Celebrating the Kon-Tiki expedition

Celebrating the Kon Tiki expedition as a resilience story. Read More

Shoring up the ship

Most organisations respond to a drop in performance the same way: tighten targets, add new dashboards, reshuffle roles, and ask people to try harder. For a quarter or two, the numbers might improve. Then the leaks return, often in exactly the same places. Some leaders stand on the bridge of the ship, staring at the… Read More

War, Interconnection, and the Hidden Weaknesses in Your Operating Model

War has a way of exposing vulnerabilities that arise from interconnection. Inside organisations, conflict acts like an extreme stress test: it doesn’t create fragility from nowhere, it reveals weaknesses already baked into operating models, supply chains, and decision‑making rhythms. The question for leaders is not whether those vulnerabilities exist, but how consciously they have been… Read More

What’s for breakfast?

A significant, prolonged oil shortage would not usually mean these foods disappear, but it would very likely mean patchy availability, higher prices, and less choice, especially for imported or processed items.[1][2][3][4][5] What an oil shortage affects Oil underpins food via three main links: farm production (diesel for tractors, fertiliser), processing and refrigeration (electricity, packaging inputs),… Read More

Operational Resilience and Continuity – without the drama

Our consulting offer for vulnerable times. The gap most mid-sized firms face Most firms have bits and pieces of business continuity, risk, and IT/DR work, but too often: Plans are outdated or don’t match how operations actually run today. • Operations, IT, risk, and suppliers each see their own slice – no one owns the… Read More

Will ISO 9001 have “a place at the table” in 2026?

Given ISO 9001:2026 will incorporate extra depth for leadership, culture, risk–opportunity, digital and climate themes, how popular is the domain model (below) likely to be with the current USA leadership? Below is a domain model one could turn into a capability assessment framework (maturity grid, heat map, etc.).[1][2][3][4] 1. Context, Stakeholders and Strategic Alignment Assess… Read More

No cherry on top …

Don’t be preoccupied by the “cherry on top” marketing – check the fundamentals for soundness. Read More

Universal Management System – Capability Assessment Evidence

When supporting clients assess capabilities we use the approach in the PDF below

UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK – Domain 7. Governance & Accountability – evidence notes

Metric: % of material issues closed on time (audit, reviews, incidents) E1 – Exists (Gateway Evidence) Do defined governance roles, accountabilities, and issue management processes exist? E2 – Enabled Are issue owners supported with authority, tracking, and escalation mechanisms? E3 – Executed Are material issues reliably closed on time, with consequences for non-closure? Evidence and… Read More

UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK – Domain 6. Learning & Continuous Improvement – evidence notes

Metric: Repeat incidents or repeat failures Evidence E1 – Exists (Gateway Evidence)Does a defined organisational process exist for learning from incidents, failures, and reviews? E2 – EnabledAre root cause analysis and improvement mechanisms consistently applied? E3 – ExecutedIs there evidence that lessons learned have reduced repeat incidents or failures? You can support each level (E1–E3)… Read More

UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK – Domain 5. People Leadership & Culture – evidence notes

Metric: Voluntary turnover in critical roles E1 – Exists (Gateway Evidence)Does a defined organisational framework exist for managing critical roles, capability, and succession? E2 – EnabledAre leaders equipped to recruit, develop, and retain people in those roles? E3 – ExecutedIs voluntary turnover in critical roles demonstrably controlled and within tolerance? You can think of the… Read More

UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK – Domain 4. Execution & Operational Control – evidence notes

Metric: On-time, on-budget delivery rate for material initiatives Evidence E1 – Exists (Gateway Evidence)Does a defined organisational framework exist for planning, governing, and controlling delivery of material initiatives? E2 – EnabledAre teams equipped with governance, reporting, and corrective mechanisms? E3 – ExecutedDo initiatives consistently deliver outcomes within agreed time and cost tolerances? An assessment of… Read More

Reflections on uncertainty

On reading the piece below (uncertain wisdom) I remembered a friend reflecting (late one evening, decades ago) on his first experiences in a “command, control and coordination centre” during a disaster. He quoted “while all about are losing theirs” with the wry observation that they were probably the sanest in the room – and that… Read More

UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK – Domain 3. Risk & Resilience – evidence notes

Metric: % of critical risks with treatments that reduce risk to target E1 – Exists (Gateway Evidence)Does a defined organisational process exist for identifying, assessing, and managing risks? E2 – EnabledAre treatments defined, resourced, and linked to risk targets or tolerances? E3 – ExecutedHave treatments demonstrably reduced risk exposure in practice (not just on paper)?… Read More

UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK – Domain 2. Decision-Making Quality – evidence notes

Metric: Decision reversal or rework rate E1 – Exists (Gateway Evidence)Does a defined organisational decision-making framework exist (authority levels, criteria, escalation)? E2 – EnabledAre decision-makers trained and supported to apply the framework consistently? E3 – ExecutedIs there evidence that decisions are made once, stick, and rarely require reversal or rework? Support assessment with three types… Read More

UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK – Domain 1. Strategy & Direction – evidence notes

You can support each level (E1–E3) with very specific documentary evidence and interview notes tied directly to how objectives are set, owned, measured, and used in decision‑making.[1][2][3] E1 – Exists (defined process) Assessment question: Does a defined organisational process exist for establishing, prioritising, and assigning strategic objectives? Evidence you would look for: Example notes you… Read More

Capability Assessment Tool- evidence example

[example illustrating types of evidence sought assessing e1, e2, and e3 for **domain 1 “context & scope management”** of environmental management systems (EMS)] 1.E1 “Is there documented analysis of internal and external issues, including environmental conditions (e.g. climate, biodiversity, pollution)?”Evidence would focus on showing that you have systematically identified and analysed internal and external issues,… Read More

Environmental Management Systems – Gateway Evidence

ISO Alignment Assessment 1 – Context & Scope Management Capability Criterion The organisation defines and maintains EMS scope based on a structured understanding of environmental context and interested parties. E1 – Gateway Evidence Does a defined organisational process exist for analysing environmental context, interested parties, and defining EMS scope? 2 – EMS Design & Integration… Read More

Risk Management Capability Framework

Based on ISO 31000 – ten key elements (domains) are built into the soon to be released Capability Assessment app (USD $0.99cents) 1. Leadership & Commitment Capability Criterion Leadership actively sets direction for risk management and uses risk information to govern decisions. 2. Integration into Governance & Decision-Making Capability Criterion Risk management is embedded in… Read More

Business Continuity Management – Gateway Evidence

Do you have the necessary foundation – the Gateway Evidence? BCM Program & Governance Intent: Direction, authority, and oversight exist and are exercised.E1 – Established (Gateway Evidence)Does a formally approved BCM policy, scope, roles, responsibilities, and governance structure exist? Business Impact Analysis (BIA) & Risk Assessment Intent: Decisions are based on a credible understanding of… Read More