Before Attempting Big Change, First, Root Out the Dysfunction
Roger, a newly-hired Chief Development Officer for one of New York’s biggest hospitals, was eager to meet his team. He called an All-Hands meeting for his 65 employees for Monday at 9AM on his first...
View ArticleHow Great Facilitation Leads to Better Decisions, More Revenue and Less Waste
No doubt, making go/no-go decisions for billion-dollar projects requires careful consideration, but this was getting ridiculous. Marc’s 20-person Engineering team, scattered across multiple time zones,...
View ArticleWhat Today’s Managers Really Need to Succeed in a Hybrid World
Every day brings new fires Amy has to put out. Yesterday it was yet another corporate policy calling for mandatory office time, prompting employees to ping her throughout the day. Earlier today, two of...
View ArticleWhy Coaches Make the Best Leaders in a Hybrid World
The cafeteria on the 9th floor is mostly empty as James and Ceci plunk down their trays at a table near the window, out of earshot. They began on the same day six months ago, both newly-minted grads...
View ArticleBracing for Giving (and Getting) Difficult Feedback When You Can’t See Eye to...
If I ask you whether my presentation that I’ve labored over for weeks was any good, your slight nod after a long hesitation tells me that I pretty much bombed, despite your verbal assurance that “it...
View ArticleOvercome the Worst Facilitation Fears of Introverts (and Everyone Else)
Admit it. You’ve done your share of commiserating about some perfectly awful meetings you’ve had to endure. In fact, you’ve been such a vocal critic of poorly-run meetings that your manager anoints you...
View ArticleTimeless Tips for Designing and Facilitating Engaging Virtual (or Hybrid)...
“Hi Nancy, I hope you can help me. We just had to cancel our 2-week-long program kick-off meeting in New York City, and now we have to figure out how to run the whole thing virtually. I’ve been looking...
View ArticleConfronting Conflict with Courage in Remote Teams
“Fine! Have it your way. Again. You always do.” “Hey, you had a chance to speak up, and you still haven’t told us why you oppose this proposal. We can’t read your mind.” “Has it occurred to you that...
View ArticleWhat? So What? Now What? – Today’s Workplace Trends and Why They Matter
Earlier this month, Margie’s company mandated that all employees be onsite at least four days a week, up from three. Some are following the new mandate begrudgingly, while others are ignoring it, for...
View Article(Free) Gifts that Keep on Giving Year-Round, at Work or Home
“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill “No one has ever become poor by giving.” – Anne Frank Each year, members of my (very large, extended) family vow...
View ArticleRethinking “culture” in a hybrid remote workplace
How many times have we heard employers claim that their organization’s “culture” may be irretrievably lost if people continue to work remotely? We don’t buy it, and we’ll explain why here. But first,...
View ArticleHow a Growing Pharma Blends Asynch, Real-time Communications to Boost...
This is one of a series of Field Spotlights where I share experiences, tips and observations from company leaders who are fully immersed in the transformation to hybrid. “In the last few years, we’ve...
View ArticleHow shared principles finally got a leadership team unstuck
Senior leaders from a family-run Boston-area insurance company were frustrated that their 90+ corporate employees were refusing to return to the office full time. “We want to get back to being a...
View ArticleWhy advancement, growth and visibility shouldn’t depend on work location
“If you don’t work at the Mothership, you’ll never get ahead. That’s how I see it.” The “Mothership” in this case was the gleaming new HQ building outside of Boston where hundreds of corporate staff...
View ArticleReal-world Strategies for Winning the Hybrid Game in 2024
“Hybrid work is here to stay” “CEOs predict full return to the office within 12 months” “Return to office mandates not going as planned” Clickbait headlines like these can be really confusing and in...
View ArticleStop Letting Bad Behavior Derail Your Next Meeting
“Our meetings have gone off the rails. No one seems to know how to rein in the loudmouths or to get the quiet people talking. Pretty much everyone leaves our meetings feeling frustrated, mad and really...
View ArticleCreating, Restoring Lost Connections in a Hybrid World
The new employee roaming empty halls eager to find someone – anyone—to talk to The CEO who publicly boasts about inclusion before dismantling the DEI team The employee whose manager cancels their 1:1...
View Article6 Good Reasons to Take Games Seriously at Work
This was my first cross-cultural training workshop for this process control firm that had recently been acquired by two new parent companies, one German and one French. The language classes offered by...
View ArticleCan’t we all just get along (with Gen Z) in the workplace)?
Sarah slams down her tray and sighs as she settles herself across the table from Jerome, her fellow manager, to gulp down a 10-minute lunch, a rare luxury these days. “I am just so fed up with some of...
View ArticleTips for Conquering the Whiplash of Change
The dust had finally settled on the company’s latest Return to Office policy. Although it took a lot of cajoling, after a six-month grace period, most employees were back in the office the mandated...
View ArticleYou call that a team???
Great teamwork wasn’t all that easy to come by even when everyone worked together in one place. When the pandemic hit, with people scattering to work from wherever, it took a while for teams to regain...
View ArticleTips for Earning Trust During Times of Change
True story: Ted, a mid-level HR professional for a fast-growing biopharma in my area, assumed the worst when he was ushered into a conference room, the door closing softly behind him. “I’m being laid...
View ArticleConfronting Dysfunctional Behavior Without Completely Losing It
We were halfway through a two-day project kick-off meeting for a global IT team about to roll out a new mail and messaging system for the company’s 100K+ employees around the world. The execution had...
View ArticleCostly Missteps that Destroy Trust During Times of Change
If senior leaders decide that a change must be made, how important is it, really, that employees buy into it? If it’s mandatory, why pretend that employees have a say in it? If the change is truly...
View ArticleShould They Stay (Remote) or Should They Go (Back to the Office)?
Competing return to office (RTO) policies have been making the headlines. Amazon’s CEO has notified employees that as of January 5, it’s everyone back to the office for everyone every day. Meanwhile,...
View ArticleFacilitating Safe Conversations When Viewpoints Collide
We all know leaders who run away when it comes to handling conflicting viewpoints across their teams. When the stakes are high and the conflict is intense, they can’t get away fast enough. When there’s...
View ArticleWhat’s Worse: Principles Without Scruples, or Scruples Without Principles?
Just because someone has strong principles, they may not have scruples. And someone with scruples may not have principles. It happens more often than you think. Case in point: Marta is a senior ops...
View ArticleTips for Naming the Elephant in the Room, Safely
“Whoa! What the %^&$ is happening here? Let’s knock it off right now!” Clearly, this is not the best way to call a time out when a meeting spirals out of control, especially when higher-ups are...
View ArticleWhen Values and Behaviors Collide, Time for a Culture Reset
Despite historically proclaiming “unwavering support” for the LGBTQ community, companies are scrubbing all references to DEI, transgender, women, equity and inclusion from their websites. Despite...
View ArticleBridging the Divide: Building Win-Win Solutions in Tough Times
Jane, the Executive Director of a national pediatric cancer research nonprofit, had been losing sleep for weeks over looming funding cuts. She clung to hope that the rumors were wrong and that her team...
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