TRUE Culture

Scaling a company is hard. Scaling a company without losing its culture is even harder.Hanna Smith is the Chief People Officer at Tillo, a fast-growing global fintech company, where she leads people strategy, talent development, culture, and organizational growth. With more than two decades of experience in HR and people leadership, Hanna has helped startups and scale-ups build high-performing teams while maintaining strong employee engagement and connection.In this episode, Hanna shares her journey into people leadership, lessons learned from building cultures in high-growth organizations, and why simplicity, communication, and manager development are essential for sustainable success. She also discusses employee engagement, performance management, psychological safety, and the challenges of preserving culture during rapid growth and private equity investment.Key Takeaways:● Building high-performance cultures starts with clarity: Employees perform best when expectations, success metrics, and company values are clearly defined.● Great managers are culture multipliers: Investing in leadership and management development has a direct impact on employee engagement and business performance.● Simplicity drives organizational effectiveness: Reducing unnecessary complexity helps teams move faster, make better decisions, and stay aligned.● Psychological safety enables better performance: Teams thrive when people feel comfortable speaking up, challenging ideas, and providing honest feedback.● Culture must evolve without losing authenticity: As companies scale, leaders must intentionally protect the values and behaviors that make the organization unique.Connect with Hanna:Website: https://www.tillo.com/Connect with Robert:Website:   https://www.truecolorsintl.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/483774/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/true-colors-international/FB: https://www.facebook.com/iSpeakTrueColorsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecolorsintl/

What does it take to build a workplace culture that empowers individuals and fosters long-term success?In this episode of TRUE Culture: Building Success from Within, Robert Cook sits down with Dana Almora, Director of Culture and Communications at Pride Industries, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering individuals with disabilities and veterans. Dana shares how Pride Industries' culture has evolved over the years, from its humble beginnings to becoming a leader in inclusive employment. She dives deep into the importance of creating a people-first culture and the strategies that have helped Pride Industries continue to grow, even in challenging times. Dana also discusses the key role the True Colors program has played in shaping their communication, leadership, and team dynamics.If you’re a leader looking to create an inclusive, engaged workforce and strengthen your organization’s culture, this episode is packed with insights.Key Takeaways:Inclusive culture drives success: Prioritizing inclusivity and fostering a sense of belonging leads to higher engagement and retentionTraining is essential for growth: Investing in ongoing training shapes a culture of respect and accountabilityLeadership drives cultural transformation: hands-on leadership and personal connection with employees creates an environment where people feel valued, supported, and motivated to contributeLearn more about Dana Almora and Pride Industries:Website: prideindustries.com1-844-I-Am-Able (1-844-426-2253)LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dana-almora-8936bb84Facebook: facebook.com/PRIDEIndustriesPeopleInstagram: instagram.com/pridepeopleservices

Leadership isn’t something you’re born with—it’s a skill that can be learned, developed, and refined over time.Jim Carlough is a former corporate executive, consultant, speaker, and author of The Six Pillars of Effective Leadership. With decades of experience mentoring leaders and building high-performing teams, Jim specializes in helping “accidental managers” develop the skills needed to lead effectively.In this episode, Jim shares why leadership development is critical to organizational culture, the common mistakes new managers make, and the six foundational pillars that create trust, engagement, and long-term success. He also explains how empathy, integrity, stability, and communication shape workplace culture and why great leaders focus on developing people rather than simply managing tasks.Key Takeaways:● Leadership Is Built, Not Born: Effective leadership is a learned skill that can be developed through mentorship, practice, and intentional growth.● The Accidental Manager Problem: Many organizations promote top performers into leadership roles without preparing them to lead people successfully.● Integrity Creates Trust: Transparent and consistent leadership builds psychological safety and strengthens team performance.● Empathy Drives Engagement: Great leaders recognize when employees need support and create loyalty through genuine care and understanding.● Culture Starts with Leadership: Organizational culture is shaped by leaders who model communication, stability, accountability, and respect every day.Connect with Jim:Website: https://www.jimcarlough.comConnect with Robert:Website:   https://www.truecolorsintl.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/483774/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/true-colors-international/FB: https://www.facebook.com/iSpeakTrueColorsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecolorsintl/

Workplace toxicity rarely appears overnight—it builds when harmful behaviors are ignored, normalized, or excused.Catherine Mattice is the founder and CEO of Civility Partners, a nationally recognized HR thought leader, TEDx speaker, and author of Navigating Toxic Work Environments For Dummies. In this episode, Catherine explains how unhealthy workplace cultures develop, why high-performing toxic leaders are often allowed to remain, and what HR and organizational leaders can do to intervene before problems escalate.The conversation explores the early warning signs of toxic culture, the difference between engagement and a genuinely healthy workplace, psychological safety, accountability, culture assessments, and why fixing culture requires changes at the organizational, leadership, and individual levels.Key Takeaways:● Toxic Cultures Develop Over Time: Incivility, gossip, microaggressions, and harmful behaviors can become normalized when leaders fail to address them early.● High Performance Doesn’t Excuse Toxic Behavior: Leaders must consider the broader cost of toxic high performers, including turnover, lost productivity, damaged trust, and wasted organizational resources.● Engagement Alone Doesn’t Measure Culture: Employees can be highly engaged while still experiencing bullying or harassment, making deeper culture and climate assessments essential.● Accountability and Psychological Safety Can Coexist: Organizations can hold people accountable while maintaining an environment where employees feel safe speaking up, making mistakes, and giving feedback.● Culture Requires Continuous Leadership: Healthy cultures are built when leaders consistently model expectations, develop managers, address harmful behavior, listen to employees, and reinforce respectful behavior throughout the organization.Connect with Catherine:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cmattice/Subscribe to the Civility Partners newsletter:https://civilitypartners.us13.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=8f30491fbe7448ce1061a3b48&id=1d8dffac1fNavigating a Toxic Workplace For Dummies:https://civilitypartners.com/navigating-a-toxic-workplace-for-dummies/Connect with Robert:Website:   https://www.truecolorsintl.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/483774/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/true-colors-international/FB: https://www.facebook.com/iSpeakTrueColorsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecolorsintl/

Patsy Doerr is the Chief People and Culture Officer at LRN, bringing nearly 30 years of global leadership experience across organizations including JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Thomson Reuters, and UDR. Her career has centered on human capital, inclusion, culture, and helping organizations navigate transformational change.In this episode, Patsy explores why culture must be treated as a core business system rather than an HR initiative. She shares practical approaches to leadership accountability, psychological safety, employee engagement, measuring culture, managing global and hybrid teams, and preserving human connection and critical thinking as AI reshapes the workplace.Key Takeaways:● Culture Drives Business Performance: Strong cultures directly support employee engagement, productivity, retention, and long-term organizational performance.● Leadership Sets the Standard: Building culture starts with leaders who understand its business value and consistently model the behaviors they expect from others.● Psychological Safety Strengthens Teams: Employees are more engaged when they feel comfortable speaking up, challenging ideas, taking risks, and contributing different perspectives.● Culture Must Be Measured: Engagement data, retention metrics, exit interviews, employee feedback, and behavioral outcomes help leaders understand whether culture initiatives are actually working.● Human Skills Matter More in the AI Era: As AI expands access to information and data, critical thinking, relationship skills, inclusive leadership, and sound decision-making become even more valuable.Connect with Patsy:Website: https://lrn.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patsydoerr/Connect with Robert:Website:   https://www.truecolorsintl.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/483774/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/true-colors-international/FB: https://www.facebook.com/iSpeakTrueColorsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/truecolorsintl/