Articles & blogs

Here you'll find editorial articles across business, marketing, health and fitness and sport. You can also read thought leadership content I've written for brands via the branded content tab under the portfolio section at the top of the page.

Business

How to smash a silo

While he was flying over New York City in a helicopter one winter’s day in 1987, Jack Welch had a lightbulb moment. The charismatic chairman and CEO of the General Electric Company (GE) was frustrated with his organisation’s silo mentality and its detrimental effect on decision-making. As he sped past the skyscrapers of Manhattan, he came up with a solution that would become known as the GE work-out programme.

This took the form of large meetings designed to optimise communication and accelerat

How to gauge the value of an employee wellbeing scheme

The seeds of employee wellbeing first sprouted in the mind of George Pullman. The US engineer and industrialist was the owner of the Pullman Company, which manufactured luxury railway coaches. In 1880, he built a housing estate for employees on the southern outskirts of Chicago, with the aim of creating a superior working-class community that would attract skilled employees and make them even more productive. His so-called company town – Pullman, Illinois – would go on to inspire the likes of Bo

Sustainable, sociable and healthy: breaking down Gen Z’s workplace checklist

The working lives of Generation Z began at home in bedrooms, living rooms and kitchens during the pandemic. With offices and co-working spaces closed, the youngest members of the workforce were forced to hone their skills and communicate with their new colleagues over Zoom calls, Slack channels and Whatsapp groups.

But going virtual has not been without its perks. Gen Z was spared the years of long commutes endured by their older co-workers and became accustomed to a more balanced way of workin

Sport

Is a big ego the key to greatness?

One evening in the mid-1990s, Manchester United players and staff attended a Batman film premiere. It was a black-tie event.

Cantona was a talent with an abundance of self-confidence, but had been a destructive force inside the dressing rooms of his previous clubs in France. He had been known as much for punch-ups with team-mates at Auxerre and Montpellier as his ability with a ball at his feet.

He was perceived as damaged goods in France, but in England he helped Leeds United win the league a

How sport is learning from snipers

Snipers and Navy Seals would appear to have little in common with Premier League footballers, but techniques used by the US Special Forces to perform better under pressure are helping world-class athletes gain a mental advantage over their rivals.

Scanning the brains of Navy Seals has also revealed the power of meditation in developing the mental muscle of both combatants and athletes, and a new piece of naval-funded research could help solve the mystery of unfulfilled talent in sport in the ye

How Real sleep their way to the top

At 1pm every afternoon, the hustle and bustle of Real Madrid's Valdebebas training ground grinds to a halt and the facility resembles a ghost town.

The scene is a window into football's relentless pursuit of marginal gains as clubs across Europe turn to technology, purpose-built facilities and sleep experts to recharge their multi-million pound assets and gain a competitive advantage.

Tennis great Roger Federer and basketball star LeBron James are both advocates of sleeping for upwards of 10 h

Health and fitness

How to stay at your personal best

Millions of people have returned to gyms, swimming pools and sports clubs in recent weeks in search of their fitness fix – but training alone isn’t enough for you to reach peak physical health.

A balanced diet, quality sleep and hydration are vital to prepare and recover from sporting performance, but even then you may still need a little help to keep your body in tip top shape.

Hard bouts of training and competition can compromise your immune system and make it difficult to replenish your bod

Push through the pain barrier

If you’re a cyclist, rower, swimmer, footballer or love lifting weights in the gym, you need to have the ability to perform at high intensity for short periods and then recover efficiently afterwards.

To do that, you need a robust mind and body but also the knowledge to fuel yourself with the right nutrition at the right times, which is where we can help.

Through our work with a roster of world-class athletes across a host of sports, we’ve developed a range of innovative products that will imp

Marketing

How brands can hit the marketing sweet spot

Businesses are feeling the pinch. The cost-of-living crisis, supply chain problems and the long hangover from the pandemic have prompted leaders to slash spending. Marketers are balancing caution with innovation amid uncertain times.

This is bad news for marketing leaders, who still need to boost brand awareness, nurture customers down the funnel, and drive ROI – with reduced budgets. Leaders want accountability for marketing spend but attribution remains an enduring, complex challenge.

“Marke

Do SMBs have the most to gain from the AI boom?

In Nottinghamshire, a photography business is advertising for new staff, having generated a ten-fold increase in new customers in the space of just six months. In Kent, an IT support and cybersecurity company has more than doubled the size of its workforce since posting a 31% increase in turnover in less than a year. And, on the other side of the Atlantic, a US-based ecommerce firm selling premium dietary supplements is toasting a 40% increase in operational efficiency and a 15% reduction in ope

Why brands should bet big on the future of women’s sport

England Women’s win over Germany in the 2022 UEFA European Championships was watched by a peak TV audience of 17.4 million people and turned the squad into household names. Now, with the Women’s Super League attracting record crowds, brands have a new world of marketing opportunities to explore from advertising to multimillion-pound sponsorship deals.

Luca Russo, brother and agent of Lioness star Alessia, whose back-heel finish in the semi-final turned her into a viral star, says his phone hasn

Real life stories