Building Productive Teams

How ACP (Agent Communication Protocol) Compares to MCP & A2A First, why protocols matter? AI is racing from single-model hacks to fleets of specialized agents. Without a common standard, every integration is costly duct tape. Enter three emerging standards: 𝗠𝗖𝗣 (𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰) • Core goal: Pump extra memory, tools, or RAG into one model • Best when you need: Super-charging a single foundation model 𝗔𝗖𝗣 (𝗟𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘅 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻) • Core goal: Let many agents talk across orgs with zero lock-in • Best when you need: Open, multi-vendor ecosystems 𝗔𝟮𝗔 (𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗴𝗹𝗲) • Core goal: Peer-to-peer agents tuned for Google’s stack • Best when you need: Deep GCP alignment and services Now, let's compare them but remember, in most cases they are complementary and not competitive. Think of them as layers in a full-stack agent system 👷♂️ 𝗠𝗖𝗣 𝘃𝘀. 𝗔𝗖𝗣 - 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: MCP rides JSON-RPC and SDKs. ACP sticks to plain REST so curl just works. - 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴: MCP streams but skips token deltas; ACP roadmap covers fine-grained updates. - 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗮: MCP accepts any JSON, great for speed but tough for UI interoperability. ACP pins down message shapes for plug-and-play orchestration. - 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆: MCP gives a single employee a better toolbox; ACP creates a dream team. 🌐 𝗔𝗖𝗣 𝘃𝘀. 𝗔𝟮𝗔 - 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗼𝗽𝗵𝘆: ACP is vendor-neutral under open governance. A2A optimizes for Google’s cloud gravity. - 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: ACP’s lightweight REST fits air-gapped or multi-cloud deployments. A2A shines if you are already all-in on Google services. - 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺: ACP powers BeeAI and other Linux Foundation projects. A2A is young but will likely deepen inside GCP. 🚀 Takeaway 1. Use MCP to make a single model smarter. 2. Use ACP to weld diverse agents from different vendors into one brain trust. 3. Use A2A when your agents live primarily inside Google’s universe. Interoperability is the next productivity multiplier. Choose your protocol stack wisely

You don’t need pizza parties to keep a team engaged. You need purpose. A few months ago, I asked a team member how their week was going. They didn’t talk about deadlines or meetings. They told me about a small experiment they ran, how it failed, and how the team rallied around it to figure out what could work better. No blame. Just curiosity. Just ownership. That’s when it hit me—engagement isn’t always loud. It often hides in the quiet moments: ✅ When someone stays back to help—not because they have to, but because they want to. ✅ When feedback is shared without fear. ✅ When people smile after a tough week—because they knew they mattered. We didn't get here overnight. It took time to build psychological safety. We moved from celebrating only outcomes… to also celebrating effort. We stopped rewarding only perfection… and started recognizing progress. It’s easy to believe that team engagement needs grand gestures. But sometimes, it’s just about being seen, being trusted, and being allowed to try. If you're a leader—formal or informal—what’s one small thing you’ve done that made your team feel seen? I’m all ears. StockGro #india #workspaace #teambuilding

You wouldn’t go to the shop every day just to buy ONE egg… You’d grab a pack of six to save time, effort and money. So why are recruitment agencies still running inefficient, repetitive processes every single day? Most agencies waste hours on manual tasks, outdated workflows, and admin that could be streamlined. A simple process mapping exercise can fix that. Here’s how: 1️⃣ Survey your team. -How accurate and reliable is the data? -What’s slowing them down? -What tech features do they rely on, and what frustrates them? 2️⃣ Run a deep-dive workshop. -Break down client & candidate management step by step. -Identify bottlenecks in area such as job workflows, timesheets, and redeployment. -Spot manual tasks that could be automated. 3️⃣ Create a roadmap for efficiency. -Prioritise automation & workflow improvements. -Build better reporting and analytics. -Ensure your tech stack is actually working for you, not against you. We recently helped an agency cut their job-to-placement time by 30%, just by optimising their Bullhorn setup and eliminating unnecessary admin. More efficiency = more placements = more revenue. If you wouldn’t buy eggs one at a time… why run your recruitment processes that way? When was the last time you audited your workflows? 👀

Most leaders get this wrong daily, and they don't even realize it. They're not asking enough questions. 8 years ago, when I took a career break. A conversation with a mentor and coach changed my trajectory. I decided to get myself certified as a coach as part of my leadership development. When I went back to work, it changed the way I lead. My team then was used to being told what to do. My questions initially irritated them. It took me two months to shift their mindset. They began to take more ownership of their work. Great ideas came from them (not me). And I saw a more engaged team. Fast forward, I am now a leadership and team coach, working with organisations to help their leaders build better team engagement. Because I know what it takes. Here. I have put together 10 types of coaching questions leaders use to improve team engagement. Feel free to download it. 1️⃣ Open- Ended Questions ↳ Encourage expansive thinking and prevent "yes" or "no" answers Example: What are some approaches you think we could take to achieve this goal? 2️⃣ Clarifying Questions ↳Ensure understanding and encourage deeper exploration. Example: When you say the timeline is tight, what specific challenges are you anticipating? 3️⃣ Reflective Questions ↳Help the team member assess their own thoughts or actions. Example: How do you think your approach impacted the team's outcomes? 4️⃣ Empowering Questions Build confidence and ownership of decisions. Example: What resources or support would help you feel confident moving forward? 5️⃣ Goal Oriented Questions ↳Focus on objectives and desired outcomes. Example: What would success look like for you in this role? 6️⃣ Challenge Questions ↳Push boundaries and encourage innovative thinking. Example: What if we approached this problem from an entirely different angle? 7️⃣ Feedback Oriented Questions ↳Invite constructive input and foster two-way communication. Example: What’s one thing I could do differently to better support you and the team? 8️⃣ Future-Focused Questions ↳ Encourage forward-thinking and vision-setting. Example: Where do you see this project or our team a year from now? 9️⃣ Performance-Based Questions ↳Evaluate current work and identify areas for improvement or celebration. Example: What do you think went well in your last project, and what could have been improved? 🔟 Solutions-Focused Questions ↳Guide team members toward actionable steps and creative solution Example: What options do you see for addressing this challenge? ♻️ Share this if you found this useful. Follow Adeline Tiah 謝善嫻 for content on leadership, future of work and Life 2.0.

𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲. The difference between good PMs and the great ones lies in their ability to say "no" with conviction.  Prioritization isn’t about task management, it’s about strategic sacrifice. The frameworks you use determine whether you:   - Multiply impact (or spread teams thin)   - Build what moves the needle (or what’s loudest)   - Create category-defining products (or bloated ones)  𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 7 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗱:  1️⃣ RICE – When you need to quantify "gut feel" (Score Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort)   2️⃣ MoSCoW – For ruthless trade-offs (Must-have, Should-have, Could-have, Won’t-have)   3️⃣ Kano Model – To separate "delighters" from "basics" (Before competitors copy them)   4️⃣ Opportunity Scoring – When user pain points > feature ideas   5️⃣ Weighted Scoring – For stakeholder battles (Math beats opinions)   6️⃣ User Story Mapping – To prioritize features based on the user journey   7️⃣ Value vs Effort Matrix – The 2x2 that kills pet projects  Swipe for the breakdown on each framework! Your turn: Which framework has saved you from a disaster? (Or which one needs a funeral?) 👇  

Diverse teams are powerful, but only if they’re designed to be. Just putting different people together isn’t enough. What I’ve learned over 11+ years is that true  🧠 Collective Intelligence only emerges when diversity is intentionally activated. 🖌 My Blueprint to unlock it: 🔹 Cognitive diversity It’s about bringing different thinking styles. Teams that embrace divergent ways of solving problems uncover creative solutions that others miss. 🔹 Demographic Diversity The presence of different intersectional identities and lived experiences creates a richer understanding of potential blind spots and unmet needs. 🔹 Experiential Diversity Diverse career paths and life stories equip teams with practical insights that can cut through “tried-and-true” methods that often fail in complex, changing environments. 🔹 Psychological Safety This is the game-changer. Without it, diversity backfires. High-performing teams create a “safe container” where everyone—from the quiet thinkers to the bold disruptors—can voice their ideas without fear. 🔹 Inclusive Decision-Making Diversity is wasted if decisions are still made by the loudest voice in the room. Structured inclusion ensures that varied perspectives aren’t just heard but drive the direction forward. The result? 1️⃣ Faster, smarter decisions: diverse insights reduce blind spots and increase confidence in strategic choices, helping leaders respond swiftly to market changes. 2️⃣ Increased innovation and agility: aligned teams leverage diverse perspectives to solve complex problems creatively and adapt to new challenges with resilience. 3️⃣ Stronger engagement and retention: when teams feel psychologically safe and included, they’re more committed and motivated. This translates to lower turnover and higher morale. The path to unlocking your team’s full potential starts with aligning on the right elements—diversity, psychological safety, and inclusion in decisions. 🤔 P.S. Where is your team on the path to collective intelligence—and what’s your next step?

𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 How many times have you see workplace wellbeing initiatives that look promising on paper but fall flat in practice? Here’s the question: Is it sustainable? Sustainable wellbeing isn’t just about checking boxes (something I see happening all too often). It’s about building a workplace where people feel empowered and genuinely supported to bring their best selves to work every day. When employees thrive, so does the organization. But sustainable wellbeing takes more than just isolated activities or a one-time event. It’s about creating an integrated approach, one where every level of the organization actively supports a healthy work environment. True workplace wellbeing isn’t just about only sending your team to a wellbeing talk or programme. It has to be coupled with real, foundational support by the organisation. Think about what’s at the heart of sustainable wellbeing: • Building resilience • Cultivating a strengths-based culture • Nurturing positive relationships • Creating meaningful work • Developing trusting teams …and the list goes on. Each of these is a cornerstone of collective wellbeing, not a standalone effort. I remember receiving a message from a manager: “Matthew, how much would you charge for a 45-minute talk?” I asked, “What’s the intent or ideal outcome you’re hoping for?” Her reply? “Honestly, it’s just to tick the checkbox. We are just looking for someone to come and talk about anything to show on the outside that we care for our staff” Honestly, my jaw dropped when I heard that. I didn’t take it up. I declined. Imagine how participants would feel, knowing they’re attending something simply for a checkbox. They deserve more, and so does every workplace team. Because true wellbeing isn’t just a lunch talk or a half-day workshop. It’s a commitment, a way of operating that empowers every person in the organization. Sustainability is key when it comes to wellbeing. Let’s build a company culture that doesn’t just “do” wellbeing but lives it. How does your workplace support sustainable wellbeing? #positivepsychology #workplacewellbeing #thepositivearena Reference: Daniels, K., Tregaskis, O., Nayani, R., & Watson, D. (2022). Achieving sustainable workplace wellbeing: Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

👩⚖️ What happens when a law firm pays its lawyers to use AI? Shoosmiths is finding out — with a £1M incentive. YSK: Shoosmiths is offering a £1m bonus pool if staff collectively hit one million Microsoft Copilot prompts in the next financial year. The firm says the initiative is designed to embed AI into everyday legal work and drive firm-wide change around innovation. What's happening? Shoosmiths' million-pound AI incentive reveals a profound shift happening across professional services. While the surface goal is tool adoption, the underlying strategy tackles several fundamental challenges: 1. First, this addresses the traditional reluctance of billable-hour professionals to adopt efficiency tools. By tying financial rewards directly to AI usage rather than just outcomes, Shoosmiths circumvents the inherent conflict between efficiency and revenue in professional services. 2. Second, the collective nature of the bonus (requiring firm-wide participation) transforms technological adoption from an individual choice to a shared responsibility. This cleverly uses social dynamics to accelerate change resistance that typically plagues law firms. 3. Most significantly, the specificity of "four prompts per day" suggests Shoosmiths has already quantified the minimal effective dose of AI integration needed to drive meaningful change. They're not seeking maximum usage, but rather consistent integration into daily workflows. The broader implication? We're witnessing the emergence of explicit behavioral economics in professional upskilling - moving beyond passive training offerings to actively engineered adoption through carefully calibrated incentive structures. This signals a future where firms increasingly design compensation systems around specific behavioral metrics rather than traditional performance outcomes. I won't expect any less from Tony Randle and team :)

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗢𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗪𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 I often hear leaders say, "We need to optimize our workflow with digital tools." But here's what usually happens: They buy a fancy new tool. Spend weeks setting it up. Train the team. And then... Nothing changes. Why? Because they didn't solve the real problem. Here's how to actually optimize your workflow: 1. Map out your current process What steps do you take? Where are the bottlenecks? What takes the most time? 2. Identify the root causes Is it a people problem? A process problem? Or a technology problem? 3. Set clear goals What does "optimized" look like? How will you measure success? 4. Choose the right tool Look for one that solves your specific problems Not just the one with the coolest features 5. Implement in phases Start small Get quick wins Build momentum 6. Measure and adjust Track your progress Be ready to change course if needed I've seen teams cut their workflow time in half using this approach. Without spending a fortune on new tech. The key? Focus on the problem, not the solution. What's holding your team back from peak efficiency?