Why do we sometimes make bad decisions in relation to money and what can we do about it? My guest, Vishal George, is a Behavioural Scientist who has recently published a book called ‘Money Mindsets: Science-Based Stories to Rewire your Money Beliefs, Goals, & Habits’. In it, he explores that he way we behave when it comes to money, comes from beliefs about it, that we’ve adopted from our families, socio-cultural environment, and significant life events. They’re almost like scripts that are handed to us. Yet, often, we don't even know who the author is of our scripts. What, asks Vishal, if we can rewrite our own money story? The idea behind his book isn’t to change what we do with our money. Rather, it offers mindsets to change how we think about money. If we become aware of why we do what we do with our money, we can make sure our behaviours with it are aligned with our priorities. Since many incidents of huamn risk are caused by money, this topic is perfect for the show. In our discussion, we explore how Vishal came to write the book and what he hopes to acheive with it. I also get some thoughts from him on how this impacts his approach to business and what he’s learend from his reasearch. And he turns the tables and asks me a question. Resources To learn more about Vishal, his compnay ‘Behavioural By Design’ visit https://www.behaviouralbydesign.com/ For more on his book ‘Money Mindsets’ https://www.behaviouralbydesign.com/money-mindsets To read about Diversifi, the global Behavioural Science practitioner network that both Human Risk and Behavioural By Design are part of, visit https://www.diversifiglobal.com/ Mount Taranki, the mountain Vishal is trying to climb: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Taranaki The Save The Change program that encourages saving: https://www.asb.co.nz/banking-with-asb/save-the-change.html

What do you think of when you hear the word 'error'? It's highly likely you'll think of it negatively as a defect. The obvious way to manage defects, particularly in safety-critical industries, is to have detailed procedures, strict compliance, and zero tolerance for errors. But we know that this doesn't always work. After all, if it did, we'd have far fewer errors. My guest on this episode takes a different approach. He specializes in helping organizations, particularly safety-critical ones where the cost of getting something wrong can be death or injury, to reduce errors, improve safety and build trust. He calls this human reliability. His name is Dr. Jake Mazulewicz, and he's been a firefighter, an emergency medical technician and a military paratrooper. Nowadays, he brings all of those experiences to bear in helping organizations design processes and cultures that allow humans to manage the complexities that don't always allow themselves to be neatly codified into standard procedures. As you'll hear, he's got some fascinating ideas about designing safety models that flex to meet the situation's needs. Key Moments In The Show (mins:secs) 02:14 — Dr. Jake’s background 05:25 — Mechanistic vs. Adaptive systems 06:28 — The big problem: too many leaders treat ALL systems as Mechanistic systems 09:10 — What to say to a commercial pilot when you’re walking off their aircraft after the flight lands 10:40 — Four work guidance modes 11:00 — 1) Procedures 11:53 — 2) Guidelines like, “To find out what an organization values, follow the money." 13:00 — 3) Principles like “A jury doesn’t decide what to believe. A jury decides who to believe." 21:20 — 4) Tacit Knowledge — You can solve complex problems, but can’t explain how 26:40 — “All models are wrong, but some of them are useful.” 31:10 — How one team of electricians dramatically improved safety by using FEWER procedures 35:57 — Letter of the law vs. spirit of the law 38:20 — Have you heard of Philip K. Howard?... "Let’s pretend I haven’t.” 42:10 — We write rules when we don’t have enough trust 44:55 — Build trust by overcommunicating your intentions 45:25 — “Commander’s Intent” in military mission plans 47:55 — Listen for "Weak Signals" like hearing, “I’ll do whatever it takes…" 50:40 — Stay resilient by catching a system before it goes “exponential” 54:00 — Chris Argyris’ 17-word, 4-step recipe for creating a toxic work culture 57:10— A new Early Warning System 58:20 — Ask an expert, “What’s a 'Weak Signal' in your field, and what does it mean?” 1:04:55 — Why a non-punitive approach is so helpful and so uncommon 1:10:10 — How to get in touch with Dr. Jake — reliableorg.com Further Information To find out more about Praxtical Human Performance For Leaders visit www.reliableorg.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-mazulewicz/

What are museums, and what purpose do they serve? As a regular museum-goer — both when I’m travelling and also at home when I need distraction or creative inspiration — I’m always intrigued, both by what they show and how they show it. If you’ve been following my Compliance In The Wild series on LinkedIn (example post https://www.linkedin.com/posts/humanrisk_compliance-ethics-behaviouralscience-activity-7131940432715882496-kjJa) you’ll know that museums regularly feature as they often contain fabulous examples of Human Risk and the methods we use to mitigate it. My guest on this episode is Dr Freddie Mason, who is a Senior Creative Strategist at Bompass and Parr and the author of a report on the future of museums. The report explores what a museum is, or rather, what it could be. Bompas & Parr are, in their own words, ‘a fully-fledged creative studio offering food and drink design, brand consultancy and immersive experiences across a diverse number of industries'. When they research something, it’s not your traditional piece of research because they also add creative flair to their findings. Which is why, in the report and on the show, you’ll hear some fascinating insights, including: - What purpose do museums serve?; - Do museums need to be in physical locations; - How could museums could be transformed into vibrant social spaces; - What role can museums play as catalysts for societal issues; - How virtual reality could provide immersive experiences in museums; - The importance of providing inclusive environments in museums; - How liminal spaces could be deployed as museums; and much, much more. Links To learn more about Bompas & Parr: http://www.bompassandparr.com The report we discuss: https://bompasandparr.com/case-study/future-of-p-leisure-2024/ Freddie’s book on Viscosity: https://punctumbooks.com/people/freddie-mason/ To hear Alix Cherobrier (then Hope) talking about the future of experiences on the show in 2020: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/alix-hope-on-fluid-landscapes/ To hear Professor Tom Schoessler talking on the show about deploying Behavioural Science in a Museum: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/professor-tom-schossler-on-deploying/

What is it like to grow up in a country that no longer exists? That's the challenge faced by my guest Katja Hoyer. She grew up in the GDR, the German Democratic Republic. Or as most of us think of it, East Germany. While most histories of the country focus on the political decision-making or things that are most extraordinary — for example, the Stasi, the East German secret police or dramatic escapes over the Berlin Wall — Katja wanted to write a more human history. In her book 'Beyond The Wall' or 'Jenseits der Mauer' in German translation, Katja explores not only the politics of the country, but also what life was like for people within the country. Since the book has been out for several months and there are lots of other shows on which you can hear about what's in it — though we do touch on a few human risk-relevant dynamics such as the challenges facing the Stasi in dealing with the information they gathered and the prevalence of paranoia within the country's leadership — I'm interested in the dynamics around the book, rather than the detail of what's in it. You'll hear: - why a Germany history researcher is based in the UK, and not as you might expect Germany; - what prompted Katja to write the book; - the challenges of getting people to speak about the past; - 'soul lag' what happens when our bodies move faster than our souls - the reactions to the book in Germany and elsewhere - Weimar - the book that Katja is about to start writing. and much, much more. About Katja Katja Hoyer is a German-British historian, journalist and the author of the widely acclaimed Blood and Iron. A visiting Research Fellow at King's College London and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, she is a columnist for the Washington Post and hosts the podcast The New Germany together with Oliver Moody. She was born in East Germany and is now based in the UK. Beyond The Wall is published by Penguin books is available from all good bookstores: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/447141/beyond-the-wall-by-hoyer-katja/9780241553787 Diesseits der Mauer is published ny Hoffmann und Kampe and is also available from all good bookstores: https://hoffmann-und-campe.de/products/63884-diesseits-der-mauer Substack/Podcasts: to learn more about Katja's writings and podcasts: https://t.co/ToYLvjcZsx You can listen to 'The New Germany', the show she hosts with Oliver Moody here: https://koerber-stiftung.de/en/podcasts/history-politics/podcast-series-the-new-germany/ Social Media: You can follow Katja on Twitter/X here: https://twitter.com/hoyer_kat? Her Kings College faculty page is: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/katja-hoyer Podcasts where Katja discusses her book: https://www.podbean.com/premium-podcast/travelsthroughtime/Ro9XbpH3jC2m https://audioboom.com/posts/8275986-katja-hoyer-beyond-the-wall https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/katja-hoyer-beyond-the-wall/ https://coldwarconversations.com/episode284/ https://www.spreaker.com/user/10740198/history-unplugged-beyond-the-wall-with-a Dirk Oschmann's book 'Der Osten: eine Westdeutsche Erfingung' https://www.ullstein.de/werke/der-osten-eine-westdeutsche-erfindung/hardcover/9783550202346

What is the Monday Revolution, and why do we need it? On this episode, I'm speaking to someone who used to run a company that grabbed a lot of my attention during my teenage and younger years. That company was Capital Radio — at the time, London's largest radio station — and that person is David Mansfield. After being CEO of Capital and its successor company, GCap Media, he went on to advise a number of other successful companies, including Carphone Warehouse and Game Group. Nowadays, as well as retaining roles within the radio industry, David is an investor, an accredited business coach, and an adviser to numerous companies. He's a Fellow of the Center for Evidence-Based Management and the Radio Academy and has been a Visiting Professor at the Bayes Business School in London and a Visiting Fellow at the University of Oxford. The Monday Revolution is the title of David's book and the name of his mission to simplify business behaviour and provide executives of all ranks and company sizes with the tools and approach to get more done. In our discussion, you’ll hear what the Monday Revolution is and why it’s’ called that. We explore David’s practical tips to making business more effective. We discuss risk management, how to empower staff, the benefits of asking the right questions in the right way, the importance of giving people agency and how to make better decisions. To learn more about David and the Monday Revolution, visit https://themondayrevolution.com/ On the show, we also talk about: James Clear's 'Atomic Habits' — https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits Professor Daniel Kahneman - https://kahneman.scholar.princeton.edu/

How can lying earn you millions? If you’re an actor and good at impersonating people, then the answer is that you become a corporate spy. That’s the unexpected career path followed by my guest Robert Kerbeck, whose memoir ‘Ruse: Lying the American Dream from Hollywood to Wall Street!’ tells the story of how it happened. And on this episode, he joins me to talk about some of the behavioural dynamics behind his fascinating life. Robert didn’t grow up wanting to become a spy. He just wanted out of the family car business. An Ivy League education in his back pocket, he had a more noble profession in mind—to be an actor. But to support himself, he needed a survival job. And before he knew it, while his acting peers were waiting tables, he was beginning his apprenticeship as a corporate spy. In our discussion, we explore: - The world of corporate espionage and the common nature of the activity is; - The techniques used by Robert to gain access to privileged information, including 'ruse calls’ and social engineering; - How the growth of compliance functions played a role in Robert’s infiltration strategies; - The methods Robert used to gain trust and information as a researcher; - The very human reason that drove Robert to give up his role as a spy; - The challenges posed by AI and deep-fake technology; - What organisations and individuals can do to protect themsevels from ruse calls and much, much more. To find out more about Robert and 'Ruse: Lying the American Dream from Hollywood to Wall Street!’ visit https://www.robertkerbeck.com

Why can senior leaders — usually in post as a result of experience and expertise — often make mistakes? The answer might seem counterintuitive; it’s precisely because of their experience and expertise that this can happen. How that happens and what we can do to mitigate it, the subject of this epsiode. My guest is Dr Constance Dierickx, who is also known as the Decision Doctor. She’s also the authr of a new book called ‘Meta Leadership: How To See What Others Don’t And Make Great Decisions’. In her book and her work, Constance explores how congitive biases can impact sneior leader decision-making and what they can do to mitigate this. What applies to senior leaders also applies to the trest of us.. Discussion topics In our discussion, we explore: - Constance’s career and interest in the field of decision-making, including how she became known as The Decision Doctor and the work that she does with Senior Leaders; - How meta-analysis and metacognition and how they can be used to help leaders make better decisions; - The role of our default thinking patterns and instincts in making decisions and how our past experience shapes how we perceive the importance of new information; - The significance of empathy in shaping decision-making skills; and - How tensions and differences in perspective between senior management and boards can impact decision-making Resources For more information on Constance, her work and books, visit https://constancedierickx.com/. There you’ll also find a free meta-leadership self-assessment. To read her HBR article entitled ‘What-senior-executives-can-do-when-the-board-meddles’: https://hbr.org/2019/07/what-senior-executives-can-do-when-the-board-meddles

Why is some software a real pain to use? How does it happen, and what can we do to make it not happen? On this episode, I’m speaking with Sebastian Lees, an experienced software developer with a keen interest in making things more human-centric. We often think of computers as making our lives easier and reducing human risk. Yet, poor design and a lack of thinking about the humans that will use it can actually increase rather than decrease human risk. In our discussion, amongst other things, we explore: - The concept of 'human OS' in software development and how understanding the human psychological component is essential in creating effective and user-friendly software systems; - The importance of balancing innovation and user comfort when updating software interfaces, using the evolution of Microsoft Office’s ribbon interface as a case study; - The concept of affordance; how users often employ products in ways not originally intended by the developers, and how this can influence software design: - The impact of seemingly minor tweaks to software on efficiency and user satisfaction, highlighting the importance of tailoring software to the users' habits and preferences; - The critical role of smart process management in mitigating risks in software development illustrated through the case study of the 2012 Knight Capital failure. - The influence of Nassim Taleb's ideas on software development approach and the application of his concepts, such as anti-fragility and survivorship bias in the field. - The story of the Fat Tony's community, a group inspired by a character from Taleb's books, demonstrating the potential of small ideas to create significant impact. For more on Seb, including links to Fat Tony’s and his social media accounts: https://sebs.website/ For more on Nassim Taleb: https://www.fooledbyrandomness.com/ To see the Malicious Compliance Thread on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/MaliciousCompliance/

What is trickle-down safety? On this episode, I’m finding out with two safety specialists who help me to explroe what it means and why it’s relevant to other fields. By safety, I mean the kind that saves people’s lives on building sites,not the cyber kind. My guests are James MacPherson and Elisa Lynch. James is a safety professional who works across multiple industries, including manufacturing and construction. He operates his own consultancy called https://riskfluentltd.com/ and also runs an app called https://www.riskassessor.net/ Additionally, he manages a community for safety people and hosts a podcast named https://www.youtube.com/c/RebrandingSafety His work revolves around safety and risk management, and he is passionate about discussing and challenging the current safety standards and practices in businesses. Find James on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmacpherson1/ Elisa is also a safety professional with about a decade's experience, predominantly in construction safety. She is based in West Cork, Ireland. She co-hosts a podcast called https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzTuXj9E1Q_QCLiDBcEpzWQ/about! , where she and her co-host Crystal Danbury discuss various safety-related topics. As you'll hear on the show, Elisa is credited with coining the term 'trickle down safety', a concept that compares how safety standards and regulations from larger companies can impose burdensome requirements on small businesses. She is an advocate for creating safety standards that are more fitting and less stressful for small businesses. Find Elisa on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elisalynch/ The podcast on which I first heard James talk about 'Trickle Down Safety' was the Slice podcast which you'll find here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRwjFV3YhCw Show contents On the show, we explore topics that include: - 'Trickle down safety' concept and its impact on small businesses - The pressure and stress imposed by larger companies on smaller businesses through burdensome safety standards and regulations - The disproportionate effects of health and safety regulations on different businesses - The ineffectiveness of one-size-fits-all approaches in safety regulations - The concept of 'productive procrastination' and its impact on problem-solving in small businesses - Barriers in academic research accessibility due to paywalls nad how social media can help break these down - Risk and safety challenges faced by businesses due to bureaucratic issues - Risk management and societal acceptance of risk levels in various industries - Challenges and frustrations encountered in safety training within businesses.

What we can learn about customer service and being more human from the fire service? On this episode, I’m speaking with David Wales, who used to work in the fire and rescue service and has now switched to focus on product design and customer service. In his role in the fire and rescue service, David wanted to understand why people didn’t always do the things that they were told. For example, rushing into dangerous situations to rescue pets or laptops. What this reinforced is something that we all intuitively know; there’s a gap between the theory of what people should do and the realities of what they actually do. That means the advice people receive is often not helpful for the realities they’re facing. What makes sense to the fire service, in theory, might not match the realities of people’s personal experiences. That led him to a career in looking at customer experience, where the human touch is equally important. On the episode, we explore: - David’s career from being a firefighter to understanding the human touch in product design and customer service; - how human behaviour plays a vital role in crisis situations and the importance of tailoring safety messages to individual circumstances; - risk communication and the importance of personalisation in organisations; - how emotions significantly influence customer experiences and the challenges in achieving customer-centricity; - the difficulties faced by organisations in achieving customer-centricity; - how companies often choose solutions for us, not with us, creating an impersonal system, and how a change of focus could lead to a more pleasant customer experience. Links to topics we discussed: The Edelmann Trust Barometer: https://www.edelman.com/trust/trust-barometer Elton John’s donation of a piano to St Pancras Station in London: https://stpancras.com/news-events/sir-elton-john-s-piano John Legend playing the piano at St Pancras: https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/celebrity-news/john-legend-surprises-londoners-with-impromptu-performance-at-st-pancras-a3501956.html Find David on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidatsharedaim/ Shared Aim, David’s company: https://www.sharedaim.co.uk/