Leadership Human-Style

“Sometimes you have to be willing to kind of broaden your horizons a bit and think a bit outside the box in terms of finding someone who may not have the experience that you're looking for but who you think nonetheless has great skills and could grow into that role." - Brad Beuttenmiller How do you keep your team thriving in a landscape where the skills needed are sometimes hard-to-find,...

 "I think that business strategy is important, but the people strategy is equally important to support the business strategy. So when the business strategy evolves, you have to evolve the people strategy." - Cindy Thomas How well does your people strategy align with the overall business strategy for your organization?   Are you part of the process up front, or catching up in reaction mod...

" ‘Cultivate’ and ‘culture’ come from the same root. So, cultivating coach-like leaders is about nurturing a culture that values coaching.” - Lisa Mitchell For today’s episode, I’m flying solo!   Sharing with you what I know to be true when it comes to cultivating coach-like leaders. So many organizations are trying to help their leadership teams become more coach-like in their approach.  Som...

“Our purpose and our value is to be able to diagnose and consult and create something valuable and meaningful. It is not our role, and our value does not come from taking orders and just doing what people say.” - Melissa Law Ever been frustrated with talent initiatives that get built but don’t make it across the finish line when it comes to implementation and adoption by the business? How can midd...

“[A matrix reporting structure] really requires both sets of managers to…have alignment around an individual’s goals.” -Allison Mairena Have you ever been in a matrix reporting relationship?  It can be very frustrating if both leaders are not aligned.   In today’s episode, my guest gives us a peek into how her organization manages matrix reporting. My guest is Allison Mairena. Allison (she/her) sp...

“We’d love to hire someone and have them stay 6-8 years, but when it’s not the reality anymore, then shifting that paradigm and mental model [is important.] -Jamie Bruno The job market is constantly in flux. Sometimes it’s an employer’s market, sometimes a candidate’s market, sometimes it’s balanced.   One trend that is here to stay is the overall decrease in employee tenure. The 25-year gold watc...

“When you aren’t bringing in direct revenue…you need to make that connection between what it is you do do and how you help enable the business to meet goals…and how HR functions link into that.” -Nancy Tavares HR and L&D are not typically revenue generators. AND they had huge value to organizations, as you and I both know well.  Today’s guest beautifully articulates the power of metrics and ho...

“What do they need a facilitator for vs. something they can learn on their own?” -Cindy Huggett Virtual online training has been around for decades now. And yet many organizations firmly resisted it beyond those annual mandatory trainings.   Covid pushed many outside their comfort zone to finally start to leverage technology and yet the quality of virtual offerings varies widely!  Today’s guest pr...

“We trust first.” -Krista Pell How has your organization handled the whole RTO question?  Are people on board with the arrangement in place, whether that’s 3 days in office, or only 1 - or something else entirely?     In today’s episode, my guest gives us a peek into an organization that considers itself “fully flex.” My guest is Krista Pell. Krista is the Chief People, Culture & Engagement Of...

“I thought I was coaching by prescribing solutions.” -Kacy Wickenhauser Have you ever felt pulled into the drama weeds with your clients - the stakeholders who rely on you as an HR or Talent professional?   Me too:)     In today’s episode, my guest shares how she has been able to shift from a prescriber of advice to a coach-like HR leader and the impact that has had. My guest is Kacy Wickenhauser....

“We tell ourselves the story that strategy is Big!  Complex!  Hard! Time-consuming!” - Lisa Mitchell Do you ever just give in to a client’s demands because you don’t want to be seen as “pushing back?” Today’s episode is a solo one about your STRATEGIC VALUE as a Talent, HR or L&D professional.  And it’s about what gets in our way of being strategic. I’d love to hear YOUR challenges with stakeh...

“More often that not, talent acquisition is tucked into HR as a function that everyone has to tolerate vs. a strategic arm of the organization.” -Liza Voticky Without the right people in the right place at the right time, your organization cannot meet its objectives.   Today’s guest approaches the discipline of Talent Acquisition as a strategic and essential function vs. a necessary evil that shou...

“Culture is not owned by HR, it’s owned by every single leader.” -Jessica Bacher What is your organizational culture like? Who drives it?  Who sees themselves as driving it?  In some companies, people look to HR to take the lead - or the blame - on company culture.  In this episode, my guest and I explore how HR can support culture with an innovative structure and respect for people’s time. My gue...

“If you continue to always look at it like a start-up, you are always growing to be better.” -Casey Oware How entrepreneurial is your organization?  And what do entrepreneurial behaviours actually look like in different company cultures?  In today’s episode, we explore this theme in an organization that still thinks of itself as a start-up - by design -  10 years in. My guest is Casey Oware who is...

“Creativity doesn’t exist when you don’t have constraints.” -Natalia Matusevscaia Have you ever been frustrated when you were down a team member or were low on other resources or funds?  What was the gift in that situation?  Chances are, the constraint you were faced with helped you be more creative and innovative.  Today’s guest shares clear examples of this in action. My guest is Natalia Matusev...

“A lot of HR projects fail because we haven’t asked the right questions.” -Sarem Yesus When you come into a new organization as the lead for Talent and People, how do you decide where you should start?  In today’s episode, my guest shares why she focused on understanding engagement first, before moving on to look at other core programs and systems. My guest is Sarem Yesus. Sarem is Executive Direc...

“Are we learning as fast as the business is changing?” - Ken Finneran Do you see yourself as a MULTIPLIER?  As a Talent leader, you should.  Consider the impact your work has on all the people in your organization.  It’s why I produce this podcast week in and week out - to provide you with learning and inspiration so that you can be the best multiplier possible - lifting people up and helping them...

“There’s something really magical about the building of something .” - Susan Ways Have you ever been drawn to a high-risk opportunity because you loved the idea of getting to pioneer something completely new?  I know I have - and so has today’s guest!  Together we discuss her experience of working for several start-ups, some of which didn’t end up surviving long-term.  We also dig into ways to bui...

“Given Talent Leaders are stuck in the sticky organizational middle, EVERYONE is a stakeholder.” - Lisa Mitchell How can we make the buy-in part of the process EASIER and more ELEGANT?     Today’s episode is a solo one.  The need for stakeholder buy-in is constant for all Talent leaders.   Yet there are common pitfalls and mistakes made that make some initiatives more difficult or worse, fail.  Th...

“A company doesn’t have to be employee-owned to give your employees a voice.” - Kristi Spindler Do you like ESOPs?  Most people do.  Wondering if it’s small alien species on a planet in the Star Wars universe?  Nope.  ESOP stands for Employee Stock Ownership Plan, and it’s an acronym used frequently by wholly employee-owned companies.  In today’s episode, my guest shares what she loves about worki...

“There’s an increasing need for organizations to focus on developing people-centred programs that focus on the values and culture of the organization.” - Lisseth Zouhbi What does people-centred describe to you? How do you actually make your HR and Talent programs even more people-centred?  Today’s guest shares her philosophy on this, as well as some practical examples of how she is putting it into...

“If you democratize the transformation so that there can be true ownership amongst every leader and every person…it will be more successful than if you outsource it to one team.” -Suzanne Knight What does transformation mean to you when it comes to organizations?  Do you ever wonder if maybe there are some transformational “secrets” you haven’t uncovered yet?   In today’s episode, my guest and I b...

“HR is the cone of silence…you take the weight of a lot of people’s emotions.” “When you are in a space in your own life, when things are piling up, as an HR professional who is perceived to have all the answers, where can  you go?” -Leanne Schultz Have you had to deal with grief or personal crisis  while still working and while people are still looking to you for support with their own tough situ...

“Funny how this life works. Things can suck and be gratitude-inspiring at the same time..” - Lisa Mitchell What sucks and what is the associated gift you are grateful for?    Today’s episode is a solo one with yours truly, Lisa Mitchell.   Think of it as a bit of an audio diary entry I thought I’d share with you as food for thought in case you are struggling with something right now - something th...

“I don’t always tell them what they want to hear…I have to have that trust and relationship to get people to be honest with me so I can be honest with them and how do we move forward with that.” -Lorie Hulsey How do you like being the person who sometimes has to say no to people?  Do you dread it?  Accept it?  Enjoy it? :) Today’s guest makes the case that being able to say no as well as yes is ke...