March 23rd. A relatively unassuming day you might think. But this is a day that we should celebrate for a particular historical event in the USA that will change the lives of many for years to come. This was the day that Franklin Beale invented the coin press for the U.S. mint, which quite possibly changed the longevity of money across the world. 21 years later Elisha Otis had the joy of seeing his first ever elevator installed at 488 Broadway NYC, making the possibility of s

Politicians like to disagree. It is sort of in their DNA. Point scoring and disputes are all par for the course. So when I hear of politicians from different parties agreeing about something, I pay attention. It is possible, just possible, that they might be saying something worth hearing. I read this week that Alan Milburn (Labour) and Stephen Dorrell (Conservative), both former Heath Ministers, had agreed about the importance of technology in health. Discussing the healthca

Everyone says you need vision. Vison is the thing that inspires, guides, drives and succeeds. You can do courses, study great leaders, read and meditate upon it. But vision is what we need: individuals, organisations, society. Or is it? Is vision enough? Is vision even the starting point? Nigel Edwards of the Nuffield Trust made a startling, yet when you think about it, obvious point in his interview in the Guardian this week. Yes we need vision in the NHS. In fact we are

Groundhog Day Most of you will have heard of the phrase ‘groundhog day’: the feeling of the same thing happening over and over again. In fact the real Groundhog Day is based on the existence of ‘Punxsutawney Phil’, a groundhog who is said to have lived for nearly 130 years due to his regular sipping of the ‘elixir of life’. He lives in the town of Punxsutawney in Pennsylvania which is approximately 325 miles due West from Poughkeepsie, New York State. Punxsutawney is also not

Today is an amazing clear, sunny day here in Poughkeepsie and a great opportunity for me to see some of the local sights. One of the ‘must see’ attractions here is the ‘Walkway over the Hudson’. This incredible iron bridge opened in 1888, and trains started crossing it a year later, at which point it was the longest bridge in the world. It was converted to a pedestrian bridge in 2009: stands at 212 feet above the Hudson River, and spans 1.28 miles. The longest pedestrian bri

It is exactly a year since Sirius Partners was established as a company. So, what has gone well, what we could have done differently and where we should focus our efforts for the coming year? The opportunity for reflection is even greater as I have an opportunity to be in the USA for 3 months as my partner is on an exchange programme teaching at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York State until the end of May. Our 13-year old daughter is now established in a US school and