Bob 'n Joyce Talk HR 'n OD

This week, we do something a little different—and a little shorter. On Election Day, Bob recites Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. It takes less than three minutes to read, yet more than 160 years later, its words still remind us that democracy is precious, unfinished, and never guaranteed. So, what does this have to do with HR and OD? Quite a lot, actually. Lincoln speaks about enduring value...

Change is hard enough. Why do we insist on making it harder on ourselves? In this episode, we have some fun with Price Pritchett’s 15 common mistakes people make during organizational change. And, as you might expect, we recognize ourselves in more than a few of them! We walk through all 15, sharing our reactions, personal experiences, and a few laughs along the way. From trying to control the unc...

How do you bring a community together to honor its past, confront its present, and shape its future? The pandemic changed how we connect. AI is reshaping how we work and learn. And the relentless pace of change is challenging the relevance of long-established professional communities. Perhaps it's time for these communities to pause, reflect, and reinvent themselves. Today, Bob ’n Joyce explore th...

In today’s episode, we tackle one of the most difficult responsibilities facing HR/OD practitioners: protecting the cultural integrity of their organizations. With mounting pressure to deliver results, even well-intentioned organizations can find themselves on a slippery slope—stretching ethical boundaries, rationalizing questionable decisions, or simply looking the other way when actions conflict...

In today’s episode, we continue our conversation about the implications of AI from an OD perspective. The challenge is that we’re trying to make sense of a technology evolving so quickly that even the people creating it disagree about where it’s taking us. Rather than pretending we know, we argue that embracing the not knowing may be exactly the right place to start. Not knowing can provoke curios...

In today’s episode, we continue our conversation about the implications of AI from an OD perspective. The challenge is that we’re trying to make sense of a technology evolving so quickly that even the people creating it disagree about where it’s taking us. Rather than pretending we know, we argue that embracing the not knowing may be exactly the right place to start. Not knowing can provoke curios...

Today we take on leadership models—and ask whether we may be putting far too much faith in them. Thirty years ago, leaders watched and emulated GE CEO Jack Welch, following his leadership formula chapter and verse. His approach was studied, taught, copied, and widely held up as a model for how great organizations should be led. Today, much of what seemed like enduring leadership wisdom from that e...

In today’s episode, Bob ’n Joyce take on a question that has followed us throughout our careers: Where can you do your best and boldest OD work—from inside an organization or from the outside? We’ve done both. And while we believe some of our most impactful work came from being inside the organization, there are real advantages—and some very real traps—to both. Internal OD practitioners have an in...

What can a transition expert writing three decades ago teach us about navigating AI’s impact on work? As it turns out, quite a lot. In this episode, Bob 'n Joyce revisit William Bridges’ vision of the optimal workplace and consider it through the lens of the AI transformation now underway. Bridges’ work stands the test of time because, although the world of work has changed dramatically, what peop...

What happens when the pace of technological change exceeds our human and organizational capacity to absorb it? In this episode, Bob ’n Joyce explore that question in the context of a convergence of technological forces unlike anything we have experienced before. Amy Webb, renowned futurist and CEO of the Future Today Institute, believes we are entering a technology “supercycle”—the coming together...

In this episode, we revisit a tried-and-true formula for assessing the likelihood that a change effort will succeed—or fail. We’re talking about the Beckhard-Harris Change Equation: D × V × F > R We road-test the formula against today’s frenetic pace of change. Too often, senior leaders have been thinking about a change for months before employees hear a word about it. By then, leaders are read...

In this episode, we take on something pretty basic to being human—our need to connect with other people. Friends, family, people at work. We need each other. Yet loneliness, isolation, and anxiety seem to be everywhere. Maybe part of the antidote is right in front of us: getting better at building and keeping strong relationships. The problem is, good relationships don’t just happen. They take wor...

Long before a facilitator asks the first question, the room is already sending a message. In this episode, Bob and Joyce explore one of organizational development's most overlooked leadership tools: the physical setup of a meeting. Do tables create comfort—or barriers? What happens when sixty people—from store managers who are rarely invited into these conversations to district managers, directors...

Today, we take on a difficult conversation sparked by the tragic killing in Biddeford, Maine, and other deeply disturbing events that have unfolded in recent months. Beyond the individual tragedies is something even more troubling: a growing tendency to normalize horrific, immoral, and dehumanizing behavior. We see it in our politics. We see it in our communities. We see it in the way people talk...

In this episode, we uncover one of Joyce's most unusual leadership tools—her famous paper plate journals. (Yes, we'll explain.) Over the years, Joyce captured hard-earned insights about what great HR really looks like, jotting them down on paper plates that became her personal leadership playbook. Together, we revisit those notes as Joyce shares her practical "rules of the road" for HR professiona...

What can today's leaders learn from the bold experiment that created American democracy 250 years ago? Joyce explores the Constitution as an enduring lesson in leadership, systems thinking, and the power of constructive disagreement. Looking through the lens of organizational development, she explores the Constitution as one of history's most audacious leadership experiments—a bold attempt to desi...

In today’s episode, we revisit the work of Peter Drucker, widely considered the father of modern management. Drawing from his book, The Daily Drucker, we share several insights that have profound implications for organization development and human resources. While Drucker is often remembered as a business guru and management consultant, his writings are filled with practical wisdom about people, p...

In today's episode, Bob shares a list he developed of the conditions that help accelerate cultural change in today's fast-paced environment. The list isn't based on theory or the latest management fad. It's drawn from his experience observing what was present when organizational change moved quickly—and actually stuck. Joyce adds her perspective, and the sparks begin to fly when she admits her ins...

In this episode, we use a bit of lateral thinking to explore a provocative question: What can organizations learn from healthy families? Joyce introduces a list of characteristics commonly found in healthy families, and together we examine how these traits might apply to organizational culture. Which qualities translate well to the workplace? Where do the parallels break down? And where might seem...

In today’s episode, we wrestle with a tension many OD practitioners quietly carry: wanting our work to matter without wanting to be the center of attention. Much of what we do happens behind the scenes — coaching leaders, shaping conversations, diffusing conflict, and helping teams succeed in ways that are often invisible to others. When things go well, the leader or team rightfully gets the credi...

In this episode, we dive into the provocative assertion by W. Warner Burke that much of today’s change management work is not truly Organizational Development. That may sound surprising. After all, many OD practitioners spend much of their time helping organizations navigate change. So how could change management not be OD? As we explore Burke’s perspective, we find ourselves agreeing that his arg...

In this episode, we explore a powerful—and often overlooked—opportunity: the workplace as a source of stability in an increasingly unstable world. At a time when the outside environment feels chaotic, divisive, and uncertain, people are craving something deeply human—connection, meaning, and a sense of belonging. Isolation is more common than we admit, and the pull toward like-minded tribes is gro...

In this episode, we take the timeless insights of Peter Drucker and ask a simple question: what should HR and OD actually do with them? Drawing from The Daily Drucker, we focus on a few ideas that still hit hard. First, the purpose of any organization is to create a customer—so if HR isn’t helping the business win externally, it’s missing the point. We also challenge the overused idea that culture...

In this lightning-round conversation, Bob and Joyce explore leadership through the lens of gender—challenging common assumptions about how men and women tend to lead. Do women naturally lean more collaborative? Are men more decisive—or just perceived that way? And how much of what we call “gendered leadership style” is real pattern versus outdated stereotype? With honesty, curiosity, and humor, th...

In this episode, we tackle a blind spot in organizational development: the physical workspace. While HR and OD leaders spend countless hours shaping culture, engagement, and strategy, the environment people work in is often left to architects, facilities, or finance. That’s a miss. The spaces people walk into every day send powerful signals about what matters—collaboration or isolation, energy or...