Growing my connections and stretching my brain meant that I had the pleasure of being invited to a breakfast to discuss “Hacking the Matrix: How to Make Cross-Functional Work… Actually Work” Thanks Joe Turner and Hannah Thornton for the invite and scrummy food in a fab location.

We had a hearty discussion and the common theme was around the challenge that matrix means multiple stakeholders and no one person can make the decision.

I pondered this on my saunter back to the station in the sunshine and it reinforces my perspective on getting the right balance of the WHAT and HOW to get stuff done.

And for the HOW you need Doers and Wooers – these are not mutually exclusive for sure and I’d like to think I am both but the softer skill of Winning Others Over can not be underestimated as a way to hack the matrix.

I completed Cliftonstrengths a few years back and was delighted to have WOO as one of my top strengths – something I have used so much in my transformation roles and home life too!

If you’ve not done this I’d really recommend it as you learn what makes you you and what strengths you bring to a team.