New Beginnings...

I made a decision about a month ago that is was time to make a change in my work world, and last Friday I finished up at St John WA after three years of looking after everything marketing, communications, and brand for this iconic Western Australian organisation.

I really loved my time at St John and it is the first time in my career that I have worked for an organisation that is truly purpose-led. I've read lots over the years about the importance of mission, vision, and values and have participated in and facilitated loads of workshops helping businesses carefully craft these words.

So often though the missing piece is how do you make those words mean something? Words like trust, respect, integrity - they are all great words, but what do they actually mean? Or more importantly, what do they mean to your staff and customers? How do you bring them to life so that they mean something?

Yes, St John had all the usual challenges that come with a large, complex business with revenue of more than $300m, over 1,500 paid staff and over 9,000 volunteers. There were silo's and bureaucracy until the cows come home, but despite all that, people aligned behind the purpose to get the job done.

And I had the honour to help bring that purpose to life through the development of a long-term brand strategy.

I want to thank everyone who I met along the way and had the pleasure of working with. I had a great team around me and I hope I left the brand in better shape than when I arrived.

And now to the future...

I'm going to take some time to spend with my family, contemplate all that is good in the world and look for the next exciting project.  I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of Monkey Logic, our boutique consulting business.

Oh, and we have started a not-for-profit, called Give Write - check it out here www.givewrite.org.au  We want to help kids in school who can't afford even the basics such as pens and pencils, by repurposing stationery that others no longer need. 

And in the words of someone wiser than me

Do, or do not, there is no try...