Impact Makers

As we close out 2022, I'm focusing this month on how I can best prepare myself – and you – for a successful 2023. In my world, this time of year is typically filled with prediction posts and podcasts, where thought leaders share what they believe will be the challenges and opportunities ahead in the new year, related to the world of work. Since my focus is on preparing leaders – like you – to embr...

As we're coming to 2023, what are the things you want to start, stop, and continue doing? Make this a part of your goal-setting process. One my previous mistakes was I didn't set up any concrete plans to actually make my goals happen – which is a 100% recipe for failure. Therefore, it's important to take time to reflect and look back on maybe what's working, what's not working, and what's missing...

If you're a leader, and you have people that you must lead, manage, care for and grow, it's been a challenge to both keep people in your workplace, to keep them engaged, to understand what their needs are, and to ensure their success in their jobs so that the company can remain competitive and continue to grow in the future in a vastly changing world of work. As you're doing your goal setting and...

How has your year been? Thankfully, 2022 has been a good year for me and my businesses thus far, and I'm really looking forward to what 2023 will bring as we continue to recover in many ways from the global pandemic, while also still dealing with the effects of that, and the changes – some better and some worse that have come as a result of that. Moving forward, I will be focusing on what's new an...

Self-care isn't selfish. It is necessary. We truly can't pour from an empty cup and we can't help others if we're emotionally worn, completely stressed out, or too sick to help. In this episode I'm talking about self-care and the five areas I've been trying to improve for the sake of myself, my family and my business. I'll talk about the importance of sleep, rest and exercise, for our physical and...

If you're thinking of looking for a new job or switching careers, and you're planning to use the same resume you created 10 years ago, well, that probably won't be too useful. Times have changed, and so has resume writing. There are actually things you need to be intentional with when it comes to showcasing your strengths and making sure you're getting your message across. Today, I'm turning the t...

Especially with the pandemic, the great resignation, quiet quitting, and all the dramatic shifts the whole world is currently experiencing, a lot of companies are struggling internally. Left unattended and this could lead to a toxic culture.    Obviously, hard conversations have to be made because you can't just ignore those issues happening collectively. And one of the ways to address this among...

A career change is a huge thing that a lot of people are dealing with right now, whether they feel stuck in their current job or they just want to do something different that they enjoy. But how do you position yourself for the job that you want?    As an employee, you've got to figure out how to get noticed to move your career ahead and make sure you're getting the interactions and relationships...

Mental health well-being is now at the forefront of what employees want and what employers are looking at. And more and more, we're now seeing that employees expect employers to be involved in their life outside of work.   As leaders, we need to be able to create a culture that provides psychological safety within the workplace if we don't want to be a part of the statistics of people exiting the...

Are you retaining talent by developing and moving them into other opportunities that benefit both their career and the organization? Data shows that the more we invest in developing and seeing those opportunities for other people to move around the organization, the greater the loyalty to the company, and the greater the retention. There is also data showing the tightening of the talent pipeline,...

Recently, there has been a significant drop in leadership engagement levels, and leaders have now begun to feel the effects of everyone's struggles during the pandemic.  There's also a new phenomenon called "quiet quitting," and a recent poll suggests that leaders are much more likely to engage in quiet quitting than their actual workers. They are showing signs of fatigue without any kind of recog...

In this time of The Great Resignation, companies are finding ways to increase productivity and improve retention through improving employee engagement.  Culture plays a crucial part. However, that is not just the job of HR, the CEO, or the executive team. Every single employee has a responsibility because they will shape the culture of that organization in some way, shape, or form. But how do you...

If you're susceptible to the great resignation, which a lot of companies are, unlocking empathy in your own organization is the key. And if you haven't done it yet, then you're missing out. Empathy is the difference-maker when it comes to employees and it's a currency you can spend freely in a time where a lot of organizations are struggling.  Since my goal is to equip and encourage you to be the...

This is an interesting time in terms of recruiting and retention for organizations because they're going to have to deal with all the generations and everyone's different wants and needs. Clearly, we don't want to separate people by generation as if they're alien races from another planet, also, because we all have traits and characteristics molded by "nature and nurture." But these generations al...

Quick question: when was the last time you asked each of your team members how they're doing – like how are they REALLY doing? You never really know how that ONE question can create a massive impact on your company.  As a leader, you want to be able to prepare yourself and your team for this dynamic future of work. And one of the key metrics that you need to invest in is employee engagement.  A Bo...

This episode of the Impact Makers Podcast is sponsored by Workplace from Meta. Everybody's talking about the metaverse these days, but Workplace from Meta is different – I mean, the clue's in the name, right? Workplace is a business communication tool that uses features like instant messaging and video calls to help people share information. Think Facebook, but for your company. It's part of Meta'...

I'm excited to share my conversation with Dr. Todd Dewett in Episode 57 of the Impact Makers Podcast. I met Dr. Dewett several years ago, when I was just getting my start as a professional speaker, and we both shared the stage at a regional conference.    At that time, he was a successful university professor teaching leadership and innovation to MBA students - but he didn't look or sound like mos...

When I think about people in my life who have truly had an impact on me, and have changed my life for the better, it's a relatively small list. And my guest on Episode 56 of the Impact Makers Podcast - Mike Sipple, Jr. - is most definitely on that list, along with his father, Mike Sipple, Sr.   After leaving my last corporate job as an HR executive in late 2005, I knew I wanted to pursue a differe...

Since it's a new year, I'm already hard at work on achieving the goals that I set for myself, and my businesses in 2021. And one of my goals this year is to read 24 books.   Thankfully, I've got some good friends who are helping to fill my reading list with books that they've written, which were set for January 2021 release dates.   I spoke with my best friend Laurie Ruettimann about her new book,...

One of the best things about the work that I do is that I have the opportunity to connect with so many talented people doing great things to make the world of work - and the world - better for us all in the future.   Early last year, while looking to expand my network of leaders with diversity and inclusion expertise, I reached out to my network and asked a simple question - "Who should I know tha...

I'm coming in hot into 2021 with Episode number 53 of the Impact Makers podcast!   Seriously.    I'm ready to emerge from my 2020 coronavirus induced cocoon, and to make great things happen in my world, and for you in this shiny and promising new year. And I can think of no better way to kick off the year, than with my BFF, Laurie Ruettimann .    Laurie is back as a guest on the podcast to chat ab...

My guest today is a senior executive at Workhuman ®, a company that helps forward-thinking organizations energize their cultures, unlock their employees' passion and potential, and unite around a shared purpose. I've had the pleasure of working with the Workhuman® team for over 5 years now, both attending and speaking at their amazing and unique Workhuman Live annual Conference . Each year, the co...

My guest on Episode 51 of the Impact Makers podcast is Jennifer Ingram . Jennifer is the Founder and CEO of Calibrated Lens LLC , where she specializes in helping organizations enhance their performance, productivity, and brand presence by centering equity and inclusion. Through her work at Calibrated Lens, she helps clients facilitate sustainable change to optimize performance, presence, and prod...

If you're a regular listener of the podcast, you've heard me talk with several previous guests that I first connected with back in the somewhat golden days of blogging, and the beginnings of social networks like LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Although I'm not sure how I originally came across today's guest, I know that I was a regular reader of her very popular blog called Brass Tack Thinking dur...

On Episode 49 of the Impact Makers Podcast, I'm speaking with someone that I admire and respect, and whom I've learned a great deal from over the past 10 years through his podcast, his books, and also by sometimes sharing stages with him speaking at conferences and events around the world. Todd Henry positions himself as an "arms dealer for the creative revolution", and he teaches leaders and orga...