Category Archives: Organizational Culture

How To Be A Compassionate Hybrid Leader

Although it’s not a particularly new concept, hybrid work setups have become a growing trend in industries across the world. In fact, because most offices have resumed normal operations, up to 74% of companies have said they’re either already using or planning to adopt hybrid setups. This comes as no real surprise considering that studies prove that organized hybrid work is beneficial to output and creativity. These comprehensive studies were based on a diverse range of industries and business scales, which further underscores how hybrid work is the happy medium for both companies and workers.

That said, hybrid work is not without its challenges. For most office leaders, one of the top concerns they have with this model is the lack of access between themselves and their teams. This has led some bosses to worry that their team culture may suffer or their employees will feel isolated. Conversely, 77% of surveyed company leaders have found that compassion can benefit both people and profits. Therefore, while hybrid does reduce face-to-face interactions, leaders can (and should) still exercise compassion through this particular medium. And here’s how:

Image ref: Pexels

Show your employees you appreciate them

While you shouldn’t just toss out empty praises for the sake of it, you shouldn’t hold back on showing your employees appreciation either. This shows employees that you value them and recognize the adversity they’ve overcome so that it empowers your hybrid team no matter how challenging the transition may be. That said, to underscore the sincerity of your appreciation back up your words with actions. This is especially impactful for teams that work mostly remotely as it shows that you appreciate everyone fairly.

To show employees appreciation virtually, say “thank you” through meaningful gestures. This can include sending decorations for home offices, planning a virtual hangout to unwind, or gifting food delivery cards. Through such well-thought-out executions, you show that your appreciation comes from a place of compassion which is inspiring for many workers. In fact, surveys reveal that while 46% of employees left jobs because they felt under-appreciated, 79% said feeling appreciated gave them a boost professionally and personally.Continue reading→

Common Roots: Shifting Context – Leadership Springs from Within

What does a rubber chicken like this one? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have to do with a book like this one?  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, Kimberly Wiefling (rubber chicken lady) met Linda Alepin (now author of above book) when they started their study of generative leadership as young professionals.  

Kimberly was inspired by the principles of vision, listening, and dreaming to become widely known in the leadership arena, particularly working with innovative Japanese companies.  

Linda took the same principles into industry, academia, founding a not for profit that worked with hundreds of people around the globe and, finally, to this book.  

Join Linda as the author (and Kimberly as a participant) on Friday, February 4 from 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM PST (GMT -8).  You will hear stories of people from around the world who are featured in the book. 

It’s FREE.  Register at bit.ly/shifting-context-launch.

Shifting Context:  Leadership Springs from Within is available for pre-sale at Amazon https://amzn.to/3IHdJFS.  

Here is what Rayona Sharpnack had to say about the book:

“Shifting Context: Leadership Springs from Within is an important book at an important time in history. Research consistently shows that countries who seriously invest in women’s and girls’ empowerment get a dramatic return on their investment financially, socially, and in all ways that matter for a civil society. 

The women featured in this book are exemplars of that important investment! 

The book will inspire you, move you, and remind you of the hidden power that women have to make all of our lives better. Kudos to Linda and Barbara for their essential leadership in this movement for social entrepreneurship!”

 —Rayona Sharpnack, Founder/CEO at Institute for Gender Partnership and Women’s Leadership, Inc. 

These true stories of sheroes and heroes from around the world will inspire you.  They demonstrate how leadership that springs from within brings about real social change. 

If you are a passionate leader who wants to create greater impact do not miss this book launch and be sure to read the book. 

Leadership Tricks that you Can Learn From the NBA

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

The sports industry is one of the biggest industries in the world with a global market of $390 billion in 2020, and it is expecting to grow to $440 billion this year. This shows that sports are more than just teams competing for prestige and money. In fact, they are so impactful that can change many people’s lives only by following the same principles.

We can learn a lot of things from sports that we can use in our everyday lives, especially from the NBA, such as:

  • Having a strong will
  • Be a team player
  • Networking
  • Having confidence
  • Overcoming mental health issues
  • And being a good leader

Having leadership skills is crucial in the NBA, especially if you want to be one of the top players in the league. With that said, the NBA can teach us many things about leadership and in today’s article, we will highlight some of the things that you should absorb from this sport in order to improve your life on every level.

Lead by Example

Being a good leader is all about taking responsibilities and holding yourself accountable before you can hold someone else. This is also the difference between a manager and a leader. Leaders will ask themselves before asking others, and managers only give out orders.

If you expect players to give 100% and always be on time, you should do that yourself. That is the best way to set an example that everyone follows. Continue reading→

Seven Main Ways Millennials are Changing the Definition of Leadership in 2020

Contributed article in our business series. Enjoy! – Kimberly

Millennials are “rebellious path-breakers” who shun everything traditional and believe in making their path. And over the years, it is the millennials have collectively transformed the way we communicate and conduct business.

This is the generation that reconciles logic and emotions. The millennials are both educated and empathic, and they want to make the world a better place. And it is this optimism that reflects the way they lead business ventures as well.

Here are seven ways in which Millennials are redefining leadership in 2020

REF: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-woman-wearing-eyeglasses-3184405/ 

Personalised Professional Workplaces

Gone are the days when people separated their personal and professional spaces. The millennial work culture is more flexible, intuitive, and interactive. And the office spaces and workstations are an extension of this attitude.

Most of the start-ups that we see around have a very vibrant, friendly vide to it. Even big shot corporations like Google have incorporated the millennial culture. A millennial leader is not dogmatic or dominating. Instead, they focus on building a personal connection with their team.

However, that being said, millennial work culture also stresses on work-life balance. Effective time management, flexible working hours, home-based working options are more prevalent than ever.

Transformations > Transactional Leadership

Continue reading→

Make Smart Mistakes To Achieve Impossible Goals

Originally published on Forbes 14 Oct. 2014.

Author: Kimberly Wiefling

Like most kids, I was taught to avoid mistakes. Perfection was the goal, and errors were punished—sometimes with lower grades, and occasionally with a swat on the behind. Imperfection wasn’t rewarded in adulthood either, where a narrow definition of beauty left me wishing I had a supermodel figure and a more attractive face. Then came the innovation era in the business world. Suddenly we were supposed to cast off years of perfectionism and become wildly creative.

Unfortunately, a famous NASA study showed that the typical 98% creativity scores of five-year-olds falls to a mere 2% by the time these same children become adults. Creativity is messy! The creative path is dotted with imperfection and temporary setbacks, sometimes called failure. We learn to avoid mistakes, and thus stop expressing our creativity, in order to survive in our families, at school, and at work.

Here are five ways to breathe new life into the creativity with which you were born. (For the rest of this, please see the full article on Forbes here.)

Why Team Building is Necessary for a Good Working Culture

If you care about having a great working culture, Real Simple’s Maggie Seaver shares that you need to ensure that every employee feels a sense of belonging — and one great way to do that is through team building. And with everyone from the world’s largest corporations to the smallest of startups investing in team building, is all the hype about it justified?

What is team building?

At its core, team building is any action or process that aims to turn a group of employees into a cohesive team. It helps with the employees’ transition from having an individualistic to a collaborative mindset. And this is important because when employees focus on tasks and results on an individual level only, Forbes points out that the whole organization misses out in terms of productivity and effectiveness.

Team building ranges from small activities like bowling or a game night, to big activities like a sportsfest or a three-day retreat at the beach. However, it still has a bad rap for a lot of employees, many of whom see it as some mandatory “fun” activity where they must put on a happy-go-lucky face. But if done right, it doesn’t just serve as a stress reliever for the whole team. It also brings serious benefits and advantages to the whole organizational culture of the company.Continue reading→