The D.FINED ENGAGEMENT BOOKCAST with Doug J. Fine

This is a conversation that I  would have never dreamed possible. I got to spend some time with the great Tom Peters, one-on-one speaking about things and ideas and experiences that he and I are passionate about when it comes to leadership, workplace culture and environment, and other stuff too.  He was gracious and kind and generous with his time.  That’s who he is. In the beginning of this BookCast I introduce Tom Peters and I share the influence his books and thinking have had on my own work and how I attempted to make a positive humanistic difference at every place that I worked and everything I did. When I read Tom Peters he would inspire me to, in some ways, throw caution to the wind and try new things to make things happen in perhaps unconventional ways.  Speaking with a true business hero of mine was such a treat. I hope that you will enjoy our chat and, most important, begin to learn from Tom Peters via his books, his training, and the amazing resources that he  provides on his website. Thank you Mr. Peters for this once-in-a-lifetime privilege.      Find all of his books on Amazon.  Find more at www.tompeters.com

In this BookCast Tracy and Doug Fine talk in depth about his two books.  Discussing Engagement MAGIC, Tracy disputes the myth of awful employee  engagement in today's workplaces. It's not as dire as you might hear  about. Actually, Tracy's data show engagement to be stratified in to 4  levels. But common understanding claims that a mere 25-30 are fully  engaged in their jobs and the rest are disengaged. Tracy explains how a  simple look at work groups will dispel any notion that 70% of the  country are disengaged at their work. We also discuss other important  aspects of engagement: That it is a 50-50 proposition, that there is a  data-driven model that, when understood, can help leaders and their  teams better understand and participate in working towards their own  engagement - it's the MAGIC model and you will come to understand the  role it plays in organizations that want to amp up engagement.    Speaking about Tracy's 2nd Book, The Employee Experience, he shares that  most organizations are looking in the wrong place to improve their  customers' experience. The main thing that brings about a great customer  experience, is designing the best employee experiences across the board  in everything that occurs. Delighted customers come from delighted and  nurtured employees. There is a connection with the MAGIC Model here too.  Highly engaged employees will have the best Employee Experience.    We unpack a lot in this BookCast and we think it can help in meeting  your employee engagement, employee experience, and customer experience   goals and objectives.     Tracy is the CEO of DecisionWise and has over 25 years of consulting  experience and organizational measurement and improvement activities  world-wide.     You can find out more about Tracy and his company and work here:    LinkedIn Profile    decision-wise.com  (Company Website)  Employee-X.com  (Company Website)  engagementmagic.com  (Company Website)  Twitter: @TracyMaylett

Safari Jema translates to "Good Journey," and Teresa provides the background and specifics of a very good journey that she made with her husband in Africa. Her book's subtitle is "A Journey of Love and Adventure from Casa Blanca to Cape Town." We cover a lot of territory in this BookCast: why her and Scott chose the unconventional life of travel adventuring, individual stories about their over- land experiences in Africa in a span of 10 months, and the feelings and emotions that Teresa shares in thinking back on this time of her life. I hope you enjoy this BookCast. It's the first one that I've done with the author of a book that is not related to concrete subjects in the business or personal finance realm. Engagement with life is what we have here and that falls very much in line with the mission of these D.FINED Engagement BookCasts. Enjoy! Find Teresa's Book Here: https://tinyurl.com/3fa3vfk4 And here is Teresa's Blog: http://teresaokane.blogspot.com/ She keeps her blog updated regularly about her life with Scott and their amazing adventures.

In our final episode Laura and I talk about the overarching theme of her book, It's Not Them, It's You: Why Employees "Breakup" With Their Managers and What To Do About It. Good positive relationships between managers and employees are the key to any organization's success in meeting their goals, serving their customers, and making sustainable profits. An important foundation to those relationships are regular 1:1 meetings between individual employees and their manager. These meeting are not merely a "check-in" to see how things are going with specific tasks, goals, or projects. Of course those are important to discuss. But effective 1:1s go much deeper than that. These meeting should be seen as almost "sacred" time between people and distractions and interruptions should be minimized. Managers will need to practice supportive attending skills which includes active listening, proper sitting arrangements, and enough time to build better trusting relationships. Laura's book offers many great questions that a manager can use to help them in having rich, effective, and meaningful 1:1s. 1:1s are NOT meeting for meetings sake. Rather they are the means to build strong partnerships and mutual satisfaction and engagement between a manager and a team member. We discuss the overarching theme of the book, R-E-S-P-E-C-T, which coincide with the seven leadership traits that Laura's book emphasizes - Relationships, Empathy, Support, Promotion, Empowerment, Consideration, and Trust. Laura explains that the first trait, respect, is woven through all the others traits.    Many thanks to Laura Sukorokoff for giving of her time and leadership expertise to me and the listeners of the D.FINED Engagement BookCast. Here's a link to Laura's book. It will greatly benefit a manager / leader at any stage of their career. We think it would be a great addition to a management library. https://tinyurl.com/y3fe2k2c Laura can help you personally or bring her expertise to your workplace.   Her Website: https://www.cchangelearning.com/ Her LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/laurasukorokoff  Her email: laura@cchangelearning.com

Doug Fine and Laura Sukorocoff talk about the final Leadership trait  covered in her book, "It's Not Them, It's You: Why Employees "Break Up"  With Their Managers and What To Do About It." That trait is "trust."  She  tells the true story of Tom who, like most people, began his new job  with high enthusiasm. It was a good fit and he believed that he could  learn and grow a lot working from the owner of a small training company.  However it was not long before there were signs that Tom joined a  company that might not have been financially strong enough to support  him as an employee. Tom's trust in the company and his manager was being  eroded by a series a things that happened to him.  Although Tom enjoyed  the work, promises made to him were not fulfilled and his manager was  becoming unreliable and untrustworthy. Tom had to look for another job  as a result.    Laura emphasizes that you cannot have a effectively operating  organization without sufficient trust between the people and especially  between a manager and her team. There are significant business costs  associated with a low trust work environment. Especially now, in a  global pandemic, foundational physical and safety needs are being  threatened by companies towards their people. Things are particularly  uncertain now and it is extremely important to maintain mutual trust to  weather the storm together.    Another aspect touched upon in this conversation are actions to take when a manager does or says something to damage trust with their people.  Laura lays out the steps that must occur for there is to be a chance  that trust can be reestablished.      Here's a link to Laura's book. It will greatly benefit a manager /  leader at any stage of their career. We think it would be a great  addition to a management library. https://tinyurl.com/y3fe2k2c    Laura Sukorocoff can help you personally or bring her expertise to your workplace. She helps everyone she encounters to grow!    Her Website  Her LinkedIn Profile  Her email: laura@cchangelearning.com

I continue my fun and informative conversations with Laura Sukorokoff about her recent book, "It's Not Them, It's YOU: Why Employees "Break-Up" With Their Managers and What To Do About It."  Leaders of people, most often called managers, need important so-called "Soft-Skills" to move a business forward. Laura is an expert in leadership training and she brings the wealth of her experience to this book. Caitlin took pride in her work. She had an "ownership" mentality in her part-time retail setting. She was an expert in the products sold, the customers loved her and they kept coming back for more - to see Caitlin and to spend money!   But something happened that popped Caitlin's balloon. It was her leader's treatment of her. She soon ended up saying she was going on an extended vacation and never came back, even though she was wanted back. Caitlin's manager showed little consideration for her and you will learn the details in our discussion. Laura uses real-life people and stories to make her leadership lessons speak to all levels that can use the help that her book provides.    First, here's a link to Laura's book. It will greatly benefit a manager / leader at any stage of their career. https://tinyurl.com/y3fe2k2c   Second, contact Laura, she can help you personally or bring her expertise to your workplace. She helps everyone she encounters grow!   Her Website: https://www.cchangelearning.com/ Her LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/laurasukorokoff  Her email: laura@cchangelearning.com

The subtitle of Laura's book is "Why Employees "Break Up" with Their Managers and What To Do About It."    This episode we talk about Elton and his situation. He gets a new manager who disregards any work and any accomplishments of Elton's team the minute he arrives. So off to a bad start. On top of that, new manager is a classic micro-manager. Laura and I talk about what the natural consequences are when a manager micromanages. Eventually people shut down, and in frustration, stop exercising any individual initiative. They only wait for the next order to be told what to do, and how to do it by the boss. The complete opposite of micromanaging is to empower people to unleash their ideas, innovations, problem-solving abilities, and engagement. We briefly discuss the legendary culture at Zappos and how empowered people make dedicated and long-term employees, even in their call centers. Call centers are notorious for high turnover, miserable management, and awful work environments. Laura and I think the Episode with Elton just might be our favorite of our time together so we hope you enjoy!    Here's a link to Laura's book. It will greatly benefit a manager / leader at any stage of their career. https://tinyurl.com/y3fe2k2c   Here are ways to get in touch with Laura:   Her Website: https://www.cchangelearning.com/ Her LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/laurasukorokoff  Her email: laura@cchangelearning.com

In this BookCast we talk again with Laura Sukorokoff, author of "It's  Not Them, It's You: Why Employees "Break-Up" With Their Managers and  What To Do About It."   We discuss the story about Percy who hired on to a company and a manager  that had a plan to advance him up in the company and Percy was excited  and eager for more responsibility. It did not turn out that way for Percy for a number of reasons. Percy was primed for promotions that never came, actually through no fault of his own.    Laura shares the Leadership Trait of "Promotion," what it means and why it is very important to some people. Laura Sukorokoff is a champion of  1:1 regular conversations between managers and employees and advocates that they become a required KPI (Key Performance Indicator) that a  manager is accountable for. Regular conversations that build relationship would have benefited both Percy and his manager. They are  crucial in getting things done and for a manager to know what's really happening on their team.    Engaged employees that have good relationships with managers help  companies 1) Keep good performers, 2) raise productivity, 3) boost  customers service and loyalty, 4) increase revenue, and 5) build better  work cultures.   Get Laura's book from Amazon here:  Here are ways to get in touch with Laura:  https://tinyurl.com/y28w5lq6   Her Website: https://www.cchangelearning.com/  Her LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/laurasukorokoff  Her email: laura@cchangelearning.com

In this episode we continue our BookCast series with Laura Sukorokoff, Author of It's Not Them, It's You: Why Employees "Break-Up" With Their Bosses and What To Do About It.  Simone was a highly sought after recruit to an important role. The company quickly shuffled Simone to begin reporting to a manager that told her at their very first meeting, "I don't want you on my team. I never asked for you."   That manager was a bully boss. He lacked basic respect for people. He was completely lacking in support for Simone and she left that company at the one-year mark. In this discussion Laura Sukorokoff advocates for managers to get along with their people even though they may not even like them. The expectation of every manager towards their team members is to pay them basic respect. Unfortunately some organizations view their people as just resources similar to things like office furniture. Simone's story includes how "HR" added to Simone's lack of support with the advice they gave her.    We also touch briefly on the importance of self-awareness in managers.  Here's a link to Laura's book. It will greatly benefit a manager / leader at any stage of their career. Find the book here:  https://tinyurl.com/y3fe2k2c Here are ways to get in touch with Laura: Her Website: https://www.cchangelearning.com/ Her LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/laurasukorokoff Her email: laura@cchangelearning.com

Doug Fine meets again with Laura Sukorokoff, Author of "It's Not Them, It's You: Why Employees "Break-Up' with Their Managers and What To Do About It."    After a few minutes talking about the woeful state of good training and preparation for a management roles, Laura and Doug get to the crux of the episode discussing a very good employee named Emily. She suffered an unfortunate injury and she could not work at 100% for a period of time. Her manager displayed a clear lack of empathy, and Emily began to feel lost and alone on her work team. Laura shares why empathy is a key trait that managers need to have if they want to get the best work from people. But in workplaces where human-centered leadership is not practiced often a manager's response to a vexing issue for an employee is "Suck It Up and Deal." Empathy from a manager towards their people is important because they need to be interested in what is happening in their peoples' lives. Again, regular relationship-building 1:1 meetings with people is the surest way that relationships can grow and empathy for people can be discovered by knowing them better.  Here's how to get to know Laura:   First, here's her book: https://tinyurl.com/yydgmxxg  Laura’s Website: https://www.cchangelearning.com/ Laura’s LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/laurasukorokoff  Laura’s email: laura@cchangelearning.com

Meet Laura Sukorocoff, author of It's Not Them, It's You: Why Employees "Break-Up" With Their Managers and What To Do About It.  We briefly discuss whyt Laura wrote this book and her need to help leaders keep their employees highly engaged and delivering great results in their work. The book is story-based and each story conveys a real-world work experience of a real person. Today's discussion is about Rosalie's experience and what happened to change her from a  high-performing contributor to spending company time looking for a better job. Positive relationships are key between bosses and their people. Laura provides a vital practice for manager that will build and sustain strong relationships with their team members.  Laura’s Website: https://www.cchangelearning.com/ Laura’s LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/laurasukorokoff  Laura’s email: laura@cchangelearning.com

Our fourth and final episode with Trish Tagle covers the concept of TRUST between a manager and their people and teams. Trish conveys a story where a silly little demonstration of hierarchy within a company had a new team member wondering if she made the right choice to join this company. We also explore when a senior executive does something that no credible leader should ever do - that is, fail to defend their team in response to false allegations about them that were political in nature. Something that led to the situation was also pointed out - the failure of the leader came from them not knowing the real work of the team in order to push back on the criticism.    I hope you enjoyed this 4-Episode series with Trish Tagle, author of Everyone Knows You Suck - Bad Boss Stories - A Succinct Guide.    You can find Trish here: www.trishtagle.com    You can find her book here: https://www.amazon.com/Everyone-Knows... 0 Comments

Trish Tagle is the author of Everyone Knows You Suck: Bad Boss Stories - A Succinct Guide. In this episode she and I discuss two sub-topics under the third Pillar of her book - "Think."  The sub-topics are "Countenance" and "Freedom." Having an appropriate countenance means a leader is not going to blow their top in anger or yell at people, especially people on their team. Trust in a leader can be immediately lost if they do. There is a better way - communicate in a manner to get your message across and don't attack the person, attack the problem together. Also, a leader does not have to yell to damage a relationship with someone. Just providing inappropriate and cutting feedback will do the job too. In our discussion about freedom Trish explains that once a good foundation is provided to a team member a manager should let their people do their jobs - give them the freedom and autonomy that allows them to get to the goal their own way. Freedom is the polar opposite of micromanaging. We also discussed how it is important for a leader to keep learning from the people that do the work. There are many ways to do it - engagement happens and the best ideas can arise when employees are asked for their ideas about a project, initiative, a problem, etc. Find Trish here: www.trishtagle.com

This is the second episode of our BookCast review with author Trish Tagle. We are discussing her book, "Everyone Knows You Suck: Bad Boss Stories: A Succinct Guide."The second pillar in the book is "Teach" and our discussion focused on two aspects of "Teach," The Fish Philosophy and Feedback. In a very short period of time we talk about cross-training, making yourself redundant, promoting from within and asking for feedback from the people you manage. Trish is a no-nonsense BS Assassin and her advice to Bosses is clear and unambiguous. There is a lot of learning to be had from this episode. Enjoy!  Trish Tagle's contact info: www.trishtagle.com email: info@trishtagle.com Video Version #leaders #leadership #coaching #bookcast #management #leadershipdevelopment #engagement #relationships #team #work #training #learning #motivation

Trish Tagle is a speaker, business efficiency expert, author, and consultant... and is a straight-shooter in all of those roles. In our first discussion about her book, Everyone Knows You Suck: Bad Boss Stories: A Succinct Guide, you will learn why she wrote the book and how it can benefit a manager at any stage in their career development. In this episode we discuss a few things that fall under the first pillar, Truth. The concepts of 'Fairness" as well as "Saying I Don't Know" are discussed. You will note the depth of Trish's experience in helping leaders perform better. I hope you will invest in the time to get to know about Trish's thinking and approach to business relationships that lead to winning performance. Find out more about Trish and her work here: https://trishtagle.com/

We have come to the conclusion of BELONGING FACTOR: How Great Companies and Great Leaders Inspire Loyalty, Build Community, and Grow Profits. In this episode we cover some highlights of Chapter 11 - A Practical Approach to People, Process, and Profits.  According to Devin, here's the thing: it is people that deliver business or organizational result. Nobody else. So leaders at every level need to make people their first priority, and the rest will take care of itself. Focusing on people's abilities and their needs will win every time. Devin shares a couple of real-life stories of this principle that gave him a personal experience from which to draw from. We also discuss The Belonging Factor Podcast which actually began before the book. His guests are diverse and exceptional, so we include the link to his podcasts below. Finally, in closing, you get to hear the talented drummer that is Devin Halliday at episode's end. Rock On Mr. Halliday!    Devin Halliday would love to hear from you and he invites you to hunt him down to build a new professional relationship and become an ally in bringing a stronger sense of belonging to your life and work.    The Belonging Factor Podcast: https://anchor.fm/belongingfactor

My discussion with Devin Halliday covers a thought experiment that he  recommends in this Chapter, "What Would Your 12-Year-Old Self Think?"  When we are 12 we think in binary terms. Is something good or bad?;  should I do this or not?; Is it cool or uncool? Devin encourages us to  use a simple binary choice method that will help your company or  workplace quickly make some decisions about whether you are living up to  your stated values of quality, service, work environment, and other  things you say you want to be. It works on a personal level too. This  simple thought experiment, when done honestly, can keep a person and an  organization on track or help it course correct if things have gone  side-ways in terms of living up to stated values.    We also take a little time to discuss other ventures Devin has including  his Ally Cooperative. You will find it interesting to say the least.  Devin Halliday would love to hear from you and he invites you to hunt  him down to build a new professional relationship and become an ally in  bringing a stronger sense of belonging to your life and work.     allycooperative.com  (Company Website - Discussed in this episode)     Linkedin.com/in/devinhalliday   Websites:  rudimentsolutions.com  (Company Website)  devinhalliday.com  (Personal Website)   Email: devin@rudimentsolutions.com

Chapter 9 of BELONGING FACTOR is titled Operational Objectives (Do Not  Equal) Organizational Values. There is a distinct difference between an  organization's operational objectives and their organizational values.  However, if operations can be guided by, and in sync, with core values  that's when wonderful things start to happen for team members,  customers, and other stake holders. Too often though, values can be on  the wall, in the handbook, and summarily ignored. Devin Halliday has a  unique way to help the readers of BELONGING FACTOR understand the  benefits to everyone with business objectives overlap with each other  and drive each other.    Devin would love to have you contact him to discuss his book or for any  other reason. He is the Chief Belonging Officer of Rudiment Solutions.  Let me count the ways you can be in touch with Devin:    Linkedin.com/in/devinhalliday   Websites:  allycooperative.com  (Company Website)  rudimentsolutions.com  (Company Website)  devinhalliday.com  (Personal Website)   Email: devin@rudimentsolutions.com

Devin  Halliday and Doug Fine discuss some highlights of Chapter 7 of  BELONGING FACTOR - "A Case for Belonging in A Brand." They discuss the  incredible story of SJC Drums of which Devin is a faithful customer and a  raving fan and part of a special community known as the "SJC Family."  SJC Drums are hand-and-custom-made for their customers. Their drum are  of premium quality, are legendary, and they are not inexpensive. Devin  describes how SJC Drums builds a community that is "beyond loyal." There  are many lessons and inspirations that organizations and businesses can  take away from this BookCast and the book, BELONGING FACTOR. We hope  you enjoy! Just for fun, let's start you with the website of SJC Drums. You'll pick up their vibe. https://www.sjcdrums.com/ You can access Devin in a number of ways and he would very much  welcome your questions, inquiries, and helping you in any way he can.  He's good people!   Linkedin.com/in/devinhalliday Websites: allycooperative.com  (Company Website) rudimentsolutions.com  (Company Website) devinhalliday.com  (Personal Website) Email: devin@rudimentsolutions.com

Devin Halliday and Doug Fine discuss Chapter 8 in BELONGING FACTOR -  Authenticity and Other Sh%t to Consider. Values and Behaviors within an  organization or business should, at best, be aligned as close as  possible. When there is a big disconnect between what is professed and  what is practiced, that's when the problem arise. They touch briefly on  organizational culture requires constant maintenance and attention and  culture is manifest in actions performed rather than words that we say.  Aligning words and actions and things we say with things we do is  authenticity and without it your brightest and best people will begin planning their exit to join a culture with more integrity and promise.    You can access Devin in a number of ways and he would very much welcome  your questions, inquiries, and helping you in any way he can. He's good  people!   Linkedin.com/in/devinhalliday   Websites: allycooperative.com  (Company Website)  rudimentsolutions.com  (Company Website)  devinhalliday.com  (Personal Website)   Email: devin@rudimentsolutions.com