Your monthly SHIFT – October 2024
Many of us have experienced stress at work. But when a leader and the workplace that supports them is so toxic that an employee must go on medical leave, this should be disturbing and unacceptable to all of us.
Your monthly SHIFT – August 2024
At SHIFT, we are passionately focused on one thing: building better workplaces. To achieve this, we require a partnership with people just like you - open minded thinkers who are ready to challenge old ways of thinking and doing, and taking a “time out” for reflection and learning. It’s about embracing new perspectives and ideas. And this can be difficult. Falling into old patterns is powerful. They are familiar. They have “worked” up until this point. They are comfortable. They are easy. SHIFTing our mindset is just the opposite. It requires intention, self-awareness, patience and a commitment to question [...]
University leaders fail crisis management 101
When the Presidents of Harvard, MIT and the University of Pennsylvania provided testimony at a recent congressional hearing about antisemitism on college campuses, they demonstrated, among many other things, the ability to successfully create an organizational crisis with significant, negative fallout.
Can you really prepare for a crisis?
Can you really prepare for a crisis? As someone who has managed several organizational crises, I am often this asked this question, and the answer is a resounding yes. The more salient question is why should organizations take the time to prepare and how should they go about it?
The Culture Code: Unlocking transformation in your workplace
Ask most leaders these days and they will tell you that they continue to evolve their organization’s cultures. The reasons for this focus are many and diverse. Organizational changes, leadership transitions, new operating models, and mergers and acquisitions are just a few catalysts driving this ongoing interest and need.
Natural born leaders are a myth
Is there such a thing as "natural born leaders?" No. There I said it. Why? Well to be honest, this has just not been my experience. I’ve coached hundreds of leaders during my careers and that concept alone (that they are strengthening an existing skill, learning a new skill etc.) conveys the point that leaders aren't born with everything they need.
Shaping organizational cultures is a leadership essential
Among the many expectations of strong leaders, ownership and accountability of organizational culture deserves its rightful place at the top of the list. Frequently delegated to HR for stewardship, the age-old adage, “it starts with the tone at the top” has never been truer.