Rob Marshall introduces
Management Futures consultant Matt Driver
Matt Driver loves languages. His dad bought him an
old French grammar book early on and he has never
looked back. "It's embarrassing really, but I
loved that book, and it always meant that I was top
of the class in French when I was at school."
Yet of Matt's top three languages, French comes second
to Russian, with Italian third. He speaks them and
reads them. "Margaret, my wife, says that my
whole body language changes when I switch from one
language to another – the French look and use
of hands... the harder, less effusive Russian diction
and flowing Italiano..."
Matt lives in St. Albans but works all over the country.
When not coaching he enjoys playing the guitar and
travelling to new places. He constantly explores new
languages and finds this love of languages an enormous
advantage in his consultancy work with Management
Futures – particularly when coaching.
The language of management, he finds, is something
else! "People are a lot more than what they say.
You can read so much from their body language. Is
it still, stiff, floppy, animated? And many managers
seek refuge in soft, broad, vague terms (maybe I am
doing it now?) – which may well mean very little.
In other words, words themselves can be quite self-limiting."
He adds, "There is a whole missing link in language.
Something crucial which can't be wholly captured in
words or gamma - the ultimate reality or truth behind
what is being said."
When pushed, Matt, who previously worked for the
BBC and now serves a wide range of clients on behalf
of Management Futures, talks about the language of
common sense, "If you offer someone an idea they
will often say – 'Well yes, it's just common
sense I suppose' – but common sense is not that
common. Common sense in management must be striven
for. It's there inside a person and to see it emerging
in a manager means that this person is confronting
himself or herself with reality – is beginning
to see a clear way ahead."
Matt is comfortable with the word 'philosophy' but
counts other practical terms more useful, those he
places highest up his management coaching vocabulary
being:
- Questing
belief
- Potential
- Authenticity
In coaching terms these are keywords. Matt accords
them so much significance that he would need more
space than Futures permits to do them justice. For
now, reflect on them. And see.
"Everyone involved in coaching comes to that
role with a particular experience and background which
channels the spirit already in them. Languages have
certainly played a part in my understanding of communication
between people in the workplace.
"Its not only in another country where you might
feel that speaking the right words, using the right
expressions, can help you", says Matt.
To find out if Matt speaks your language, contact
Alan Rogers at Management Futures on 020 7242 4030.
