Matt Rutherford

I hear it all the time, "I don't do politics."It's one of the most common things people say at work. Usually with a slight shake of the head, as if distancing themselves from something grubby. I get it, 100%.When most people picture organisational politics, they picture manipulation & backstabbing. People saying one thing in a meeting and another in the corridor.But here's what I've noticed across nearly four decades of working in large organisations: The people who say they don't do politics…

Most people believe the best idea wins. It's one of those workplace truths that feels so obvious it never gets questioned. Do good thinking. Present it clearly. The organisation will recognise it.Except it often doesn't.I've watched strong ideas (mine included) die quiet deaths, not because anyone disagreed with them, but because they arrived at the wrong moment, or from someone the room didn't yet trust, or fully formed with no space for anyone else to shape them. The idea was sound. The path…

UpdatesEugh - not a great week. Work has rumours of layoffs, every conversation seems to be 10% heavier as we navigate. I've been through this before, more than once, and the thing I keep coming back to is that the best thing I can do is be present for the people around me. Not with answers, because there usually aren't any yet. Just by being there and being honest about what I don't know either.I had a workspace refresh yesterday, bought myself some new speakers (Adam D3V) - a real upgrade in…

I've had some great ideas in my career. Some of them worked out. Some of them withered in my notebook, never getting further than the page they were scribbled on. And a few of them, the ones that still sting a bit, went nowhere when I raised them and then resurfaced months later under someone else's name. Different framing. Different timing. Different sponsor. Green light. (apologies to Matthew McConaughey)If you've sat with that feeling, wondering what you missed, this one is for you.The merit…

Every week, I share something I learned in the previous seven days. I usually find these while I'm putting my weekly newsletter together but somehow, they don't quite fit! This week I learned that the oldest bottle of wine in the world is from c350AD - I presume it has aged enough by now. Speyer wine bottle - WikipediaWikimedia Foundation, Inc.Contributors to Wikimedia projects Get better at work. Every Week. One Email. Practical Tools. Real Progress. Get the Mail

Most people think there's a room where the real decisions happen. A conversation they weren't invited to. A layer of the organisation reserved for people with bigger titles.It's a comforting story. It explains why your good ideas sometimes go nowhere. Why outcomes feel predetermined before the meeting starts. Why influence seems to belong to other people.But it's wrong.You're already in those conversations. The one-to-one where your manager thinks out loud. The coffee where a colleague asks…

UpdatesA week in Austin. The kind of business trip where the real value isn't in the meetings (though they were good) but in the time spent around them, that you cannot replicate via Zoom. Also made a cowboy hat while I was there. Not ironically. It fits well. I shipped it home, so I hope it makes it!Last Sunday before I flew out, we went to see The House Always Wins at the Pavilion in Dun Laoghaire. A play by Mick Flannery with Tommy Tiernan in the cast. Really enjoyed it.Two films watched on…

Last week I wrote about the two versions of every organisation: the official one and the real one. If you're going to notice that gap anywhere first, it will probably be in how decisions get made.Think about the last significant decision in your area. Not a small operational call. Something that moved budget, changed direction, or affected someone's role. Now think about when you first heard it discussed. Not the meeting where it was announced. The first time someone mentioned it to you. Over…

Every week, I share something I learned in the previous seven days. I usually find these while I'm putting my weekly newsletter together but somehow, they don't quite fit! This week I learned the scientists have developed a robot that plays Table Tennis (Ping-Pong) using AI guidance. Turns out, its pretty good!Ping-pong robot Ace makes history by beating top-level human playersAn autonomous robot ping-pong player dubbed Ace has achieved a milestone for AI and robotics in Tokyo by competing…

You've done the work. Hit the targets. Followed the process. And somehow the promotion went to someone who seemed to do less but knew something you didn't.It's not a conspiracy. It's not even unfair, exactly. It's just that the organisation you think you work in and the one that actually makes decisions are not the same thing.Most career advice skips this part entirely. It assumes the org chart is the whole picture. That doing good work in the right role is enough. For some people, sometimes,…

UpdatesA week that moved fast! Work has been full-on with a lot of plates spinning, and most of the week was spent prepping for a trip to Austin. Pre-travel weeks always have that slightly frantic energy where you're trying to close things out before you leave while also getting your head around what's coming.Monday night we went to see The Stranger at the IFI in Dublin. A beautiful adaptation of the Albert Camus book. If you haven't seen it, very highly recommended. The kind of film that stays…

This is the first in a series about how organisations really work. Not the version you get in onboarding. The one you have to figure out for yourself.Your first week in any new job comes with an induction. You meet your team. Someone shows you the org chart. You get the strategy deck, the values poster, the welcome email from the CEO. You get the grand tour of the office. By Friday you think you understand where you've landed.You don't. Not really.Every organisation runs as two organisations at…

Every week, I share something I learned in the previous seven days - This week I learned about Cloud Jaguars

You Can't Outpost an Unclear Signal

UpdatesGetting back to work after a five week break was always going to be challenging - but throw in a four-day week and things get compressed down to a very busy week!I now have a well established second brain running at work, with Claude Code helping me stay

Every week, I share something I learned in the previous seven days - This week I learned How Parmesan Cheese is made.

The last few weeks have covered the relational side of career growth. Sponsors. Managers. Generosity. Reputation. The people around you and how they shape your trajectory.This is where it turns into action.None of that matters if the signal you're sending is unclear, inconsistent, or accidental.Most

Understand the atoms that make up your reputation

UpdatesI’m nearing the end of my 5 week recharge from work, an amazing benefit that accrues after five years with Meta. I’m open my last few days here in Spain. We went on a road trip, visiting Cordoba and Almeria - two lovely cities with

Understand the Atomic Structure of your Reputation

Every week, I share something I learned in the previous seven days - This week I learned How Parmesan Cheese is made.

Many professionals are leaving their most important work relationship entirely unmanaged.

Every week, I share something I learned in the previous seven days - this week, a Human Fart Atlas, to track the 'explosivity' of farts.

Whilst one gives advice, the other spends political capital. You need both, but you’re probably only building one.

UpdatesI missed a week - travelling back from Norway meant I was offline for a day - so here I am now in Spain for a couple of weeks. Norway was fantastic - we saw the Northern Lights (above) and explored the fjord around Tromsø. In the second

Every week, I share something I learned in the previous seven days - this week, Eigg, a Scottish Island that bought itself.