Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Cohesion
| Titre | Date | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Role of Cooperation in Surviving Apocalyptic Times with Athena Aktipis, Author & Professor | 15 Oct 2024 | 00:51:06 | |
This episode features an interview with Athena Aktipis, author of A Field Guide to the Apocalypse: A Mostly Serious Guide to Surviving Our Wild Times. She is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Arizona State University, director of the Cooperation and Conflict Lab and co-director of the Human Generosity Project, the first large-scale collaborative project to investigate the interrelationship between biological and cultural influences on human generosity. Athena also created and co-hosts the Zombified Podcast. In this episode, Shawn sits down with Athena to discuss the dynamics of need-based transfers in societies, the study of zombification, and strategies for building trust in communities. ------------------- “Oftentimes in more corporate settings, it's easy to forget how important feelings of autonomy are for building anything lasting. You can make somebody do something in the short-term because you're like, ‘This is part of your job. You won't get paid if you don't do this, et cetera.’ But if you want to create trust, create a bond, create a foundation for long-term or even medium-term future productivity and innovation and all of that, people have to feel, I think, individually empowered and autonomous in how they're associating with the people who they are working with.” – Athena Aktipis ------------------- Episode Timetamps: *(02:52): Getting to know Athena *(09:21): Athena dives into cooperation *(18:36): What inspired Athena to study zombification and write A Field Guide to the Apocalypse *(32:51): How the idea of cooperation translates the workplace *(35:13): Athena’s recommendations for building trust *(41:14): Other takeaways from Athena’s book ------------------- Links: Connect with Athena on LinkedIn Read A Field Guide to the Apocalypse Learn more about The Apocalypse Roadshow Learn more about Zombified Media Learn more about the Zombie Apocalypse Medicine Meeting Follow The Apocalypse Roadshow on Instagram Connect with Shawn on LinkedIn
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| Navigating the AI Revolution in Comms with Shaun Randol, Founder of Mister Editorial | 01 Oct 2024 | 00:39:47 | |
This episode features an interview with Shaun Randol, Founder of Mister Editorial, a mixternal communications newsletter. Shaun has spent a large portion of his career piloting communications for international companies such as Bloomberg and BlackRock. In this episode, Shawn and Shaun discuss the myth of planning in storytelling, the importance of adapting to new technologies, and maintaining a strategic perspective on the evolution of communications work. ------------------- “I think those of us who have 10 to 15 years left in their career, can't ignore [AI]. They should embrace it, learn to use it. Dial in to one or two tools or use cases and become deeply expert at it immediately. Change comms, multimedia, photography, graphics, storytelling, whatever it is. Pick one or two because there's many of them out there and just get known for it as soon as possible, because that expertise will be needed.” – Shaun Randol ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:26): Getting to know Shaun *(09:12): Where Shaun stands today on AI replacing people *(14:19): How technology changes the way we communicate *(18:45): Shaun’s opinion on slowing down generative AI *(29:36): Shaun’s advice for comms professionals using AI *(35:44): Other ways comms professionals can embrace AI ------------------- Links: Connect with Shaun on LinkedIn | |||
| Navigating Organizational Blind Spots & Maximizing AI with Monique Zytnik, Global Employee Communication Expert | 28 May 2024 | 00:54:00 | |
This episode features an interview with Monique Zytnik. Monique is an award-winning, global internal communication leader who presents on best-practice communication at world conferences and guest lectures at universities. Her campaigns have been recognized by Gartner and the Digital Communication Awards. In this episode, Shawn sits down with Monique to discuss the misconception of authenticity, the challenge of creating culture, and why AI will never replace human creativity and connection. ------------------- “I don't have a car anymore, but when I did, that little blind spot that you have when you're trying to go around the corner and you've always got to make sure you check it. It's the same in an organization. There's always these little spots that you can't really see very well what's going on. You need to take care that your employees in that area are also reflecting your values and that there isn't little fiefdoms happening with particular leaders who don't wish to communicate, and putting employees off or people are leaving because of unsavorable working conditions.” – Monique Zytnik ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:07): Rapid fire questions *(06:37): Monique dives into her book *(10:51): AI’s influence on communication *(35:09): The role of leaders during difficult times *(46:34): How AI, leadership, and active listening come together ------------------- Links: Connect with Monique on LinkedIn Read Internal Communication in the Age of Artificial Intelligence | |||
| Ethical AI, Automation, and the Future of Employment with Christina Kucek, Executive Director of Intelligent Automation at CAI | 14 May 2024 | 00:48:22 | |
This episode features an interview with Christina Kucek, Executive Director of Intelligent Automation at CAI. She has over 15 years of consulting experience in delivering cutting-edge implementations in Conversational AI, natural language processing, and robotics process automation. At CAI, Christina guides clients through their automation journeys while delivering innovative solutions. In this episode, Shawn and Christina discuss the impact of AI on employee experience: from onboarding to accelerating workflows to building in ethics. ------------------- “Employee retention a lot of times can be impacted by their first week or two of employment. They get their machine, their access to all the systems that they need. They get their email, it's already set up. They show up on day one and they're ready to go. That impression that you make as a company on their new employee will help us retain our best talent. That reduces our cost overall for trying to recruit people and train people. That retention piece is really valuable.” – Christina Kucek ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:44): Rapid fire questions *(07:13): Christina breaks down CAI and her role *(15:57): How AI impacts employee experience *(28:22): How AI will affect the amount of work for employees *(36:43): The future of augmented intelligence *(45:23): What’s next for Christina and CAI ------------------- Links: Connect with Christina on LinkedIn | |||
| Building Better Workplaces with Human Centricity with Hamza Khan, Future of Work & Leadership Expert | 30 Apr 2024 | 00:49:51 | |
This episode features an interview with Hamza Khan, Future of Work and Leadership Expert. He is the best-selling author of Leadership Reinvented and The Burnout Gamble and is a two-time TEDx Speaker. Hamza challenges organizations to rehumanize their workplaces to achieve inclusive and sustainable growth. His clients include Microsoft, Deloitte, and TikTok. In this episode, Shawn sits down with Hamza to discuss why work is not working, how to make employees owners, and the no day work week. ------------------- “If you invest in employee engagement and well-being, then it turns all the other priorities into guaranteed outcomes. That's where the work needs to be done. We actually need to do this work, at the individual level with every single leader in the world. We have to just overhaul our education system to produce more human-centric, values-driven, change-friendly, self-disrupting leaders. But, we also have to make connecting with other human beings an organizational imperative. That should be the only priority that leaders pursue at every level. The welfare, the well-being, the engagement, and actually, just summarize all that into the thriving of their employees.” – Hamza Khan ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(05:09): Rapid fire questions *(11:48): Hamza discusses his 2016 TEDx Talk and if it holds up today *(21:43): The history and influence of The Haymarket Affair on work today *(26:57): Giving employees more say over their work *(38:48): Will AI increase the amount of work for employees *(45:14): What Hamza is hopeful about ------------------- Links: Connect with Hamza on LinkedIn | |||
| The Future of Employee Experience with Jordan Katz, Chief Insights Officer at Simpplr | 16 Apr 2024 | 00:55:25 | |
This episode features an interview with Jordan Katz, Chief Insights Officer at Simpplr. Jordan advises organizations on the influential use of data and analytics to develop strategies that predict outcomes and increase performance. Prior to Simpplr, he was one of the Heads of Employee Experience Strategy at Qualtrics and has consulted hundreds of SaaS companies and global organizations. In this episode, Shawn and Jordan dive into Simpplr’s Future of Employee Experience Report. They discuss the importance of personalized and efficient communication platforms, analyzing diverse data sources to create a seamless employee experience, and taking a human-centered approach to AI. ------------------- “87% of professionals are passionate about their current jobs, but 64% of them frequently feel stressed or frustrated at work. We have a primed and ready to go race car with rocket fuel in the tank. We load up a bunch of sandbags in the trunk that represent crappy tools and inefficient processes. There’s no reason for that. The more we study employee experience, the more we learn how critical it is to think holistically about the work people do, the task distribution they have, and how we can operationalize great efficiency. Using systems and AI to free up people to do the strategic work that will catapult our organizations into the next level from a performance perspective.” – Jordan Katz ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(03:11): Jordan defines employee experience *(05:00): Rapid fire questions *(14:36): What the report says about frontline workers *(22:54): Creating a personalized employee experience *(34:11): What prevents companies from implementing an HR stack *(41:05): How AI impacts employee experience *(51:49): Jordan’s golden rule for work ------------------- Links: Connect with Jordan on LinkedIn Read Simpplr’s Future of Employee Experience Report | |||
| The State of Internal Communications with Jordan Katz, Chief Insights Officer at Simpplr | 02 Apr 2024 | 00:52:43 | |
This episode features an interview with Jordan Katz, Chief Insights Officer at Simpplr. Jordan advises organizations on the influential use of data and analytics to develop strategies that predict outcomes and increase performance. Prior to Simpplr, he was one of the Heads of Employee Experience Strategy at Qualtrics and has consulted hundreds of SaaS companies and global organizations. In this episode, Shawn and Jordan dig into Simpplr’s 2024 State of Internal Communications Report. They discuss the most surprising results, creating highly effective teams, and using AI to tailor messages. ------------------- “We're creating not a time machine, like go back in time machine, but a save you time, reduce friction. Where everything is served up at your fingertips in a way that not only helps you get your job done, helps you be more productive, reduces cycle time on search and access to information. And by the way, can help you eliminate some of the administrative tasks or recognize your peers or any of the things that you want to do on a day-to-day basis that are not the high value stuff that drives crazy impact at your job. But instead, helps lift you up so you can do the best work that you can possibly do in the most efficient manner possible.” – Jordan Katz ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(03:45): Rapid fire questions *(10:43): Surprising results from the State of IC Report *(18:59): How AI can improve IC messaging *(30:12): Jordan’s advice for implementing an intranet *(35:17): What makes highly effective IC teams *(46:56): What’s next for IC in 2025 ------------------- Links: Connect with Jordan on LinkedIn Read Simpplr’s State of Internal Communications Report | |||
| Evolving HR Practices in the Age of AI with Josh Bersin, Founder & CEO of The Josh Bersin Company | 19 Mar 2024 | 00:44:31 | |
This episode features an interview with Josh Bersin, Founder and CEO of The Josh Bersin Company. Josh is an analyst, author, educator, and thought leader focusing on the global talent market and the challenges and trends impacting business workforces. He studies the world of work, HR and leadership practices, and is often cited as one of the leading HR and workplace industry analysts in the world. In this episode, Shawn and Josh discuss the post-industrial workforce, building dynamic organizations, and creating superpowered HR through AI. ------------------- “AI is not magic. It's not going to do everything perfectly out of the box. Just like every other technology we've ever implemented, we're going to have to take care of it. We're going to have to make sure it has good data, we're going to have to train it, we're going to have to optimize it. I think the big thing is this is a high-powered, highly capable technology that needs your help. You need to tune it. You need to have IT involved. You need to look at data management, data security.” – Josh Bersin ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:26): Josh answers rapid fire questions *(05:31): Josh explains The Josh Bersin Company *(08:56): Josh explains the Post-Industrial workforce *(15:24): The importance of employee activation *(23:43): Creating dynamic organizations *(32:27): The role of AI in revolutionizing HR *(38:23): Pitfalls of AI ------------------- Links: Learn more about The Josh Bersin Company Learn more about The Josh Bersin Academy Learn more about Irresistible Conference Learn more about Dynamic Organizations | |||
| The Cohesion Podcast is Back! | 12 Mar 2024 | 00:01:41 | |
The Cohesion podcast is back with more exciting episodes! Shawn Pfunder, Communications and Employee Engagement Director extraordinaire is taking over the role of host. Previously this season, we had some amazing guests including CEOs, Founders, and Chief People Officers. They shared valuable tips on creating a world-class employee experience, transforming culture, rebuilding trust after layoffs, and empowering every employee to be a leader. In the second half of the season, we're bringing new voices into the mix! We'll be talking to consultants, motivational speakers, and future of work experts. We'll dive deep into the intersection of AI and HR, discuss how to organize people effectively for sustainable growth, and explore the relationship between technology, employee experience, and communications. Stay tuned for more episodes of Cohesion! Check out previous episodes wherever you get your podcasts. ------------------- Links: | |||
| A Special Message From Cohesion Host, Amanda Berry | 19 Dec 2023 | 00:02:25 | |
In this short episode, Amanda Berry has a special message for the Cohesion Podcast audience. After two years and speaking with over 50 employee experience experts, Amanda is moving on from the host position. For now, Cohesion is taking a short break to prep for Season 3 of the show. Thank you for listening to and watching the Cohesion Podcast! Take care and we’ll see you soon! ------------------- Links: | |||
| Transforming the Flawed Nature of HR Tech with William Tincup, President & Editor-at-Large at RecruitingDaily.com | 12 Dec 2023 | 01:18:58 | |
This episode features an interview with William Tincup, President and Editor-at-Large of RecruitingDaily.com. William is a writer, speaker, consultant, and investor at the intersection of HR and technology. He has spent the last 20 years studying all aspects of HR and talent acquisition, including practitioners and the tech that serves them. In this episode, Amanda sits down with William to discuss the excessive amount of tech in HR, user satisfaction versus adoption, and why the ROI of tech is flawed. ------------------- “What I learned when I was studying user adoption years ago, is the game isn’t adoption. We think it is, it's a false signal though. The game is user satisfaction. How do we get users to actually fall into love with software? So on the way, we have to get people to use it, check. We’ve got to communicate, we've got to do all the things we've talked about. We’ve got to get them to use it. Once they use it and they consume it, and they're utilizing it, they're going to have questions. But, there's this moment in which they come over and they love the software. And it doesn't have to be perfect software. People think when I talk like that, they're like, ‘Oh, well there's no software that's perfect.’ I’m like, ‘It isn't about being perfect.’ It's about them understanding how to use the software in such a way that they know that this software helps them be successful and they can't imagine life or their job without it. And it's user satisfaction. You're beyond adoption at that point. You've crossed over into real, true user satisfaction, user love.” – William Tincup ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:07): William explains why there’s too much tech in HR *(13:22): How to drive tech adoption through training *(20:02): How long it takes to successfully roll out new tech *(30:45): William explains RecruitingDaily.com and his role there *(44:11): Segment: Getting Tactical *(44:49): William explains why ROI of tech is flawed *(55:59): Amanda and William dive into mergers and acquisitions *(01:10:03): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(01:10:21): What the future of HR tech will look like ------------------- Links: Connect with William on LinkedIn Listen to The RecruitingDaily Podcast Listen to The Use Case Podcast | |||
| Partnering With Product and Tech for a Better Employee Experience with Shawnee Irmen-De Anda, Chief People Officer at Thriveworks | 28 Nov 2023 | 00:30:25 | |
This episode features an interview with Shawnee Irmen-De Anda, Chief People Officer at Thriveworks. Shawnee has two decades of experience serving as a human resources strategic business partner for growing and well-established healthcare organizations. At Thriveworks, Shawnee leads a first-class people strategy, focusing on expanding team potential and empowering sustainable growth. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Shawnee to discuss creating brand awareness while recruiting, incorporating tech into the employee experience, and fighting burnout during times of crisis. ------------------- “I think in healthcare, technology should always enhance but not replace that human-to-human connection. It's really easy to leverage technology to save money at times, but that human-to-human connection is critically important. It's the same principle that we adhere to when we're looking at providing therapeutic care. Technology should also make the day-to-day functions of our teams easier, not harder or longer. At times if technology isn't working, we know the frustrations and added gray hair that that can have also. Having an intranet or centralized resource repositories, things like that for employees, is really important. Healthcare is one where you're either extremely advanced, and I think more hospital systems, things like that tend to have more up-to-date technology, or you're extremely outdated with the technology that you have. We're really lucky to have a tech and product team here that their sole purpose and what they really and truly want to do every day is make sure that our clinicians can do what they're here to do. And that's see clients, not have to battle technology challenges.” – Shawnee Irmen-De Anda ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(04:27): Shawnee’s role at Thriveworks *(09:22): Segment: Getting Tactical *(09:39): How Shawnee creates brand awareness while recruiting *(11:28): The relationship between employee experience and retention *(17:50): How to incorporate tech into the employee experience *(20:25): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(24:10): How Thriveworks uses tech to fight employee burnout *(27:34): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Shawnee on LinkedIn | |||
| Shifting Paradigms: How Trust Transforms Teams and Leadership with Stephen M.R. Covey, Author of The Speed of Trust | 17 Sep 2024 | 01:02:29 | |
This episode features an interview with Stephen M.R. Covey, author of The Speed of Trust and Co-founder of FranklinCovey’s Global Trust Practice. He is a sought-after international speaker, who has taught trust and leadership to business, government, military, education, healthcare, and NGO entities. As the former President and CEO of the Covey Leadership Center, Stephen increased shareholder value by 67 times and grew the company to become the largest leadership development firm in the world. In this episode, Shawn sits down with Stephen to discuss the foundational concepts of trust and leadership, practical strategies for enabling authenticity, and the importance of having a growth mindset. Hear more from Stephen when he participates in the World Business Forum this October! ------------------- “The style of leadership that maybe has taken us to where we are today in a different world, is not going to be where we need to go tomorrow in a new world of remote work and hybrid work and intentionally flexible work with younger generations. Gen Z have a completely different expectation of how they want to be engaged and led. With work becoming far more collaborative and interdependent and with technology changing, disrupting everything with AI, with all these things happening, we need a new way to lead in a new world of work. Maybe command and control got us to where we are today, but trust and inspire is what's going to take us to where we need to go tomorrow.” – Stephen M.R. Covey ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(03:32): Getting to know Stephen *(13:14): The reciprocity of trust *(26:37): Building stewardship agreements *(31:22): Trust and inspire vs. command and control *(41:49): Authenticity and vulnerability in leadership *(54:06): The need for a growth mindset ------------------- Links: Learn more about FranklinCovey’s Global Trust Practice Connect with Stephen on LinkedIn | |||
| Why Every Employee Should Be a Leader with Betsy Leatherman, Global President of Consulting Services at Leadership Circle | 14 Nov 2023 | 00:52:57 | |
This episode features an interview with Betsy Leatherman, Global President of Consulting Services at Leadership Circle. Betsy has 10 years of experience transforming executives and middle managers into exceptional leaders. In her current role, Betsy helps clients become more effective leaders so they can make decisions that engage and motivate members of their organizations and customers they serve. In this episode, Amanda and Betsy discuss leadership development, common mistakes leaders make during layoffs, and the two leadership orientations. ------------------- “The rubber meets the road at the middle manager. Because, even if you've got a great leadership team that's highly developed, if they do not translate that through the way in which a middle manager shows up to a frontline employee, it doesn't matter. If you've got a great set of senior leaders, let's say, and then a set of middle managers that haven't been developed, it can actually be really, really challenging for the frontline employee. Because, they see one thing and they experience something so different, and immediately they'll lose trust. My perspective is if you start at a customer and then you move backwards in terms of importance, frontline employees are very important to be extraordinarily well-resourced. Their managers also have to be even better resourced, personally, to help them handle their complexities. When that occurs, all of a sudden it's at scale. You, as a leader, a senior leader in the organization, you're at scale because you're helping them to be better and you're getting their perspective and vantage point that you might otherwise not be offered.” – Betsy Leatherman ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:59): Betsy dives into leadership development *(08:35): Segment: Story Time *(10:23): Why Betsy created a career in leadership development *(17:17): Segment: Getting Tactical *(25:16): Betsy explains the two leadership orientations *(34:24): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(34:54): Common mistakes leaders make during layoffs *(40:46): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Learn more about Leadership Circle Connect with Betsy on LinkedIn Follow Betsy on X (formerly Twitter) | |||
| Everything You’ve Wanted to Know About Transforming Culture with Brian Brockman, VP of Communications, US & Canada at Nissan Motor Corporation | 31 Oct 2023 | 00:32:15 | |
This episode features an interview with Brian Brockman, VP of Communications, US & Canada at Nissan Motor Corporation. At Nissan, Brian is responsible for telling the brand’s transformation story, protecting company reputation, and promoting strong product messages to both internal and external audiences. Previously, he served as the Director of Communications where he led efforts around new vehicle launches, product lifecycle, and regional operations. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Brian to discuss transforming work culture, crafting an equitable employee experience, and how internal and external communications can flow together. ------------------- “Once you get people moving with you, they will work, they will get things done side by side. When you see things that work, keep leaning into it, keep using that, keep trying to use that to motivate people. The other thing is it's very easy to get caught up in the challenges that are there, the little setbacks. Things that happen that don't go as well as you plan. Recognize that. Celebrate failures for what they are. And when you do acknowledge it, learn from it, and then move forward, and then celebrate your wins. Celebrate what you learn and use that to rally people. Use that for recognition. While you're doing this transformation, don't lose track of having a culture of recognition and understanding that it's people that are going to drive the success. It's people who are going to drive the transformation.” – Brian Brockman ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:12): Brian explains Nissan Next *(10:19): Segment: Story Time *(12:21): How Brian makes internal and external communications work together *(16:06): Segment: Getting Tactical *(16:26): How to successfully transform culture *(25:25): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(28:20): How to get skeptics to buy-in on culture transformation ------------------- Links: Connect with Brian on LinkedIn | |||
| Investing in Team Upskilling and Technology to Improve Efficiency with Preston Lewis, Founder & CEO of Intactic | 17 Oct 2023 | 00:46:19 | |
This episode features an interview with Preston Lewis, Founder and CEO of Intactic, a modern communications company focused on creating human-centric experiences for people at work. Over the last 20 years, Preston has partnered with respected companies to develop and implement communication and behavior change campaigns. He is a sought after employee engagement, internal communications, and enterprise transformation expert and can often be found speaking about the future of work. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Preston to discuss the modern employee experience, investing in technology and upskilling teams, and how to create a human-centric work experience. ------------------- “We think of [employee experience technology] as a three-legged stool. And of those legs, there's one typically owned by IT, there's another typically owned by People or the HR function. And then a third, we can frame it as Communication, sometimes we frame it as Change. What we do know to be true is that if any of those legs are a little bit shorter than any of the others, that seat isn't flat. And that seat is where employees sit. We as employees are customers, if you will, for using that technology. When we think about employee experience, that's a nice visual we like to have. Not only in terms of one leg being shorter, but if one doesn't exist, then we can't do the right work the right way. What we've seen is organizations that subscribe to a modern employee experience philosophy, it just makes sense. There is a role for different functions to have and we're constantly tuning into which of those legs is as effective as it needs to be to balance out that experience for people.” – Preston Lewis ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:33): Preston explains the modern employee experience *(11:35): Segment: Story Time *(12:19): How Intactic is creating a human-centric experience at work *(19:54): Segment: Getting Tactical *(24:57): Key partnerships of employee experience technology *(31:15): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(36:18): AI use cases in employee experience *(42:21): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(42:36): What internal comms technology will look like in the future ------------------- Links: Connect with Preston on LinkedIn Listen to TechVerified podcast Listen to New State of Work podcast | |||
| Rebuilding Trust After Layoffs, Mergers & Acquisitions with Julia Christenson, U.S. Employee Experience Chair at Edelman | 03 Oct 2023 | 00:48:30 | |
This episode features an interview with Julia Christenson, U.S. Employee Experience Chair at Edelman. Julia has over 15 years of experience helping clients design employee engagement programs to drive stability and connection. She has developed employee sentiment dashboards, manager trainings, go-to-market message plans, and culture roadmaps. Prior to joining Edelman, Julia led the People Advisory Services at EY and organizational change management at IBM. In this episode, Amanda and Julia discuss the sticky factor of employee experience, the power of employee recognition, and how to establish trust in difficult times. ------------------- “I think one of the other things is when there's just a lack of communications until all decisions are final. Bring us to the seat at the table, even if you don't know the decision yet. Even if you don't know if we're going to switch our benefits or IT platforms, or if we don't know how the branding's going to change, bring us in and have it be a part of the discussion. I do think where it's challenging is where there is just a vacuum until all decisions are final. Without communications, that's where rumors start, misinformation, distrust is because we don't understand what's being decided or even what the process looks like.” – Julia Christenson ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:21): How Julia defines employee experience *(09:30): Segment: Story Time *(14:19): Julia dives into the Edelman Trust Barometer *(20:08): Segment: Getting Tactical *(20:55): Why employee recognition is important *(28:20): How leaders can establish transparency during difficult times *(35:44): How to rebuild trust after a layoff *(44:49): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Julia on LinkedIn Check out the 2023 Edelman Trust Barometer | |||
| Enabling HR Through AI with Rajamma Krishnamurthy, Senior Director of Enterprise AI Strategy at Microsoft | 19 Sep 2023 | 00:36:35 | |
This episode features an interview with Rajamma Krishnamurthy, Senior Director and Leader of Enterprise AI Strategy at Microsoft. Rajamma has over two decades of experience empowering human resources through technology at Fortune 100 companies. She has led large scale digital transformations and has managed teams across the globe. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Rajamma to discuss enabling HR through AI, tackling biases, and improving the employee lifecycle with AI. ------------------- “Think of AI as your caddie that's going to walk in with all of your golf clubs. They will even tell you which iron to take out and hit the golf ball with. But, you are the one that needs to decide which iron and where, how fast and how big you hit, and you need to make that hole in one. AI is going to be of tremendous help in all the burdensome aspects of your work. But, you have to take whatever AI gives, you have to judge it and you have to make a good judgment call based on that. And you have to then implement it in your area. I feel like there will always be humans in the middle of everything that we do.” – Rajamma Krishnamurthy ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:09): Rajamma explains her new role at Microsoft *(04:04): Segment: Story Time *(06:43): Segment: Getting Tactical *(07:03): How AI enables the HR space *(13:09): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(13:35): Rajamma’s stance on AI taking away jobs *(17:07): How to deal with biases in AI *(24:39): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(27:03): How employees feel about AI in HR ------------------- Links: Download the Algorithmic Bias Safeguards for Workforce Connect with Rajamma on LinkedIn | |||
| Keeping Company Values Fresh with Ann Melinger, CEO & Owner of Brilliant Ink | 05 Sep 2023 | 00:47:39 | |
This episode features an interview with Ann Melinger, CEO and Owner of Brilliant Ink, an agency dedicated to designing meaningful employee experiences. Ann has spent the last two decades counseling organizations on improving business results and employee engagement. In this episode, Amanda and Ann discuss refreshing company values, engaging with hands-on employees, and how language factors into inclusivity. ------------------- “Typically, we see companies refresh their values every five to 10 years. But, what we really encourage is that companies should revisit their values, intentionally, at least once a year. Sit back, take a look at them, ask yourselves, ‘Does this value represent where we are today? Does this value highlight what makes us different? Is it something that we do better than most other companies out there? Is it something that we expect people to demonstrate the moment that they walk in the door?’ And if the answer to any of those questions is, ‘No’, then it's probably time to think about a refresh.” – Ann Melinger ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:33): Why keeping company values fresh is important *(14:12): Segment: Story Time *(20:10): Segment: Getting Tactical *(24:55): Why hands-on employees are at higher risk for burnout *(31:15): How language factors into inclusivity *(38:40): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Follow Brilliant Ink on LinkedIn | |||
| Me, We, & World Dimensions of Employee Experience with Nell Derick Debevoise, Founder of 3D Performance | 22 Aug 2023 | 01:05:40 | |
This episode features an interview with Nell Derick Debevoise, Founder of 3D Performance. She has spent her career helping purpose-driven leaders expand their impact, grow their businesses, and build powerful legacies. Nell is also a Partner at PurposeFused, author of Going First, and a Senior Contributor for Forbes. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Nell to discuss purposeful leadership, implementing a growth mindset, and the Me, We, and World dimensions of employee experience. ------------------- “There has to be a willingness and investment in self-awareness and reflection as a starting block. But without the leader and a leadership team and eventually all of your managers, all of your people managers, having the support and the expectation to do that self-reflection and self-awareness, to really get clear and honest about what they care about and what they're good at, it's just not going to stick. Without doing that individual change from the top and all the way down and through, there is no organizational change.” – Nell Derick Debevoise ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:41): Nell explains the Me, We, and World dimensions of employee experience *(13:44): How leaders can speak up without alienating employees *(21:59): Segment: Story Time *(22:16): Nell explains PurposeFused, Purposeful Growth Institute, and Inspiring Cowgirl (now known as 3D Performance) *(31:08): Nell gives a preview of her book Going First *(37:55): Segment: Getting Tactical *(39:36): Nell explains what a growth mindset is *(44:41): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(45:20): Responsibilities of leaders when handling layoffs *(54:36): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(54:51): Mistakes HR makes in personal and career development ------------------- Links: How Your Organization Can Navigate Layoffs With Humanity Investing in middle managers pays off—literally Topgrading Interview Guide: How to Evaluate Talent | |||
| Work-Life Harmony, Not Balance with Marla J. Albertie, Owner & Founder of Truth Speaks Group | 08 Aug 2023 | 01:02:41 | |
This episode features an interview with Marla J. Albertie, Owner and Founder of Truth Speaks Group, a multimedia coaching company that helps women create strategies for work-life integration. She is also the Founder and President of I/O for Teens, a program that teaches adolescents transferable life and career skills. Marla is a certified life, career, and executive coach and has authored several books on work-life harmony. In this episode, Amanda and Marla discuss why cultural fit is a myth, how to brag about yourself, and what we’re getting wrong about DE&I. ------------------- “The reason I call myself the work-life harmonizer is because there's no such thing as balance. You're never going to be perfect. You’ve got to learn to harmonize. I say you have to integrate work and life because guess what? It is your life. Work is a part of your life. It is not separate. It is a part of what you do. You're a human being. Let's start there. Then we can talk about being a spouse, parent, mother, all those roles come later. You’ve got to first realize you're a human being.” – Marla J. Albertie ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:14): Marla dives into her book The Ultimate Brag Book About Yourself *(12:38): Segment: Story Time *(19:21): Marla explains Truth Speaks Group and I/O for Teens *(29:42): Segment: Getting Tactical *(34:06): Why DE&I progress has slowed down and how to solve it *(48:20): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(48:37): Marla’s opinion on returning to work for the sake of culture *(54:47): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Marla on LinkedIn Follow Truth Speaks Group on Instagram Follow I/O for Teens on Instagram Subscribe to I/O for Teens on YouTube | |||
| Personalizing Employee Wellbeing With Technology With Tan Le, Founder & CEO of EMOTIV | 25 Jul 2023 | 00:41:43 | |
This episode features an interview with Tan Le, Founder and CEO of EMOTIV. Tan is an innovator, entrepreneur, speaker, and award-winning industry leader. Founded in 2011, EMOTIV is a bioinformatics company that uses electroencephalography (EEG) to better understand the human brain and accelerate brain research globally. EMOTIV’s braintech is cited by more than 19,000 research papers, representing breakthroughs in research for a range of diseases, brain impairments, and educational modalities. In this episode, Amanda and Tan discuss using science to improve employee experience, personalizing wellbeing, and the cost of task switching. ------------------- “The nice thing about technology like this is that you don't have that single moment bias that's skewed towards the moment in which you were surveyed. You actually get to see the ebb and flow of a person's emotion, their cognitive state throughout an entirety of a week or whenever you are actually using the technology. This takes away that bias that intrinsically happens with surveys and you really start to understand different types of work, different types of environments, different types of tasks, and its effect on your brain.” – Tan Le ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:44): Tan explains EMOTIV *(11:52): Segment: Story Time *(15:11): Tan’s background *(17:51): Segment: Getting Tactical *(18:18): What data and science can tell us that employee surveys can’t *(31:06): The cost of task switching *(34:42): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(37:48): Tan’s advice for implementing EEGs ------------------- Links: Alzheimer’s and Dementia Study Watch @brainpaintbyjohn paint while wearing EMOTIV’s EPOC headset | |||
| AI Tools, Concerns, and Possibilities with Carolyn Clark & Shaun Randol | 11 Jul 2023 | 01:10:22 | |
This episode features an interview with Carolyn Clark and Shaun Randol. Carolyn is the VP of Employee Experience Strategy and Transformation at Simpplr, where she elevates the employee experience by driving innovation and revitalizing how employee communication is delivered. Prior to Simpplr, she led internal and HR communication at companies like Yahoo, Pandora, and GoDaddy. Shaun is the Editor-in-Chief of Digital Publications at Lam Research and the Founder of Mister Editorial, a mixternal communications newsletter. Previously, he spent 13 years leading communications at Bloomberg, BlackRock, and Splunk. In this episode, Amanda, Carolyn, and Shaun take on the vast world of AI. They discuss how they use tools like ChatGPT in their everyday lives, the role AI plays in internal communications, and security and ethics concerns in this new landscape. ------------------- “I don't think AI will replace you, but somebody using AI will. I also think that the number of jobs in our industry, there will be fewer because one person can do more using these technologies. Or maybe it's the same amount of jobs and people's time is spent more on thoughtful strategic work. Rather than rote, repetitive, junior-level material.” – Shaun Randol ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(06:47): The role AI will play in internal communications *(19:09): Segment: Story Time *(26:40): Segment: Getting Tactical *(27:13): How AI has already improved internal comms and HR *(39:49): The dangers and fears of AI *(01:02:23): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(01:02:41): AI security and ethics resources ------------------- Links: Connect with Carolyn on LinkedIn Connect with Shaun on LinkedIn Follow Sam Altman, Founder of OpenAI Visit Anthropic for more on AI ethics | |||
| Why Control is for Amateurs with Rachel Happe, Founder of Engaged Organizations | 03 Sep 2024 | 00:49:31 | |
This episode features an interview with Rachel Happe, Founder and Digital Workplace, Organization, and Community Strategist at Engaged Organizations. She started Engaged Organizations to focus on helping organizations adapt to new technologies and accelerate knowledge supply chains while improving trust, transparency, and agility. She is a sought after speaker and expert on the impact of technology on engagement, relationships, and culture and has keynoted at several digital workplace conferences. In this episode, Shawn and Rachel discuss treating employees as assets rather than machines, rewarding human contributions, and valuing emotional and social aspects in the workplace. ------------------- “We still have this mechanistic system and the human system, and we're still treating humans like machines. I wrote a post a while back, because I was getting really annoyed reading about how AI could help employees. It was all like, ‘It can do these 10 tasks for you.’ And I'm like, ‘If that's all we are, we should go home.’ It's the mindset of what we think employees or people's value is. The example I use in presentations is diamonds. Why are diamonds valuable? They're rocks. De Beers made them mean something. You know who can't make something mean something to somebody else? AI. The value of people is activating other people. And value is meaning.” – Rachel Happe ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:20): Getting to know Rachel *(10:27): Rachel’s career background *(15:42): Employees are not machines *(21:50): How to calculate the value of community *(32:21): The role of AI in community *(42:39): The current and future state of valuing humans ------------------- Links: Connect with Rachel on LinkedIn Learn more about Engaged Organizations Read Ed Zitron’s They’re Looting The Internet | |||
| Improving Trust and Employee Experience Through Pay Transparency with Lexi Clarke, Chief People Officer at Payscale | 20 Jun 2023 | 00:45:20 | |
This episode features an interview with Lexi Clarke, Chief People Officer at Payscale, a leading provider of compensation data, software and services. Lexi leads the company’s internal HR strategies for over 600 employees around the world. With over 14 years of experience at companies like Convoy, Redfin, and Boeing, she is an expert in people-first HR leadership, workforce growth strategy, and compensation best practices. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Lexi to discuss pay transparency, measuring your worth as an employee, and discussing salary in the interview process. ------------------- “I think overall, we're starting to see that pay transparency and just transparency in general has been shown to have a positive impact on job satisfaction, on engagement, on overall productivity. And I think that's tied to an inherent trust. When you’re a little bit more transparent, there's more trust built with your employees and within the organization. It’s so powerful. I just think it is such a powerful concept.” – Lexi Clarke ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:18): The trend of talking openly about salaries *(07:47): How Payscale is helping the shift towards pay transparency *(15:08): Segment: Story Time *(15:37): How to talk about salary in an interview *(20:51): Segment: Getting Tactical *(27:20): How to measure your worth as an employee *(33:23): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(35:49): What Lexi thinks of “quiet quitting” *(40:17): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Payscale on LinkedIn | |||
| If You Want a Better Employee Experience, Listen to Employees with Ephraim Freed, Customer Growth Manager of Reality Labs at Meta | 06 Jun 2023 | 00:45:08 | |
This episode features an interview with Ephraim “Phrai” Freed, Customer Growth Manager of Reality Labs at Meta. Phrai helps growing companies create impactful experiences through community, productivity, and performance while enriching the lives of employees. His digital strategist and communications expertise has been shaped at companies like Magic Leap and Riot Games. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Phrai to discuss AI’s impact on internal communications, the value of cross-functional relationships, and why an equitable employee experience is critical. ------------------- “You should be spending time in your stores, in the back room, watching people work, observing what they do, how they do it, seeing the problems they face, seeing how they get the information they get. You should understand in great detail how those people work. Step one is for communicators, IT people, executives to actually be there in the field, in the situations and context of these hands-on workers and observing them so that they can build empathy, build insights, and destroy any assumptions that they have about what those people's lives are actually like.” – Ephraim Freed ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:13): Why Ephraim thinks the employee experience is broken *(05:25): Ephraim’s career journey *(06:50): Segment: Story Time *(13:07): Segment: Getting Tactical *(18:03): Creating an equitable employee experience for hands-on and on-screen workers *(32:02): Segment: Seat at the Table *(32:36): How cross-functional relationships improve employee experience *(37:09): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(37:23): The rollercoaster of AI ------------------- Links: Connect with Ephraim on LinkedIn | |||
| Advancing Careers Through an Inclusive Employee Experience with Pratiksha Patel, Chief People Officer at Branch | 16 May 2023 | 00:33:08 | |
This episode features an interview with Pratiksha Patel, Chief People Officer at Branch. Pratiksha has more than two decades of experience driving employee engagement in hybrid, office-based, and remote cultures. Prior to Branch, she served as the Senior Vice President of People at CB Insights and as a Talent Expert at McKinsey & Company. In this episode, Amanda and Pratiksha discuss meeting workers’ expectations, inclusivity, and upskilling employees. ------------------- “To create conditions where a highly diverse company and team works well together, can bring all of their ideas, bring the varied perspective that we so desperately want everyone to bring, takes a special environment. Takes an intentionality around saying, ‘We want to create an environment where you bring your perspectives and you bring your differences in, you don't just suppress them and leave them at home.’ Some of the ways we do that is we provide a guide and a micro training on the notion of day-to-day conversations and how to enable Branchers and help them know that we want them to have inclusive conversations with their colleagues about differences. As well as giving them tools on how to share stories on more sensitive topics like social or political challenges in our environment that are around us.” – Pratiksha Patel ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:53): Pratiksha’s background *(03:44): Segment: Story Time *(06:20): How Branch is intentional about employee experience *(09:24): Segment: Getting Tactical *(18:04): How inclusivity helps with career development *(21:41): How Branch ensures employees have a good work-life blend *(26:00): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Pratiksha on LinkedIn | |||
| Communicating with Respect and Empathy During Turbulent Times with Barbara Massa, Simpplr Board Member | 02 May 2023 | 00:46:29 | |
This episode features an interview with Barbara Massa, board member of Simpplr. Barbara has over 25 years of experience as a business operations leader driving workforce strategy and organizational effectiveness. Previously, she served Mandiant as the Executive Vice President and Chief of Business Operations, where she implemented the company’s first global HR system. Before joining Mandiant, Barbara led Talent & Diversity at McAfee, Inc. and was recognized for establishing a global talent management organization. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Barbara to discuss leading through turbulent times, advising companies to be more human, and thoughtfully aligning internal partnerships. ------------------- “When you do get into having to make these difficult decisions, whether it be a reduction in a layoff or something else, that's a hard place to be. But the only way you can establish a reservoir of trust is with that authentic communication, humane engagement. Go into conversations with empathy, go into conversations seeking to learn and understand. That's where the goodness can happen even in times of duress and turbulence.” – Barbara Massa ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:02): Barbara’s background *(13:32): Segment: Story Time *(21:00): Segment: Getting Tactical *(22:01): How Barbara meets desires in turbulent times *(25:40): How leaders should incorporate transparency into strategies *(31:39): Segment: Seat at the Table *(36:56): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(41:20): Barbara discusses recipe versus balance ------------------- Links: Connect with Barbara on LinkedIn | |||
| Fostering Employee Trust Through Authentic Tone of Voice with Katherine King, Director of Employee Communications at Etsy | 18 Apr 2023 | 00:49:24 | |
This episode features an interview with Katherine King, Director of Employee Communications at Etsy. She has been with the global ecommerce company since 2018, serving the internal communications function through Etsy’s massive growth. Previously, Katherine was a dialogue strategist where she developed brands’ customer-facing tone of voice for clients like American Express, Gerber, and Southwest Airlines. In this episode, Amanda and Katherine discuss the spectrum of tone and voice, key business relationships that improve employee communications, and helping leaders develop empathetic messages. ------------------- “A reliable tone breeds familiarity, and familiarity is the precursor to trust. The more that we can breed familiarity with leadership and their authentic voice, the greater trust the team will have and the better the business will be. And I know that that seems like a big jump, but there is actual data backing up how trust impacts your business' bottom line, and its employees’ trust in their employer. And that's everything from NPS to retention and engagement – these are all things that do affect your bottom line.” – Katherine King ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:17): Katherine’s background *(06:31): Segment: Story Time *(11:29): Segment: Getting Tactical *(12:02): Key relationships that help employee comms *(21:18): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(21:46): How Katherine helps leaders build empathy and compassion *(25:23): Why tone of voice matters *(28:01): Katherine explains the spectrum of tone and voice *(38:17): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Katherine on LinkedIn | |||
| Improving Business Outcomes Through Psychological Safety with Will Leahy and Layla Kajer of Greenhouse | 04 Apr 2023 | 00:57:04 | |
This episode features an interview with Will Leahy, VP of People Development and Business Partners at Greenhouse; and Layla Kajer, Director of People Experience at Greenhouse. Will leads people development, focusing on optimizing performance, career growth, and driving culture. Layla spearheads people experience where she creates productive, connected, and empowering work environments for employees. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Will and Layla as they dive into psychological safety, vulnerability, and leading by example. ------------------- “The power of vulnerability is limitless and it takes bravery and it takes courage. [...] That vulnerability from a leader actually creates a space where someone else is going to model that behavior. That is the cornerstone, in my opinion, of psychological safety is vulnerability. And that can launch into all kinds of other good things and relationship building and team norms and all that good stuff. But it just starts with being human, in my opinion.” – Will Leahy ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:09): Will and Layla’s backgrounds *(07:40): Will and Layla explain the mission of Greenhouse *(09:38): Segment: Story Time *(10:11): The importance of psychological safety in the workplace *(22:57): The impact of layoffs on psychological safety *(25:28): Segment: Getting Tactical *(29:32): How Greenhouse is ensuring behaviors are mirrored by leaders and employees *(40:25): How Greenhouse is tackling DE&I *(47:30): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Layla on LinkedIn Greenhouse’s Inclusive Communications Guidelines | |||
| Balancing Cognitive and Emotional Culture for a Harmonious Employee Experience with Laila Tarraf, Author of “Strong Like Water” | 21 Mar 2023 | 00:38:37 | |
This episode features an interview with Laila Tarraf, author of Strong Like Water. After losing her parents and husband, Laila learned that compassion was essential in her personal and professional life. Prior to writing her book, Laila served as the Chief People Officer for Allbirds and Peet’s Coffee, and was the Vice President of HR for Walmart.com. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Laila to discuss leading with love, harmony between company values and felt experience, and psychological safety. ------------------- “It matters more that what your stated values are mirror the felt experience, than what those stated values are. There's a cognitive culture, which is what you say your values are and the stated words. And then there's the emotional culture. It's like, ‘Okay, but how does it feel? How are people talking to me? How are we relating to each other?’ And the greater the dissonance between those two things, that's where you run into issues because then, employees are like, ‘Well, we say it's this, but what I'm seeing is this.’ And that's where trust breaks down. And so it actually hurts you to have these beautifully well-articulated values and the accouterments that come with whatever you think employees are looking for; free lunches or workout rooms, but you're not able to talk to your manager. You're not clear on what your role is. Conflict is swept under the rug, So, it becomes passive aggressive. It's all of those things. It's your felt experience really, that is the true culture and the other things become like window washing and that actually ends up hurting you because then you lose the trust.” – Laila Tarraf ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:52): Laila’s background *(05:58): Segment: Story Time *(06:14): Laila discusses her book Strong Like Water *(17:17): Laila’s advice for leading with courage and love *(27:49): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(28:29): Skills leaders need to have to guide employees through challenging times *(31:24): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(31:49): What future changes in leadership Laila expects ------------------- Links: Connect with Laila on LinkedIn | |||
| Building a Better Employee Experience for Frontline Workers Through Mobile-First Technology with Hannah Bolte, Director of Marketing & Communications at Lozier Corporation | 07 Mar 2023 | 00:38:45 | |
This episode features an interview with Hannah Bolte, Director of Marketing and Communications at Lozier Corporation. Starting as a print and television reporter, Hannah uses her journalism expertise to craft internal, external, and crisis communications strategies and content. In this episode, Amanda and Hannah discuss Lozier’s mobile-first employee experience platform, reaching deskless workers, and intentional communications. ------------------- "The bulk of our employees work in a manufacturing facility. They don't have email access and their jobs are in the plant, it's not sitting at a desk. We approached the intranet in finding an intranet that would work for us with a sense of, ‘We can't reach those employees right now,’ aside from all those things that you said, like a flier in the break room, providing information to supervisors to say at startup meetings. But, how do you engage them beyond their day-to-day? How do you make them feel like they're part of something bigger? How do you make them realize their impact on the company, on the community? So, mobile-first was a non-negotiable thing for us. We had to make sure that it was accessible by all of our employees at any point in time." – Hannah Bolte ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:47): Hannah’s background *(08:09): Segment: Story Time *(09:13): Why Lozier created a mobile-first employee experience platform *(11:58): Segment: Getting Tactical *(12:27): Hannah explains the ins and outs of LozierLink *(29:30): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(32:49): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Hannah on LinkedIn Connect with Lozier Corporation on LinkedIn | |||
| Cohesion Highlights: Employee Feedback, Building Culture, a Seat at the Table, Advice, and ROI | 21 Feb 2023 | 00:14:29 | |
This episode features highlights of past guests as they open up their playbooks and give advice on employee feedback, building culture through technology, getting a seat at the table, and measuring ROI. In this episode, you’ll hear from the following internal communications leaders:
------------------- “I like actually asking people, ‘What did you think? How could we have done better?’ I want that feedback because your playbook can be your playbook, but it needs to be somewhat flexible to understand what is hitting and what is missing in terms of the communications. I think getting that feedback is important as a communicator.” – Michelle Press “You're going to see a continued move towards more distribution, more flexibility in the workspace, more control over how you control your workday. Not just where you work, but when you work. As you embrace more asynchronous communication and a focus on outputs and documentation and things like this, sort of the core principles of remote work, you find that it's very easy to make the next leap, which is to something called the non-linear workday. Where you're basically able to choose when you work, not just where you work. And as long as you're delivering, then you're accepted as having done your work well.” – Chase Warrington “For a long time, we've talked about having a seat at the table. And sometimes I think, especially for communications, it's just like, be the table. You be the table. And then you have people come to your table. Stop waiting to get a seat at other people's table. You form the strategic imperative and have people come work in that way with you.” – Victoria Dew “The best piece of advice that I can give somebody just starting out in their career is remembering grace for yourself. I think it's really, really important. To what we spoke about earlier, about beating ourselves up and that pressure to get it right every time. If you can learn to give yourself grace and move on and learn from that, you will find yourself a whole lot happier in this field and able to contribute the awesomeness that you bring and the skillsets and the important value that's needed.” – Paralee Johnson “I think what's important about ROI is that comms does need to take accountability for making business changes. And in order to take accountability for it, we just need to know what that is. [...] I think the key metrics will always net out to, ‘Did we produce the outcome that we wanted? What are we going after? Are we trying to reduce turnover? Are we trying to increase productivity? Are we trying to reduce injury in the workplace? Are we trying to increase employee satisfaction?’ Things like that, we want to really hook ourselves onto. And we really need to understand if we do do this, how do we know that we're making a difference? It's important to be able to know that. And it's important to be able to decide how many of these things we're going to tackle within a given period of time. So, the outcome should always be measurable.” – Pinaki Kathiari ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:16): Parag, Natalie, and Michelle discuss using surveys to collect employee feedback *(02:30): Rajamma, Wendy, and Chase discuss building culture through technology *(08:08): Paralee and Debbie share internal communications career advice *(09:19): Ben, Mary, Jason, and Pinkai discuss measuring ROI ------------------- Links: | |||
| Improving The Remote Work Experience with Chase Warrington, Head of Remote at Doist | 07 Feb 2023 | 00:41:06 | |
This episode features an interview with Chase Warrington, Head of Remote at Doist, a leading remote-first company. Having worked remotely since 2009, Chase has managed teams across all timezones and is passionate about the future of work. He has been named a LinkedIn Top Voice for Remote Work, a Global Top 50 Remote Enabler by Remote.com, and is a frequent contributor to the world’s top remote-work outlets such as Forbes, BBC, and AP. In this episode, Amanda and Chase dive into remote work; discussing challenges, experience, and what companies get wrong. ------------------- “What I would love to see those same leaders do though, is to stop saying you can't build team culture in a remote environment, or you can't collaborate, or we can't do good brainstorming sessions, or have good relationships with our employees, or mentor our team because that is not true. And you're seeing it being done at scale now. Companies with tens of thousands of employees going remote. We're a team of 100 and in 35 different countries, and at one time, we were seen to be one of the big ones that were doing fully remote work. And so, it is being done. And I do think those companies will continue to see an exodus of talent if they don't invest in at least trying to make it work on some level.” – Chase Warrington ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:13): Chase’s background *(06:20): Segment: Story Time *(09:43): Chase explains the nuances of remote work *(17:53): Segment: Getting Tactical *(18:17): Problems that Chase is solving in remote work *(22:18): Things companies get wrong about remote work *(27:46): Breaking remote experience into subsets *(30:02): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(30:22): Chase’s thoughts on back to office mandates *(33:05): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Chase on LinkedIn Do You Need a Head of Remote? White Paper | |||
| Unleashing Employee Superpowers and Leader Authenticity with Sandy Gould, Chief People Officer at Pinwheel | 20 Aug 2024 | 00:59:00 | |
This episode features an interview with Sandy Gould, Chief People Officer at Pinwheel. Sandy has nearly three decades of experience in human resources and talent acquisition. He has worked for companies like Disney and Yahoo where he led recruitment and diversity efforts. Sandy’s mission in life is to help people unleash their super powers and lead with authenticity. In this episode, Shawn sits down with Sandy to discuss strategies for building company culture, insights into building trust and fostering psychological safety, and injecting humanity into HR. ------------------- “There is one mission for HR, and I can state it in three words. Amplify everything human. That's our job. If it's helping the CEO understand and have empathy with their employees, if it's helping the employees decode the CEO and executives, yes, we should do that. Helping to amplify and enhance your relationship skills, your communication skills, your connection, your problem solving, anything. How you think, training, learning, resources, strategy, you name it, we should be amplifying every part of it that's human. But, we are not there to be a substitute. There is no substitute for direct relationships and direct communication and direct feedback.” – Sandy Gould ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:32): Getting to know Sandy *(09:02): Building company culture *(14:41): Sandy’s take on superpowers *(26:55): Creating trust and authenticity *(34:10): The challenges of authenticity *(47:23): How to scale authenticity in an organization ------------------- Links: Connect with Sandy on LinkedIn | |||
| The ROI of Employee Recognition with Pinaki Kathiari, CEO & Owner of Local Wisdom | 24 Jan 2023 | 00:45:34 | |
This episode features an interview with Pinaki Kathiari, CEO and owner of Local Wisdom, a digital communications agency. Pinaki’s experience spans two decades serving global Fortune companies, startups, and multi-industry agencies. He’s also the co-founder of Resource Hero, Vice President of Professional Development for the IABC Tristate Area Chapter, and a Business Mentor for WOMEN Unlimited, Inc. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Pinaki to discuss his communications team maturity model, the ROI of employee recognition, and the value of a digital communications presence. ------------------- “If people don't know how they're actually, or really making a difference, then they kind of lose sight of why they're here. So we all do that. It feels like being in a conversation with two other people who are speaking another language. Kind of like, ‘why am I here and how am I even contributing?’ [...] I think leaders want to quantify investment into recognition systems and programs. And that I get, because that takes some funds and investment and planning. But I also think that recognition doesn't have to take a large investment. Like I said, simply adding a topic to your leader's speaking points; it's the littlest thing you could do that doesn't cost really anything. Because at the end of the day, we work better as friends and friends show appreciation to each other.” – Pinaki Kathiari ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:12): Pinaki’s career journey *(10:02): Segment: Story Time *(10:58): How Pinaki quantifies the ROI of employee recognition *(17:16): How leaders can institute employee recognition *(22:41): Segment: Getting Tactical *(23:07): Pinaki explains his communications team maturity model *(29:37): Must-haves for a good internal comms team *(34:15): Metrics internal communicators can use to show ROI *(38:40): Changes to the communications team maturity model ------------------- Links: Connect with Pinaki on LinkedIn | |||
| Internal Comms Mistakes, Perceptions, and Inspirations with Carolyn Clark, Julie Miller, & Paralee Johnson | 10 Jan 2023 | 00:58:33 | |
This episode features a roundtable discussion with Carolyn Clark, VP of Employee Experience Strategy and Transformation at Simpplr; Julie Miller, Senior Internal Communications Specialist at Simpplr; and Paralee Johnson, Senior Manager of Community and Content at Simpplr. In this episode, Carolyn, Julie, and Paralee discuss how they wish Internal Comms to be perceived, learning from their mistakes, and trends they’re looking forward to in 2023. ------------------- “We could do everything possible in our tool belt of tools for comms and something can still fail in the eyes of stakeholders. It's really important not to tie our value to the success of a particular program, that we don't necessarily own, to the success of the things that we do, per se. Because, sometimes you can do all of the things in your comm playbook, you can throw everything at the world at it, and maybe it's actually not what the audience needed or wanted. And then the organization or the stakeholders have to go back and reassess, ‘What are we actually doing? Was this to check a box? Was this some larger business goal that maybe really wasn't what they needed or wanted?’” – Paralee Johnson ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:37): The panelists discuss their backgrounds and roles at Simpplr *(08:11): How Internal Comms is viewed and how they wish that would change *(10:54): How to show the value of data *(14:31): How to create a unified understanding of success *(16:41): How to onboard stakeholders *(20:44): The panelists discuss past mistakes and how they learned from them *(32:57): How the panelists found their voices to speak up *(39:13): What Internal Comms can learn from other departments *(50:03): Rapid fire Internal Comms questions ------------------- Links: Connect with Carolyn on LinkedIn Connect with Julie on LinkedIn Connect with Paralee on LinkedIn | |||
| Driving Engagement Through Communications with Olga Skouteli, Head of Culture & Engagement at Lilium | 20 Dec 2022 | 00:30:47 | |
This episode features an interview with Olga Skouteli, Head of Culture and Engagement at Lilium, a high-growth scale-up revolutionizing aviation. Olga specializes in developing and delivering engagement, internal communications, and Diversity and Inclusion strategies. Olga previously served as an employee experience consultant for global organizations like Rolls-Royce, Visa, and Nestlé where she transformed their culture and employee experience to drive business results. In this episode, Amanda and Olga discuss breaking down silos, nuances of language, and their hopes for internal communications in 2023. ------------------- “I would like to see communicators be part of the conversation and the decisions, not only the conversation after the decisions have been made. Because, this is the power of communication and creating culture and building engagement and inspiring people, and there is so much potential in there. So, I think the trend I would like to leave back, is this trend of coming to communications just to communicate. It's about understanding that communications is much more than that, and the language and the words is just one aspect of it. Engagement is much more than communications, but communications can drive engagement.” – Olga Skouteli ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:49): Olga’s background *(04:58): Segment: Story Time *(06:54): The nuances of meaning behind language *(16:11): Segment: Getting Tactical *(16:49): Indications of working in silos *(23:11): The do’s and don’ts of breaking down silos *(25:37): Segment: Asking for a Friend *(25:57): A trend Olga is looking forward to leaving behind in 2022 *(28:02): How Olga gets better at her job ------------------- Links: | |||
| Coaching Leaders To Be Effective Communicators with Tyler Muse, CEO & Founder of Lingo Live | 29 Nov 2022 | 00:46:26 | |
This episode features an interview with Tyler Muse, CEO and Founder of Lingo Live, a one-on-one leadership coaching program. Prior to starting Lingo Live, Tyler worked as an analyst for GE Energy Financial Services, where he focused on underwriting and portfolio management of energy investments. He also founded an internationally-focused mentorship program for multilingual youth in New York City. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Tyler to discuss work trends like “quiet quitting”, how to motivate leaders to invest in coaching, and the inspiration he draws from Maya Angelou. ------------------- “Maya Angelou famously said, ‘People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.’ And I think that's really important when we talk about communication. Communication isn’t what you said. It is to some extent, but it's only important what you said in terms of how that made the person feel. What was the feeling that you elicited out of that person and was that actually in your or their best interest? [...] That doesn't mean you say only nice things, you have to deliver critical feedback. But if you do it in a way where you make someone feel blamed or all these other things, you're not going to get anywhere and they're not going to get anywhere either. I think it's important when we enter a coaching conversation, this is what coaches do for people; is they help them not only understand what is it that you need to say to this other person or to yourself sometimes, but also how's that going to land and are we sure that that's actually what you're trying to convey or is there a different way to communicate this?” – Tyler Muse ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:44): Tyler’s background *(04:53): Tyler explains Lingo Live *(09:18): Segment: Story Time *(09:36): What inspired Tyler to build a coaching business *(16:04): Tyler’s advice for coaching leaders to be better communicators *(23:59): Segment: Getting Tactical *(24:28): How Tyler works with HR to get investment for executive coaching *(31:34): Segment: Ripped From The Headlines *(31:45): Tyler’s thoughts on work trends like “quiet quitting” *(38:30): Segment: Asking For a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Tyler on LinkedIn | |||
| Establishing a Grassroots Communication Strategy with People Managers with Laura Borland, TA and Clinical Communications Director at Waters | 08 Nov 2022 | 00:36:02 | |
This episode features an interview with Laura Borland, TA and Clinical Communications Director at Waters. Unlike most communications professionals, Laura has a PhD in Analytical Chemistry and began her career as a science consultant and government project manager. She found her passion in supporting scientists and communicating their stories to drive business outcomes. In this episode, Amanda and Laura discuss manager-led communications, strategies for reaching people globally, and helping leaders become better communicators. ------------------- “Executives need to identify that the managers are your best representatives of the employee base. They're the ones that are eyes and ears; they're all around, they see it. They're at that sort of level, and they really should be, hopefully, empowered and respected and heard. And that when we communicate to them, find ways to better empower and not just assume that they're going to cascade verbatim the message from on high. There's a lot of contextualization, translation to get that message from what the executive sees at a high-level strategic business, and even strategic cultural level, down into the organization to really pump the blood through and get those tactics, those strategies, all those things from the business and culturally through the organization.” – Laura Borland ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:43): Laura’s background *(06:48): Segment: Getting Tactical *(07:14): One strategy that gets overlooked when trying to reach people globally *(08:51): Laura opens her manager-led communication playbook *(23:16): Segment: Seat at The Table *(26:56): How Laura coaches leaders to be better communicators *(30:51): Segment: Asking for a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Laura on LinkedIn | |||
| Strategic Thinking is More Important Than Wordsmithing with Tina Hawkins, Senior Director of Internal Communications at the NBA | 11 Oct 2022 | 00:36:36 | |
This episode features an interview with Tina Hawkins, Senior Director of Internal Communications at the NBA. Tina partners with business leaders to enhance employee performance through change management with a focus on workplace experience. In this episode, Amanda and Tina discuss aligning values externally and internally, keeping communication casual, and how to hold space for employees and leaders to have critical conversations. ------------------- “Don't over emphasize the writing. Things like the wordsmithing, the grammar, et cetera. That's table stakes. It's the strategic thinking that's the most important. What are we trying to achieve with this message or with this initiative or with what we're doing? What's the best way to reach people? How can we do something that'll have the most impact and influence? [...] And then personally, I try to concentrate on the business and connect with business leaders and understand our goals and where we're trying to go and what you want employees to do, what behavior changes we need from employees.” – Tina Hawkins ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:37): Tina’s background *(03:08): Tina’s role as Senior Director of Internal Communications at the NBA *(05:35): Segment: Getting Tactical *(07:34): How Tina aligned the NBA while revamping the mission statement *(11:21): Segment: Ripped From the Headlines *(12:59): How the NBA helps leaders and employees have critical conversations *(22:47): Things to avoid when holding tough conversations *(28:01): Segment: Asking For a Friend *(31:29): Tina’s advice for keeping communication casual ------------------- Links: | |||
| Connecting the Dots to Build a Thriving Workplace with Victoria Dew, CEO of Dewpoint Communications | 27 Sep 2022 | 00:41:11 | |
This episode features an interview with Victoria Dew, CEO of Dewpoint Communications. Victoria is a leader of employee experience and future of work, with more than 15 years of global internal communications expertise. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Victoria to discuss how the pandemic affected DE&I, what we can learn from Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, and why to stop waiting for a seat at the table. ------------------- “When we talk about what does the ideal employee experience look like, it's a way that accounts for all the factors that help a human being to thrive in the workplace. And we can think of some of those are feeling valued, feeling safe, feeling seen, respected. And having the opportunity to grow, having the opportunity to contribute, having belief, actually, in the purpose of what we're doing, in our leaders, in our organizations. [...] Communications can come and help us weave all of this together and connect the dots. Because connecting the dots is one of the things that communications professionals can and should be doing often better than other parts of the business. It's kind of one of our superpowers.” – Victoria Dew ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:41): Victoria’s background *(06:19): Victoria’s role at Dewpoint Communications *(07:35): Segment: Getting Tactical *(08:16): The ideal employee experience according to Victoria *(12:44): How Dewpoint Communications improves employee experience *(14:49): Mistakes companies make that hurt the employee experience *(22:04): Segment: Ripped From the Headlines *(22:50): How DE&I has been impacted by remote work *(35:57): Segment: Asking for a Friend *(36:15): Challenges IC will face in the future ------------------- Links: Connect with Victoria on LinkedIn Download Dewpoint Communications Insights Report (Maslow’s graphic on page 9) | |||
| Turning Words into Actions with Natalie Ridsdale, Director of Internal Communications at Levi Strauss & Co. | 13 Sep 2022 | 00:35:41 | |
This episode features an interview with Natalie Ridsdale, Director of Internal Communications at Levi Strauss & Co. Natalie has spent the last 21 years refining her communication skills, starting out as a copy editor at newspapers and now managing employee experience at Levi’s. In this episode, Amanda and Natalie discuss how internal and external communications can work better together, collecting employee feedback, and how Levi’s is making space for employees to have tough conversations. ------------------- “My number one piece of advice when I talk to people is, don't ask a question if you're not going to act on the answer. People need to know that you're going to take this feedback and do something with it. So, if you're asking something that gives people a sense that you might take steps to address it and you never planned on it, I think you're harming some of that trust in the relationship between you and the people that you're surveying. So make sure that you're asking about things you're actually going to take action on.” – Natalie Ridsdale ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:47): Natalie’s background *(06:12): Segment: Story Time *(06:34): How internal and external comms can work better together *(07:49): Segment: Getting Tactical *(18:05): Dos and don’ts of employee surveys and feedback *(21:35): How Levi’s holds tough conversations internally *(24:27): Segment: Seat at the Table *(26:57): How Natalie recommends change to leaders *(28:27): Segment: Asking for a Friend *(28:44): Natalie’s advice to a first time IC leader ------------------- Links: Connect with Natalie on LinkedIn | |||
| Remaining Creative in The Face of Pushback with Beth Collier, Founder of Beth Collier Consulting | 30 Aug 2022 | 00:41:31 | |
This episode features an interview with Beth Collier, founder of Beth Collier Consulting. She has spent 20 years helping people and companies become better, more connected leaders through communication. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Beth to discuss what pop culture can teach us about communications, the impact of creativity, and how to turn leaders into effective communicators. ------------------- “You've got to be courageous if you want to be creative, because it is hard to put ideas in front of people that by definition, they're going to be new and different. Because even people who say, and I've known leaders like this, who are like, ‘I want new ideas and think outside the box and nothing's off the table. Blah, blah, blah.’ They say that stuff and then when you give them something that is new and different, they're like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa. We can't do that here. That's not going to work or we tried that once.’ It's kind of like a newborn baby. You've got to be so gentle and protective of that new idea. And so, when it comes to sharing those ideas, it takes a lot of courage.” – Beth Collier ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:39): Beth’s background *(04:05): Segment: Story Time *(04:18): When Beth realized she wanted to advocate for employees *(13:11): Segment: Getting Tactical *(13:27): How Beth brings pop culture into communications *(20:12): Why it's important that communications is creative *(28:18): Why Beth disagrees that 7% of communication is verbal *(34:06): Segment: Seat at the Table *(34:17): How Beth helps make leaders effective communicators *(37:09): Segment: Asking for a Friend ------------------- Links: | |||
| Innovation in Internal Comms and Why We Have to Set an Example with Kristin Hancock, VP of Community and Engagement at ICology | 16 Aug 2022 | 00:36:04 | |
This episode features an interview with Kristin Hancock, Vice President of Community and Engagement at ICology. Kristin’s passion for communications fueled her career at organizations like Ronald McDonald House and Children’s Wish Foundation. Kristin has over a decade of experience connecting humans through meaningful messages. She also has a flair for astrology and offers birth chart readings for people and pets! In this episode, Amanda and Kristin discuss how ICology improves culture, how to make connections instead of network, and Kristin reads Amanda’s birth chart. ------------------- “We carry with us experiences from our life, from our personal lives and our professional lives. Knowing those pieces of yourself before you start a role is, I think, the most important part of it so you can be self-aware when you have tendencies to respond in certain ways, for example. I think the other piece is connecting with your industry. Someone has been in your shoes before and someone will be in your shoes in the future. So, getting to know the folks who are in your industry, getting to know the people in your organization and also outside your organization, I think is the other big part of being in this industry.” – Kristin Hancock ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:50): Kristin’s background *(04:50): Kristin’s role at ICology *(06:05): Segment: Story Time *(07:09): Kristin reads Amanda’s birth chart *(11:04): How astrology impacts Kristin’s view of internal communications *(12:57): Segment: Getting Tactical *(14:46): How ICology builds community *(20:39): Segment: Seat at the Table *(21:42): The importance of making connections *(28:27): Segment: Asking for a Friend *(30:06): Challenges IC professionals are facing ------------------- Links: Connect with Kristin on LinkedIn | |||
| Digital Alchemy: Building Human Connection in a Tech World with Kosheno Moore, VP & Digital Community Leader – Regional Center Satellite, Fidelity Investments | 06 Aug 2024 | 00:51:14 | |
This episode features an interview with Kosheno Moore, Vice President and Digital Community Leader for Regional Center Satellite at Fidelity Investments. Prior to joining Fidelity, she served as the Manager of CX Communications at Workday, Head of Communities at Aurea Software, Principal of Employee Communications at Jive Software, and spent 7 years at Agilent Technologies in various roles. In this episode, Shawn and Kosheno discuss strategies for creating meaningful digital connections, the future of D&I within corporate culture, and how to foster a sense of belonging among employees. ------------------- “In order to create a sense of community in a digital environment, you have to not just think about the technology itself, like anyone can deploy any technology. It's almost moot point what technology you use, but it's about the strategy piece of it. It's about the bringing people together piece of it. Which means like, what's going to motivate people to come together? Can we organize people around certain themes? In order to do that, you need to be able to create communication messaging, and you need to do that in so many different forms of media, and you need to tap into different audience source. Community management, I think, really forces you to be omnichannel. And yes, communication is a big component of it, but it really challenges us to think cross-disciplinary, like you want to be strategic, you also want to be tactical, you also want to be multimedia savvy, and a great communicator, too. I think that's the beauty of it. I think when it's done well, community management strategy and technology, a robust technology platform, I think those could be win-win.” – Kosheno Moore ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(02:26): Getting to know Kosheno *(07:37): Kosheno’s career journey *(19:39): The challenges of building digital communities *(31:35): The impact of community size *(41:58): Kosheno’s thoughts on D&I strategies *(46:22): The future of human connections at work ------------------- Links: Connect with Kosheno on LinkedIn | |||
| Creating a Better Employee Experience During a Merger with Michelle Press, Director of Corporate Communications at Envoy Solutions | 02 Aug 2022 | 00:40:27 | |
This episode features an interview with Michelle Press, Director of Corporate Communications at Envoy Solutions. Michelle has over 25 years of experience leading merger and acquisition communications, community relations, and change management. Previously, Michelle’s leadership roles include KemperLesnik, UL Solutions, and Golin. In this episode, Amanda and Michelle open their playbooks on mergers and acquisitions. They discuss the dos and don'ts of a communications plan, the channels and tech that help navigate this shift, and what Michelle has learned throughout her career. ------------------- “If you think about it from an acquisition standpoint, the thing that every business wants to know when requiring a company it's, ‘Do no harm and we want everyone to be able to do their job the way they've been doing it as much as possible,’ as change is happening. So if it's the importance of making sure that people feel like they can still do their job, overwhelming them with email is not going to help them because that's usually when people say is, ‘There's so much here, communication here, I can't get to my own work or I can't get to my own job.’ So how do we help facilitate that in a better way?” – Michelle Press ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:42): Michelle’s background *(03:41): Segment: Story Time *(04:03): What Michelle learned during her first acquisition *(06:53): Segment: Seat at the Table *(11:50): How IC can be successful without a seat at the table *(13:49): Segment: Getting Tactical *(14:15): Dos and don'ts of a merger and acquisition communications plans *(20:36): How Michelle uses channels and technology to help employees navigate a merger *(34:00): Segment: Asking for a Friend ------------------- Links: Connect with Michelle on LinkedIn | |||
| Creating an Equitable Workplace Culture with Suman Gopalan, Chief HR Officer at Freshworks | 19 Jul 2022 | 00:39:28 | |
This episode features an interview with Suman Gopalan, Chief HR Officer at Freshworks. Suman has spent her entire professional career in HR, holding positions at publicly traded companies like The Nielsen Company, Dell Technologies, and Whirlpool. At Freshworks, Suman pilots the global people strategy to develop and engage their employees. In this episode, Amanda and Suman examine diversity in the workplace. They discuss Suman’s passion for women in the workforce, key elements of workplace culture, and why it's better to hire people that add to that culture versus fitting in. ------------------- “There is no one size that fits all. Human experiences at the workplace is all about different moments that matter as an employee throughout your journey. How do you create experiences that can delight your employees? Just like how we talk about customer delight. We have different personas. Whether it's an early career employee, it's an experienced employee, senior executive, women and we try and create experiences for each one of these that are different and that are important to them. And to me, that's what it's all about. It's human experiences at the workplace that create delight.” – Suman Gopalan ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:50): Suman’s career journey *(03:50): Segment: Story Time *(04:01): Suman’s passion for women in the workforce *(08:41): Suman’s definition of employee experience *(12:06): Segment: Getting Tactical *(12:31): The key elements of a good workplace culture *(15:45): Hiring to fit the culture vs adding to the culture *(19:33): Segment: Ripped from the Headlines *(23:38): How the pandemic affected women in the workforce *(26:25): Freshworks’ pledge for equality *(33:47): Asking for a Friend ------------------- Links: | |||
| The Ideal Employee Experience, with Stephanie Briggs, Director of Employee Experience at ivanti | 05 Jul 2022 | 00:44:13 | |
This episode features an interview with Stephanie Briggs, Director of Employee Experience at ivanti. She has over ten years of experience in digital and social media marketing, where she puts storytelling at the forefront. Stephanie’s passion for storytelling doesn’t stop there. She is also a published horror author of the “Sophia Rey” series, in which the main character goes undercover in a cult. In this episode, Amanda and Stephanie discuss who owns employee experience in an org and how storytelling makes for powerful communications. ------------------- “Employee experience, overall, either you’ll have a subset of employees who are highly engaged and it really comes down to the level of passion that they have to not just do their day-to-day and collect a paycheck. But it’s really about having that passion, coming each day, and really feeling that impact that you’re making as an employee. And that’s a tough one because as employee engagement professionals, it’s really in our areas to help with getting employees to that point of ensuring that they understand and they’re feeling the impact that they make overall. And that’s not an easy thing to do.” – Stephanie Briggs ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:45): Stephanie’s background *(03:37): Stephanie’s role at ivanti *(04:58): Segment: Storytime *(05:37): Why Stephanie loves to tell stories *(08:11): Stephanie breaks down her Sophia Rey book series *(13:59: Segment: Getting Tactical *(17:10): How Stephanie supports leaders *(18:20): How Stephanie worked across her organization on an intranet revamp *(24:31): How ivanti maintains a global employee experience *(30:40): What’s the ideal org for employee experience? *(33:36): Segment: Asking for a Friend *(38:48): Biggest challenges employee experience professionals will face in the future ------------------- Links: | |||
| How a Good Employee Experience Shapes a Better Customer Experience with Mary Poppen, Chief Strategy and Customer Officer at involve.ai | 21 Jun 2022 | 00:31:08 | |
This episode features an interview with Mary Poppen, Chief Strategy and Customer Officer at involve.ai. With over 2 decades of experience in customer success, executive leadership, and business consulting, Mary is dedicated to advancing the next generation of CX leaders. In this episode, Amanda sits down with Mary to discuss how a great customer experience can lead to happy employees and how to measure employee and customer satisfaction. ------------------- “Early in my career, I realized that our most happy customers had a really strong relationship with an employee or employees in our organization. Whether it was sales services, exec relationships, it didn’t really matter they just had a strong bond. And the least happy customers were those that really saw us as a vendor. Those of you listening that do know me, know I hate the v-word. If you can be called a partner, a strategic advisor, that’s much better. But, I realized that those customers who were unhappy were the ones that saw us as a vendor. Just a transactional, reactionary solution. So, that’s what struck me as a differentiator where relationships and therefore, engaged and happy employees, really do make a difference in building a connection and providing value to customers. So, when you have happy engaged employees and happy engaged customers, there’s this crazy contagious enthusiasm that exists. And then the company benefits because what results is growth, expansion of customers, and referenceability. Talent out there wants to work for your company. So it’s just a lot of goodness that I call the ‘All In Zone’.” – Mary Poppen ------------------- Episode Timestamps: *(01:44): Mary’s background *(04:22): Segment: Story Time *(06:41): The link between employee experience and customer satisfaction *(09:32): Segment: Getting Tactical *(11:19): ROI when connecting employee and customer experience *(19:13): Best practices for tracking employee and customer satisfaction *(21:46): What involve.ai is doing to keep employees and customers happy *(24:22): Segment: Asking for a Friend *(27:48): Biggest challenges of connecting the customer and employee experience ------------------- Links: | |||