Gut + Science – Details, episodes & analysis

What’s the secret sauce to building a culture that sticks?

According to Amy Bayer, Global Director of DE&I, Employee Engagement & Culture, at Duck Creek Technologies, it’s not some magic bullet—it’s your people.

In this episode, recorded live at CultureCon 2024, Amy sits down with Nikki to talk about how Duck Creek has created a people-first culture that thrives in a fully remote world.

Spoiler alert: it’s not about big budgets or fancy tools. It’s about empowering employees to own culture—every single one of them.

Additional Resources:

Connect with Amy Bayer on LinkedIn
Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn 
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network

 Key Takeaways: 

• Everyone Owns Culture: Culture isn’t just driven by HR or leadership—it thrives when everyone has a role and feels empowered to contribute.
• Flexible First Approach: Duck Creek’s ‘flexible first’ policy prioritizes trust and allows employees to work in ways that best suit their lives, which fosters engagement and balance.
• Programs Without Big Budgets: Building an engaged culture doesn’t require massive resources. Start small, stay intentional, and leverage the creativity of your team.

Leadership is more than a title—it’s about influence.

In this episode, Nikki speaks with Jess Goldberg, a leadership coach, Emmy Award winner, and lecturer at Columbia University, whose mission is to help leaders communicate with influence.

Jess shares her journey from journalism to leadership training and introduces her groundbreaking concept: the eight archetypes of influence.

Need a roadmap to effectively communicate with and inspire your team? Tune in for a deep dive into how communication shapes leadership and the power of influence in transforming teams and organizations.

Additional Resources:
Download 8 Archetypes of Influence 
Get Jess' Top 5 Leadership Frameworks
Connect with Jess Goldberg
Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn 
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Key Takeaways:

• Influence Requires Investment: Leadership influence is built over time, requiring consistent effort in building relationships, both up and down the chain of command.
• The 8 Archetypes of Influence: Jess developed these archetypes after years of observing leaders at top companies. These are not personality types but essential tools that leaders must employ in different situations.

In this episode, Renee explores the concept of creating spaciousness in our lives and filling it with awe. She discusses the benefits of awe and how it can enhance our well-being and relationships at work.

Renee shares the eight wonders of life that can inspire awe, such as moral beauty, nature, music, and epiphanies. She also emphasizes the importance of intentionally seeking out awe and incorporating it into our daily lives. By practicing loving leadership and bringing awe to our workplaces, we can create a more loving and human work environment.

Additional Resources:
Connect with Renée on LinkedIn
Learn more about a Human Workplace
7 Steps to Lead With Love Even When Your Organization Isn't Ready To Yet
Connect with Nikki on LinkedIn
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn

What a year it's been! Gut+ Science host Nikki Lewallen Gregory reflects on an amazing year of challenges, wins, and accomplishments. She opens up the conversation to her team at PeopleForward Network - get to know the team leading the way in meaningful work, sharing what they are grateful for and looking forward to in 2023.

Additional Resources:

• Check out the episode with Michelle Cirocco
• Read “The Dash Poem” by Linda Ellis
• Learn more about the PeopleForward Network: www.peopleforwardnetwork.com

Leaders who take a people-first approach actively create a desirable work experience that considers and fulfills the needs of your most important asset: your people. This includes your team, your vendors, and trusted business relationships. Chris Allaire, CEO and Founder at Averity is the epitome of a people-first leader. He built a company that pioneers a change in the recruiting industry by providing an unparalleled experience with everyone they interact with. Learn how Chris is on a mission to build the best company to work for in the US.

This time of the year isn't always a magical time for people, but it is essential to remember to keep humans at the center while navigating this time of the year. Brian shares tips for being inclusive and mindful during the holiday and end-of-year season as people practice different faiths and deal with mental health. Brian also announced that he will return as a diversity, equity, and inclusion content contributor in 2023 for Gut + Science.

Mona Veiseh, the CEO of NuWest Healthcare, has been instrumental in the company's 500% growth year-over-year for the last three years. What’s helped drive their success is Mona’s passion for helping her team members find and develop what she calls their individual superpowers.

In this episode, Mona and Brandon Miller, CEO of 34 Strong, share how they’ve worked closely to build a strengths-based foundation for NuWest Healthcare. Listen in to learn where strong values factor into the equation and hear how to build an effective team using a common language and a resilience-rooted mindset.

Wanting to make people feel like who they are and what they do matters is common sense, but not common practice.

Zach Mercurio is an author, keynote speaker, consultant, and researcher specializing in purposeful leadership, meaningful work, mattering, and positive organizational development. In this episode, Zach joins us to share the data that proves mattering is a primal need that never goes away but is often overlooked. Listen in to learn simple, actionable practices you can use to make your team members feel noticed, affirmed, and needed. If you can do that, you can create highly effective work environments rooted in trust and connection.

Book Recommendation:

• Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

Additional Resources:

• Learn more about the PeopleForward Network: www.peopleforwardnetwork.com

“Take accountability, make great suggestions, and be part of the solution.”

That’s Dr. Angelo Venditti’s approach to supporting the well-being of his team members. As Chief Nurse Executive, Chief Patient Experience Officer, and EVP for Patient Care Services for Temple Health, Angelo is passionate about empowering people to play a key role in the quality of their employee experience.

In this episode, Angelo, and our guest host, Michelle Doran from CCA, discuss how to provide your teams with the tools and services they need so they can take ownership of their workplace experience. Listen in to learn about coaching and encouraging people in a way that shows while challenges may exist in their professional journeys, they aren’t insurmountable.

Book Recommendation:

• Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin

Additional Resources:

• Connect with Dr. Angelo Venditti: angelo.venditti@tuhs.temple.edu
• Learn more about CCA: https://ccainc.com 
• Listen to Cy Wakeman’s Episodes on Conscious Habit
• Learn more about the PeopleForward Network: www.peopleforwardnetwork.com

People connect to personal and professional brands best through the stories they tell. Can you clearly convey who you are, what you do, and why you do it? As Founder and CEO of Mojo UP, Travis Brown helps people communicate this every day.

In this episode, Travis breaks down not only the importance of knowing your story on a deep level but also how to identify and leverage it. Along the way, Travis loops in the roles authenticity and vulnerability play in getting your brand out there. Listen in to hear about his people-first leadership brand and how he brings it to life through his actions.

Book Recommendation:

• Chop Wood Carry Water by Joshua Medcalf
• Atomic Habits by James Clear

Additional Resources:

• Learn more about the PeopleForward Network: www.peopleforwardnetwork.com