding what might be going on beneath 'mad boss' behaviours we can reclaim our power and take steps to redress the power balance.

You can find Jill's wildly entertaining (as well as empoweringly practical) ‘Is Your Boss Mad?’ book here