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Fifty Words

Christian, married, family, IET, Chartered Engineer, MBA, Bath, The Business League, TBL, BlackStar, FSB, MPC Wessex, Employee Engagement, Business clarity, business mapping, sensemaking, strategy, problem structuring methods, systems thinking, participatory action research, Open Space, QSD, QPID, mindmapping, MindManager, Tablet PC, TC1100, 2730p, TQM, Goldratt, RCM, CPD, award-winning, mentoring, LinkedIn, teamwork, collaboration, negotiation, truth, reconciliation, ENFJ, Deal Maker, waterways, narrowboat, music, railway, Belgium, Canada

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Profile

MPC Wessex offers business clarity, helping people in businesses and organisations that "can't see the wood for the trees" to be more forward thinking; specialises in business mapping: mainly mind mapping & cause mapping to bring clarity and formation of strategy as required to people and businesses; improves communication in organisations by graphical participation of stakeholders; uses software mapping techniques for rapid media-rich reporting of events and publishing to www. See part of the last activity under the Video Message tab above and see below for notes about it.



About Me:

Married to Marion 42 years, we have five children, two married giving us four grandchildren. Dorset born, Dorset bred... (you know the rest?) near Wareham; school in Swanage, student apprenticeship with CEGB based mainly at Poole Power Station, college in Poole and Bournemouth. HND Mechanical Engineering and Final exam of the Institution of Electrical Engineers (Part III) - retrospectively awarded DipEE. Plant commissioning, engineering and maintenance at Fawley Power Station and Hinkley Point A and B, eventually heading discipline on HPB and sometimes HPA as well and managing Engineering Development for British Energy on HPB. Chaired many working parties and project groups. Lectured part-time at Bridgwater College and staff training sessions. Executive MBA at University of Bath with distinction for my dissertation (on Strategy), I went on to PhD studies, interrupted in order to earn my living again - aiming to complete when possible... if it still seems like a good idea. I provide coaching in mathematics and engineering subjects as well as management issues.

Committee service for IEE - now merged with IIE to form the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) - at local Branch and international Council and Board levels, including strategic working parties (WP) 1996 to date. Industrial Representative 1995 to date, Nuclear Energy Professional Group Committee 1997-2000 and Centre Rep to Power Division Board 1998-2000; Centre Chairman 1999-2001, Branch (now "Local Network") Chairman 2001-02, Hon Sec 2003 to date, and Mentoring Co-ordinator 2001 to date with Service Award recognition 2008; on Council 1999-2001, Members Board 2001-04, Communication Strategy WP 2003-05 (for 18 months, not 3 years!), Finance Committee 2004-06.

Always loved Land Rovers and own a Discovery 300Tdi. If you want to avoid blowing head gaskets on these, get them changed at not more than 60,000 miles - it's cheaper. Now I know something more about cost of ownership and have acquired an Audi A4 1.9 TDi Quattro Avant that goes like the wind when necessary and offers really good economy - over 50 mpg no matter how I have driven so far and over 60 mpg on long distances. Lifelong enthusiasm for railways - travelling, photographing and modelling (I wish), and family treated me to driving and firing turn on a steam locomotive (this one*) on the Swanage Railway for one of those birthdays ending in '0'
* not my own film, I would add.

Enjoy mapping techniques, using software to produce mind maps (Mindjet® MindManager®), cognitive maps (Banxia® Decision Explorer®) and influence diagrams (Vensim®). Used the first to design and track committee 'networks of networks' and the last to show communication nodes and flows as analyst to IEE Members Board Communication Strategy WP. Each method is useful in formulating strategy for businesses as well as for personal clarity of thought, and influence diagrams are modified with peoples' and groups' interests, whether consensual or conflicting, to make Qualitative Politicised Influence Diagrams - QPID - leading to emergent action. All this may be lumped together as "Business Mapping" but note the beauty and benefit of hand-drawn mindmaps® and those that might be software-drawn using the pure techniques developed by Tony Buzan, e.g. in books referenced below, and here.

Also love the canals and rivers, and own a small narrow boat, Adagio, a 26' Sea Otter - aluminium construction, ballasted with river water - currently moored on the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal. Discover this beautiful and interesting but little-known waterway here.

Have training in Negotiation, Quality Assurance, Total Quality Management, Reliability Centred Maintenance, leadership coaching for performance and mentoring for CPD. Gave training sessions to department in change programmes and whole staff in safety legislation requirements. Facilitated and lectured to MBA modules in Strategy workshops.

I am a natural teamworker and collaborator and have found solitary research and sole trader consultancy unsatisfying. I am glad to find collaborators through Ecademy, The Business League and other networks (see below).

My Wealth Dynamics profile makes me out to be a Deal Maker, and provides a description I do not recognise - such a hifaluting set of claims as I cannot imagine. The one bit of insurance it can claim is:

Most failed deal makers are really deal-makers-in-waiting. They have never seen this as a credible way to create wealth and have never pursued this path. Or they have just never been aware that this was their main talent and would never do so unless they stumbled into it by chance.

Well they would say that wouldn't they? But Thomas Power encouraged me to think of it as including Peace Making. Now I sense a bout of hollow laughter out there - stop it at once, you know who you are! I have been employed in a role explicitly for that trait and have reconciled apparently conflicting ideas quite often. A friend even this week commented that I tend "to pour oil on troubled waters", and I know how she arrived at that. One of my skills is making sense of a lot of nonsense, and there seems to be quite a lot of need for it. Ah well, "Blessed are the peace makers" and I'll be a Deal Maker if I can. Who needs a deal maker? When? Those are the questions I should ask, apparently, not where, how, why or to do what, which is a bit of a strain as I respect Kipling's "Six Honest Serving Men" (sic) for "they taught me all I knew". Thomas also thinks I am too analytical to be a Blue, but who cares?

Life for me is underpinned by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ who died for our sins and rose again, who cleanses us from sin, redeemed us to God and brings us nigh to Him. "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" - the apostle Peter, in Acts 4:12.

My Business Interests:

MPC Wessex



As Owner/Director of MPC Wessex, I apply Mind Mapping®, Causal Mapping and other graphical techniques to business situations to bring clarity of view and improved forward thinking to people. Although there is a view that some computer programs must be regarded as "business mapping" applications, to differentiate them from the registered trade mark of Tony Buzan, I use it as a generic term. Any mapping method that is used to depict and clarify business situations is a Business Mapping process. In fact, Business Clarity is my aim for any and all.

MPC Wessex helps business people whose minds are so busy that they can't see the wood for the trees so they cannot do effective forward planning

Others miss the bottom-line benefit of good employee engagement

Some are disappointed with the results and reaction to their conferences, meetings and other events because they fail to keep the ideas fresh in people's minds, spread them to a wider audience or generate feedback

I don't suppose you know any business people who have any of these PROBLEMS?

MPC Wessex specialises in Business Mapping, mind mapping and influence diagrams manually and by computer programs, to bring business clarity to people in those situations. It also collaborates with other businesses in cases where there needs to be a larger and/or more diverse team, for instance to produce web sites rich in media suited to a variety of learning styles - text, mapping, audio and video material. One example is the Ecademy Open Space Conference (be sure to surf around - and click Acknowledgements and scroll down a bit) and others are listed here.

My Video Message shows my Tablet PC, a HP/Compaq TC1100, with me using MindManager® to note key points of Fraser Hay's presentation at the Novenber 2007 meeting of Walter Cruz's BountyNet, where I was a member of Andrew Wilcox's Cabre conferenceREACTION team. See the video with Andrew's comments here.

Inquiries are welcome on any of the methods I use. I collaborate with others offering complementary skills, especially on larger or more complex tasks. And offer business people an opportunity to take a fresh view of situations from a variety of perspectives to take account of all stakeholder interests.

MPC Wessex is a process consultancy, to bring business performance mentoring principles to assist people in the process shown below. If people (individuals or organisations) have difficulty seeing what they might do, I can help them to gain VISION. If they have a Vision and need help to realise it, I can assist them to frame STRATEGY, analyse this to develop ACTION PLANS, turn these into TIME SCALED procedures and then, if they wish, roll up my sleeves and help with IMPLEMENTATION. There's Business Clarity from MPC Wessex!



MindJet® MindManager® is mind mapping software capable of surprisingly diverse things worth discovering.
QPID stands for Qualitative Politicised Influence Diagrams, tautological but offering a cute pronounced acronym. It is an original idea of Prof J. H. Powell and the subject of research by M. G. Poole.

Networks:

Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET)
Operational Research Society (ORS)




Ecademy Clubs:
Leader or Co-Leader of:
By Consultants For Consultants (with Andrew Wilcox)
Mentors, Coaches, and Consultants
Land Rover Enthusiasts
Mind Mapping (with Tom Evans)
Taunton Ecademy Club (with Kevin Chamberlain)
Cabre's Visualise, Organise, Plan & Publish with MindManager - The Club for Business Mappers (with Andrew Wilcox)
Trains and All Things Transport
The South West Superbash (with Kevin Chamberlain)
125 more clubs - far too many for regular involvement.

Most Recommended Books:

The Holy Bible (esp. Authorised Version)

Use Your Head - Tony Buzan
The Mind Map Book - Tony & Barry Buzan
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
Through the Looking-Glass - Lewis Carroll
Strategic Decision Making - Niels Noorderhaven
Systemic Intervention - Gerald Midgley
The Social Psychology of Organizing - Karl Weick
Sensemaking in Organizations - Karl Weick
Strategy in Action - Gordon Pearson
Open Space Technology - Harrison Owen

What Am I Like?:

Apparently, Wealth Profile (for what it's worth):





If you got this far, for postscripts...

I'm a Ford Mustang!

You're an American classic -- fast, strong, and bold. You're not snobby or pretentious, but you have what it takes to give anyone a run for their money.

"Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

You Are Incredibly Logical

Move over Spock - you're the new master of logic

You think rationally, clearly, and quickly.

A seasoned problem solver, your mind is like a computer!

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