Posts in Leadership
Support for Sudden Onset Remote Work (and beyond)

Here’s our advice and synthesis from experts about what’s working in the brave new world of #remote work.

First: What’s always been true is still true, just more so.

We’re all different yet the same.

We’re all human. We’re social animals. We seek safety, recognition, and meaning. We want to be helpful.

And we come in many flavors, we humans. Introvert, extrovert, all sorts of personality styles (Some styles are readily suited to more solitary work settings and some need to work at working at a distance. Here’s a take on introvert/extrovert/ambivert remote work types.

It’s nearly impossible to over-communicate.

Once is never enough, but it’s especially true in dynamically changing and unfamiliar times.

It’s all about clear expectations, transparency and trust.

And now all three are being put to the test, requiring more and different effort on the part of leaders, managers and every worker. Here’s a look at how trust builds differently in virtual teams.

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Boards and Culture: from Compliance to “Rocket Fuel”

It’s not just #metoo that has company culture rising as a Board level concern.

This time last year HBR devoted pretty much the entire issue to culture, with definitions, models, frameworks (as only HBR can do…), and the direct connections between culture and outcomes.

Long a soft and squishy notion championed by HR and some renegade, ahead-of-their time CEOs (Patagonia’s Yvon Chouinard comes to mind), the importance of culture is no longer a question. The question is what to do about it. How to begin, or do more. How to hardwire healthy culture into the fabric of the business.

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What’s an “employee” in 2030? (Or pretty much now...)

Self-driving companies?
Work that chases workers?
Conversation strategy bots?
Talent “rediscovery”?

What?!

“Organizations are a kind of technology on the verge of disruption.”

Have you met Devin Fidler? I did a couple of weeks ago, when he spun our heads around at the Human Resource Leadership Forum’s session talking about The Impact of New Technologies on Society and Work in 2030. Devin is the founder and CEO of Rethinkery Labs, a research and consulting firm that is “is leading the definitive investigation into the forces shaping future companies.”

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Marketers and PR people: Employees are your new best friends

It happens all the time. A big announcement, a new campaign, and everyone forgets to tell employees until the last minute, not to mention involving in the planning in the first place.) And then it's a half-assed effort that lands with a thud or worse, at the minimum, squandering a tremendous brand authenticity and awareness opportunity.

Some communications agencies get it, and Greenough Brand Storytellers is one of them. I was talking with Jamie Parker and Phil Greenough recently. Here's some of what we hashed out.

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Four Enablers of Employee Engagement (H/T Glassdoor)

The truth hurts. And it’s really inconvenient, especially when employees have so much to say. And so much they want to hear from leaders. Here’s the convenient part: it’s really clear what it takes to truly engage employees. Today’s Glassdoor webinar, “Four Enablers of Employee Engagement,” provides a good summary for taking action. No blinding “aha’s,” but a pragmatic view of what leaders need to understand and do to gain trust, attract and inspire the best talent. Here are the four and what I think you can do to move from “I get it” to “let’s do something about it.”

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A Cool Way to Ignite Change

(By popular demand, this post is bit more about Bluefire and me (Janet) than I usually share. So thank you.)

Why the name “Bluefire”? 

The blue part of a flame is the inner core, hottest part. Blue also feels cool and calm. So if you want to get something done, focus on what matters most and then ignite change.

What we’re solving and creating with clients right now?

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