Forces Shorncliffe Information Portal

1. How to work with enemies. Getting along and working with people you don’t like is a challenge and not being able to do it can derail your career. Here are three ways to manage your enemies. [MORE]

2. Sunak’s £30bn Budget is biggest spend since 1992. Rishi Sunak’s Budget last week marked the biggest spending spree since 1992, as the new chancellor opened the spending taps to nurse the economy through the coronavirus crisis and roll back the austerity era. Sunak announced £12bn of immediate spending for the NHS, public services and small businesses, on top of an existing £18bn of manifesto commitment spending. The Times

3. Gig economy put to the test. Amid increased concerns surrounding the spread of COVID-19, many employers are encouraging office-based staff to work from home. But such efforts do little to help the growing ranks of the gig economy, whose members often work in direct contact with the public and lack traditional employee benefits and protections. Britain’s gig economy employs some 4.7 million workers, who stand to gain nothing from a government pledge to give workers statutory sick pay (SSP) from their first day off work in an attempt to contain the coronavirus.

4. Who was the greatest leader of all time? According to readers of BBC World Histories magazine, it’s Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the 19th century Sikh warrior. The so-called Lion of Punjab conquered vast tracts of northern India, but is remembered as a unifying force who encouraged religious tolerance in his Sikh Empire.

5. Leadership in turbulent times. The outbreak of the coronavirus is testing leaders both in business and government across the globe. Some will fail to assuage their workers' and constituents' fears, while others will blend the right amount of competency and communication to weather the crisis successfully. What differentiates those managers and politicians who create more chaos versus those who can lead their followers out of a difficult situation? Join the debate by joining our next “live and online” lesson in leadership. [MORE]

6. How to root out incompetent bosses. Companies with toxic cultures often suffer from leadership incompetence. Such problematic managers end up damaging trust and hurting employee engagement and productivity. Thankfully, there's a simple way to detect such incompetent leaders. Much of it comes down to spotting traits like arrogance and overconfidence. While these qualities are often associated with leadership acumen, they are key indicators of the very opposite. Making matters even simpler, many incompetent leaders lack the self-awareness to hide these qualities in basic leadership assessments. To receive a complimentary copy of our questionnaire: Assessing your emotional intelligence, just ask. [CONTACT]

7. Most men think it is possible to have it all. Across the world, men are more likely than women to think you can “have it all” – defined as rising to the top of your profession and spending enough time with your children. In the UK, 51% of fathers with children under 18 think it is possible to have it all, while 41% of mothers do. Of 17 countries surveyed, the widest gender gap was in Canada, where 76% of fathers think they can have it all, compared with 58% of mothers. YouGov

8. UK cannot be climate neutral before 2050. Claims by environmental campaigners that the UK could achieve climate neutrality sooner than 2050 are unrealistic, according to a new report by a government-funded research group. Experts at Energy Systems Catapult, whose computer models are used by the Committee on Climate Change, say the only way that target could be achieved is if people stop flying and eating red meat - but warns that the British public are not ready to take such steps. BBC

9. Bill Gates quits the board of Microsoft. Bill Gates is to leave the board of Microsoft, 45 years after setting up the company with a childhood friend. He plans to dedicate more time to his charitable activities, which include health, education and climate change, the company said. The 64-year-old will continue as an adviser to Satya Nadella, who has served as chief executive since 2014. The Independent

10. The bottom line. The estimated cost of AstraZeneca’s new global headquarters in Cambridge is a staggering £1bn. Britain’s biggest drugs group had budgeted £330m; cost overruns mean it will now be one of the most expensive corporate buildings in the country. The Telegraph