If You Want a Productive Culture, Focus on the People and What They Do
Leading and developing an organizational culture really means leading and developing the people within it. Culture doesn’t change according to your directives while you’re sitting comfortably in your corner office. It’s not enough to espouse... Continue reading
How Strong Culture Makes Everyone Strong
No matter how senior, authoritative, or developmental a leader you are, you can’t manage your organization’s culture alone. You need everyone working together. And although you can discuss culture in detail in the boardroom, that’s... Continue reading
Don’t Talk About Culture. Do Culture. Be Culture.
You won’t build or change an organization’s culture by talking about what it ought to be. Sure, from time to time, you’ll want -- and need -- to emphasize positive aspects of your culture (or... Continue reading
Because We Can Breathe
Like many people, I’m deeply outraged and upset about the recent grand jury decisions not to indict white police officers who killed unarmed black men. And like many others, my perceptions and concerns are shaped... Continue reading
How Skillful Is Your Response When You Get Feedback?
It can be even tougher to accept feedback than it is to give it. It’s never easy to hear that your idea, behavior, or effort didn’t have the desired effect or wasn’t well received. When... Continue reading
How a Restaurant Disappoints When Service Is Not on the Menu
When does self-service become a barrier rather than a boon? Back at JFK again recently, I returned to Due Amici, hungry for lunch. Now that I knew the drill for ordering off the iPad at... Continue reading
How to Deepen Feedback and Foster Improvement
The real problem with feedback is that, regardless of how skillfully it’s given, people often don’t know what to do with it. Neuroimagery research by Richard Boyatzis at Case Western University suggests that focusing on... Continue reading
How to Emphasize Praise for Feedback Success
Last week’s post, This Is the Truth About Workplace Feedback, discussed the significance of having a generally positive relationship with an employee before asking the employee to take in and apply critical feedback. A positive relationship... Continue reading