My latest Articles
(Thought and Vigor, Fast Company, Talent Culture, Switch and Shift, and more)
- The Missing Link in Culture Success: Interview with Dr. Robert A. Cooke
According to Dr. Robert Cooke, CEO of Human Synergistics and Associate Professor Emeritus of Management at the University of Illinois at Chicago, “The organization as a whole, including all departments, teams, and individuals within it—and really, almost every outcome relevant to them—is impacted by culture and climate.”... Read More» The post The Missing Link in Culture Success: Interview with Dr. Robert A. Cooke appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more - 13 Ways Your Company Can Foster a Sense of BelongingPat Wadors, Senior VP of Global Talent for LinkedIn, believes that three factors - Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIBS) - are the key drivers of employee engagement. A sense of belonging, in particular - the feeling that you can bring your authentic self to work, that you are valued and are an essential part of your team - is the critical piece to the equation. We posed this question to members of the Young Entrepreneur Council - their answers are below:... Read More» The post 13 Ways Your Company Can Foster a Sense of Belonging appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Up Your Game with an Empowered Client Services TeamYou can come up with an innovative marketing campaign, hire a celebrity spokesperson, or build the best product, but there’s truly nothing like word of mouth. Your existing customers will always outsell you 10 to one. After all, people will trust a recommendation from a next-door neighbor more than any promotional information you have to offer. […] Read more... Read More» The post Up Your Game with an Empowered Client Services Team appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Empowered Connectivity: How Virtual Teams Create a Human ConnectionTechnology and the internet have made telecommuting a convenient choice for today's businesses and workers. The incentives are clear: for employers, lowered office expense; for employees, flexible work location. Businesses that utilize virtual teams know personal connections are important for team engagement and productivity. Several tactics can help virtual groups create the needed human connection.... Read More» The post Empowered Connectivity: How Virtual Teams Create a Human Connection appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- How to Unleash Innovation Hidden in Your EnterpriseTo many executives, involving rank-and-file workers in business strategy is a strange concept. Isn’t business strategy better left to those trained in it? Can’t the VP of operations provide all the insights a regular employee could — and then some? The reality, however, is that strategic planners tend to be a homogenous bunch, and organizational creativity thrives on diversity. Three-quarters of a strategy team might be ex-consultant MBAs or members of the executive suite. Sure, their ideas might look great in 2x2 or 9-box matrices, but they’re all several degrees of separation from the factory floor. Innovation happens when those executive-level ideas collide with equally valuable ones from everyday workers.... Read More» The post How to Unleash Innovation Hidden in Your Enterprise appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Clocking Out: How to Wrap-Up a Productive Workday [Infographic]Nothing ruins a productive workday like rushing around at the last minute. You’ve worked hard all day long, done a lot, and almost reached your daily goals. Then you glance at the clock and realize only 10 minutes remain. A panic sets in and you begin to rush through tasks. You find yourself attempting to finish your to do list without staying late. As a result, mistakes are made and details forgotten. You sacrifice your best work to the constraints of time.... Read More» The post Clocking Out: How to Wrap-Up a Productive Workday [Infographic] appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Employee Training: An Business Investment You can Count On“Return on investment.” When a business has made an (often significant) investment in an employee training and development program, they want to see tangible results. But what type of results should we measure? Employee training and development is a 'people' investment just as much as it’s a 'cash' investment. The returns from an organization's investment in their people can help improve talent recruitment, increase employee retention and engagement, and perhaps most importantly, contribute to a positive work environment.... Read More» The post Employee Training: An Business Investment You can Count On appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Company Values: The Foundation of Effective HiringWhen it comes to hiring new employees, a bad hire can cost you up to five times the employee’s annual salary. Poor hiring choices set Zappos back $100 million, which is why the company began offering people money to quit. When Amazon bought Zappos, it adopted the “Pay to Quit” policy. Zappos and Amazon want to weed out the employees who are just there for the money—employees who don’t share the company values. Interpersonal skills, values, and cultural fit often are the best predictors of how long an employee will stick around. To find long-term, quality employees, let your company values lead the way.... Read More» The post Company Values: The Foundation of Effective Hiring appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- How the Best Companies Engage Employees [Infographic]Business leaders are feeling the effects of the competitive job market. A drop in retention now could mean loss of business and heightened costs from extra hiring initiatives. This means the ability to engage employees is more important to your bottom line than ever before. Battling employee engagement pitfalls within your organization is a major challenge, but you have the power to make an impact.... Read More» The post How the Best Companies Engage Employees [Infographic] appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- 11 Pitfalls to Avoid in Difficult Business CommunicationSome people are so disrespectful in their message delivery or unaware of how their actions negatively impact others that it is easy to get distracted by their bad behavior. Focus on the content of their message and try to understand what is important to them. You can do this by asking considerate and thoughtful questions which demonstrate respect for what they have to say. It will also help you to understand their perspective, and not be derailed by their antics. ... Read More» The post 11 Pitfalls to Avoid in Difficult Business Communication appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- How to Inspire Employees to Speak Up and Choose to LeadOne of the perks as a resource speaker for training is the chance to meet people from different walks of life. I once had a discussion with a parenting coach about our children who where both starting at primary school at that time. I expressed my concern that my child was too timid to excel in school. Surprisingly, the parenting coach blamed me for not pushing my child to be more outspoken. Then I realized parenting is almost like managing a team. Since then, I started using the parenting analogy in my leadership training, teaching leaders to inspire employees.... Read More» The post How to Inspire Employees to Speak Up and Choose to Lead appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Sustainable Excellence: You Need to Huddle Up to Win BigJust like anything of lasting impact, huddles require dedication and commitment. Don’t be discouraged if it takes a while to get everyone bought into the concept. Likewise, you’ll need to experiment with the flow and pace of your huddle to fit your company’s personality. Emphasize that huddles are not being implemented as a flavor of the month program.... Read More» The post Sustainable Excellence: You Need to Huddle Up to Win Big appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Recognizing the Six Core Values of Healthy LeadersLeaders need to do more than pay attention to results. Healthy leaders hold onto a set of values which ensure that organizational outcomes are not delivered at the expense of their own health and happiness – or of the people in their care.... Read More» The post Recognizing the Six Core Values of Healthy Leaders appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- 9 Fun Ways to Promote Team Bonding this SummerAnd just like that, we've traded our scarves for sunglasses, and switched our Pumpkin Spice Lattes to Unicorn Frappucinos. Summer is officially here... again! While summer creates unique opportunities for team bonding activities, happy hours and Nerf gun battles are not everyone's cup of tea. What constitutes fun varies depending on the unique personalities in your group, but the benefits of disconnecting from work (and connecting with team members) shouldn’t be ignored. So step away from the daily routine, take advantage of the good weather and find something fun to keep the ties between your team members strong! Capitalize on the positive energy that spills over from the experience and find ways to keep the momentum going when you're back in the office! Our friends at the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) are filled with great ideas so we asked them to weigh in on their summer plans. ... Read More» The post 9 Fun Ways to Promote Team Bonding this Summer appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
- Negative Feedback: Turning a Negative into a Positive [Infographic]With summer come thoughts of sunny beaches and lazy days filled with sunscreen and exotic, tiny-umbrella-adorned drinks. At least, that’s where our thoughts are. First we have to deal with Mid-Year Performance Reviews. Although reviews are becoming a thing of the past, replaced by more frequent, regular feedback, they remain in widespread use. They also remain a significant source of stress for managers and employees alike. That stress stems primarily from our discomfort expressing and accepting negative feedback.... Read More» The post Negative Feedback: Turning a Negative into a Positive [Infographic] appeared first on Switch & Shift. Read more
