I never assume anyone knows of me before we meet, why would I as I’m not famous nor infamous, so this blog is a means of me introducing myself to those who do not yet know me.
Who I am – Keith Stapleton, that’s the easy part and possibly the least interesting.
I live, and always have, in North Norfolk for which I count my blessings, home of Delia Smith, Stephen Fry & Martin Shaw to name a few. A colleague likes to refer to Norfolk as “The Shire” from the Hobbit and I can understand why, lovely countryside, big skies and even bigger un-spoilt beaches, it is a fantastic place to call home and return to after your travels.
I will happily admit being the “best” side of 50 years old but will not say which side is best.
Family life takes up a lot of my time, my 2 grandsons play a very active part of my life as do my parents who seem to be on the phone asking for favours more as they get older, you really miss that when it can’t happen anymore. I’m married to Sally and this year marks our 10th wedding anniversary, she is an inspiration to me and a huge support when needed, plus she works in a coffee shop and has access to warm sausage rolls and fruit cake when needed!
When I can I like to spend time in my “man cave” sorting out the mess in there, moving it from side to side but never throwing anything away. Recently I realised the ambition to learn how to drive on a racetrack, something I’ve been able to do up to 3 times a year and share with my brother, step son and godson for this 18th birthday gift. If you get the chance to have a go I recommend it as it takes you way out of your comfort zone, but it’s so rewarding when it “clicks” how to do it and then enjoy yourself out there.
How I got here – I spent over 20 years working for Norwich Union/Aviva in 2 sperate stints, whilst running accounts and being a financial advisor between for 3 years. None was more influential than the last stint at Aviva where I left at the end of 2012 to set up my current company Select Planning Ltd with my colleague and friend, Adrian Hawes.
During my last stint with Aviva I was introduced to Resource Planning and in a manner familiar to many of you I bumped in to what has become both my job and passion since. There have been many attempts to make Resource Planning a distinct career path, yet most people I meet still come from an operation or even one they ended up supporting. There’s nothing wrong with that as a path, it’s served me very well as it provided me with a solid background to the Operational and personal challenges that a well-equipped and integrated Resource Planning function requires.
It's a common tale that having a good grounding in spreadsheets or data is a way into and remaining within Resource Planning, in fact it was Adrian who recruited me in 2004 to establish an MI function for the team he was managing. It was also at this point I was introduced to the wider world of best practice though The Professional Planning Forum, the PPF – as many still call The Forum, a relationship that still exists to this day as I work as an associate consultant for them and suspect if you do know me that is how. I will also mention in 2004, the year Adrian and our team won the PPF’s innovation of the year award, my MI being part of story told 19 years ago and as relevant now as it was then.
Like most I have learned a lot from satisfying my own curiosity, those around me and the wider world of best practice…oh and getting things wrong. For me the fear of getting it wrong should never stop you from trying, very much like driving on a race track.
In 2012 Adrian and I faced leaving Aviva and in a discussion over coffee we made an agreement that still remains, to work together as a team and Select Planning was born 10 years ago.
The last 10 years have been the most rewarding, there have been moments of self-doubt coupled with times of great jubilation, many miles on trains, many nights in Premier Inns and associated pubs for evening meals of varying quality. All of which have taught me so much about myself, my abilities and how I can help others even if the odds are stacked against me.
I’m not going to list all I have done, you can visit the www.selectplaning.co.uk website to find out if you wish, but I will highlight a coupe of things I am very proud of:
1) Working in the wider team delivering Covid vaccination booking to help end the Covid pandemic. A tough challenge as there was no previous data and even if there was the pace at which government decisions brought about change meant it would soon be obsolete. The key to success was not complex modelling for forecasts or staff requirements, but flexibility and clarity in causes, likely outcomes and recommended actions. Confidence was gained directly at director level and the rollout of the initial 2 vaccines and a booster was completed successfully in 13 months amidst great press and commercial scrutiny.
2) My influence on those I work with as I never aim to do to, but do with. Not just words, but a summary of my approach to resource planning: “The tools aid the person to make a difference”. I’ve met many people many of who had done some great work, but frustratingly were not seeing the outcomes, or didn’t have the influence to make the changes they desired. I don’t pretend to understand someone else’s business as well as they do, my job is to help them resource plan and influence better. It is important to build a strong relationship based on mutual respect with my customers, because I cannot ignore the fact that I learn from everyone I work with too, that’s part of my experience and what best practice is.
Why I stay – It’s a misconception that staying in one place is easy, it’s not, sometimes it’s easier to pick the low hanging fruit and move to the next tree (sadly many people establish themselves as experts in a field only to vacate it for another greener field with unpicked trees before the harvest is complete). As the world changes new challenges present themselves, technology is playing a more prominent role in our work and home lives, yet it’s not the cure for all, so there remains challenges to be met in the world of customer experience for example. I’m an advocate of two things and they both keep me going:
1) Ensuring you have done the most basic things right, then you can explore the new sexy stuff knowing that you have built and are maintaining a solid foundation on which they can also thrive. Remember what’s new today will not be new forever and you get only one chance to get it right first time. Too often change is poorly managed so it’s never finished or compromised, and this can usually be traced back to some fundamental issue that needed resolution including resource planning. Resource planning is my foundation, yes I have skills I can apply to other things when needed such as training and coaching, but I recognise my core skills, your Covid vaccination was delivered through this approach.
2) Power of the people, yes I’m first and foremost a people person. It’s my belief that people make the difference and we use technology as one of our tools, not the other way round. I can’t not recall any job over the past 10 years where people did not play the pivotal role. Through working with others I have seen some bad things become good and some good things become great. If you empower people you and your customers will thrive along with them.
So I stay because there’s more to do and I really enjoy doing it, that’s enough to deal with the harder times. Running your business isn’t easy and being a consultant isn’t easy either, but both are ultimately so rewarding.
I hope Select Planning is still running in 10 years’ time, I hope we’ve met and you too are enjoying being a resource planner or benefitting using the service provided by your planning team. I hope you can look back at that part of your career as proudly as I have looked back at mine in this blog.
HI and welcome