1. You advocate for the power of positive disruption. How do concepts like managerial courage contribute to fostering an environment of positive change within an organization?
Deliver your convictions with confidence and vision, and then people will naturally follow you. Deliver on your commitments, and then people will emulate you. Positive disruption is doing and thinking differently than the current state. People will have a higher level of resistance when they don’t see a vision, they don’t see leadership and don’t see “wins” as the journey continues. Have a plan, communicate the impact, and recognize the wins and defeats. Learn and repeat.
2. Your career has spanned diverse sectors, including media, pharmaceuticals, and emerging technologies. How do adaptable attitudes play a crucial role in navigating the challenges unique to each industry?
Change is inevitable regardless of a career change, an industry change, or a change within a role. Recognizing that every day is going to be different and that your role is different each day, year, and initiative, you can help the organization manage change. Adaptability is less about changing than it is about recognizing that change needs to occur. If you can’t answer the question “why” we are doing something, then it is time to look forward to change.
3. How can HR professionals cultivate curiosity within their teams to drive innovation and continuous improvement?
Curiosity is the need to know and learn. It is a passion for the “why”. While the concept of the 5 whys was created out of a need in the 1930s, it is as relevant today having our teams ask and answer the “why”. Why is there value in this? Why is it done this way? Why can’t it be done another way? Etc. Challenge your team to answer the why. Challenge your business to answer why. If there is no answer, then change. Reward change and curiosity by listening to ideas, thanking people for their ideas, and supporting their ideas.
4. What strategies have you found most effective in driving cultural change within organizations, especially those resistant to change?
The idea of breaking the bone so it grows back stronger may seem a bit harsh, but organizations are like the human body, sometimes they need to be broken to heal back better. First, people, do you have the right people in the organization? If not, even if they have skills, their resistance will prevent change. Second, do you have the right structures? If not, change reporting lines, change hierarchies, or change how and where work is done. And third, do people have the right measures of success? Changing what success looks like, can change how people achieve what they are doing.
5. Your expertise extends to High Tech and Emerging Markets. How does HR strategy differ in these dynamic environments, and what unique challenges and opportunities have you encountered?
High tech is the innate ability to be ahead of the market. Getting innovative thinkers and visionaries to predict the future. Emerging markets are about speed and the ability to execute quickly. Be in front of the pact or be eaten by the predators.
6. Having delivered critical initiatives for Fortune 500 companies, what lessons can smaller organizations learn from the HR strategies implemented in larger, more established enterprises?
And sometimes the larger, Fortune 500 can learn from the small companies. Larger companies have the resources to push forward, but it is really about the confidence that the idea is right. Smaller companies are nimble and able to turn quickly as the market changes. Don’t be afraid to partner. Don’t be afraid to share ideas. Just be sure you have the right idea, you have the confidence to execute, and you have created the right partnerships.
7. You’ve facilitated tough strategy workshops. How do you navigate through differing opinions and perspectives to ensure productive discussions and actionable outcomes?
I don’t own the decision; I am the facilitator. My role is to make sure we have been fair, everyone has been heard, and the right people are participating. That also means that the wrong people haven’t been invited. We all like to be included. If you are to make good, strategic decisions, have the right people at the party. My ask of the stakeholder is, what does good look like? Develop and communicate the operating principles with and for the group (sometimes this is the hardest part) and keep to the timeline.
8. How can organizations create greater value for their employees, fostering a positive work environment and ensuring sustained employee engagement, based on your experiences?
Deliver what is important to employees. HR spends a lot of time doing things for employees, not necessarily for employees. HR has a balancing act of executing the business and engaging employees. Get to the root of what employees really need, not necessarily want. What is your Employee’s (Maslow’s) Hierarchy of Needs? Spend time understanding where the balancing act of business and employee needs intersect. Employees may want a pool table, but is that going to increase productivity?
9. Recently, Great Britain has introduced a pilot project of a 4-day working week. What’s your opinion about it? What advantages and disadvantages do you see both for employers and employees? Would you take part in the experiment, and why?
I think I will be a better listener than a participant in the conversation. I want to hear how companies have decided to participate, how they will measure success, and the current progress/impact. I see this as it is defined, as a pilot. I believe the immediate employee perception and productivity will be positive, long term is still yet to be seen.
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