Rails Optional

Episode 9 of season 1, Deb and I talked through process, tech, data and culture debt and how culture isn't just the result of process, tech and data debt - but also something that itself makes it harder to see and address the debt. There's a fairy tale, there's actually shockingly few rabbit holes. There's a solid takedown of Workday because who really likes Workday?corporate fairy tale shared in...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit railsoptional.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit railsoptional.substack.com

This is the first (and so far only) rails optional episode where we’ve left the entirety in from beginning to end, including the chatter. No intro, no theme music, just us, talking and hanging out with our friends. The rails are optional and we don’t follow fake rules. Like most of our episodes ideas it started with an article that sounded interesting and we just sort of followed threads, I did so...

In Episode 5, Deb and I follow the money through the HR conference ecosystem — Transform, UNLEASH, SHRM, ATD, the whole alphabet soup — and ask a question that turns out to be more interesting than it should have to be: when the future of work gets defined on a stage, who paid for that stage, and what do they need the future to look like? We also get into why HR keeps being handed finance’s ruler...

If you're interested in the VIA character strengths you can take that assessment free at: https://www.viacharacter.org Also The Good Project has the values sort I was talking about: https://www.thegoodproject.org/value-sort .....and if you're a woman over 40 and you're looking for a fun way to explore AI and learn without pressure or shame, I HIGHLY recommend Deb's Joy Prompt Club, you can sign up...

In episode 2 of Rails Optional, we start with the HR trends decks everyone’s waving around right now and ask what they actually say about trust, leadership, and how wrecked the social contract at work has become. We unpack Edelman’s trust numbers, “the great stay,” and the new top drivers of engagement, then tie it to how AI is being dropped onto haunted‑house systems, bad data, and years of under...

We recorded this live today, January 12, 2026…..and as predicted, the tech is going to take a minute to get used to. I (Nicole) managed to record this on my primary substack (Truer Words) but I want it archived here where it belongs. Long story short, I loaded the live into Descript, cut out the very beginning “is there an echo on our mic” portion and the ending chit chat (guess it’s a bonus for t...

Deb and I can’t wait for this one. Every time we get in a room together it feels like magic. A podcast together felt like a gift to ourselves. We would love it if you joined us live. The entire intent of this show is to keep it free-flowing and with minimal editing so doing it live makes sense. We will see how it goes as this is definitely a learn out loud moment for both of us. The transcript…..s...