Organisational culture is the set of shared values, beliefs, and behaviours that shape how people in a company act, make decisions, and interact with one another, effectively functioning as the internal system that defends and sustains business performance. Just as a human immune system protects the body from threats, a healthy organisational culture helps companies attract and retain talent, integrate new hires, reduce conflict, and support collaboration, all of which contribute to long-term resilience and competitive advantage.

To explore this idea further, read “Organisational culture - the immune system of your company - Business, Leadership & Resilience”.

A strong culture also strengthens business agility by guiding responses to internal and external changes, empowering employees to adapt behaviours that support strategic goals and organisational wellbeing, rather than relying solely on formal policies or mandates. Organisations that understand and intentionally shape culture are better positioned to thrive in uncertainty and sustain performance over time.

Childhood obesity prevention requires scalable, science-based solutions that improve food environments and metabolic health. The 4Sir2 Smoothy project introduces a functional beverage designed for children with obesity, combining natural grape or apple juice with bioactive compounds such as resveratrol and polyphenols derived from grape pomace. These ingredients are linked to metabolic regulation and position the project within the growing field of functional nutrition and sustainable health innovation. By transforming agricultural by-products into high-value ingredients, the initiative also supports circular economy principles in sustainable food systems.

Learn more about this Horizon Europe-funded healthy drink ecosystem and functional beverage innovation here:

4Sir2 Smoothy: Building a Healthy Drink Ecosystem to Prevent Childhood Obesity - Sustainable Nutrition & Metabolic Health Research.

What distinguishes 4Sir2 Smoothy is its ecosystem approach. The project integrates researchers, growers, processors, and health stakeholders to co-create a resilient supply chain aligned with Industry 5.0 principles. By combining obesity prevention strategies, bioactive compound research, and responsible food innovation, 4Sir2 offers a replicable model for building healthy beverage ecosystems that strengthen public health outcomes while advancing sustainable food innovation.

Emotions are not a distraction from work; they actively shape decisions, trust, and an organisation’s ability to adapt under pressure.

We often treat emotions as something to manage after strategy or performance. Yet, as explored in Emotions Are an Important (Cultural Value).

Emotions strongly influence how people interpret reality, relate to one another, and make decisions, especially in uncertain and complex environments. Organisations that recognise this build psychological safety, trust, and adaptability, not just higher morale.

What is less obvious is which emotions accelerate learning and collaboration, and which quietly undermine progress. The article unpacks how organisations can work with emotions deliberately before they become a hidden constraint on performance and resilience.

As Europe quietly reshapes its industrial vision through Horizon Europe, the focus is shifting away from efficiency at all costs toward deeper questions of purpose, resilience, and societal value. Yet many organisations are still operating with assumptions shaped by Industry 4.0.

What makes this shift particularly significant is that it changes how success, innovation, and responsibility are understood - not just in policy, but in practice. For those working in research, education, and strategy, this raises uncomfortable but necessary questions about relevance, impact, and long-term value.

What’s really changing - and why does it matter now?

 Read the full perspective on Industry 5.0 here:
https://betterorganisations.co.uk/articles/industry-5.0-a-horizon-europe-perspective

Back in 2020, I warned that navigating chaos with yesterday’s maps was a dangerous game. Today, with tax wars heating up and tariffs swinging like wrecking balls, that warning has never been more critical. 

Here’s the bottom line:

1. Assumptions Kill – Yesterday’s playbook is today’s poison.

2. Evidence Over Ego – Skip the hype; let real customer reactions be your north star.

3. Learn Fast, Pivot Faster – Turn each insight into your next competitive move.

Many entrepreneurs I know exhibit a significant level of emotional attachment to their businesses.

You might wonder, what’s the issue with this?

- Firstly, such detachment can hinder objective evaluations, potentially leading to costly errors. 

- Secondly, it can adversely affect mental well-being. 

- Lastly, it can complicate the process of exiting the business when the time comes.

Recently, I’ve been asked how one can achieve emotional detachment from their business. In this video, I explore the psychological dimensions of this topic and offer practical strategies for managing it: Watch the video here.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences on this matter. Is emotional detachment something you grapple with? What are your experiences in dealing with it?

Happy New Year everyone!

Business Design is about finding the most profitable business models. Part of it is about finding a profitable niche! Is it a matter of luck if it can be achieved methodically?

How to merge this with your passion? Is it important for you to do business which you are passionate about?

Your thoughts? My ones in this short video.

I’ve recently dedicated time to developing materials aimed at aspiring and new entrepreneurs which are exploring various aspects of business design and entrepreneurship. This journey can be both exciting and daunting, and I believe it’s essential to equip oneself with the right knowledge and strategies.

Today, I want to highlight a crucial point: before launching a new business (a startup) —it’s vital to engage in specific preparatory activities (business exploration). These steps are instrumental in identifying the right business model, which is fundamental to the success of any venture. 

To share my insights on this topic, I’ve created what I call the Passion to Profit Approach. I recorded a video where I distill 24 years of experience into just 22 minutes. In this video, I cover key concepts and practical strategies that can help you navigate the complexities of starting your own business. You can watch it here: https://youtu.be/v-xJIUHGeh4

If you’re interested in this subject, I encourage you to check out the video and would love to hear your thoughts! Your feedback is invaluable as it will help me to maximise my impact on turning entrepreneurs' passions into successful enterprises.

Taking critique can often be a challenging experience for many individuals, particularly when it involves personal ideas. Have you ever observed something like that? Such a person is literally feedback-proof and can  treat every comment even with hostility!

Here is the bad news: under specific circumstances, any of us can face this problem. This phenomenon occurs when a person's brain begins to treat their ideas as integral parts of their self-concept. When this happens, any critique directed at these ideas can be perceived as an attack on the self, leading to defensiveness or outright rejection of the feedback.

How to avoid such a disaster? I explore the way how our brain can merge ideas and identity and to avoid it in detail in the article: Don't fall in love with your idea. 

The consequences of this can be severe. For instance, consider a startup owner who is in the process of finding and testing a new business model. If they view their concept as an extension of their identity, they may become impervious to valuable critiques that could enhance their business strategy. This inability to accept feedback can be detrimental, potentially leading to a failure to adapt or pivot when necessary, which is crucial for any company's survival.

Let me know in the comment what do you think about this issue!

The modern world is changing faster than ever. In order to be able to respond to these changes and to adapt well, we as business people, entrepreneurs need to be flexible and agile. Sounds obvious, isn't it?

The challenge is about every day of execution. Being persistently and methodically flexible and agile day by day - in order to understand the reality and to adapt to it. In other words that simply means: being able to understand what people need and if they are willing to pay for it, finding if there are enough such people. And then embedding this into a right business model to be able to operate at the right scale.

That is a process - a real job every entrepreneur needs to do - regardless if the one is engaged in a startup or mature company.

What happens when this is neglected?

Disastrous things are happening. Recently I recorded a video about an entrepreneur who invested 50k in a retail business just to get 3 customers in 3 weeks after launching (you can watch it here: https://youtu.be/gDEH2Xk7m0g ).

You can say: how it is possible (BTW I have answered this question in a video)? That has to be just bad luck. Unfortunately it is not. Believe me it is pretty common. Definitely more frequent than it should be. I learnt plenty of such case studies in my professional practice.

So, yes, agile approaches can help us to succeed and/or avoid a big failure. And this is what I intend to write about here - if I stick to my resolution

Thanks for reading.

Witold