Our reputation as leaders in the project and programme management recruitment field leads to numerous invites to talk to interested groups. It was after one such invitation that I found myself enjoying the autumn sun as I walked to the BCS offices in London. After yet another rain soaked summer in the North West this was a pleasure in itself.
I had been invited to talk to The Association for Informatics Professionals in Health and Social Care (ASSIST) and had posed the question: What are the skills I should be developing today to stay competitive and add value? The small group engaged in discussion and whilst we may not have agreed on all points my aim as always is to challenge people’s thinking and generating discussion; something I would like to think that was achieved.
I have always held the view if am out of the office for day it is still productive if you get something out of the visit. Although this does not mean that I have to get a sale or new opportunity. Talking to groups such as Assist leads to lots of opportunity and yesterday was such an occasion.
Unfortunately I had not been able to arrive until lunch so missed the morning speakers was fortunate enough to precede James Potter who spoke about the Do’s and Don’t of social networking as a professional. I have to admit to being slightly sceptical about the use of sites such as Linked In and this was not helped when the discussion turned to Dolphins and Lions. However, after listening to James I have decided to put more effort into my online presence and hopefully if I follow his advice I should be able to see more return for my efforts. James’s passion and enthusiasm for his subject is unmistakable and for me made the whole day worthwhile. I encourage anyone who gets the chance to listen to one of his presentations. His approach is perhaps not for everyone, but he certainly knows his stuff and is worth listening to.
