In this episode, AJ Tibando, CEO of Shift Canada, shares her insights on the impact of AI and her passion for helping individuals be successful in our changing world.

In our conversation, AJ shares the following insights: 

·       The impacts of AI are here.  AI has been rapidly impacting how work happens. Unlike previous technology advancements is having a profound impact on white collar work – a sector that has previously felt safe and secure.

·       It's important to remember that anything is possible with AI. As a society, we need to remember we are in charge of how AI roles out. Anything is possible. It could be an opportunity to rehumanize the workplace. 

·       Leaders need to take accountability for the decision and actions they are making in response to AI. Leaders need to roll out AI in a way that makes their companies successful for the long-term. This includes being clear on the value that humans can provide and then building the right pipeline of talent.

·       For individuals in their mid-career, the impact of AI can feel particularly daunting. It can be hard for 30-, 40-, 50-year-olds to reimagine how they fit into this new world of work. Remember you have value. Clarify skills you have that are transferable. Open yourself to a pivot

·       For individuals starting out, embrace the idea that careers will be less linear than previous generations. Follow what you love. Learn to love to learn. Recognize that you will always be upskilling. Feel empowered that you can create the life you want. Approach every job clear on what you want to learn – pause once you've learned to assess what's next.

MEET AJ TIBANDO AND SHIFT CANADA

AJ is a passionate entrepreneur deeply committed to driving broad social change through technology, education, and policy. As the CEO of Shift Canada, AJ is focused on empowering a new generation of young Canadians to be more productive by inspiring them to be more innovative, to take greater risks, and to be bold and daring! 

Prior to Shift, AJ founded Palette Skills, an organization that partnered with the Canadian government to launch Upskill Canada – a platform that helps 10,000 Canadian workers each year build new, future-ready skills.

Meet AJ on LinkedIN. Find out more about Shift Canada.

MEET TINEKE KEESMAAT AND TILTCO

Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, TILTCO is a boutique consulting firms that helps leaders define and execute their strategies to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. As the host of LeaderLab, Tineke brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience – rooted in her work at McKinsey & Company and Accenture - to explore how today's leaders can achieve exceptional results.

Connect with Tineke on LinkedIn. Learn more about TILTCO.

In this episode, Mike James Ross, Chief Human Resource Officer of Simons and recent author of "Intention: the surprising psychology of high performers" discusses what intention is, why it is important, and how individuals and organizations can unlock it to achieve high performance.

• "High performance is about doing subjectively different things." High performance is not about external manifestations of success like money or fancy titles. It's about doing things that are hard. High performance looks different for each of us. It's about pushing yourself beyond preconceived notions of what's possible. 
• "Intention is about accepting responsibility for my achievements." Many of us are not making active choices in how we live our lives contributing to feelings of languishing, disengagement, and dissatisfaction. Living an intentional life is living a life of choice.
• "Start by asking yourself: 'if you could choose, what would you really choose?'" Challenge yourself to get clear on what you really want from life. If you could choose anything for yourself, what would it be? Then, use this as an anchor to structure how you live your life.
• "There are 5 ingredients to living with intention". Willpower, attention, curiosity, integrity, and habits make up intention.
• "The limit of willpower is actually usually based on your own perception." Our conceptions of our own willpower limit have an incredible effect on our ability to do things. We can do more, achieve more than we believe.
• "Being curious is being open to what's happening in the world and being open to maybe not being right." Curiosity is essential. It's good to be clear on what you think the right answer is, but you need to stay open to new information and new ideas so that you can change the answer as needed.
• "Integrity is being aligned with your values." An intentional life starts with clarifying what you value. With this clarity you can make choices that are aligned to who you are. Values matter at individual and organizational level.
• "Attention is about where you choose to focus." We all have many distractions in our lives, attention is about being intentional about where you choose to focus your time and energy. 
• "Practicing good habits allows us to achieve the things that are important to us." If you know how you want to live your life, you can put practices in place to make it easier to just habitually do the things required to achieve your goals.

Meet Mike James Ross

Mike is currently the Chief Human Resource Officer of Simons, a Canadian retailer where he helps to motivate and engage more than 5,000 employees. Prior to Simons, Mike founded a leadership development firm that counselled companies like Google and Cirque du Soleil. Mike has had a diverse career – he's been a finance lawyer, private equity investor, and peace negotiator. He recently co-authored the book "Intention: the surprising psychology of high performers".

Connect with Mike Ross on LinkedIn here. Discover his book – Intention: the surprising psychology of high performance here.  Check out his co-authors at Decision Lab here.

About TILTCO

Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. As the host of LeaderLab, Tineke brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to explore how today's leaders can achieve exceptional results. Connect with Tineke on LinkedIn here.

People leaders have always been a powerful force in organizations. With hybrid workplaces, a new generation in the workforce (Gen Z), rise of AI and digitization, quickly changing geopolitical concerns, and more is people leadership more important than ever? 

TILTCO Inc. gathered business leaders, consultants and academics for Season 6 of the LeaderLab to capture insights on the role for people leaders, what great looks like and what companies and people leaders need to do to be the people leaders employees need today. 

In our first episode of this season, we speak to a roundtable of participants who offered the following insights: 

• Trust and psychological safety are elusive; yet critical for greater success on teams.
  Todd shared: "People who build trust well within an organization by reliably doing what they said they would do. They get to know you as a person and they care and are more in it for the team than they are for themselves can build trust and psychological safety for their team." 

• Giving feedback, like many parts of leadership takes intentional practice and a commitment to self-awareness.
  Diana shared: "Giving real time feedback, sometimes in very tough settings, you need to really have good EQ skills so that you can listen, you can deliver a message that's appropriate to the person. It can be scary to give feedback, so it requires practice, because then it becomes easier over time."

• Leadership has always been important, but in today's context, leadership matters more than before.
  Jennifer shared: "Leaders will help steward how organizations will evolve their ways of working, helping to adapt to the ever-changing environment. In addition, the workforce is challenging a lot of organizations and companies to really change the way that they work, the way they listen to their employees."

• The role of the people leader has changed, demanding a new set of capabilities and responsibilities.
  Eric shared: "I think a lot of times we look up to the leader to have all the answers and right now that's probably the biggest miss of leadership. We need leaders to understand that you're not going to have all the answers. Your team has to find some agency and that means, you as a leader, have to create the space for your team to be able to do that and be comfortable that you're not all knowing."

• With people leaders expected to fulfill different roles in a company, the people systems that support them must also evolve.
  Todd said: "Operating systems matter more than they've ever mattered. You need to build the operating systems of the company in a way that it is able to adapt faster to complex situations, build great culture and skill development, and handle these external factors as they come up."

Thank you to our panelists:

• Diana Amenyogbe, Managing Director, Investment Portfolio Management, Office of the Chief Investment Officer at CPP Investments where she's leading a multi-year culture initiative. Connect with Diana on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/diana-amenyogbe/

• Jennifer Keri Choi, Senior Strategy Manager at The Coca Cola Company. Connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-keri-choi-731a2816/

• Todd Scheidt, Tech Strategist and Operations Executive, formerly of Shopify, Google and McKinsey. Connect with Todd on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddscheidt/ 

• Eric VanDerSluis, Senior Director, L&D and Performance Strategy at Edward Jones. Connect with Eric on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-vandersluis-6b22846/

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

Today's teams are faced with ongoing, unprecedented disruption. Leaders, then, are challenged to guide their teams through these new and uncertain times. Are leaders prepared?  

In this episode of LeaderLab, we are joined by Kristine Steinberg, CEO and founder of Kismet, to explore what it will take for leaders to be successful in today's environment, and perhaps more importantly, what skills they'll need as we move forward in this new dynamic.  

Kristine shared the following key insights with us:  

• Self-awareness is critical as we navigate through an extended period of chaos:  
  "Leaders are the people we're looking to right now to help us through this time. So, you have to really consider why would someone follow me right now? Am I setting a good example of how to take care of myself as I navigate through uncertainty? Am I taking care of myself physically? Where am I feeling vulnerable or challenged and how can I get help to work through those things."  
     
• The power of micro-experiences to create a sense of survival when you're feeling burnt out:  
  "Leaders are burnt out and they can't leave the wheel of their ship. They can't actually leave and go do something that would give them the break they need. So, they have to shift to micro-experiences to create a sense of survival – talk to a friend, go for a run, or any other form of self-care that won't take up a lot of time, but will ultimately take your level of energy up even ever so slightly." 
  
  
• Leadership is about coaching, not command and control: 
  "There's a time and place to be directive and there's a time and place to teach and advise. As a leader, you have to learn to bring people along and mobilize people and help them get inspired around their own strengths." 
  
  
• Let go of expectations to know all the answer and get comfortable designing the way forward with your team: 
  "Leaders need to take the pressure off of trying to know every politically correct thing to do in the wake of a race war, equality around gender, race, culture, religion, everything. Instead, move into a new mode of listening and hearing about people's experience, understanding what they need and responding; instead of trying to come up with the perfect equity formally.  

Meet Kristine Steinberg 

Kristine Steinberg is the CEO at Kismet, a consultancy dedicated to helping leaders become their highest selves. Kristine is a master leadership coach and guides her clients to strengthen their emotional IQ. This includes nurturing mindfulness and discipline, dissolving emotional rigidity, learning to communicate clearly and powerfully, balancing ambition with humility, how to empower colleagues and teams to grasp their true value and to navigate conflict with agility. Kristine has worked with dogged leaders from some of the vanguards of tech, business, fashion and lifestyle, including Bain & Company, Chanel, TED, LinkedIn, IBM, Adidas, Microsoft and others. Learn more about Kristine and her work at www.thisiskismet.com. 

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

Conversation is a powerful way for leaders to inspire and motivate their teams. It's also an opportunity to learn and make more effective decisions. Yet, engaging in conversations across an organization isn't always easy.

In this episode of LeaderLab, we are joined by Dave MacLeod, CEO and co-founder of ThoughtExchange, to explore the importance of conversations in organizations.

Based on his research and insights shared in his new book, Scaling conversations: How leaders access the full potential of people, he offers strategies leaders can use to engage in more meaningful, inclusive and productive conversations across teams.

Dave shares the following insights:

• There's never been a more important time to include as many voices in the conversation: "There are a lot of problems to solve [in our organizations] and a lot of pressure to do it. There's a lot of change to our life and a lot of recognition of systemic racism and the recognition of power to drive our business, and there's never been a more important time to hear from everybody who's impacted by these things.
• We're at an exciting moment where leaders feel they can admit they have bias and enter the right conversations that will move things in the right direction. "That's maybe a really exciting moment right now... that people can say, 'Yeah, I agree. I admit I have bias. So now what?'"
• When dealing with polarizing topics, search for the common ground. "There's ways to solve problems for two people who think very differently about how to make their business run faster and the same mechanism actually works when you have people who disagree strong – you have to find the common ground between them."
• Use technology and tools to eliminate our bias from conversations. "The idea of getting people to share ideas and listen to each other without knowing exactly who said them will get us to really think deeply about and empathize with each other's points of view."

Pick up Dave's book to learn more strategies to scale conversations in your organization. Order Scaling conversations: How leaders access the full potential of people here: https://www.thoughtexchange.com/scaling-conversations/

Meet Dave MacLeod

Dave MacLeod is the CEO and a co-founder of ThoughtExchange, the essential Enterprise Discussion Management platform for scaling conversations. Dave's expertise helped create the game-changing platform that's used by millions at some of the world's largest organizations like GE Healthcare and McDonald's. From corporations to schools, ThoughtExchange invites participants to share insights anonymously—removing bias and getting the most important ideas in front of the leaders who make them happen. Dave is also the author of Scaling Conversations: How Leaders Access the Full Potential of People. Prior to ThoughtExchange, he was a successful entrepreneur who designed businesses and events focused on analog group communication innovation. Outside of work, Dave keeps busy as a dad of three who loves the outdoors.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

Company culture matters. Strong culture is linked to stronger financial performance. During the pandemic, a third of organizations reported challenges in maintaining their company culture. With flexible work models here to stay, leaders are wondering how they can build a great culture in a hybrid work environment.  

TILTCO Inc. gathered business leaders, consultants and academics for a series of Roundtable discussions to capture insights and practical ideas that leaders can use as they re-image their organizations over the next 18 to 24 months.  

In this special LeaderLab series, our Roundtable participants offered leaders the following tips:  

• Don't virtualize your in-office culture and how you work today. Get creative and design with intention from a blank sheet of paper. As Janeen shared: "Let's not replace the old thing with a new version of the thing. Let's actually zoom out now that we're in a new paradigm. Before we were solving XYZ needs and now the problems are a different set." 

• Hybrid will create two or more distinct employee experiences. Your job: make each of them awesome. Stephen offered this: "If you create a two-class system of any sort at work, that's bad. So, however, you do hybrid and however you're modeling it, you need everybody playing by the same rules and principles."  

• Office space will serve a new purpose in hybrid, so consider how you can intentionally design it to bring your culture to life. Jay asked this question: "What is an office? I've got this dream that it's a much more collaborative space, and if you're going into the office, it's to collaborate in person. It's not this, you know, historically walled-off office where everybody is in their own spot." 

• Hybrid is complex and it will amplify culture challenges that exist in your organization today. Overcoming them will require leaders to step up in new ways. Here are Janeen's thoughts on the topic: "There's so much of this trust conversation going in one direction, which is 'Hey, employee. Show me I should trust you." The reality is do they trust you as their leader in this new environment? You need to create a whole different kind of conversation now for them to actually feel trust on their side of the equation." 

• Leaders will need to intentionally build connection among and between their teams, and they'll have to find new ways to do it. Fiona said this would be the biggest job for leaders: "Hybrid offers a different set of challenges, especially when you get into different time zones. You can't just have the big lunch or the Friday drinks or all these things that are already in our toolkit. You really have to be very thoughtful and deliberate to figure out how to bring your people together." 

Meet our Panelists

A special thank you to Will Bachman, managing partner of Umbrex, for his help in bringing these roundtables together. Learn more about the work that Umbrex does connecting independent consultants with one another at www.umbrex.com.  

Thank you to our panelists:  

• Jay Altizer, managing director, Falling Branch Advisors LLC. Connect with Jay on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/altizer. 
• Kelly Duffin is an experienced strategy and transformation leader. Connect with Kelly on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellyduffinmba/. 
• Jennifer Hartz is CEO of Corporate Hartz. Connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jehartz.
• Fiona Lake Waslander is COO and co-founder at Skylight. Connect with Fiona on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/fionalakewaslander/. 
• Stephen Redwood is founder of Redwood Advisory Partners. Connect with Stephen on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenredwood/
• Mike Ross is chief HR officer at Simons. Connect with Mike on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikejamesross/
• Janeen Speer is vice president of Talent at Shopify. Connect with Janeen on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/janeenspeer/ 

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

Middle managers are a powerful force in organizations. As companies look ahead and consider the move to hybrid workplaces – that is where there is a mix of in-person and remote work happening – they'll want to focus on enabling their middle managers to be true people leaders who can coach, motivate and set pace for the people on their team to work towards the company's goals. 

TITLCO Inc. gathered business leaders, consultants and academics for a series of Roundtable discussions to capture insights and practical ideas that leaders can use as they re-imagine their organizations over the next 18 to 24 months.  

In this special LeaderLab series, our Roundtable participants offered leaders the following prescriptions:  

• Move away from "face time" as a metric and support middle leaders to manage to outcomes and impact. As Lisa explains: "We're in a transition truly to a knowledge economy where you really have to be able to assess what is the impact this employee is creating, not how many hours they were online."  

• Upskill middle managers on the human-side of leadership as they may be the only contact between individual employees and the organization. Susan explained this requires leaders to rethink manager training: "It's not just manager training in the way they thought, but we need training for people to be effective during remote work." 

• Coach and equip middle managers to talk about trust in order to build it. Here's what Reid had to say: "It's really tough to talk about trust, but is there anything more powerful that will actually make you want to change than hearing that someone doesn't trust you?" 

• Take care of your managers' psychological and physical well-being, so they can do the same to the people on their teams. Aneta offered a mantra that leaders can use to model positive well-being and tie it back to the business imperative: "When I take care of myself and my team, I take care of business."   

• Role model the new expectations of hybrid for their middle managers, so they can cascade these new norms to their teams. Nils had this to say about it: "You have to show middle managers that they should want to change and that they need to change... and showcase what they should be striving for, and then provide the opportunity to get the support for it." 

Find more insights captured at our Roundtable discussion here: https://tiltco.ca/5-ways-leaders-can-support-their-middle-managers-in-a-hybrid-workplace/ 

Subscribe to LeaderLab to be notified of our next episode in this special Roundtable series. 

Meet our Panelists

A special thank you to Will Bachman, managing partner of Umbrex, for his help in bringing these roundtables together. Learn more about the work that Umbrex does connecting independent consultants with one another at www.umbrex.com.  

Thank you to our panelists:   

Nils Boeffel, principal consultant at Boeffel Consulting that focuses on digital strategy and agile transformation. Learn more about Nils' work at https://boeffel.net/. 

Susan Charnaux is principal and founder at Fairhill Ventures that focuses on strategic guidance on talent and culture change. Learn about Susan's work at her website: https://www.fairhillventures.com/ and connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-charnaux/  

Kelly Duffin is an experienced strategy and transformation leader. Connect with Kelly on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellyduffinmba/. 

Lisa Dymond is partner and head of talent at Atlas Partners, a private equity investment firm. Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-dymond-nee-wiens-b84678/ 

 Aneta Key is a strategic growth advisor at Aedea Partners LLC. Connect with Aneta on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anetakey/.  

Amanda Setili is the president of Setili & Associates that focuses on organizational performance improvements. Learn more about Amanda's work on her website at https://setili.com/ and connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandasetili/. 

Reid Wuntke is president at Energy Toolbase, developers of economic modeling software. Connect with Reid at https://www.linkedin.com/in/reidwuntke/. 

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

The future is hybrid. As we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, organizations will likely adopt hybrid models of work. What does this mean for leaders and how can they prepare to lead teams where some employees are working in office and others are remote?  

TITLCO Inc. gathered business leaders, consultants and academics for a series of Roundtable discussions to capture insights and practical ideas that leaders can use as they re-imagine their organizations over the next 18 to 24 months.  

In this special LeaderLab series, our Roundtable participants offered leaders some sage advice:  

• Define a hybrid model for your organization based on your specific industry, business and employee needs. As Melanie explains, hybrid isn't new for everyone: "I actually don't think this is very new. And, I think we're finally having conversations about what the norm should be that probably should have happened maybe a few years ago."  

• No matter the model you choose, for hybrid to work, leaders need to set explicit norms for their teams. Here's what John says: "How do you make sure everyone understands the kind of corporate norms and what you want your company to be or how you want to work together is much harder to do if you have different blends of people and that's important to think about." 

• Leaders will also need to balance the dynamics on their hybrid teams. Phil says this: "Make sure you communicate in a way that feels inclusive. People working from a remote location are getting the same experience as working in the office."  

• Hybrid can offer real talent advantages if investments are made to set up your team for success.  Sarah had this to say about it: "There's real advantage to be gained for companies who think about this really carefully for their populations." 

• Leaders serious about engaging hybrid teams must take deliberate actions to connect in new ways. Bernard offered this piece of advice: "You now have an opportunity to change the ball game and communicate much more efficiently. It's a more challenging environment, and you'll have to understand, more than ever, the population of employees you want to communicate to and communicate with." 

Find more insights captured at our Roundtable discussion here: https://tiltco.ca/how-to-communicate-and-engage-employees-in-a-hybrid-workplace/ 

Subscribe to LeaderLab to be notified of our next episode in this special Roundtable series. 

Meet our Panelists 

A special thank you to Will Bachman, managing partner of Umbrex, for his help in bringing these roundtables together. Learn more about the work that Umbrex does connecting independent consultants with one another at www.umbrex.com.  

Thank you to our panelists:  

• Phil Arrata, business leader and former CEO of MEC. Connect with Phil on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/philarrata/.
• Bernard Borowski is a senior advisor at Digital Lean & Data Advantage. Connect with Bernard on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/create-value-from-data-process-technology/.
• Melanie Espeland is CEO and executive coach at Espeland Enterprises. Learn about Melanie's executive voice coaching services at https://www.espelandenterprises.com/.
• Rashay Jethalal is an experienced financial services executive. Connect with Rashay on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rashay/. 
• John King is the managing partner at Special Circumstances Partners. Learn more about John's consulting practice at www.specialcircumstances.partners. You can connect with John via LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/john-a-king/.
• Agnes Kunkel is the host of The 2023 Podcast: Your window to the world beyond Covid-19. Listen to her latest episode at https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-2023-podcast/id1516781638.
• Sarah Sonnenfeld is the principal and founder at Alsephina Consulting. Learn more about Sarah's work at https://www.alsephinaconsulting.com/. 

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

A leader's presence matters. It always has – be it in daily interactions with their teams and when influencing a new way forward for their organizations. But how do leaders build their presence and gravitas in a virtual workplace? 

Melanie Espeland joins this episode of the LeaderLab with practical ideas that will help leaders more clearly communicate and more effectively connect with their virtual teams and stakeholders. Here's a sample of Melanie's tactical advice:  

• Presence begins with self-awareness: "What is presence? What is gravitas? I would define it as the je ne sais quoi, the special sauce that gets people to actually want to listen to you. You want people to want to hear what you have to say, and to be engaged and to have it not be a chore to be on a call with you. So, that's why presence and gravitas is really important for leaders."  
   
• Stop the ums and ahs with deep breathing: "I want you to breathe more deeply using the diaphragm, but I also want you to be able to control how much air you're expelling at one time. If you're expelling too much or too quickly, you might start gasping for breath. This will make you speak more quickly and you may use filler words."  
   

• You're always communicating even when you aren't: "There's always two conversations happening. There's what's physically coming out of your mouth, but then there's also what's happening inside your head. That internal conversation is always going to come out in some way, subconsciously, to others around you even if you can't articulate it." 
   
• Get the tools you need for virtual communications: "If you're going to be communicating digitally, that can be enhanced with specific tools. A microphone is one example that can make it much easier to literally be heard."  

 Meet Melanie Espeland 

Melanie is an executive voice coach, entrepreneur, author and voice actor. She is CEO of Espeland Enterprises where she trains senior clients from top companies such as IBM and Morgan Stanley to use their voices more effectively, optimizing an important tool that is often ignored. That training has become even more relevant as remote meetings have brought presentation and communications skills to center stage.  

Learn more about Melanie and Espeland Enterprises at https://www.espelandenterprises.com/. 

 About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

Character matters. In a year in which we've faced a global pandemic and growing unrest in pockets around the world, this has never been truer. But what is it and can it be developed?  

Dr. Gerard Seijts joins this episode of LeaderLab to explore the behaviours associated with leadership character and to offer concrete examples of how leaders can develop good character and embed it in their organizations. Based on research he's been building since the 2008 financial crisis, Gerard shares the following insights on leadership character:  

• Character is dispositional. It's not based on your role on the job, rather it's how you show up in the workplace. 
• Character is defined by 11 dimensions: Judgement, transcendence, drive, collaboration, humanity, humility, integrity, temperance, justice, accountability and courage. Very few leaders get top marks in all dimensions. Instead, good character can be developed by continuously improving weaker areas.  
• Covid-19 has not only revealed character in world leaders, but has demonstrated in real time how good character can produce good outcomes. 
• Making time for reflection is important step in developing your leader character.
• There are specific actions organizations can take to develop character within their leaders and embed good character within teams – starting with integrating it specifically into their recruiting criteria. 

Learn more about the 11 dimensions of leadership character here: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/leadership/research-resources/leader-character-framework/  

Access more leadership research from Ivey's Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute: https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/leadership/  

Meet Dr. Gerard Seijts 

Dr. Gerard Seijts is a professor at the Ivey Business School and a prolific researcher in a range of topics, including leadership, leading change, organizational behaviour, and performance management and staffing. Gerard also leads corporate leadership programs for organizations such as Aecon, Intact Financial Corporations, OMERS, Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and many others. He has also worked with local government in Canada and Hong Kong on issues such as leadership and change. Gerard is the recipient of awards for research, innovation in teaching and outreach activities. He is the Executive Director of the Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership.  

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

Big, strategic change efforts often fail. Virtually all of them are harder than they need to be. Why is this and what can leaders do to make change stick? Dr. Elsbeth Johnson, based on a decade of research, calls on leaders to step up and step back.  

In this episode of the LeaderLab, Elsbeth sheds new light on the role leaders play in delivering long-term strategic change to their organization. Based on the findings in her new book, Step Up, Step Back: How to Really Drive Strategic Change in Your Organization, Elsbeth highlights key aspects of her new approach:  

• As the book title suggests, leaders must learn to step up in the early stages of an organizational change, and then step back in its later stages. This combination sets up the managers and teams for success when delivering the change.  
• Strategic change isn't a Hollywood film. It's not fast, dramatic or easy. Instead, it's about doing the "non-glam" work of putting in place the right elements to set managers and teams up for success.  
• A leader's charisma is not enough to sustain long-term change. While charisma can play an important role – particularly at the start of a change program, too much of it for too long can breed dependency in managers and teams that will inhibit true transformations.   
• In the context of Covid-19, leaders may need to focus more on operations and execution in the near term. But, they also need to do more to provide clarity and to align their teams around their vision and priorities. 

We recommend you pick up Elsbeth's book, Step Up, Step Back: How to Really Drive Strategic Change in Your Organization. Find it here: https://www.amazon.ca/Step-Up-Back-Successful-Effective/dp/1472970640 

Meet Dr. Elsbeth Johnson 

Dr. Elsbeth Johnson is an expert in leadership, strategy and change. She is a former equity analyst and London Business School Professor who now splits her time as a senior lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management and her advisory work through her consultancy, SystemShift. Elsbeth spent a decade researching how to deliver strategic organizational change in practice. Based on asking managers what they need from leaders, rather than asking leaders what they did to support change, Elsbeth developed her Step Up, Step Back approach that challenges more traditional beliefs about how to lead change, and about leadership, too.  

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

Employee communications is no longer a nice to have. It's a must have. The first months of the pandemic forced leaders to leapfrog their communication skills and practices. And now, as we settle into this new normal - as temporary as we hope it'll be - Gillian Smith, Managing Partner at NATIONAL, encourages leaders to prepare for the marathon ahead.  

In this episode of the LeaderLab, Gillian offers key ways leaders can better inform, support and motivate employees through communications. Here are some of Gillian's practical takeaways:  

• Pay attention to the personal cues that show up on your screen. Meeting employees in their homes can present powerful insights that can help you better support your employees and build more meaningful connections with them.  
• Acknowledge your own humanity to encourage others to share theirs. Be open about your uncertainties or worries, show empathy, address mental health challenges and ask engaging questions to foster two-way conversations.  

• It's time to set a new pace that will lead your team through the marathon of this pandemic. Assess and adjust your communication practices to create a new sense of normalcy. Take a look at your messaging, too, focusing their attention on what lies ahead for your business and your team.   

Meet Gillian Smith 

Gillian Smith is Managing Partner at NATIONAL, one of Canada's leading PR firms. Gillian brings with her more than 20 years' experience in public relations and strategic communications. Before joining NATIONAL, she led her own consultancy, advising a portfolio of C-suite and Board clients across multiple industries. Over her career, Gillian has held senior positions with multiple organizations in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors, and currently serves on the Boards of several arts-based organizations in Toronto. In 2018, Gillian ran in the Ontario provincial election.   

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

Jodi Baker Calamai, Deloitte Canada's National Managing Partner of Human Capital shares perspectives on how the future of work is now, the unparalleled opportunities it creates to make work better for humans and humans better at work, and how leaders can embrace this once in a lifetime opportunity to innovate.

• It's a unique time for humans around the world to figure out what the next phase of 'work' looks like. We are experiencing seismic and simultaneous shifts – AI, multi-generational workforces, geopolitical dynamics, expectations around work – that are requiring us to re-think our approach to work. The future of work is here – it's no longer 30 years out. 
• COVID's impact on work was much bigger than shifting just where we work. COVID changed how we work, where we worked, and how we collaborated. It also changed perspectives on productivity and how we measure work outcomes and performance.
• Making work better for humans and humans better at work matters. Businesses that prioritize people and put the right investments in place to drive people outcomes have 1.75 times better business performance. It's about human and business performance.
• Generative AI provides a unique opportunity for organizations to consider what they want humans to be doing. The impact of Generative AI is real, and it is immediate. Curious organizations are being proactive in considering how they want to harness the power of Generative AI to drive better results for the business and for their teams.
• Leaders need to be curious, collaborative, and innovative. Change is here. Great leaders are learning how to get smart about these shifts and to consider the impact on their teams. They are learning how to build trust to give employees confidence in the evolution. Dynamic leaders are proactively experimenting with new ways of getting things done.
• Ambitious HR teams should ask their business partners: What's OUR vision for the future? What outcomes are we driving? By aligning the business around the future and the implications for people, HR teams can become stronger strategic partners and business enablers.
• Jump in. Don't get bogged down. Be part of the solution. Individuals should embrace the uncertainty and be part of the solution. Doing so will allow them to learn, reskill and create spaces to perform their absolute best.

• Generative AI and the Future of Work (Deloitte US)
• Generative AI will reshape - not replace - the workforce | LinkedIn
• Workforce strategies in a recession
• Deloitte Human Capital Trends (Deloitte)

Meet Jodi Baker Calamai

Jodi is Deloitte's Canada's National Managing Partner of Human Resources. She and her teams are focused on end-to-end people, culture, and HR uplift to make work better for humans and humans better at work. She is an accomplished thought leader having published numerous books and articles.

Connect with Jodi Calamai on LinkedIn here. 

About TILTCO

Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. As the host of LeaderLab, Tineke brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to explore how to support today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

Connect with Tineke on LinkedIn here.

Is employee engagement possible in our current virtual world of work? It's not only possible, it's imperative in building and maintaining high-performing teams. In this episode, Parker Mitchell, CEO of SHIFT joins us to talk about how a human-first approach to leadership can spur teams to greatness. 

Practical ways to engage your teams: 

• You don't have to dive into the feedback pool if that's not comfortable for you. Instead, pick one or two things you want to improve and invite others to offer you feedback to focus your efforts.  
• To build team cohesion in our virtual workplace, intentionally surface what may be holding your team back at home, so the team, together, can negotiate fair trade offs. 
• Your team can help you build better teams. Engage them in solutions by asking yourself how you can step back so they can take the reins.  

Meet Parker Mitchell 

Parker Mitchell is the CEO of SHIFT, an online platform that helps leaders build happier, healthier, more effective teams. Prior to starting SHIFT, Parker worked as a consultant with McKinsey and then as the Deputy to the co-CEO of Bridgewater Associates. Parker also founded and led Engineers without Borders, an award-winning social-mission organization. Over the past decade, Parker has been named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young, was selected one of Canada's Top 40 under 40, has received two Honorary Doctorates of Engineering and was awarded the Meritorious Service Cross from the Government of Canada. 

About TILTCO 

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results. 

After years teaching at the Harvard Law School Amy took a pivot in her messaging after discovering the importance of self awareness in conflict resolution. 

As suggested by Erica Ariel Fox (author: Winning from Within), self-awareness includes 2 parts:

State awareness:

• Being able to witness and recognize your own emotional state (the work of Ronald Heifetz refers to this as being on the balcony)
• Difficult situations can trigger reactive fight or flight mindset which will constrain your thinking and limit your ability to make decisions
• This awareness helps you manage these difficult situations

Profile awareness:

• This is about understanding your leadership style and strengths and knowing what is needed in one moment to then next
• Many leaders have strong intellectual ability (thinker warrior) but less developed in intuition, forward thinking or emotions
• Teams respond well to leaders showing vulnerability (admitting they are working on their leadership) – it increases trust and improves the team's ability to work together

4 benefits of investing in self-awareness:

• Cognitive flexibility:
  • Mature leaders are much better able to include ideas from different perspectives – this makes them more future ready (e.g., not stuck in their own point of view and more open to innovation)
  • When leaders are learners there is much more psychological safety, collaboration and productive conflict
• Emotional intimacy:
  • Now that people are working out of their living rooms teams are becoming closer and sharing details of families and personal lives – this is creating more intimacy
  • Leaders who can create deeper conversations around purpose, mission, and values create a stronger sense of trust and engagement with their teams
• Adaptability:
  • People can only tolerate a certain amount of change and therefore building team's tolerance of disequilibrium is an important task for leaders
  • Leaders who have practices for getting grounded will be better able to meet upcoming challenges
  • Come up with a tactic to ground yourself (meditation, walk in nature)
• Well-being:
  • Leaders who take care of themselves create better vitality and hopefulness that will give fuel to deal with stressors going forward (mental health, relational health and physical wellbeing)

Practical ways to build self-awareness:

• Read the book "Lead From Within" by Erica Ariel Fox
• Write down your life story and reflect: What have been your big events? Who have been your mentors? Where has there been limiting beliefs/behaviours? Use this reflection as a guide for future behaviour
• Build a kitchen cabinet of people that can help you along the way: give you constructive feedback and celebrate with you

Amy's hope for leaders: See themselves as a source of orientation.

• Stay close to your own sources of joy
• Simple acts of generosity go a long way - remember someone's birthday, ask about family member etc
• Lead from anywhere in the organization

More about Amy Fox:

Amy is a senior practitioner in transformational leadership. She leads immersive development for senior leaders in both the private and public sector. She is also the co-founder and CEO of Mobius Executive Leadership – a premier coaching, culture change and leadership development firm headquartered in both Boston and Geneva.  Mobius is comprised of a prestigious group of Senior Experts and over 200 coaches, mediators, facilitators and expressive artists. Amy is a psychotherapist by background with expertise working with family and collective trauma.

More about TILTCO:

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat who has over 20 years of leadership consulting experience with McKinsey & Company, Accenture and now TILTCO Inc.

Notable quote:

"Mature leaders are much more able to understand the full complexity of a picture and therefore more future ready and have a stronger innovation capacity"

Key resources:

https://www.mobiusleadership.com/

https://www.ericaarielfox.com/winning-from-within/

www.tiltco.ca

Supplemental reading:

https://hbr.org/2002/06/a-survival-guide-for-leaders

https://www.ft.com/content/aaa3b29a-ffb0-11e9-be59-e49b2a136b8d

Buckle up! It's time to future-proof your skill set for the new-look decade ahead

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/leadership/from-a-room-called-fear-to-a-room-called-hope-a-leadership-agenda-for-troubled-times#:~:text=From%20a%20room%20called%20fear,leadership%20agenda%20for%20troubled%20times&text=Leaders%20can%20make%20a%20difference,onboarding%E2%80%9D%20of%20all%20their%20people.?_lrsc=70af8951-a6e8-42c7-a3ba-5fc896689d01&cid=other-soc-lke

In this episode, Kanina Blanchard discusses:

• Her one big message for leaders during Covid-19 (01:31)
• Why it's important to create a game plan for surviving a crisis (02:56)
• Why you should think about how your actions will be judged in the long term (03:22)
• The three C's to keep in mind in a crisis (04:16)
• What great crisis planning looks like (05:38)
• What professional athletes teach us about preparing for a crisis (06:16)
• The importance of including diverse perspectives in crisis planning (07:12)
• Why it's never too late to address a crisis (09:07)
• What leaders can be doing right now to deal with he impact of Covid-19 (09:53)
• The one aspect of culture she'd like to see leaders focus on right now (15:05)
• How to build collaboration and connection virtually (16:33)
• Why you shouldn't try to be a superhero (18:50)
• Positive lessons from Covid-19 (21:04)
• What she does to recharge (23:51)

Kanina's advice for leaders:

• Align your game plan with your values (03:06)
• Listen and show empathy (03:44)
• Prepare for worst-case scenario (06:55)
• Let yourself be uncomfortable (08:26)
• Think about who you (and your company) want to be when the crisis is over (09:30)
• Communicate in a way that creates trust (11:27)
• Make sure your actions and words match – and are consistent with your values (12:15)
• Don't expect to have all the answers (13:05)
• Keep your employees' needs in mind (17:57)
• Practice self-care (19:38)

More about Kanina Blanchard:

 Kanina Blanchard has led teams through crisis on four different continents, and is recognized for her ability to adapt, lead teams and projects, and navigate complexities across various sectors. She has extensive experience working in international business, the public service, non-profit and consulting in areas that include organizational and communication challenges as well as issues, crisis and change management.

Blanchard has coached thousands of CEOs, C-Suite executives and emerging leaders seeking to grow and develop their character, competencies and commitment over the last 30 years.  She is committed to providing targeted and customized strategic solutions to challenges that impact organizational and leadership brand, reputation and bottom line. 

She is a lecturer in management communications and general management at the Ivey Business School, the recipient of the Margaret Haughey Master's Award for Best Master's Thesis, and is currently working toward her PhD.

More about TILTCO:

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat who has over 20 years of leadership consulting experience with McKinsey & Company, Accenture and now TILTCO Inc.

 More about The Ivey Academy:

The Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School is the home for executive Learning and Development (L&D) in Canada. It is Canada's only full-service L&D house, blending Financial Times top-ranked university-based executive education with talent assessment, instructional design and strategy, and behaviour change sustainment

Links to additional resources:

https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/academy/about/faculty/kanina-blanchard/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1o0YpWlEugY

https://iveybusinessjournal.com/publication/to-a-better-understanding-the-leadership-odyssey-explored/

Memorable quote:

"Especially in a time of crisis, leaders need to ensure that what's being done is the right thing and that it's being done the right way."

Full Transcript:

TINEKE KEESMAAT: LeaderLab is focused on having inspiring leaders share their stories and practical leadership tips to help others be more effective. Today is April 19, 2020 and leaders across the globe are in the uncharted world of dealing with the global health pandemic of coronavirus. There's no perfect playbook for leaders as they tackle the enormous social, emotional, and economic challenges brought on by COVID-19. Our next few episodes will be focused on how leaders are managing through these times. And our hope is that by sharing these leadership stories, we can find ways to help each other navigate through the uncertainty of COVID-19.
ANNOUNCER: Welcome to LeaderLab, where we talk to experts about how leaders can excel in a modern world. Helping leaders for over 20 years, your host, Tineke Keesmaat.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Today I'm excited to chat with Kanina Blanchard. Kanina is a recognized public affairs and policy leader who has led teams internationally through crisis, challenge, and change. From bomb threats to environmental and human health disasters, she has helped teams and leaders in both the private and public sector navigate their toughest scenarios. Kanina is a lecturer at the Ivey Business School, where she focuses her research in the areas of women in leadership and responsible leadership.
Kanina wants to help leaders navigate successfully through COVID-19 by being purposeful, empowering, and passionate so they cannot just survive, but find a way to thrive into the future. Kanina, thank you so much for joining me on today's LeaderLab. I'd like to start by asking you, what's the one big message you want leaders to take away from our conversation today?
KANINA BLANCHARD: I think what we all need to do is start by stopping. And what I mean is to stop. Stop and take a step back from the firefight we find ourselves in. Because in times of crisis, whatever that crisis may be-- if it's a family issue or an illness, or some of my lived experience includes bomb threats and fires and explosions-- that we need to take a step back because we fall into this loop. And this loop is one where we have a sense of fear. We have a sense of powerlessness, a loss of control.
And there is this deep need to do something. And that itself creates a problem, because we just do. And we keep doing. And we're driven by this sort of primal instinct, because actually doing something in the middle of a crisis feels good.
But that's not good enough, not for a leader. And especially in a time of crisis, leaders need to ensure that what's being done is the right thing and that it's being done the right way.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that. So really, although we want to just act, act, act, what I'm hearing you say is pause and make sure that you are being purposeful. From a practical lens, what do you think leaders need to be thinking about as they're creating their crisis game plan?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Our game plan for surviving the crisis, but hopefully thriving when this is over, is an important place to start. And not just on what you need to get done, but the why you're doing it-- align those to your values and think about who you want to be remembered as when this is over. So not just you-- your team, your organization.
And sometimes when we think about these items, we may make some different decisions. Perhaps we still have to do what we have to do. For example, we're having to let people go. But how do we let people go, that matters. That matters for the kind of relationship you will have, the reputation you will have on the back end.
So listen more. Demonstrate through your words and actions that you care about we, not just me. So don't sit back and make decisions in a crisis and articulate them. Involve others. Help other people be purposeful. Find a reason yourself to be passionate, and remember that your attitude as a leader is truly contagious. And this may be a bad play on words, but truly think about, what do you want to be spreading right now as a leader?
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I know you talk about the 3 C's-- so crisis management, communication, and culture. And you've encouraged leaders in other talks to think about those three areas as they navigate through. So I'd love to spend a bit of time unpacking those and sharing your thoughts and tips. So if we can start with crisis management, can you talk to me about what that means?
KANINA BLANCHARD: In a crisis, we need to lead and we need to manage. But it's not business as usual. So when we talk about leadership in times of crisis, there needs to be a plan. We need to prepare to manage and lead through crisis. And we need to, hopefully, have practiced and been prepared to deal with the absolutely-not-business-as-usual challenges that come up.
I think about how many clients and people I speak to right now who say, you know, we've been trying to get a work from home policy in place for years and the company said no way. And now there are so many monitors being delivered to people's homes. So how do we manage? How do we adapt? How do we take on a mindset that we can manage through crisis?
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Can you talk to me a bit about planning? What does great planning look like in this context?
KANINA BLANCHARD: If we're going to actually lead through crisis, we have to accept that a crisis is different and that there are different emotions and different challenges. And it's uncomfortable to do this. So in a lot of large organizations and in my own professional career, we've done a lot of crisis management planning where we get down into the deep, the dirty, and sometimes the ugly and uncomfortable stories about what keeps us up at night.
What is it that we're afraid of, the worst-case scenarios? And we live in a bit of a culture where we don't want to talk about those things. And this is where we can take guidance from professional athletes and professionals in fields like astronauts, who a huge part of their life is to plan for the unexpected and to plan for the worst-case scenario.
I love this story that Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, the very well-known Canadian figure skating champions, talk about-- that when they were practicing for the Olympics, they basically had a protocol where their coach would do the completely unexpected-- where the music would die, where the lights would go off-- and they could continue their performance regardless. So they planned for that. So plan for continuation of your operations and those scenarios that you are most concerned about.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And preparing, what does that look like?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Preparing looks like bringing the right people to the table to do the work. And this seems kind of obvious, but one of the things that happens is we bring people around the table who are like us, who think like us, who focus on the things we focus on. But in a crisis, what we need to do is think about our audiences, our stakeholders from a very broad perspective and bring to the table those people who truly represent the voice of our communities, of our suppliers, of government, of other stakeholders.
And so to prepare in a way that is mindful of not only kind of our worst-case scenarios or situations that we would normally not want to deal with, but to do it with people and get the insights of the people that matter the most, which is our audience in these situations.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Fantastic. And finally, practicing-- what do leaders need to think about there?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely. So you know, it's funny. When I work with a lot of my clients, when I work with students, we do things like role plays or situations or scenarios. And some people love that, and some people are absolutely petrified.
And I tell you, if you're petrified and I'm working with you, I am putting you on point, because we need to get past that. We literally need to practice stepping into the roles, making decisions, taking risk, and learning that there will be failure. There will be failure.
And this sort of leads to this idea of communications and culture, and why it's so important to be able to manage through a crisis.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: So Kanina, this sounds amazing. But I'm sure there's some people listening to you saying, gosh, I wish I had heard Kanina a year ago, because I would have done the plan, prepare, and practice. But now they're living through COVID. Is it too late for them? How do you talk to leaders about what they can do in the moment if they haven't had the opportunity to do your three P's before?
KANINA BLANCHARD: It's not too late. It's never too late. In fact, we know in life there are some crises and issues that we can prepare for and some things that just hit us out of the blue. So we can absolutely bring our best self forward when things start to unravel. And for a lot of us, things are unraveling right now. So what do we do?
Let's think about, have we thought through who do we want to be when this crisis is over? Have we planned for who we want to be at the end of this? Have we brought the right people together to talk about and prepare for not only doing what we're doing today better, but preparing for this crisis is not over. And if we're just living in the moment and focusing on the short-term, we're missing both other risks as well as other opportunities. So use this time to prepare.
Then the last thing is we can still practice. We can practice, because when we realize that the most important thing we can be doing as leaders right now is not only stepping up into managing and leading through the crisis, but being the best communicators we can be and ensuring that our culture is one that's going to support us through this initiative and this challenge. We can be focused on what's coming. And that's going to help us, hopefully, thrive.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: You bring us to the last two parts of your three C's. Communications was one that you mentioned up top. Can you talk to me a bit about what leaders should be doing or how they should be communicating during these uncertain times?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Everything that you've been taught from a communications perspective, from a leadership communications perspective in normal business operations, applies today. But it is magnified and it is amplified. So do you communicate with your audiences? Are you authentic in your communications? Are you transparent? Are you consistent?
Now, when I say things like "transparent" and "authentic," let's be clear, this isn't about saying whatever is on your mind. This is about putting your audience first. It's about purpose. As a leader, when you communicate you are purposeful in trying to motivate, inspire, compel, and influence others. When you communicate in a crisis, that's even more important. But it needs to be done in a way that people believe and they trust.
I've had clients, as well as people that I've been talking with, who've said, look, my company is saying all the right things, but no one believes it. They're not making us feel like they're doing the right things. And that's key about communicating as a leader.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I know some of the people that I've been talking to have raised this point around consistency of message during these times. Their leaders are saying one thing but then doing something else. Can you talk to me about that, how that comes to play and why it matters?
KANINA BLANCHARD: So when we talk about our values and all of these issues, what we say has to reflect who we are as an organization, who we are as people. And then we need to be very mindful to be consistent with that. So if we say to our employees in today's world that your health and welfare matters the most but then we back it up with actions and tell people to just go do things and take a risk, there isn't that consistency between what's being said and then what's being asked.
So that is really important, because that is your legacy through this crisis. Will people, including your own employees as well as your customers in the community, be able to trust you based on what you did? Don't expect that you are going to have all the answers, that things are going to work at the same pace, that things are going to happen exactly the way that everybody would have expected them in normal times.
But as a leader, set expectations. But work with people to bring their best selves forward. And you do that by connecting with people at the emotional level. And we could say, well, you know, how do you do that when everyone is leading at a distance?
So there's lots of literature on this topic. But at a very simple tricks and tips level that I would love to see people truly take in, if you're talking to somebody, you're trying to build connection, stop looking at your screen and look at where your camera is. Because the reality is that most of us are speaking on cameras most of the day while we're looking down at someone on the screen. Or we might be looking at ourselves on the screen.
What other people are seeing is you looking down at them. Lift your head, and know that that little aperture of your camera is your audience. And care enough to look at them and talk to them clearly, authentically, with purpose. Be values-based, and connect with them as human beings right now. That's what's going to motivate them to bring their best selves forward.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: The last of your C's was around culture. I'm curious, Kanina, what do you think are the most important elements of culture that leaders need to get right during COVID-19?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Well, there's so much about culture, right? It's hard to change a culture in the middle of a crisis in some ways, because we bring everything that we have been to that moment. However, crises create an incredible opportunity and a raison d'etre, or creates a bias for action. And so if there was one part of culture that I would love to see leaders focus on right now is collaboration.
If we lose touch and if we lose connection with people at this time, the good parts of our culture will start to erode. And in the vacuum of collaboration and connection, we will drive movement toward people feeling more isolated, less purposeful, perhaps not knowing where their place is-- which will create more fear. I know this adds a burden to a lot of leaders. It's spending more time trying to connect. But creating opportunities for people to bring their best selves forward to collaborate on aspects of your business continuity plan and your future plan right now can do more to keep your employees, your customers engaged and motivated than anything.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Any practical tips or insights about how to build collaboration when everyone is working at home and has slightly variant schedules and potentially is distracted by their own personal issues or complexities? Any suggestions for folks on how to build virtual connection?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely. There are so many, and we only have so much time. But just a few ideas. One, be patient. Everyone is in a different place. And what we know about communications as a field is that different people resonate with different kinds of communication.
So some people read. Some people are auditory. Some people are visual. So keep in mind that if your goal through your communication is to ensure understanding or build awareness or to create collaboration, you need to think about that all your employees or your stakeholders are also different. And so just doing things one way blanket in one email doesn't mean you've communicated. All that means is you've sent out information.
So think about the different ways you can communicate. You can write it. You can record a video. You could have open town halls. You could create social spaces like coffee or cooler discussions, where people who need that social interaction can self-select to come in.
Offer to do it at different times. If you're working in a global environment-- it's one of the things I've found working internationally, is that my colleagues in Asia were always the ones-- and when I worked in Asia, I learned this myself-- are always the ones starting the earliest and ending the latest. So if you're going to have a session with your employees or you want to meet one-on-one, think about what time zone they're in and do it at a time, it might be inconvenient to you. But boy, that's going to send a signal of collaboration and care to someone sitting in Hong Kong 12 hours away that very few other things can do.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's fantastic. And again, what I'm hearing from you, again, as a leader is really just thinking about your employees, stakeholders-- where they're at, and kind of bridging the gap by meeting them at that starting point versus just what's convenient for you. So again, some care and compassion in these times.
KANINA BLANCHARD: You know, someone might be out there listening going, how much more can I possibly do? It just seems like we load more and more on managers and leaders. And considering these times of opportunity to be the best you can be is really important. But I would say, don't go down the superhero path.
We've seen through the last many decades that superheroes tend to not only burn out and harm themselves and their families and their organizations, but that's not a way to win. We are in a marathon. COVID-19 is a marathon. It is not a sprint. So these are all best practices. And I hope the leaders listening are motivated by the difference they can make. But it also starts with self-care.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And what does that mean, self-care? That's a hot term right now. But from your perspective, how can leaders practice that, or what do they need to be mindful of?
KANINA BLANCHARD: I think everybody is different, and so there is no one checkbox or list that's going to help. But I think that one thing I've seen developing over the last 30, 35 years that I've been in business is this idea of the importance of reflection, this importance of taking time-- whether it's even 10 minutes-- to stop and to think, and sometimes simply clear our minds. So there are people who are practicing meditation or mindfulness. It could be taking a walk. It's the small things that we do to take care of ourselves and take care of others.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And it's interesting, as you've talked-- and a thread that I'm taking away from this call-- is a bit of this authenticity, right? We're all in it together. Saying I'm tired, my neck is hurting, and just putting that out there allows people to connect at a very human level-- which I think is really important during these times, because people are in that place of fear and uncertainty. So I love this message that I've been hearing anyway around just being you and being authentic, and sharing that with others.
So Kanina, you have seen the before and after of many crises through your career. I'm curious, from your vantage point as you think about COVID-19, do you foresee any positive impacts or lessons or practices resulting from this scenario?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely. I think about the things that I'm seeing in the news today-- we have young people who are starting businesses that aren't there to make money. But they're volunteering their skills to develop-- for example, in Portugal I heard about a young student who started a web app where people who cannot rent their homes right now are being matched with health care providers who can't go home in the fear of spreading disease. I've heard about people who have developed apps around COVID where they've been offered money for their apps and instead they've said, no, this is a public service.
We're seeing governments do things that are truly unprecedented. We have governments that are stepping up early and fast and trying. And of course, there's always going to be criticism and critique, and there's always going to be things that we can do better. But look at the packages that are being put together to help ensure that people, even in these hard times, we can have food on our table. We're trying to help marginalized people make sure that they have food on their tables. We're trying to help students.
There is an effort under way today that we will learn from. And in reality, when the next crisis comes-- and it will-- I think we will have learned so much, a lot of good and some bad. And if we embrace the failures and improve on the successes, we will together succeed moving forward and grow.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that, a feeling of hope and a recognition that even in these tough times, people are generally good and everyone is trying their best to kind of navigate through. Kanina, this has been fantastic. And I know I've taken a number of notes and lessons that I will use in my own world and share with friends and colleagues. So I really do appreciate your insights and your enthusiasm that you shared with us today.
ANNOUNCER: And now, let's get to know our guest a little better with some rapid-fire questions.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: As we wrap up, one of the practices that we would like to do on LeaderLab is to help our listeners get to know you even more as a person with some rapid-fire questions. So if you don't mind, I have five questions for you here around the themes of the time that we're spending at home. So don't think too hard, but your first response. Your go-to comfort food?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Gluten-free pasta.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Do you like to go for a workout or curl up with a book to regenerate yourself?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Oh gosh, neither. I'm working on my PhD, so I read when I have to. I love my audiobooks, and I love walking with my family and my ridiculous basset hound who howls and sings and always brings a smile to our face.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Nice. One item you could never live without.
KANINA BLANCHARD: Well, I think my answer needs to be my husband right now. And I don't think I should call him an "item." But I think one of the things that we're learning-- we have eight people living under our roof right now. And what helps us survive, I think, is each other and that sense that you're not going through it alone.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's wonderful. Your favorite cartoon character?
KANINA BLANCHARD: I think it sort of maybe depends on the day. For some reason, just what popped into my mind right now is the Tasmanian Devil. I have no idea why. Maybe that reflects the way the world is feeling right now. That's what I've got for you.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And your work from home attire-- PJs, fully dressed, or a little bit of both?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely a little bit of both. You'll never catch me in pantyhose. But at least from the waist up, I feel that I am more productive and I am engaging with the people who I'm speaking with in a respectful and honest and a professional manner when I've gone the business casual route, for sure.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love it. I love it. Amazing. Kanina, thank you again for the time today.
ANNOUNCER: Thank you for joining us today on LeaderLab. LeaderLab is powered by Tiltco, helping exceptional leaders achieve extraordinary results, and the Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School, Canada's home for learning and development. You can learn more about Tiltco and LeaderLab at tiltco.ca. And to find out more about The Ivey Academy, go to iveyacademy.com

In this episode, Angela Barkan discusses:

• Her role at S-Curve Records (02:01)
• How the music industry has been impacted by COVID-19 (02:51)
• How technology is helping her team stay connected (05:03)
• The importance of in-person interactions in creative fields and how her team is recreating that social atmosphere in isolation (05:58)
• What her team is doing to keep on top of pop culture and entertainment trends (07:37)
• How people are coming together to make promotions and entertainment work during social isolation (11:10)
• How they're trying to learn from the risks they have to take (13:12)
• Changes she hopes will her team/industry will keep once the crisis passes (17:44)
• How the crisis has levelled the playing field for everyone in the organization when it comes to ideas and contributions (19:54)
• How she's handling the crisis as a leader (21:29)
• Ways to check in on the mental/emotional health of employees and keep things light (24:28)
• Her advice to leaders (26:51)
• The one item she couldn't live without during the crisis (29:54)

Angela's advice for leaders:

• Be flexible and find ways to adapt (09:01)
• Don't be afraid to take risks – especially when there's no playbook (09:22)
• Don't focus on perfection; try new things and learn from them (13:48)
• Empower all employees to feel like they have a voice (18:36)
• Be open to different perspectives from within the organization (19:41)
• Be kind to yourself (21:35)
• Show empathy for your team and each member's situation during the crisis (23:53)
• Connect with your colleagues on a human level (25:29)
• Embrace small successes (27:01)

More about Angela Barkan:

Angela Barkan is vice president of marketing at S-Curve Records/BMG. She has more than 15 years' experience in the entertainment industry, and has spearheaded integrated campaigns for global celebrities as well as developed new and rising talent.

She has worked closely with nationally recognized celebrities including Mariah Carey, Dave Matthews Band, Placido Domingo and Dolly Parton, as well as upcoming talent such as International YouTube stars The Piano Guys. At S-Curve Records, she works with a wide roster of artists including Andy Grammer, Netta and The O'Jays.

Barkan has been repeatedly recognized for top performance and selected to work with top company leaders. She's a frequent speaker on industry panels for events with CMJ, MTV's Youth Marketing Forum and NYU/Stern Alumni. She's also a member of the Arts Committee for Central Park Summerstage / City Parks Foundations, which brings free concerts and events to Central Park and 17 neighborhood parks in New York City.

Barkan holds an MBA from NYU and a BA from Cornell University.

Links to additional resources:

https://s-curverecords.com

https://cityparksfoundation.org/summerstage

Produced by:

Kara Kennedy from TILTCO Consulting 

More about TILTCO:

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat who has over 20 years of leadership consulting experience with McKinsey & Company, Accenture and now TILTCO Inc.

More about The Ivey Academy at the Ivey Business School: 

The Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School is the home for executive Learning and Development (L&D) in Canada. It is Canada's only full-service L&D house, blending Financial Times top-ranked university-based executive education with talent assessment, instructional design and strategy, and behaviour change sustainment

Full transcript: 

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Hi, it's Tineke here. Welcome to today's LeaderLab. As you know, LeaderLab is focused on having inspiring leaders share their stories and practical tips in order to help other leaders be even more effective. Today is March 31st, 2020, and leaders across the world are in the uncharted territory of dealing with a global health pandemic of coronavirus. There's no playbook for leaders on how to tackle the enormous economic, social and emotional challenges brought on by this epidemic.

Our next few episodes will be focused on how leaders are personally managing through these times, what they're doing and what they're learning. Our hope is that by sharing these lessons and stories, we can help each other as we navigate through these uncertain times.

ANNOUNCER: Welcome to LeaderLab where we talk to experts about how leaders can excel in a modern world, helping leaders for over 20 years. Your host, Tineke Keesmaat.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Today, I am thrilled to be talking with Angela Barkan. Angi is a results-oriented, pop culture savvy, media executive. In her role, she spearheads campaigns to bring the work of talented musicians into our homes. She's worked with global celebrities and develops new and rising talent. You'll be familiar with many of the artists she's worked with in her over 20 years in the business: Yo-Yo Ma, Mariah Carey, Dave Matthews Band, Christina Aguilera and The Piano Guys, to name a few.

In her current role at S-Curve Records, part of BMG, Angi serves as the vice president of marketing. There she works with a wide roster of artists including Andy Grammer, AJR, Leslie Odom Jr., Netta, The O'Jays, Duran Duran and many others. Angi holds an MBA from NYU and a BA from Cornell University. She's passionate about arts and the youth and is a proud member of the City Parks Foundations Art Committee, which provides free concerts to New York City parks. Angi also speaks at many industry events.

Angi, thank you so much for joining us on today's LeaderLab. So Angi, the music industry is fascinating and I'm curious if you can share a perspective on what you do within that industry.

ANGELA BARKAN: I'm the vice president of marketing at a record label called S-Curve Records, which is part of BMG. And basically, my role, to dumb it down, is once the music comes into me, it's my job to make sure that the world hears it in any way possible. So that's either by live concerts, on the radio, on TV, on digital platforms-- like Spotify, iTunes-- with brand partnerships and, then, the next level is, of course, to maximize all the revenue streams that come from that.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So Angi, as we talked about, we're focusing our LeaderLab series around how leaders are navigating the uncharted territory of coronavirus. And I was curious if you could share with us how your industry and your role has been impacted.

ANGELA BARKAN: Everything has been thrown on its head and changed to really what everyone is calling the new normal. The most obvious impact in our industry would be live touring. Spring and summer festivals are postponed-- postponed or canceled. And that's impacting, of course, not only the artists, but everyone who's involved in that and some roles that you might not think about like the person who takes the tickets at the venues or the person who is setting up the bar, lighting, bus drive-- tour bus drivers.

It's really-- the trickle down effect has been pretty devastating for everyone. I think the second area that the virus has really impacted, obviously, is physical sales across all industries, right, because no one can go to the stores. Also on the production level, a lot of the plants and distribution centers are closing or operating at a much lower capacity, so it's just harder to get things out.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And I know that your leadership team at S-Curve, basically, decided that the show needed to go on in this environment. Can you talk to me a little bit about the conversation that your team had to make that decision and then to guide the actions that you guys have been taking.

ANGELA BARKAN: I wish it was-- I wish I could say it was a cautious, well-planned out decision, but really it was more kind of triage, right? Like every industry, like every team, I think, has had to do the show must go on, literally and figuratively. And we just had to hunker down and figure out how to adapt to what is our new reality, hopefully, for another month or so but who knows.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Can you give me some examples of how you've had to adapt or initiatives that your teams have put in place in this, hopefully, not forever new normal times?

ANGELA BARKAN: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think, on a very granular level, when I'm not in the office, I'm in Toronto, some of our colleagues are in Florida and New York and California. We're all spread out. So technology has really been saving grace. Every day we've been doing one or two Zoom calls with the entire team, and that's really helped.

We've been communicating on Microsoft Teams, just really upped the communication as much as possible. There are certain things, I think, that it's very easy to take for granted when you can just walk over to someone's office or have a casual business talk over lunch, and you're, actually, really getting things done. And those types of interactions aren't there anymore so you have to figure out a way to replace that.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And has-- do you have some examples of how you've personally been replacing those?

ANGELA BARKAN: You know, the entertainment industry thrives on creativity. And so it's a little difficult sometimes to be creative when your little box is on a screen talking to each other.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: No doubt.

ANGELA BARKAN: And so some of the interactions, like, just at the coffee machine or when we go see one of our artists at a show, like, those types of moments where ideas come through just sort of natural conversation being in a creative environment, aren't there anymore. So we have done some fun things to try to recreate them. For example, we've been sending each other playlists on Spotify. We've been doing virtual happy hours, just to kind of chat, just to talk about what's going on in pop culture and keep our minds in a creative space where we know what's going on beyond the four walls of our apartments or houses where we're-- or, in my case, Airbnb-- where we're stuck right not.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I can imagine that some of those playlists are pretty incredible given the industry that you guys are in. So, hopefully, you're learning some new music and share-- getting to know each other better through that process as well.

ANGELA BARKAN: Being in a creative industry, and in the entertainment industry, our job is to entertain, that's our responsibility, and to help our artists continue to do that even with these unusual circumstances. So one of the things that we've been doing to keep the communication going is really simple. We've just been all contributing ideas onto a Google Document of different things that we've seen, different-- what different artists have been doing on social media, how our competitors have been responding to this, how, even brands and outlets beyond our industry, have been responding to try to keep their consumers engaged.

And so we've been doing it on a micro level just within our record label, but we've also been doing it on a larger level, globally with BMG. And it's really great because we can see what other countries are doing. This virus has, unfortunately, become an international situation. And so it's really interesting to just see how different cultures, different countries are responding to this and remembering that music is global, right? So we're not just talking about people in our country, we're really trying to reach the world with what we're doing.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that collaboration and creativity in this moment, right? Just no ideas, there's no perfect answer. People haven't done this before. So just any idea that people are seeing or feeling, just putting that out there for other people to learn from. I just love how dynamic that feels as you're describing it.

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. I mean, adapt is the main word, right? Every single person from a grocery store to the ride share industry to travel industry to retail to music and entertainment has had to adapt and adapt really quickly. And I think there's a lot of trial and error and risks that are being taken that wouldn't have been taken before, and I think that's kind of a blessing.

We're all in uncharted territory. And, I think, there's something really freeing about being able to take some creative risks and just try some things out, knowing that it might not work but it might work, and it might be really cool, and that's kind of an exciting thing.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: You've done some pretty cool things with your artist and that probably would not fly in the old world, but you've pushed the artist and the technology to support the artists to try different things. Can you give us some examples of what that has meant in the last week or two?

ANGELA BARKAN: One of our artists, Leslie Odom Jr.-- you might know him from Hamilton on Broadway, he recently costarred in Harriet and he's also an amazing singer, shameless plug. He has a new album out called Mr. He was-- he's really been-- this whole campaign has really been impacted by this. We were in the middle of a promotion cycle. His tour has been postponed until the fall and, part and parcel of that, his TV appearances have been impacted.

So yesterday, he was supposed to do the TV show, Live with Ryan and Kelly on ABC. That show is based in New York, he's based in LA and his band is based all over the place. So we had to adapt. We really wanted the show to go on from an entertainment perspective, certainly, from a commerce perspective. We're in the middle of a campaign for a new single.

To his credit, and to the show's credit, we all really got together and took a really big risk. What we did was we filmed each of the musicians doing their parts, performing their-- performing their parts in their living room, in their basement, in their bedroom. And we edited all those parts together and, then, Leslie performed the song from his living room with a video of all the musicians behind him.

And-- and it was amazing. Ryan Seacrest was in his kitchen, broadcasting. Kelly Ripa was in her living room. And it was just this-- it was just this really amazing moment of everyone-- everyone from the show, from the producers, from the audio people, from the network, the musicians and, of course, the label, and, of course, Leslie really taking a risk and being vulnerable in this time.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Yeah, I was going to say, these artists-- so that's like a fantastic example and I know a few of your other artists have livecast concerts from their homes. And it does strike me that these artists are vulnerable at the best of times, but often they have a ton of support around them. They've got to have hair and makeup. They've had people soundcheck, test things and they're having to be authentic in these moments and put themselves out there in their homes, probably, with a little less support around them than normal.

And I'm just curious how that has felt for them or what you've experienced or observed from these artists that are exposing themselves in a new way. How did it go?

ANGELA BARKAN: It actually went great. It was-- it really-- it was really cool to see and it was successful. The song-- we saw the song immediately jump up to number 15 on the iTunes chart, the record jumped up to number 16. There was a ton of social media noise about it.

So I think, everyone really appreciated the fact that it wasn't a perfect scenario, but the show must go on. And it's a cliche, I think, for a reason because there's a lot of situations where the show must go on and this was-- this was a perfect example of it. And I think, was it perfect? No.

And we did do a post mortem right after. We all got on Zoom, we talked about it. We talked about ways that we might change the audio, change some of the angles, do some things differently for the next time. But the important message that, I think, we can all internalize and then-- and, then, take, just moving forward when things go back to normal, is sometimes it's important to take risks even though the output might not be perfect. There's something to be learned and that can push everyone forward.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that. And I think that there's also-- what I'm hearing is also this vulnerability, right? So putting yourself out there in that risk. You're-- you know that you're showing up in a way that you may not normally have or your confidence may not be fully there, but from the story that you told of yesterday or other artists that I've seen live streaming from their home, I don't know, for me, personally, I'm connecting more to them in these moments where their hair is maybe not quite as coiffed as normal or you see their children running in behind them.

I don't know, there's something about that authenticity that's happening right now and the vulnerability that it's making it easier to connect, than maybe when I see them perfectly on the screen or in a video. So there is something for me, personally, about that vulnerability and authenticity that is showing up in this moment.

ANGELA BARKAN: Totally. I mean, yeah, I love that and I-- and I agree with you. You know, there's really-- there's a connection that, I think, artists are able to make with their fans.

And the message is, really, we're all in this together, just like you're, maybe, working in your pajamas. I'm trying to write a song with my kids running around as I'm also trying to make them lunch. These are real-- these are real situations.

I also think-- it's interesting, we have another band called AJR, which is three brothers. And for them, now they're playing sold-out shows at Radio City and the Greek in LA. But they started as three brothers busking in Washington Square Park, just outside. And what's interesting with them is, in some ways, this has required them to go back to those roots.

The other day, they did an Instagram live from their living room. And they had a keyboard there and Adam, the bass player, had his base, but-- but the lead singer, Jack, obviously, a lot of the instrumentation was missing. And so what did he do? He grabbed a bottle of vitamins and used them as a shaker.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that.

ANGELA BARKAN: And it was, like, a perfect example of taking a risk and adapting and trying something. And it might not be perfect, but it was still something, and it was great. It was really, really cool.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I'm sure it's probably liberating, too, in some ways, right? Because people are able-- are being a bit more forgiving and recognizing that everyone's just trying their best right now, that if I'm an artist, I love sound and how can I add this vitamin D mix to the-- to the set and see how it feels. There might be some creativity and liberation that is happening for artists during this time-- in this, again, these strange, strange times that are right now.

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. And who knows? If there's anyone listening who works for a big vitamin company, call me. You know, there could be some really interesting partnerships that come out of this. Who knows?

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that, I love that. So Angi, these are incredible examples of creativity and risk-taking and pushing technology and, I think, that they've been very meaningful in order to help people continue to connect to artists and to music in these periods of isolation and uncertainty. It sounds like you've had some fun experimenting. And I'm curious if there are things that you've been doing that you hope, actually, continue when the world goes "back to normal", quote, unquote.

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. And I think the thing that I hope that we continue is really experimenting with technology and pushing ourselves and our partners to find new ways of doing things, to find new ways of entertaining, bringing music into the home, making it more accessible, making it more interactive. You know, some of the things Instagram is doing and TikTok are just incredible in terms of bringing-- bringing fans and the artist together. So we do think those things will continue. Maybe some artists that weren't as keen on it originally, now have been forced to use it.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Right.

ANGELA BARKAN: And-- and I'm hoping it will-- and I'm hoping it'll stay because it's really- it's really exciting. Something else I've noticed, just from a managerial perspective, is everyone at the table, let's call it at the Zoom table in their own little box, has been kind of empowered to come up with ideas. At S-Curve we're really not hierarchical at all, everyone does have a voice. But I'm noticing it even more now, anyone can come up with a good idea.

And, I think, everyone sort of feels empowered in what is the Wild West right now to come up with an idea because it's just sort of this free space of, like, with an attitude of, may as well try it. And so because of that, it's kind of fun and it's giving-- I hope it's giving some people that maybe aren't normally as vocal, at different levels in the company, a chance to really shine and have their ideas noticed more.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Hopefully, it allows people to feel like they can vocalize. But I'm also hearing an openness of leaders to, actually, hear the ideas differently than they may have in the past. Is that fair?

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. I mean, I've been-- so I've been in this business for 20 years and I've never experienced anything like this before, right, and none of my colleagues have. And so years of experience is certainly helpful in navigating. It's also very obvious that this is the first time for all of us in this situation. And so anyone can really come up with a great idea.

And there's nothing to compare it to based on experience because this is our first time for everyone. It's everyone's first time in this unique situation. So in some ways, that's kind of very-- it really levels the playing field, but in a way that I feel in a creative industry, especially, is very exciting.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Angi, I love just this idea of leaders being open to new ideas because ideas can come from anywhere. And because there's nothing to compare them to right now, in this context, it does make listening to these ideas all the more important. One of the things that I'm really conscious of is that we are asking a lot of our leaders, in this context-- so you've got people that are having to push bounds within their business organizations.

You're having them lead teams where their teams are all going through different psychosocial economic challenges, and then you're putting these leaders in places where they have to work from home, where they've got children or aging parents or issues with things, just day-to-day tasks that are, what, how do I get groceries? And I think, the stress that leaders are under is incredible at this time. And I'm curious, for yourself, how are you personally managing through the challenges of this context?

ANGELA BARKAN: Yeah, I mean, it's a great-- it's a great question. It's a lot of trial and error. And-- and, I think, I'm just trying to be kind to myself and put a little less pressure on myself. In general, I'm a pretty regimented person in the sense that I like a schedule, I like a checklist, I like to complete my checklist by the end of the day, things like that. And the reality is it's just not happening now.

And so, I think, being forgiving with myself, that, just like everyone else is learning how to navigate this new work situation, so am I. And, I mean, I have a 7-year-old so, certainly, homeschooling has played a role in this now. And also just making sure that we're taking care of ourselves.

I mean, one good thing that's happened from this is I've started yoga and I'm forcing myself. The Nike app is now free and I've been forcing myself to do yoga every day. And I'm terrible at it, but I think it's helping a little.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: For sure. I've been forcing my husband and I, also, to make sure that every day we get some sort of physical activity. So just for the sanity, right, to keep-- to focus on myself for a moment, but also just to stay active physically. It really does help, I think.

ANGELA BARKAN: And I think, also, we can't underestimate that there's a lot of pressure right now. I mean, businesses, overall, are at a very vulnerable place, and it is a little scary. And so, I think, we have to really keep in mind that the job has to happen. We have to try to push and be aggressive and get as much done as we possibly can. But we can't forget the emotional element of all of this, which you mentioned.

On our team, alone, someone-- someone's family friend just passed away from the virus. Two people on our team, actually, have the virus. Luckily, it's not serious, but they're dealing with it. And so, I think, everyone just-- just needs to be flexible, but also empathetic and realize that people deal with trauma, which is really what this is. It's a traumatic situation, differently, and just to try to kind of be in tune with people's emotions, especially now.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And just tactically, how are you finding it to pick up on people's emotions through Skype or Zoom or Team? Are you able to detect or is there something that you're doing independent of that to keep a pulse of your individual employees?

ANGELA BARKAN: I think, we're been pretty good, even on our Zoom calls, in just checking in with people. Everyone's pretty intuitive, I think, in that way. We've added some fun elements to our Zoom calls. For example, one of the guys on our team has the most amazing vinyl collection, probably, I don't know, he probably has like 10,000, 15,000 records and he likes to sit his chair right in front of the vinyl collection. So every day, we have Steve's record of the day and he picks a very eclectic record out of his-- out of his wall and tells us some interesting obscure facts about the band.

And we all laugh about it because no one's ever heard it because it's no obscure. And-- and it's become-- it's just a little thing, but it sort of lightens the conversation a little bit and it just adds an element of, like, OK, we all still work in music. We can all still laugh. We can also have a little bit of fun.

Another one of my colleagues, we joke that she's dived into the world of TikTok, which is becoming increasingly important in the music industry. So we all talk about her different TikTok videos every day and we're just trying to connect on different levels. I had a call with one of my colleagues, yesterday, about how we're trying to homeschool our kids.

So, I think, it's just trying to find a way to add a human, non-business element to the group calls and then also individual-- just individual check-ins to be, like, hey, what's up? How are you feeling? What's going on? What-- how did your workout go other day? Just, how's your relationship going?

Just, like, basic-- basic human things-- basic human interactions, I think, are more important than ever right now.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that, just connecting as individuals. And this conversations, not only feel light and fun, but they also show that you care about each other. And, I think, that care is so important at this moment. Do you have any advice for leaders in this moment? So one practical thing that you would advise leaders to do as we navigate through this uncharted time.

ANGELA BARKAN: I think, one thing that is really important for everyone to remember, not only-- not only leaders, which is everyone going through this, is, like, this too shall pass. This is a terrible time, but there are some good things that will come out of this. And, I think, we need to embrace the small moments, the small successes, where we're working as a team and things are going well, and just accept the things that aren't-- that aren't going so well and I know that they'll get better.

Look, 20 years ago-- 19 years ago, actually, I lived through September 11th, living in New York. Granted, these are very different situations, but that feeling of feeling bewildered, feeling confused, not knowing what tomorrow will bring, all of those feelings, I think, are similar. And we all got through it, and we'll all get through this. And, I think, reminding people that this is just another chapter will be helpful and especially taking care of some of the younger-- younger people on the team, especially in music.

I work with a lot of people in their early 20s who are living away from home, whose parents might be in other countries. And I think, just taking a page [INAUDIBLE] out of parenting, I think, and being a good friend and being there for emotional support, is one of the most important things leaders can do right now because that's how you'll inspire people and get the best work out of them [INAUDIBLE] as well. If people are feeling good, then they're motivated to produce.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Angi, this has been incredible. I think, in this conversation, I've just loved the messages about being creative, taking risks, being authentic, connecting as people. It's been truly inspiring to hear. So thank you, first of all, for taking the time, but secondly, for also having the show go on because I know that so many people are connecting to artists and to your work during these moments. So from the bottom my heart, thank you so much.

ANGELA BARKAN: Thanks so much for having me. This has been great.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: No problem. We do want to finish up with one thing that we do on LeaderLab is we ask our guests a bunch of fun questions, and we do want to wrap up with those. Again, don't think too hard, they are just intended to be fun.

ANNOUNCER: And now, let's get to know our guest a little better with some rapid fire questions.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: We're going to go with the theme of comforts at home in these times.

ANGELA BARKAN: OK.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: First question, your go to comfort food?

ANGELA BARKAN: Mac and cheese.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Your go to, do you go for a workout or curl up with a book?

ANGELA BARKAN: Oh, gosh, curl up with a book, but I'm really trying, really trying to make it a workout.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's [INAUDIBLE]. One item that you could never live without?

ANGELA BARKAN: Netflix, I'm addicted to Tiger King like the rest of the world.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Oh, you're the third person that has told me that in the last two days. That's so funny.

ANGELA BARKAN: I mean, it's so crazy.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Your favorite cartoon character?

ANGELA BARKAN: My favorite cartoon character is Snoopy.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And your work from home attire: PJ's, fully dressed or a little bit of both?

ANGELA BARKAN: Well, I'd love to tell you that I'm wearing a Blazer right now, with a very cool rock and roll t-shirt underneath, but, in fact, I am wearing sweatpants from the Gap.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Lovely. I'm in workout gear so, hopefully, that helps you feel better. Angi, again, this has been truly amazing and I really appreciate you taking the time.

ANGELA BARKAN: Thank you, guys, so much. This was really fun.

ANNOUNCER: Thank you for joining us today on LeaderLab. LeaderLab is powered by Tiltco, helping exceptional leaders achieve extraordinary results, and the Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School, Canada's home for learning and development. You can learn more about Tiltco and LeaderLab @tiltco.ca. And to find out more about the Ivey Academy, go to iveyacademy.com.

A note to our listeners, 

Covid-19 has created an unprecedented time for leaders. There is no playbook or easy way for leaders to navigate the tremendous economic, social and emotional toll.  

With this in mind, we decided that it was important now more than ever for leaders to help each other by sharing their stories and practical experiences. So, we've decided to focus our upcoming episodes on how Leaders  are navigating this crisis: how they've shifted direction, what they are doing to keep their teams safe and motivated, and how they personally managing through this tremendous uncertainty.

We are grateful to the number of leaders who have offered up their experiences. Their creativity, resiliency, humility and positivity has been inspiring. Our hope is that by sharing their ideas and stories we can help each other find a way forward.

Jacqui McGillivray, executive vice president and chief people officer at Element Fleet Management, talks about what she's learned about keeping employees motivated and connected as they work remotely and grapple with COVID-19 through openness, focus and understanding.

In this episode, Jacqui discusses: 

• The impact of COVID on her organization (03:18)
• How a culture of agility and accountability is helping her team be practical and deal with change (04:01)
• The importance of communication and trust in a crisis (06:12)
• The importance of considering people's individual situations and being empathic to their needs (07:18)
• What her company is doing to help employees be productive while working form home (08:21)
• Creating connection points and collaboration when you aren't face-to-face (13:19)
• Why you should be open to all ideas in this unprecedented time (18:01)
• Her self-care routine – and why these matter for leaders (19:33)
• Positive lessons from COVID-induced changes (22:12)
• Her hope for other leaders during this time (23:11)
• The importance of leaders being human in a crisis and showing vulnerability (24:44)
• Her favourite work-from-home attire (27:30)

Jacqui's advice for leaders:

• Take care of your employees as people (08:31)
• Foster connections and collaboration (10:18)
• Build in space to be present (16:43)
• Slow down and listen effectively (17:16)
• Leverage the different generations in your workforce and the perspective they have to offer in challenging times (17:59)
• Be practical, not perfect (22:19)
• Be honest about how hard this time is for everyone, including yourself (25:00)
• Be flexible (25:27)

More about Jacqui McGillivray: 

Jacqui McGillivray is executive vice president and chief people officer at Element Fleet Management, where she's worked to create a culture of collaboration to drive productivity. At Element, McGillivray handles talent management and development, global compensation and benefits, real estate and workplace and communications. She's also responsible for the company's global balanced scorecard, people and organizational performance.

Before joining Element, McGillivray was executive vice president of safety and organization effectiveness at Cenovus Energy. She has held senior HR leadership roles at Talisman Energy, Royal Bank of Canada and Nortel. She holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Western Ontario and an international MBA from Manchester Business School and McGill University.

Links to additional resources:

https://www.elementfleet.com/news/industry-news/coronavirus-covid-19-preparedness

https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2018/10/01/1588124/0/en/Element-Fleet-Announces-Plan-to-Enhance-its-Customers-Experience-Strengthen-the-Balance-Sheet-With-a-300-Million-Equity-Issuance-and-Achieve-150-Million-of-Run-Rate-Profitability-I.html

Transcript: 

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Hi, it's Tineke here. Welcome to today's LeaderLab. As you know, LeaderLab is focused on having inspiring leaders share their stories and practical leadership tips in order to help others be more effective. Today is March 26, 2020, and we are facing an unprecedented time for leaders as they navigate the uncharted world in dealing with the global health pandemic of coronavirus.

We debated internally whether to stop or postpone these podcasts when a leader we deeply respect suggested that we continue but refocus on helping leaders share their personal insights and tips on how they are responding to the crisis. Clearly, there's no playbook on how to tackle the economic, social, and emotional challenges that leaders are having to navigate through. But our hope is that by, perhaps, making lessons from others available, we might be able to help share some ideas and let leaders know that they are not alone.

Our next few episodes will be focused on how leaders are managing through these times and we hope you find them helpful.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

NARRATOR: Welcome to LeaderLab, where we talk to experts about how leaders can excel in a modern world. Helping leaders for over 20 years, your host, Tineke Keesmaat.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Today, I'm joined by Jacqui McGillivray. Jacqui is the leader in the field of people and is passionate about helping individuals and their teams achieve their fullest potential. She's currently the executive vice president and chief people officer at Element Fleet Management. She has had senior leadership positions in a range of industries including financial services, oil and gas, and telecommunications.

Jacqui and I were planning on doing a podcast today on engagement when these COVID-19 crises broke. She has generously suggested that we continue with the podcast but focus specifically on practical leadership tips, on how she and her leadership team are responding to the crisis, knowing that there's no perfect answer and that every leader is trying to figure it out. Jacqui, thank you so much for joining me today on LeaderLab.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Thanks, I'm thrilled to be here.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So Jacqui, just help me help our listeners understand a bit more of who you are. First, can you tell me what Element Fleet is?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Element Fleet is a leading global fleet management company. So what that means is we provide both financing for commercial vehicles as well as services to manage those vehicles. So it's all about making the fleet safer, smarter, more productive for our clients.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: What is your specific role at Element Fleet?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: So I'm proud to be a member of our executive team, and I have three key areas of responsibility. One is what we call our balanced scorecard, so that's translating our strategy into key objectives and measurable outcomes. That's what creates focus for the organization in each year.

Secondly, I have the people function, so everything regarding human resources from start to finish. And then thirdly, I have our global communications and events group.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's a very interesting set of roles that you have. What has the impact of COVID-19 been on Element Fleet?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: It's an unprecedented situation for our business and our people. We've seen a softening of demand as people self-isolate, work from home. And as a result, the utilization of Fleet declines. Many of our clients are making changes to their operations and their needs are changing. Our suppliers are also responding in this environment. And so we're working with both suppliers and clients to understand and adapt to their changing business environments so that we can continue to deliver a consistent superior experience.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Jacqui, how has the leadership team been working through this crisis? What's the same and, potentially, what has had to be different?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Well, the team's been on a transformation journey for the last 18 months, so it's been quite a dynamic environment in and of itself. And we would be very honest in our approach to say that it's been difficult. But we've grown as a team. We trust each other and we lead with that focus, which is anchored in our strategy.

What's different is that we have to be very practical in our execution right now. And we can do that because we have created a culture of agility and accountability. And with that, we're able to play as a team, right? We all have a role. We all have a position. And we're playing both offense and defense.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Give me some examples of what that agility has looked like over the last four weeks as this crisis has unfolded.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Over the last four weeks, we've enacted our BCP, as many companies have. And we've taken the action to move 90% of our workforce to work from home. And for those that are within our facilities, we've taken all the necessary precautions to ensure that those facilities remain safe for our people.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And what does it look like in practice?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Yeah, so it looks like deep cleaning. It looks like strong security measures. It looks like really limiting the amount of work that needs to be done in the office-- because there are a few pieces of our processes that do-- to the essentials.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And I'm curious what that has been like for employees where so many people get to go work from home and some are still in the office. Has that created any tension or questions, or any concerns for folks that some people actually still need to go to the office every day and others are getting to work from the safety of their homes?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: It's actually created a feeling of connection and we're all in this together. We are rotating staff in and out of the office so that we don't have a full complement there. And that's doable because we have seen a slight softening of demand. And people are reaching out and making sure, what can I do? And also trusting in our leadership because of the credibility we've built throughout the transformation, that we're taking the necessary steps and we're putting our people first, and their health, and well-being.

And the last thing I'd say is we communicate every day. We have a goal of transparency beyond anything I've ever seen.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: What does that communication look like every day? Is that an email? Is it live chats? How are you communicating each day to team members?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: So it's been really fun. It's been tough messages but in creative ways. So we commit a daily update to our senior leaders. And then the following day, we send out employee communications. It can be over email. Our CEO recently did his own production of a video, which was so comforting and endearing. And people have responded wonderfully to it as we all learn how to work from home. We sent out a virtual care package.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: What was in that?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Yeah, so it was just a number of tips, and links, and information to help everyone adjust to working from home-- parents of younger children, people who are caring for family members-- just even apps that can help you be mindful, workouts, tips for healthy eating, exercise. And people got it. And they just responded in numbers to say, thank you for thinking of me because I don't even know where to start.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Well, that sounds sounds a very holistic, whole-person approach, right? It's not just come and get this work done it. It's hey, we recognize that this is uncharted, uncomfortable times and we want to take care of you as a person, not just an employee.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Absolutely.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Talk to me a little bit about helping people transition to working at home. You mentioned some people are caring for others, some people have small kids. How are you helping people think through how to be productive from wherever they're situated today?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: The challenge is we will all feel like we need to be on 24/7 and there's no clear division of work and home anymore. And so we need to step into that, and acknowledge, and accept that it's OK if children run in, dogs run in. It's OK if you need to take a break, step away. We've really got to create a structure, and a beginning, and an end to the workday. At the same time, we also ask that some of our people be available 24/7 in the event that we need to respond quickly.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And the structure-- so, is everybody expected to be on from 9:00 to 3:00? Or are sub-teams coming up with their working hours? How are you creating a structure that is both productive so that folks can get into a flow but also flexible to accommodate the dogs running in, and the children, and the random things that happen when you are just at home?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Structure feels somewhat nonexistent in this environment. I think what we're looking at is starting with, what's the work that needs to get done? Who are the people that we have? We do have excess capacity in some of our people. How do we redeploy them to where the priorities are or where they're needed most? Because we have some clients whose demand is increasing and we have others whose demand is softening. And so we're looking at active redeployment.

And then lastly, I would say the tools that we have, we all-- it was amazing what our technology team did in a week, not even a week. I would say in three days, we had 90% of our workforce working from home. We had a gentleman drive a U-Haul truck with 90 monitors--

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Wow.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: --from one site to the other site. These selfless efforts are part of who we are and we share those stories, both what we're doing for each other and what we're doing for our clients, particularly in the health care industry. And it is so uplifting. People just want more and more of that.

And lastly, I would say these tools, it's hilarious when you're sitting with the executive team on Zoom and we're all learning, oh, if you click this, you raise your hand.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS]

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Oh, if you click this, you have the cool moon background. And it's almost somewhat juvenile but hilarious at the same time, right? We're forced to use these tools and in a fun, collaborative way.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And isn't it amazing how people that I've been really shy about tools or thinking that they're complex, how quickly people can learn and adapt? I think of some of my clients that-- oh, we're going to move to remote work. We will get there. But we have to go through these massive programs to get our teams ready. And yet like you said, in the course of three days, you've got 90% of your staff up and running on it. And I think it's fascinating just what is possible in organizations and how adaptable people actually can be when they need to be.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: The journey that we've been on, as I mentioned earlier, our transformation, it hasn't been easy. We've asked a lot of our people. We've made some difficult decisions. But through all that, the one thing that we have committed to is open, honest, frequent communications from our CEO right out through the organization. And we have committed that even through the most difficult decisions. And it's created that trust, right? And it's not something to take lightly because that can easily break if we don't follow through in this environment in particular.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: There might be some people listening to this who haven't got the right communication channels in place yet or they've not been the most open with team members. How would you advise them to get started? Because in this particular moment, it is more important than ever. Any advice for folks getting started, particularly at this rather unique time in our world?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Well, it starts with going back to the basics. Our CEO, Jay Forbes, laid that out as a key principle in our strategy when we started our transformation 18 months ago. And a lot of us went, what does that mean? And we quickly realized that it starts with the understanding of, what is the work we do? How do we work? Who do we work with? Why are we doing this, our purpose?

I don't mean to get philosophical on you. But I do think when you go back to your core purpose and the basics of how you work, you can think of it similar to how you communicate. And so let's now think we don't collide into each other at work because we're not physically present. I now need to create those collisions by setting up a daily meeting, a weekly huddle. I need to put one-on-ones with my direct reports into the calendar where I could have crossed the hall and knocked on their door. These are basic means of ensuring those connection points throughout the day.

And then encouraging people to come together and solve the problems in front of us and collaborate. This is-- I mean, we talk about collaboration, Tineke, so many times we've talked about it. This is collaboration at its best.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Right. Because there's no choice. There's no perfect answer. As you said earlier, there's no playbook. And there's just really tough problems everyday that companies are having to face. And so people need to be in it together in order to come up with the best possible solution in this moment. So collaboration-- I can see that the need for it is exponentially higher than people have experienced in the past.

And I think some people think, well, how can I collaborate if I don't have those collisions and if not sitting in the room with somebody? How are you guys using technology to facilitate people collaborating from a distance?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: It's almost expected, just assumed that we'll all jump on Zoom. We'll use our cell phones. And you know, it's funny. At the beginning of this, I would think about-- OK, so I've showered, I have makeup, I've dressed appropriately. Now it's like, OK, some days I need to put my hair in a ponytail and ask for forgiveness on what you're going to see. Because--

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS]

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: --this is isn't about looking pretty. This is about being present.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: It's amazing. From where I've sat, I've had so many client conversations or colleague conversations-- very humanizing, right? So I'm seeing the insides of people's homes. I'm seeing their children. I'm seeing people on bad hair days. I'm seeing people that have literally just come in from a run and their ponytails are all crazy.

And it's interesting. It's not getting in the way of productivity and it's helping me to connect with people in a different way than I have in the past. So I think it's very interesting that you've just raised that point that it isn't about looking pretty. It's just about being in the work together. And it is creating a way to connect that we may not have had in the past.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Yeah, it's being authentic, right? And that is what society, I think, forgets, is bringing your authentic self to every situation. Some days you're going to have good days. Some days you're not going to have good days. It's being present with yourself and your team. And I read something this morning. The common question we ask people is, how are you? How are you doing? And often, we don't listen to the response. Well, now we've got to listen.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And I imagine that you are getting answers to that question at a time where people feel like hey, I'm actually not doing really well, I'm scared at this moment. Or my husband is in a job and there's economic uncertainty with his. So how are you encouraging your leaders to really listen. And in those moments where an employee may not be having the best day ever, how are you encouraging them to connect? Or what resources are you providing to help people through these moments?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Yeah, I would say three things. One, build in the space. And I know that's hard because we're jumping from one call to the next Zoom meeting. But try to build in space such that you, yourself, can get up from your workstation and just go for a quick walk around the house. Grab a healthy snack. But create that space so you are present. And the reason I start with that is because a leader needs to be present, right?

Because the second point I would say is put the camera on. Look at people. See how they're doing. Is there a question in their eyes? Is there pause? And ask them. Be curious. What's going on? Talk to me. And if they can't right now, then give them the space. But come back to them. Don't forget them.

And the third thing I would say is there are so many wonderful resources. Bring those into the workspace. Make them available. You don't have to have the best written communication. You can do things through PowerPoint. You can do things through email. You can do a quick video. There's so many tools being made available now.

And leverage the generations, right? We've got people with so much experience and we've got people new to the organization. This isn't about hierarchy. This is about us all bringing our ideas to the table and leveraging the best of those ideas.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: The great equalizer, right? Focus on the ideas versus the role-- yeah, interesting.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Oh, totally. I mean, this virtual care package that we created came from an individual that is quiet but creative. And we leveraged that person who doesn't sit on the communications team but who had capacity. So again, back to-- we want to protect our workforce. We want to leverage the capabilities within it. So let's be curious about who can do what and try things on.

And again, just slowing down to speed up. That's an advice that I took from somebody a long time ago. And I've tried myself to remember it. It really helps when you slow down and pause because then you're in the mindset to listen more effectively.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's great. I'm curious about you personally. It must be very difficult to be in a leadership role, and particularly one focused on the well-being of people, in a time when people are under so much stress. You raised a point around, hey, as a leader, you need to present. You need to up and take a walk. You need to make sure that you are able to be there for your team members. How are you managing the stress or how are you thinking about your own self-care through this?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: I try to get up at 5:00, maybe 5:30. Because being on the west coast, I start at 7:00 AM if I'm lucky. And so if I don't exercise, eat, and shower, it could be a tricky day. [LAUGHS] So I try to do work through things.

And look, I'm not looking to win any awards for the best bod by any means. But I do my 20 minutes of yoga. I have my brief little breakfast. And I at least try to shower. [LAUGHS] You know, there's something normalizing about that, right? Whereas if I was rolling out of bed every day doing this, I think I'd feel out of place.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Right.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Because I need to bring my routine to bear at home. So there's a comfort with that. The other piece that I would say is I travel quite a bit. And so I've been grounded since March 9. And my family loves it because I'm home. And I would say there was a bit of a reprieve initially. Like, oh, I have so much time on my hands. I don't have to pack. I'm not going to an airport. But with that, the weeks feel long and hard. And so the other thing we try to do every day is get out for a walk with the dog. And that happens towards the end of the day, and it has been a lifesaver just to feel the air and the sun, and see people at a distance.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Yes. [LAUGHS]

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Be outside and part of the world. It's very healing.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: It's been a big difference maker for myself and my 3 and 1/2 year old as well. The days we get him outside are the better days. And he is just a kid playing outside and making people laugh as they walk by because he's screaming at the top of the lungs, hello world! And so--

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: [LAUGHS]

TINEKE KEESMAAT: --I think that outside world is just-- it is very comforting. And even if you're at a distance, you can smile and say hi to people. And that, I think, helps me, personally anyways, believe that we're going to be OK and that people still can connect even if they can't be standing right beside each other. So that outside piece has definitely been huge for us as well here.

I'm curious. I know sometimes it's all uncertain and we're not sure what's going to happen next. But even in this moment, I'm curious if there's been any positive lessons that you've seen, or observed, or that you've learned that you think you may actually adopt to how you work going forward.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Oh, I think a big one is being practical in our execution.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS]

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Really. I mean, we strive for perfection. We can over-rotate on decisions. And I think right now, time is not our friend. And we need to be focused on what matters most and be practical in our execution. So we might not get it perfect. But we ask for your trust and we're doing our best. And where we don't get it perfect, you will know because we will own that. And where we do get it perfect, we will make sure that we thank the people that helped us get there.

It's not one person. It's a team. I mean, I'm terrible with sports analogies.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS]

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: At college they were much better. But we are a team right now. We're in this together.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's great. And what is your hope for other leaders during this time?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: When people ask, how are you doing? Or they ask, wow, how difficult this must be. How are you coping? And I think that my job is easy compared to those that are on the front line, those that are doctors, or nurses, or health care workers. And so my hope is that we never forget how fortunate we are to live in a community where we do care about the health of others. And we need to bring that into our workplace.

And the health and well-being of our people continues to be our first priority. And as leaders, we need to remember that. Our people are our greatest asset. And I know when people say that, it sounds philosophical more than real. But in these times, remember that and act with that objective in everything you do.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And is there a practical piece of advice that you'd have for leaders on how to do that effectively? So how do they make people our most important asset? How do they make that more than philosophical?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: I think you have to remember that each individual is a whole person. So what they bring to work, there is more to them than that. And in this environment, this is beyond anything we've ever seen. Remember, we don't have the answers because we haven't been here before.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Right.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: So remember the whole person is what you see. And they may not share that whole person. And so just be mindful, and curious, and be your authentic self. Show vulnerability. Because you too are a whole person. And some days, you may not be your best self. And we will forgive that, right? Because we are human and we're a community that's going through something incredibly unprecedented. It's just unbelievable what we are experiencing.

And we will live through this, and we will learn from it, and we will be better for it. But wow, is it ever scary, is it ever different.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And it's hard, in that difference and the scariness, to balance between that and then productive work, right?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Absolutely.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So I think there is a need for leaders to just recognize that when I'm having a moment of, holy heck, what's going on? Are we going to get through this? You might be having a productive moment. And so you may have a collision of where you are on that cycle. And just being conscious of that so that you can kind of work through it together and meet people where they are in that particular moment.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Absolutely. And say, hey, I've got this. Give it to me. I'll take it because I know tomorrow I might not be able to, and you'll take it. So we're here for each other, right? That's what families do. That's what communities do. That's what our health care workers are doing for us right now. They're putting themself in the most dangerous situation and we need to appreciate that by staying home, staying safe, and enabling them to do what they do best.

NARRATOR: And now let's get to know our guests a little better with some rapid-fire questions.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So Jacqui, one of the things that we like to do on LeaderLab is to help our listeners get to know you better as a person. And in these crazy times, we do think humanization and humor is needed. So don't think too much to the answers that you have. They're really just intended to be fun, five quick questions.

First, what is your go-to comfort food?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Peanut M&Ms.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Peanut M&Ms, very specific.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Let's be clear, yes.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS] Number two, what is your preferred re-energizing time, going for a workout or curling up with a book?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Oh, Netflix. Not a book, not a workout-- Netflix!

TINEKE KEESMAAT: One item you could never live without.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Peanut butter.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I'm sensing a theme with peanuts here.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: [LAUGHS].

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Your favorite cartoon character of all time.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Oh, I don't know! Oh my god. Does that make me a bad person?

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Not at all. I don't think I have one, actually.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: [LAUGHS]

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Your work from home attire-- PJs, fully dressed in a suit, or a little bit of both?

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Oh, it's a little bit of both, right? It's all professional from the waist up and then it's comfy slippers on the bottom down.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love it. Jacqui, this has been amazing. And again, you started this by talking about your curiosity and your care of people. And I've been struck by everything that you have said today is just how that curiosity and care is leading you to make amazing decisions for yourself and for your team. So I really appreciate you sharing your tips, and tricks, and advice, and for leading people through these uncharted times.

JACQUI MCGILLIVRAY: Well, I am honored that you asked me to join you. I think the world of what you're doing here. And I hope that your voice reaches many because it's comforting, it's reassuring, and it makes me smile.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS] Oh, that's good. Thank you.

NARRATOR: Thank you for joining us today on LeaderLab. LeaderLab is powered by Tilco, helping exceptional leaders achieve extraordinary results, and the Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School, Canada's home for learning and development. You can learn more about Tilco and LeaderLab at Tilco.ca. And to find out more about the Ivey Academy, go to IveyAcademy.com.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

In this episode, Dr. Ronald Cohn discusses:

• Why he chose paediatrics (1:02)
• When he first recognized himself as a leader (2:06)
• The difference between operational and visionary leaders (03:17)
• His leadership strengths (04:26)
• The importance of getting people on board with a new organizational vision (07:41)
• What he's doing to get people onside (10:44)
• Why it's important for the vision to be supported by people at all levels of the organization (12:52)
• The importance of emotional intelligence (EQ) for leaders (13:59)
• How leaders can display EQ with their team (15:16)
• How to foster autonomy in your employees so they're comfortable taking initiative (18:26)
• His top piece of advice for leaders (19:30)
• The craziest place he's been to (21:10)

Ronald's advice for leaders:

• Don't be afraid to ask questions and challenge the status quo (02:45)
• Be honest about your strengths and weaknesses (03:17)
• Be humble enough to delegate the work you need help with (06:04)
• Be empathetic and compassionate (14:33)
• Never underestimate the value of EQ to build trust, consensus and to motivate (15:52)
• Provide guidance and empower employees to make decisions (17:50)

More about Dr. Ronald Cohn:

Dr. Ronald Cohn has served as president and chief executive officer of The Hospital for Sick Children since 2019. He initially joined SickKids in 2012 as chief of the Division of Clinical and Metabolic Genetics, co-director of the Centre for Genetic Medicine, and senior scientist at the SickKids Research Institute. He became chief of Paediatrics at SickKids in 2016, as well as the chair of Paediatrics at the University of Toronto, where he was also part of the Department of Molecular Genetics.

Dr. Cohn was the first combined resident in paediatrics and genetics at the Johns Hopkins University, later becoming the director of the world's first multidisciplinary centre for hypotonia at that university's McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine. His research focuses on implementing genome-editing technologies for the treatment of neurogenetic disorders, and he has developed an interest in applying a concept of "precision child health" to the care of children – something he has worked to implement at SickKids through the use of cutting-edge technology (such as artificial intelligence, genomics, advanced imaging and innovative procedures).

Some of Dr. Cohn's awards include the David M. Kamsler Award for outstanding compassionate and expert care of paediatric patients and the Harvard-Partners Center for Genetics and Genomics Award in Medical Genetics.

Links to additional resources:

https://www.sickkids.ca

https://lab.research.sickkids.ca/cohn/

https://www.sickkidsfoundation.com/waystodonate

https://www.thestar.com/news/insight/2015/12/22/how-genome-editing-technique-known-as-crispr-is-giving-families-new-hope.html

www.tiltco.ca

https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/academy/

John Lounds reflects on how he achieved so much success. Good mentorship, building trust and building culture are all a part of the equation. 

Listen and Subscribe: 

Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify 

More about John Lounds:

John Joined the Nature Conservancy of Canada in 1997. Under John's Leadership, NCC has grown from an annual budget of $8 million to approximately $80 million in 2017. NCC and its partners have helped to protect over 14 million hectares of ecologically significant land since 1962.

John was previously a governor of the University of Waterloo, as well as a member of the Dean's Advisory Committee at the Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo. He has served as a director of the George Cedric Metcalf Charitable Foundation, the Smart Prosperity Initiative, the International Land Conservation Network and on the Canadian councils of the North American Bird Conservation Initiative and the North American Wetlands Conservation Act.

Links to Additional Resources:

natureconservancy.ca

Get involved with the Nature Conservancy of Canada

Memorable Quote:

"Nobody can do everything. If you can build partnerships, if you can build a team with those skills and abilities, the team can make it happen – but no one should think that they are the only person able to do all of this."

Full Episode Transcript:

TINEKE KEESMAAT: This leader has helped protect over 35 million acres of ecologically-significant land across Canada.

ANNOUNCER: Welcome to Leader Lab, where we talk to experts about how leaders can excel in a modern world. Helping leaders for over 20 years. Your host, Tineke Keesmaat.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: John Lounds is the president and CEO of Nature Conservancy of Canada. He is passionate about nature, conservation, and leadership. Under his guidance, the Nature Conservancy has grown exponentially over the past two years, from a budget of $8 million to $80 million.

On today's Leader Lab, he'll share some of the leadership lessons he learned along the way. John, welcome to the Leader Lab.

JOHN LOUNDS: Thank you.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: It's great to have you here, and I'm very curious if you could start by telling us a little bit about the path that brought you to the Nature Conservancy.

JOHN LOUNDS: Well, I never thought I'd start off working in a nonprofit charity. Many years ago in high school, I was-- studying computer science was one of the big areas I was going to go into, but I had a geography teacher who really inspired me and wanted me to think about how the world could be changed as a result of how you think about organizing on the landscape.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And what's kept you in nonprofit for so long, and specifically, in the environmental space?

JOHN LOUNDS: Well, the environmental space is my passion. I think a big part of working in a nonprofit charity is that you need to have the passion for the work. If you don't feel it, believe it, think it, dream it, live it, the people that you're talking to about the work you're doing will not hear you, they won't understand why it's important or what the impact can be.

This field is my field, that's where I want to be. I also wanted to work in an organization that worked right across the country. I'm a proud Canadian and believe that we have one of the best countries in the world, and I just want to make sure that that's what I'm doing as well. So coupling the nonprofit work with my interest in the environmental world has been great for me.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's amazing. And 20 years ago, environmental issues were not as talked about as they are now. So what has been the big shift in leading an organization? May not have been on the first page every day to now where it's everywhere you look.

JOHN LOUNDS: I think that's true, and they weren't-- these issues weren't being discussed so much many years ago, but there were some big problems that came to the surface while I was growing up, and folks may not remember the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland catching on fire in Lake Erie, other events such as that, those-- a river catching on fire? Like, what is going on here? Those kind of events really affected my thinking then.

I would say today with the awareness that people have and concern about-- whether it be climate change, biodiversity conservation, et cetera, we're seeing way more interest in the work we're doing, and I think that's somewhat contributed to the growth of the work of the Nature Conservancy of Canada, because there's more people who are understanding the importance of this work, and we've been welcoming them to the fold.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's amazing. And over the last two decades that you've been leading the conservancy, you have had a dramatic impact. So you raised the budget from $8 million to $80 million, you've protected over 35 million acres of Canadian land. How did you create such an ambitious vision?

JOHN LOUNDS: Well, it wasn't just me. I'd say one of my first lessons was the importance of finding and surrounding myself with really great people who would always challenge me and the team to think bigger. If you can find them, if you can listen to what they have to say, and know in your heart that you can actually accomplish more than you think you can, that combination can lead to some incredible things.

So I remember one of my past board members who spoke about what is the conservation equivalent of a nation-building exercise? Like really thinking beyond we're not just going to solve this property problem or we're just going to solve this little issue. What is a big way of thinking about it?

I also had some mentors. We had a session where we were talking about how much money we could possibly raise for one of our campaigns, and this was-- we had thought we would set a goal of $300 million thinking that was a very big number over several years. And this gentleman came to the front of the room to speak and he said, $300 million? That's not nearly enough. It needs to be $500 million. And the $500 million was actually what we then went away to do as a result of just that person pushing the boundaries of my thinking. I would never have thought of that. They push, they ask the tough questions, that's how the people that you surround yourself with can help you.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So John, that's amazing to have different perspectives pushing and challenging you and helping you to imagine what is possible. I can imagine that time that that might create some tension if your board is saying $500 million and your team is saying $200 million. How do you manage that tension?

JOHN LOUNDS: Well I actually find that tension to be important. It's that space between the staff who are obviously implementing the work that needs to be done and the board's role pushing and asking tough questions to come to a place where we can all agree on what the right-- or the best way forward would be.

And I'm a firm believer that if you have the staff being stronger than the board or the board being stronger than the staff, that you end up in a space that isn't as productive, doesn't create as much energy, and doesn't challenge-- whether challenging staff or challenging board members-- to get to the right answer going forward. So I look at this as a very important aspect of board-staff relationships, and it's a really important role for the CEO and the chair of the board to handle.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And I imagine that requires creating a lot of transparency and trust, right? So the board has to have some depth into what the organization's capabilities are, what they can actually do, and conversely, the staff needs to understand the role of the board.

JOHN LOUNDS: Transparency, making sure that you're prepared, you've informed the board, you haven't hidden anything-- good or bad, the information, that's all important and needs to be shone a light on and discussed. I sometimes find-- I've seen in other organizations where the CEO-- because on the role, you know a lot about what's going on in all aspects of the business, but sometimes these CEOs are impatient and want the board to decide quickly and will jump in and say, no, no, what about this, what about that? But that's probably the worst thing you can do. It's better to just sit back, let the board have its full discussion, gain understanding, and come to conclusions that they wish to take, because by doing that, you're going to end up heading in the right direction.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's great. So when we started this conversation, you talked about how nature is your passion, and I've been reading more and more about the importance of purpose in organizations-- so really helping people connect their passion to the work that they are doing. And I imagine that in your organization, you have lots of passion-driven individuals.

JOHN LOUNDS: 340 of them.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's awesome. Not everybody can say that.

JOHN LOUNDS: No.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And I'm just curious, could you talk to me a little bit about the benefits of leading a passion-driven organization and maybe what some of the unintended challenges might be?

JOHN LOUNDS: The benefit of leading a passion-driven organization is that you really don't have to motivate people to get up in the morning and come to work and do the work they do. That is not the issue. They are ready to run and ready to do what they can because they so fully believe in the mission of the organization.

The key, then, is how do you direct that energy and enthusiasm? How do you keep that enthusiasm going, but how do you direct that energy and enthusiasm? So the 340 people kind of working in the same direction, that's the challenge.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And what have you found to be helpful in channeling that energy?

JOHN LOUNDS: Well, one of the ways that nonprofits and charities proceed is they organize campaigns. And often people will see in the news that there's a campaign for x hundred million dollars or whatever the case might be. And the number is important, because you do need funds to run the business. But more importantly than the money is actually the alignment that a campaign provides for everybody working in the organization. By setting a common goal, describing the impact of that-- what's the vision? Not the big vision over time, but over the next five years. And by organizing people toward campaigns, it's a really great way of ensuring that everybody's energy is channeled together.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Because I mentioned, the campaign is-- the fundraiser, clearly they're the target for them, but also it connects to the programmers because they need to think about how they'll use that money and have a clear message on it, and then your communications folks, the stories that they are telling. So all of a sudden this big goal that you've set out in the campaign, every individual that knows what they need to do to make it happen.

JOHN LOUNDS: Absolutely. And it starts with what conservation work are you're going to get done, right? And what is the impact of that conservation work and can you describe it well to people? Because you can't raise money for just raising money. What is going to be the outcome? If I invest in the Nature Conservancy of Canada, what will happen over the next five years? All donors and funders are looking to know what that is.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I'm curious again on this notion of passionate-driven team members. I'm curious if you've ever had instances where somebody is hired, they're super passionate about the cause, they have great enthusiasm, and then they walk in the door and that enthusiasm doesn't necessarily translate to impact at an individual level. I'm curious if that happens and then how you handle it.

JOHN LOUNDS: I'd say folks that have come into the organization that don't have that passion, we've made a hiring mistake there, or they've made a hiring-- they've made a choice to come. We've had some people that come from private sector organizations that think, oh, I'll kind of retire on my way into the work here. That's never the case. And then they are suddenly surprised that they're working more than they were before.

I think you want to make sure you're getting the right people in the right seats on the bus, which is common parlance, but in nonprofits-- I'm a big fan of Peter Drucker in this regard. Basically that you need to look for that person's contribution. If they aren't working out in the role, it's best to think about can you re-pot these people into another role where they will be able to live their passion? And sometimes those require pretty tough conversations to get there, but I've found that that's not only for the person involved, but for the organization as a whole a better way to go.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So really thinking about what are their strengths, how can they have a contribution or make an impact here, and then thinking about where that actually fits with what the organization--

JOHN LOUNDS: Right. If they've truly come for the mission, if they're passionate about it, just leaving them by the wayside isn't going to actually help the overall cause as I was just describing. So you have to figure out how to use-- now sometimes the fit isn't quite right and those decisions sometimes are mutual, and perhaps other organizations that are working on environmental causes are a better fit in terms of their particular interests.

So we have lots of alumni from the Nature Conservancy of Canada and lots of other places for all sorts of good reasons.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's great. I love that. It's just this idea of really keeping the passion of the organization and the purpose, and then thinking about the individual-- what do they need? What are their strengths? Where is that going to be a fit? And sometimes it's here and sometimes it's elsewhere, but it really is thinking about what's going to make that individual thrive.

JOHN LOUNDS: In terms of choosing to work from home or wherever, that particular time is where we understand that, especially team members with young families. And in terms of the organization itself, we try and walk the talk that we are interested in the communities where we work, and where we believe that nature conservation is an important thing for Canada.

One of the things we actually instituted-- we did it as a special a couple of years ago, but one of the things we instituted this past year permanently was to provide staff with two nature days during the summer months so that they can go and appreciate and reflect on the work they do.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's amazing. I want to nature conservative day. [LAUGHS]

JOHN LOUNDS: Well, we'll set up a program and try and get many companies to do this. That'd be fantastic.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I think it'd be super fantastic. That's great. John, I just want to continue this conversation on nonprofits, and I'm wondering from your perspective, what you think some of the unique characteristics are of these organizations and how, as a leader, you may have to adapt our style to manage them.

JOHN LOUNDS: Well, I think one of the important aspects, obviously, is reputation and trust. We're not selling a good or service, really, so unless our reputation is beyond reproach and people trust us with the funds that they're giving us, the rest doesn't really happen. As I said, we have to remember every day that every dollar is a gift and people have voluntarily provided this to us.

So I think the reputation, being transparent, integrity, all the good things that should be part of any business are even heightened further in a non-profit charity. And I think part of it is just knowing yourself. That's a common phrase, but knowing who you are and who you're not, and then nobody can do everything, but if you can build partnerships, if you can build a team and make sure the team around you has all those skills and has all those abilities, the team can make it happen, but no one should think that they are the only person able to do all of this.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That amazing. I've been thinking more and more about the importance of leader self-awareness in being able to drive impact, because I believe that-- exactly that. If you-- nobody can do it all with themselves, and so by being aware, you can know where you need to augment your team or what you need to keep your energy up through the highs and lows of driving or leading an organization. What have you learned about yourself over the years that you've had to kind of not deal with, but that you've had to incorporate into your leadership style? And how have you done that?

JOHN LOUNDS: I think I'm in with a good group of people, because I would say that largely, the team here at the Nature Conservancy of Canada are likely skewed to the introvert side of the scale rather than the extrovert side of the scale. I'm one of those, and I've had to learn and train myself to push through my inclination to not want to talk about what we're doing, not want to get out there and yell in the bright lights about the work that's being done.

We're plant and animal people. We would like to talk to the plants and animals, we don't actually know people, a lot about them. But since our business is a relationship with people business, frankly, that, I think, I've had to strengthen, I think I have a very good understanding of how to individually relate to people. The challenge has been to speak more broadly and speak to larger groups, and I've been able to get there.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And what have you done to help yourself in those moments?

JOHN LOUNDS: Practice, practice, practice. It's about the only way to get over it. And then when I'm giving those talks, that I've checked in with the people around me to make sure I've asked, how did I do? You can always improve, and you can always do better. It's important that you get others to-- who will tell you the truth, to reflect on what you did that could be improved and what you did that maybe you should leave behind next time.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So John, when we were talking before the podcast, you mentioned how important you feel it is for leaders to the culture of their organizations. Can you tell me why this is important to you and examples of how you've made this happen? So the nature days would be one of those examples, but what else have you done to really make the culture come to life?

JOHN LOUNDS: What I've tried to do is instill a culture where people should listen to each other. You can learn a lot from not assuming that when somebody has said something, that that's actually what they're thinking, and get underneath that and listen to what they're really saying. The culture as I see it is you listen hard, you work hard, you play some, and again, you need to know that you can actually accomplish a lot more than you think you can, especially if you're working with your team.

And I try and walk that talk. Like I said, trying to be a flexible, caring place to work, having people get out into nature so that they understand-- I mean, we've got a lot of people that work in the field, but we also have a lot of people that work in the office doing finance and other things that it's important for them to actually get to see the work. And if you're here for 15 years, which sounds like a long time, we give you a week and some funds to go and travel anywhere in Canada to go and understand what that part of the world is like and get outside. So we try and really live that as much as we can.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's amazing. John, I really enjoyed the conversation, and lots of amazing insights for myself and for the people who listen to the Leader Lab. I'm curious, just as we round out our conversation, if you had one practical piece of advice for leaders, something they can take away from this conversation and go do tomorrow that would really impact their effectiveness, what would that piece of advice be?

JOHN LOUNDS: Well, I always start with my Stephen Leacock quote, which is, "I'm a great believer in luck, and the harder I work, the more I have of it." That's always watchwords for me. And one of the ways I try and do that is by not get caught up in the day-to-day and remember what the important things are. And I've had to do that. I do try and set aside three to four hours at least once a week to work on something important, because once you set aside that much time, you actually can't do your job, which is to think several years out, not just worry about what happened this month, last month.

And I even take that to another place where I actually will go out to a place that's likely within a forest or nearby, and I'll take two to three days and actually just sequester myself and go and do that, because I find unless you actually step back from the day-to-day, you forget your perspective on what the important things are and what needs to be done in order to take you out for the next several years.

ANNOUNCER: And now, let's get to know our guest a little better with some rapid fire questions.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: As we wrap up the podcast, we have my favorite part.

JOHN LOUNDS: Uh oh.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: The random questions. Don't worry, they're not hard.

[LAUGHTER]

And just your first responses.

JOHN LOUNDS: OK.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: First, the craziest place in the world that you've been.

JOHN LOUNDS: Oh no.

[LAUGHTER]

The craziest place in the world that I've been? That's supposed to be my first response?

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Yeah. There's no right answer.

JOHN LOUNDS: I know there's no right answer, but I could do a lot of places.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's awesome. Or most surprising place.

JOHN LOUNDS: Manila. Oh, a surprising place? Labrador.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Are you an early bird or a night owl?

JOHN LOUNDS: Early bird.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I'm not surprised. You as a teenager in three words.

JOHN LOUNDS: Lost, driven, and a bit unsure of myself.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So a typical teenager.

JOHN LOUNDS: Yeah.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And your favorite emoji?

JOHN LOUNDS: I hate emojis.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS] Fair enough. And the all-important final question-- how do you feel about Brussels sprouts?

JOHN LOUNDS: I'm not a fan.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: [LAUGHS] Awesome.

ANNOUNCER: Thank you for joining us today on Leader Lab. Leader Lab is powered by Tiltco, helping exceptional leaders achieve extraordinary results. And the Ivey Acedmy at Ivey Business School, Canada's home for learning and development. You can learn more about Tiltco and Leader Lab a tiltco.ca. And to find out more about the Ivey Academy, go to iveyacademy.com.

In this episode, Jeff Fielding discusses:

• His job trajectory (01:04)
• Four leadership principles and how they've guided him through challenging times (02:07)
• How to handle a crisis (04:15)
• How to develop "leadership courage" to have difficult conversations (06:13)
• The value of humour in tense situations (07:20)
• Lessons learned from navigating complex stakeholder relationships (08:16)
• Managing the impact of social media on public discussion (10:13)
• The importance of lifelong learning to remain current and connected (12:50)
• How to prepare for the first month of a new leadership role (15:32)
• How leaders can bring people together and build consensus (19:27)
• How he feels about brussel sprouts (23:08)

Jeff's advice for leaders:

• Do the right thing and do it well (02:10)
• Care about other people (03:16)
• Be true to yourself and lead by example (06:16)
• Communicate clearly, and with the goal of being understood (09:26)
• Listen and learn before taking action (15:50)

More about Jeff Fielding

Jeff Fielding has been in civil service since 1978. He's a consensus builder and passionate civil leader known for speaking truth to power. Now the Chief of Staff to the city manager for Toronto, he's also held the job of city manager for Calgary, Burlington, Ont., and the City of London. Fielding is also an educator who has lectured at Western University's Ivey School of Business in the MBA and Executive MBA programs, as well as in the University of Winnipeg's Geography Department.

Fielding was the first recipient of the Award of Excellence in Local Government from Western University. He also received a John Robinson Award for Reducing Violence Against Women and a Calgary Construction Association Partnership Award for Industry Partnership. He's a board member of the Canadian Council for Private Public Partnership and an Executives-in-Residence at the Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership at the Ivey School of Business.

Links to additional resources:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/city-manager-jeff-fielding-1.4974968

"There's a lot going on in people's minds today and trying to understand that and gain those insights is absolutely critical as a leader, because you can misstep so easily."

In this episode, Michael Downey discusses:

• The culture change he felt was needed at Tennis Canada (02:00)
• What he did to create change (02:54)
• The importance of having people at the top who support your vision (04:03)
• How he managed push back from those in the industry who weren't on board with this plan to bring in external talent (05:12)
• Key lessons learned (07:52)
• How his vision for the organization developed over time (09:09)
• His approach to creating the right strategy and culture (14:34)
• The importance of continuing to push for growth (17:36)
• Advice for other companies looking to shift their strategy (20:55)
• His favourite emoji (25:10)

Michael's advice for leaders:

• Look at the problem from every angle (02:54)
• Know where your resources are and make the most of them (07:52)
• Be nimble (09:46)
• Get outside help if needed and keep your board on board (21:18)
• Let your passion show (22:21)

More about Michael Downey:

Michael Downey has been the President and CEO of Tennis Canada since 2004, with a brief break between 2013 and 2017, when the left to head up the British Lawn Tennis Association.  During his tenure at Tennis Canada he set out to transform the organization from one known for hosting tournaments to a leader in talent development and high performance. He's credited with changing the company's culture and prompting its board of directors to invest in new talent. His work helped develop tennis stars such as Milos Raonic and Eugenie Bouchard, whose performances on the world stage raised the profile of Tennis Canada to unprecedented levels. In 2013, he was recruited to oversee British Tennis, where he led the development of a new strategic plan focussed on reversing a decade long decline in grassroots participation.

He was previously the president of the Ontario-Western Canada region at Molson Breweries and held senior executive positions with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Toronto Raptors. He also served as President of Skydome and Molson Sports and Entertainment. Downey lives in Toronto with his wife Jinder and has three children, Schara, Mackenzie and Sam.

Links to additional resources:

http://www.tenniscanada.com

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/tennis/article-rising-stars-boost-interest-in-tennis-in-canada-but-lack-of-winter/

Memorable quote:

"It's about focus, and doing your best practices and developing the strategies – and then basically sticking to the approach because it may not be easy out of the gate."

Hilaree Nelson is the first woman to climb Mt Everest & Mt Lhotse within 24 hours, she's trekked through the jungles of Mynamar in a quest to map out its tallest peak, and, has led teams through expeditions in some of the most wild and wonderful corners of the earth. National Geographic named her 2018 Adventurer of the Year. North Face has named her their Athlete Captain. And, she's become a strong advocate for environment and the foundation Protect Our Winters

Leadership lessons learned:

1. Failure alone is a moment, it's what you do after that creates growth.
2. Say what's on your mind, say it early and be direct.
3. Help teams find trust in each other, it will enable them to perform in the tough moments.
4. Take time to understand each team members backstory , understanding motivations will help you in a crisis situation. 
5. Never let yourself become a know-it-all, be a lifelong learner
6. Don't get caught up in your mistakes, it is how you handle it that will make you a strong leader. 
7. Follow your passion, the rest will follow.

Mentioned in this episode:

Hilaree Nelson website

Hilaree Nelson Instagram

Protect Our Winters website

TILTCO website 

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In this episode, Maggie Clinton the Founder of Trinity Leadership Coaching, shares how expectations of people leaders have changed and provides practical ideas on how organizations can better prepare and support their people leaders.

• Leadership is a relationship between those who aspire to lead and those who chose to follow [1] . Leadership is not about the title or position it is about the relationship between two individuals. Leaders are choosing to lead. People are choosing who they want to follow. And both are aspiring to grow. 
• Our environment is changing at an unprecedented rate. Digitization, AI, remote/hybrid work, generational shifts, etc. are influencing a shift in what it means to lead.
• People want more from their people leaders. They want inclusive and holistic leadership so they can bring their whole self to work. This requires leaders to communicate in ways that are inspiring, to be able to make sense of the changing context, to be able to articulate clear outcomes, and hold employees accountable to clear expectations.
• For new people leaders, a big mindset shift is from being the "doer" to being the "enabler". The first role as a new people leader is a big transition. It requires a shift in mindset from the person who does the task to the person who creates the environment for others to get the tasks done.
• The ability to understand your impact on the team and those people around you is important. People leadership requires deep self-awareness and humility. Self-awareness can be built through psychometric testing, gathering feedback, self-reflection, and coaching.
• Great organizations invest in selection, preparation, and support to create strong people leaders. Organizations need to think carefully about the leadership traits they want in their people leaders – and then to select people with these traits into roles. They also need to prepare people leaders earlier in their careers – ensuring they have the skills and mindsets to be successful. Finally, they need to ensure that people leaders can access ongoing support to learn, develop, and grow.
• Peer networks are a highly effective tool for people leaders. Connecting people leaders together as peers is a low-cost, effective tool to help people leaders grow their confidence and skills. 

Interesting reads on people leadership

Managers are burned out. Here's how to help them recharge (HBR)

Investing in middle managers pays off – literally (McKinsey)

What does it meant to be a manager today

Google spent a year researching great managers. The most successful ones shared these traits.

Meet Maggie Clinton

Maggie is passionate about building better people leaders by designing and developing high-impact leadership programs and through effective 1:1 coaching. Maggie has an MA in leadership from Royal Roads University focused on post-leadership programs sustainment where her work convinced her of the power of peer coaching. Maggie is also certified in MBTI, Hogan Assessments, EQi-2.0 and EQ 360. Connect with Maggie Clinton on LinkedIn here and Trinity Leadership Coaching here.

Thought pieces by Maggie:

What I learned in my first year since launching Trinity Leadership

4 ways to drive impact in your leadership programs – Part I

4 ways to drive impact in your leaders programs – Part II Prioritize community over content

About TILTCO

Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, TILTCO is a boutique consulting firm that helps leaders define and execute their strategies to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. As LeaderLab host, Tineke brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture as she explores how to help today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

[1] Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2012). The Leadership Challenge. San Francisco: A Wiley Brand.

Michael Katchen has acheived personal leadership and company growth at the same time.  Wealth Simple started as a simple investment tool on an excel sheet and now holds over $6 billion in assets.  The company has a winning culture which plays a big part in its success. 

Key Takeaways:

• Wealthsimple has disrupted the financial services industry, but it was an accident. Its creation came from a much more natural place. Michael wanted to make investing easier for his generation. 
• People and teams love big visions. Michael strives to get the best out of his employees by giving everyone a purpose and take on more accountability in their roles. 
• The scale of the business has grown dramatically and Michael is still trying to find his footsteps. He is a first time CEO managing 300 people. As a pretty green leader, he is constantly reinventing himself to meet the demands of each stage of the business. 
• As you scale drastically, you will have to give up some control or else the whole ecosystem just won't work. 
• What kind of talent does Michael look for? He looks for a 'Maker Owner'. Someone who has a desire to build new things and an owner that is willing to step up and face the problems or roadblocks in the way. 
• Good company culture has played a huge part in the success of Wealthsimple, but so many founders get culture wrong. Regular drinks outside of work or a ping pong table doesn't make 'culture'. 
• As a leader, it's okay to admit when you don't know something. Show vulnerability, have humility, and have good mentors on your side. 
• Figure out what kind of leader you want to be. There are a lot of leadership styles, so take on one that feels natural to you. 
• Stay until the end for some rapid fire questions with Michael! 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Wealthsimple.com

Give Away Your Legos — Article 

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Scott Rutherford is an Associate Professor and the Executive Director of the Weider Foundation Leadership Development Lab at the Rotman School of Management. Prior to this, Scott was the Practice Expert on Leadership Mindsets and Capabilities at McKinsey & Company. Today's discussion dives into the differences between happiness and joy, and why it's important to focus and pursue joy instead of happiness. With so many leaders in very rewarding and prestigious positions, why is it that they're so unhappy? Scott weighs in! 

Key Takeaways:

• Scott shares the difference between chasing happiness and chasing joy. Happiness is temporary, but joy is a much deeper feeling. It is a mood. 
•  We want independence, autonomy, and freedom. We are granted those things by working fulfilling jobs, but as we climb up the ladder to continue to strive for these core desires, we end up moving further and further away from it as all of our free time gets consumed in the work. 
• How can you keep a pulse on your joy? It comes to deliberate thinking on what brings you meaning in life and being present with where you are. 
• Millennials want to do meaningful work and companies are noticing this. They see that in order to make their staff happy, they have to bring more to the table than just a paycheck. 
• Leaders can encourage their staff to experience joy by asking them meaningful questions about why they like the work that they do. Joy is a very personal thing, so each person is going to answer uniquely. Take that in and encourage them to keep pursuing their joy.  

Mentioned in This Episode:

Rotman.utoronto.ca

All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood by Jennifer Senior

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David Burnie is the Founder of The Burnie Group, a management consulting firm that focuses on helping clients design innovative strategies and continuously pursue operations excellence. On today's episode, David discusses how no industry is safe from disruptive innovation and gives tips on how you can be proactive.  

Key Takeaways:

• Some may fear it but automation is going to help society. As more people retire we will have less workers to support them. It will allow people to focus on higher value jobs and eliminate some of the monotony. 
• We are experiencing the fourth industrial revolution. As technology increases exponentially, we will begin to see artificial intelligence, robotic process, and the internet of things explode. 
• With every industrial revolution, people have been scared about their jobs, but these revolutions have significantly improved quality of life. Today we are at the highest level of unemployment we have ever seen. 
• Every industry, even ones that haven't been affected in years, will be disrupted with innovation, and that's a good thing! We will be working more efficiently overall. 
• Examples of innovations include:
  • Internet of things will be elevated by 5G and will allow data to be transported very quickly. (eg. will be able to track bananas and optimized shipping conditions based on product demand)
  • Block chain will allow multiple parties to share information (eg. better sharing of electricity between homes)
  •  
• It's important to get ahead of the curve, before your competition does. Here are some things you can do: 
  
  • Get educated - read and go to conferences
  • Bring in experts - don't try to do everything yourself
  • Innovation training -  train your leaders and the front line on new technologies 
  • Embrace innovation - have a contest for employees to bring in new ideas 
  • Performance management & targets - allow people to fail and create incentives to try new things 
  • Innovation funds - work with entrepreneurs and offer to pilot new technologies 
  • Change how you recruit - look for flexibility and adaptability
• Stay until the end for some rapid-fire questions with David! 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Burniegroup.com

Burnie Group Twitter 

Burnie Group LinkedIn

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Joe Thacker is the Founder of Fusion Analytics, a Canadian company that helps retailers use their data to make smarter decisions. Fusion Analytics has been named one of Canada's fastest growing companies five years in a row. Joe shares how to get a grip on your data and be able to understand it. Does everyone really need a data scientist? It all depends on what kind of problem you're trying to solve! Before you dive into the data, it's important to first ask the right questions about what you'd like to achieve with it. 

Key Takeaways:

● Data is exponentially growing, but it is important to not focus on what is available rather what you need. Start by asking what business problem you are trying to solve.

● Instincts are to go too deep too fast which makes you swim in a soup of data. Get alignment at the board and executive level first.

● Give your data scientist (could be internal or external) the problems you need to solve vs. the tools they need.

● Data scientist need so be able answer business questions using plain language (in a way you understand). This is a good screen for the right person for your team.  

● Need to move from being a data scientist to an artist where you can take different points of data and turn it into a story

● Automation is changing the way we work and will continue to make more processes dynamic

● Embrace it knowing we are moving to automation and see how you can get involved or be on the forefront of innovation

● Stay until the end for some rapid fire questions with Joe!

Mentioned in This Episode:

Fusionanalytics.com

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Janeen Speer is the VP of Talent at Shopify. She brings years of leadership experience to the table and has worked in management roles at Starbucks, Lululemon, and WestJet. It is in Shopify's culture to build a human-centric organization that focuses on their biggest asset — the people. Janeen shares how Shopify leaders reinforce this vision everyday to their team and how current leaders can take some of these human-centric principles and apply it into their own businesses today. 

Listen in as Janeen shares practical ways that Shopify is building its human centric organization including:

- Innovating how it recruits people through a "life story" exercise- Providing free coaching at every level

- Giving people back time through Meetingless Wednesdays

- Hosting "Ask Me Anythings" where team members "vote up" critical questions on their minds; and leaders answer. Real time.

- Investing in understanding people's personal objectives and considering them as they make work assignment

 - Valuing two distinct paths

                – a technical and leadership path

                – so people can best use their strengths and follow their passions

Stay tuned to the end where Janeen shares her thoughts on how to start your own quest to create a human-centric organization and answers some fun, rapid-fire questions

Key Takeaways:

• What is Shopify's vision? 
• Janeen shares some practical ways Shopify puts their people first.
•  Free coaching is available to anyone at any level at Shopify.
• What happens on Meetingless Wednesdays and how has that improved mental well being? 
•  Shopify also has leader AMAs (Ask Me Anything), where people in the organization can ask their leaders some of their most burning questions. 
• Shopify has a deep commitment to understanding people's personal objectives as well. 
• What kind of leadership qualities does Shopify look for? 
• How does Shopify support leaders in their journeys? 
• Janeen offers advice on how you can embark on your own journey to create a human-centric organization. 
• Stay until the end for some rapid-fire questions with Janeen!

Mentioned in This Episode:

Shopify.com

Janeen on LinkedIn

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In this episode, Ryan Burwell, Director of Training & Facilitation at TwentyOne Toys shares how leaders can use the joy, curiosity, and experimentation of play to create stronger teams and improve business results.  

• Play is a mindset of curiosity, experimentation, learning from failure and embracing diversity – it's not about ping pong tables and team karaoke events. While social moments are important, play runs deeper. It is about how leaders invite teams to ideate, to try new things, and to think beyond what's been done before.
  
• Leaders have a critical role in unlocking play for their teams. Great leaders allow teams to truly ideate in early stages of projects, are choiceful in their language (e.g., "let's play with that more"), and avoid 'shutting down' ideation too quickly after failure.
  
• Play can drive better performance. Better business results are driven by the new, creative, and stronger ideas that are unlocked through play-inspired experimentation and open-minded thinking. Teams may experience stronger retention by creating an environment where individuals are having fun, thinking big, and feeling like they can introduce new ideas.
  
• Strong emotional intelligence is critical for leadership success. Empathy helps leaders tap into diversity and unlock innovation. Embracing failure helps leaders develop resiliency, strength, and confidence.

Connect with Ryan Burwell on LinkedIn here. Check out TwentyOne Toys here.

Meet Ryan Burwell

Ryan is passionate about play. He believes that organizations who approach work and teams with curiosity, experimentation, open-minds, fun and joy will ultimately achieve better results. Both for the business and for the human beings inside. As the Director of Training and Facilitation at TwentyOne Toys, Ryan has worked with executives, post-secondary organizations and teams all over the world increase their emotional intelligence through play. Ryan believes that playing is learning – and that we'll never be too old or too accomplished to benefit from both. 

About TILTCO

Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. As our LeaderLab host, Tineke brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company, Accenture, and TILTCO to support today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

In an era where the pace of change is rapid and relentless, the need for effective team communications is critical. People leaders will be the primary point of contact, and will need to be prepared and equipped to effectively engage and guide their teams forward.  

In this episode, we dive into the art of team communications with Lisa Durante, Chief Content Strategist at Jack Communications. She shares how people leaders can build personal connections with their teams to engage in two-way, productive conversations. 

In our conversation, Lisa shares the following insights:  

●      People leaders are the conduit of company messages, contextualizing information for their teams.
"The vision, the plan, the context of what is changing really does need to come from the top of the house, but the people leaders need to translating that for the employees. Oftentimes that's missed. So, it's providing people leaders with the information and time to consumer and digest it, as well as providing them the skills to be able to communicate it in a way that will resonate with their team.

●      The art of conversation is the foundation for effective communications for people leaders
"We're actually losing the art of the conversation. We text, email. We spend time on Zoom or Teams – it's a lot of one-way of conversing. And then we're not in the office, so we're not having those hallway interactions. We're losing that art of the conversation – that ability to look someone in the eye, translate their body language or read the energy in a room – all of that is really important and necessary for communicating effectively."

●      Connection fosters more open and receptive communication environments
"It's the humanness of each of us, that we are more receptive and more willing to listen… Leaders that spend time connecting before sharing messages, especially if there's going to be any hard message coming down, so being prepared and having that connection is the strong foundation that you can depend on no matter which way the business or environment requires you to go."

●      Leaders should use any and all available communications methods to connect with their people
"I really think more leaders need to be active externally. This isn't to share company information externally. It's another way where your team is seeing you, where they can engage with you, where they can see what you're thinking about or talking about. It will give another dimension of them to connect with you."

Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ldurante/. Learn how Lisa can help you communicate internally and externally https://jackcommunications.ca/. 

Meet Lisa Durante

Lisa Durante is a storyteller obsessed with telling authentically human stories that help businesses and leaders build authentic connections with their people. Her 20+ year career started in journalism and has evolved with the ever-changing field of marketing and communications, spanning executive and internal communications, content marketing, thought leadership and social media marketing. She has successfully supported organizations from start-ups to F500 global companies, including KPMG, CPP Investments, Siemens and MetLife, better connect with their audiences and more successfully achieve their business objectives. Visit https://jackcommunications.ca/ for more information.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

The rapid and frequent changing dynamics affecting teams demands innovation. It also demands people leaders more actively facilitate innovation on their teams. 

In this episode, we talk with Robyn Bolton, Chief Navigator of innovation consultancy, MileZero, about how people leaders can create the synergies on their teams to innovate focused ideas that will move a business forward, while setting in place the structures to move ideas forward.

In our conversation, Robyn shares the following insights: 

●      Leadership matters more today in part due to innovation and evolving dynamics

"Leadership has always mattered, it matters more now than ever because change is happening so fast, and things are so uncertain and work requires so much interaction. And so, leadership is no longer managing and making things happen. It's very much about truly leading people and setting a vision and encouraging people to follow you."

●      Unlocking productive innovation starts with defining the problem clearly for your team

"If there is a problem that needs to be solved, frame it and give people somewhere to focus their attention. A lot of leaders worry: am I shutting down creativity. No, you're not. Creativity thrives within constraints."

●      Listening and critical thinking will fuel innovation on your team

"When you see a leader actually listening to someone, it changes the whole mood on the team, the whole atmosphere. The other thing is leading with questions, genuine questions, and then listen to the answer so you can engage in a conversation about ideas."

●      Leverage the human-ness of your teams to innovate ideas
"Humans are messy and we can't eliminate the mess. So how do we work with it? How can we take the things that make us human, our emotions, our perceptions, our intuition, and instead of being scared and trying to minimize them, how can we actually turn them into tools and data that help us work better?"

Connect with Robyn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robynmbolton/. Learn how Robyn can help you and your team innovate at https://www.milezero.io/.

Meet Robyn M. Bolton

Robyn M. Bolton is the Founder and Chief Navigator of MileZero, a consultancy that works with leaders of medium to large enterprises to use innovation to consistently and confidently grow their revenue. Her clients include Nike, Medtronic, Warner Bros Discovery, Curriculum Associates, and Motif Food Works. Previously, she was a Partner at Innosight, the consulting firm founded by Clayton Christensen, and also worked at the Boston Consulting Group and as a Brand Manager at P&G where she helped launch Swiffer and Swiffer WetJet. Visit https://www.milezero.io/ for more information.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

Companies tell us they want people to bring their whole selves to work, but leaders aren't quite set up to accept, support and lead the whole human beings on their team. To add, leaders aren't assessed, let alone rewarded, to do so. 

Yet, the data continues to show that happier, more engaged people perform better, are more productive, are less absent and less likely to leave their company. 

In this episode, Dan Pontefract, renowned leadership strategist, author and keynote speaker, calls on leaders to create a better mix of work and life factors to support their teams through the different seasons of their work and personal lives. This way, leaders and teams can thrive and bloom. 

In our conversation, Dan shares the following insights: 

• Leadership is increasingly impacted by the societal and personal pressures affecting people today.
  "There's a palpable increase in stress, anxiety, burnout, loneliness and isolation. I don't believe that we as leaders are actually paying enough attention to these societal factors." 

• We can't disconnect our work self and our life self, and leaders need to be sure they're considering both when leading teams.
  "Work and life are inseparable puzzle pieces. People can't completely check all that's going on in their life at the door when they're at work. So if you're a leader you should be thinking about your people as holistic human beings and look at their well-being, their connections, their skills, their sense of meaning, do they feel respected, are the organizational norms here normal, etc. And, ask yourself what you need to do to help people see that you're there to care about them as a whole human beings."

• Human centered leadership requires understanding where people are in their life and supporting them through it, rather than penalizing them for it.
  "People's lives are cyclical and they can fit into one of four quadrants: blooming, budding, renewal and stunted. We know that people aren't at their best at times because of these cycles and seasons. So this model and this way of thinking can be a way for leaders to appreciate when people are on the downs and be able to offer them some tools to support them through the stage." 

• Unlocking human potential and caring for your employees can be learned.  
  "You can always teach people to be better human beings, ergo leaders can learn and develop the muscle of what it means to be a more holistic, wholesome, empathic type of leader. There are certain large chasms to cross for certain individuals. There are others that are just genuinely awesome human beings, and typically, this type of leadership comes naturally to them. But this is learned, and you can get better even if these skills are or are not innate to you." 

• Leaders have the tools to support their teams through the seasons of work and life, it's a matter of knowing when to push and when to stand on the sidelines.
  "When you lead a team, presumably, you've been there before and you've got some experiences that can help your team from a work side. For the life side, there's a point in which we want leaders to know they don't want to go too far. You can stay on the periphery of it and just say, alright, let me know how I can help. But that doesn't mean you wait a year to ask again, you're sort of checking in regularly to make sure the balance isn't off." 

Check out Dan's latest book: https://www.danpontefract.com/work-life-bloom-preorder/. 

Learn more about Dan and his work at https://www.danpontefract.com/

Meet Dan Pontefract

Dan Pontefract is a renowned leadership strategist, author, and keynote speaker with over two decades of experience in senior executive roles at companies such as SAP, TELUS, and Business Objects. Since then, he has worked with organizations worldwide, including Salesforce, Amgen, the State of Tennessee, Nestlé, Canada Post, Autodesk, BMO, the Government of Canada, Manulife, Nutrien, and the City of Toronto, among others.

As an award-winning and best-selling author, Dan has written five books: WORK-LIFE BLOOM, LEAD. CARE. WIN., OPEN TO THINK, THE PURPOSE EFFECT, and FLAT ARMY. Dan also writes for Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and other outlets.

Dan is a renowned keynote speaker who has presented at four TED events and has delivered over 600 keynotes . He is an adjunct professor at the University of Victoria's Gustavson School of Business and has received over 25 industry, individual, and book awards.

Dan's career is interwoven with corporate and academic experience, coupled with an MBA, B.Ed, and multiple industry certifications and awards. Notably, Dan is listed on the Thinkers50 Radar, HR Weekly's 100 Most Influential People in HR, PeopleHum's Top 200 Thought Leaders to Follow, and Inc. Magazine's Top 100 Leadership Speakers.

Learn more about Dan at his website: https://www.danpontefract.com/ 

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

AI is powerfully evolving jobs, organizations and industries. Will it redefine what it means to be a leader, too? 

In this episode of LeaderLab, we are joined by Levi Goertz, Head of Client Solutions at Valence, who helps us unravel how AI may automate and augment leadership with workforce trends and insights to speed up decision-making. But AI is only a tool and the value of human connection, empathy and intentionality will likely remain irreplaceable.

In our conversation, Levi shares the following insights:

Effective leadership has always been a combination of intuition and data.
"Psychological safety, trust, strong communication that hasn't changed and I don't think it will change. How you achieve it changes." 

AI can be a valuable partner to people leaders, offering them the data and insights to make a greater impact on their teams.
"Rather than starting from a blank cursor or page, you can get a first draft ready based on a series of inputs… and so instead of spending time gathering all the data and prepping everything, you can spend a good 45 minutes thinking about how you'll share the feedback and that will have a much higher impact on your team."

Intentional reflection done consistently is a key practice behind the best people leaders. 
"Invest a bit of time in the reflection of your people, how you think your team is responding to you, maybe get some feedback from them on how you are doing, and also, most importantly, consider the impact you're having on the people you're leading."

Learn how Levi and the team at Valence are using AI to build more successful and empathetic leaders and teams: https://www.valence.co/

Meet Levi Goertz

Levi leads Client Solutions at Valence and lives for you to make an impact with our tools. He joined Valence in the early days and has worked with 100% of our clients who use the tools. He wants to bring that knowledge to you.

Levi previously co-founded a software startup that grew organically to over 100 staff with operations in 22 countries across Africa and Asia.

He learned how to tuck in his shirt and support client success at McKinsey & Company where he advised on organizational transformations and IT projects.

Despite being a hippie in his youth Levi now has an MBA from UC Berkeley and a B. Eng from the University of Saskatchewan. He spends Saturdays riding a giant cargo bike taking his 2 children to hockey.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.

Teams work together differently today. Team members also face different challenges and opportunities. This demands a new approach for people leadership and the people and systems that support them. 

In this episode, Stefani Okamoto, Director of Manager Excellence at ServiceNow, shares her deep passion for people leadership and offers insights on how companies can build a pipeline of amazing people leaders. 

In our conversation, Stefani shares the following insights:  

·      Care needs to be the heart of people leadership today, especially as we work differently than before and face rapidly changing dynamics.

"Having a leader that is more caring, that is more supportive and in tune to who you are as a human being, collectively – both professionally and personally – is more important than ever before. Before Covid, teams were together all the time, which made connecting as a team easier. Now, in our dispersed way of working, leaders really have to intentionally find ways to connect with each person."

·      The role of people leader is more difficult than ever and they need a company and senior leadership that sets them up for success.

"The data show that people managers are burning out at a rate faster than employees. So, companies need to set managers up for success by clarifying their role at the company and really valuing it. This can come in a few different ways: flipping around the performance conversation and rewarding managers who are really showing up for their teams. Senior leaders also have a role to play, acknowledging people leaders for taking on this difficult role of caring for our employees."

·      Clarifying roles with each employee is the most important thing you can do for your team.

"Whether it's a new team or an existing team, it's critical to clarify roles, first and foremost. Then, together with each person, define the goals within the description or definition of the role. Also, identify individual career goals, so you can make sure you're getting the business objectives done collectively with your team, and helping each person find meaning in their work that can open them to future career growth and opportunities."

Connect with Stefani on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefani-okamoto-1376039/

Meet Stefani Okamoto
Management Excellence is my passion - Being an incredible manager is my purpose. I consider myself exceptionally fortunate to live my purpose and passion in the work I do every day.

In my 23 years at Microsoft, I reinvented myself many times. I grew from being a software tester to the leader of Management Excellence in Global Learning and Development. I was instrumental in redefining the Role of the Manager and landing the Manager Expectations: Model, Coach, Care. I worked to increase the skills and capabilities of Microsoft's 30,000 managers every single day - while ensuring every manager prioritized authentically caring for each team member as human beings, especially during some of the most difficult times the world had seen. This work significantly impacted the culture at Microsoft.

In my current role, I am privileged to contribute to the success of ServiceNow, in owning Manager Excellence. I've crafted a manager excellence strategy that is designed to equip every manager with role clarity, explicit expectations, a segmented manager portfolio, and a system for recognition and accountability. My mission is to enhance manager skills and competencies, while ensuring that every manager places genuine care for each team member at the heart of their leadership. Simultaneously, I'm working diligently to ensure that each employee has a consistent, positive experience with their manager - in an environment where they can perform at their absolute best. I am dedicated to shaping the future of management at ServiceNow, ensuring that managers are well-equipped to lead effectively, and employees thrive under their guidance.

I'm proud that I not only own and drive this work, but I authentically and genuinely live and model it every day as a manager. It is my passion. It is my purpose.

About TILTCO
TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today's leaders achieve exceptional results.