Podcast: Leadership Development: Leadership From Your Laptop?

gothamCulture Podcast

In this episode of the gothamCulture Podcast, James O’Flaherty interviews Kevin Hyde, President, and Co-Founder of Layer 8 Security.

Leadership Development is being affected by technological innovation, teleworking, and multi-generational teams. Kevin discusses how he has navigated these issues both in his military career and also as president of a cyber-security company. He tells relatable stories and gives actionable advice about how he approaches leadership development in this changing environment.

Released: April 22, 2020

Podcast: Organizational Culture Consulting: Turning Data Into Action

gothamCulture Podcast

In this episode of the gothamCulture Podcast, Chris Cancialosi interviews Dylan Flavel Managing Director of Melbourne based Spring Point.

Consulting sometimes gets a bad reputation which seems to come from the root issue of “overdiagnosis.” That means consultants spending way too much time assessing the situation and leaving little focus or budget to help their clients making tangible change. Dylan talks about how now clients are hiring consultants to quickly turn data into action. He also discusses how to find the right consulting firm for your organization.

Released: March 27, 2020

The Future Of Crowdsourcing

Crowdsourcing

CrowdsourcingI am a believer in the power of exploration. It is often in the seemingly random corners of life that we find opportunity, brilliance, and possibility. In an effort to open the door to possibility for myself, I spent some time with the producers and participants of Crowdsolve Seattle– a first-of-its-kind event bringing together law enforcement, a variety of experts, as well as several hundred “regular people” from around the world who share an interest in true crime and a passion to contribute in a meaningful way.

Designed and produced by the team at Red Seat Ventures,this event extends upon the team’s prior work producing CrimeCon, a variety of events throughout the year that attract flocks of true crime fans from around the globe. “CrowdSolve came mostly out of attendee feedback over our first three CrimeCon events. Fans told us they wanted to go much deeper into a single case file for the entire experience,” says Kevin Balfe, co-founder of Red Seat Ventures.

CrowdSolve uses a process known as crowdsourcing, an open collaboration process intended to help solve problems, has gained a great deal of popularity in the last decade. Application of crowdsourcing principles have been introduced to a wide variety of situations ranging from medical research, to navigation (think Waze), and even how you book travel accommodations through Airbnb. Crowdsourcing offers an opportunity to bring together large groups of diverse individuals to solve problems with the assumption that diverse groups bringing a variety of opinions and backgrounds can make higher quality decisions than a small group of “experts”. Read More…

How People Analytics Informs HR Strategy

People Analytics

Let’s face it- technology has our brains inundated with unprecedented amounts of information. As a result, we’ve developed countless platforms and pieces of technology infrastructure that keep us organized, efficient, and profitable. The advent of technology in the business world combined with its future potential makes this an exciting time for us all. Technology can rapidly access troves of data in seconds, enabling us to make decisions that are much more informed than those of yesteryear. However, we should think of these technological capabilities as tools to help us make more informed decisions, not as mechanisms to make decisions for us. Although this advice can be applied in several domains, it’s no more relevant than in the world of people analytics.

So what is “People analytics”?

People analytics, in layman’s terms, refers to the analytical method used to make decisions about human resources and human capital in an organization. People analytics informs HR strategy, hiring/downsizing efforts, and selecting the right candidates (to name a few). Fortunately, we’ve developed technological platforms that can assess and analyze certain variables to “predict” an employee’s success in his/her role. This can be done through simple correlation tables, more complex regression models, or even through advanced predictive modeling. Regardless of the method of analysis, organizations want to know they’re hiring the right person for the right role. They also want to know how to keep these people while understanding what contributes to longer tenure, or on the flip side – higher turnover.

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Stop Guessing: How to Measure the Impact of Transformational Change

measure transformational change

Are Your Transformational Change Projects Successful?

Nod your head if you have ever heard, seen or (heaven forbid), quoted this statistic: “70% of transformational change efforts fail.”

You nodded, right? Let’s face it; the 70% failure statistic is dramatic. It builds the case for hiring experienced transformational change practitioners. It cautions implementers to learn about change management practices and integrate them into their tactical tasks.

Unfortunately, it’s a made-up number. Back in the 90s, Michael Hammer speculated about the success rate of re-engineering projects and since then, authors and speakers have cited 70% as the failure rate for all types of change programs. Several transformational change practitioners have dug into the change archives and vigorously refuted it. (See here and here) Yet, it persists.

Even if no one had refuted the number, I stopped believing it years ago. As a measurement practitioner, I have found that:

  • Few organizations are disciplined or adept at identifying measures of success at the outset of their projects;
  • The data to measure success is often difficult to collect;
  • The evidence of success can rarely be attributed solely to the change effort;
  • Leaders move the finish line or unexpected circumstances cause it to move;
  • The initial sponsor leaves and her replacement does not revisit the measures.

Given all this evidence against it, how can anyone state with such certainty that 70% of change projects fail?

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Knowledge Management: Did You Know?

knowledge management benefits

It’s funny how things go in cycles. What was critically important to us last year may not be a concern to us today. And things we used to take for granted, we now cannot fathom living without.

Think about the Internet. Most of us weren’t even aware of it until the mid 90’s, but where would we be today without it? Although I type here from the comfort of my office chair, my office is at home and I rarely need to venture into NYC thanks to technology. My office material comes from Amazon.com and my calls are handled over a VOIP platform. All driven by the web.

Knowledge management is a similar area you’ve probably never paid attention to. Maybe you haven’t heard about it yet, but knowledge management is already affecting how you live and work.

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Our 7 Best Organizational Culture Articles of 2016

7 best organizational culture articles 2016

Since day one, my goal as marketing manager at gothamCulture has been to promote our team’s in-depth knowledge and understanding of workplace culture.

We have a diverse group of folks here, with over sixty years combined experience in culture change, leadership development, and strategic planning for both private and public organizations of all sizes. We understand that while most people know what organizational culture is, not everyone is an expert on the subject, and we take great pride in our relatable approach to helping leaders learn to navigate today’s ever-changing business landscape.

I strive to make this blog a hub of valuable information that reflects this relatable expertise, and over the past year, we’ve written some great articles that do just that.

Here, I’ve collected our seven most popular articles about organizational culture change for 2016. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

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Responsible Data Consumption: How to Know Enough Not to Be Dangerous

Responsible Data Consumption: How to Know Enough Not to Be Dangerous

No matter where you sit in your organization, you can’t escape the push to use data to inform your next steps and strategy, nor should you. The amount of data available at your fingertips may vary, but I’d bet dollars to donuts that you have enough to help you improve decision-making, both for yourself and your organization.

“But I’m not a trained researcher, or a data scientist, or a….” I hear you begin to clamber.

Luckily, you don’t need letters after your name to be a smart consumer of data and findings. You only need patience and confidence as you thoughtfully consider the information in front of you. Remember that while you may not be a statistical wizard, you do bring your own flavor of insight and expertise to the table.

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How Artificial Intelligence is Redefining the Future of Work

How Artificial Intelligence is Redefining the Future of Work

In a world where the term “big data” is being thrown around like the next coming, many business leaders still struggle to understand how more information is going to help them make better decisions that drive their businesses forward.

But the real challenge goes well beyond merely accessing more data. The key is accessing data in the right way, at the right time, and in the right format to generate beneficial insights.

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How to Overcome the Biggest Barriers to a Lean Office

lean office

Lean methodology is a common sense approach to increasing customer satisfaction, decreasing costs and improving the quality of products and services, concurrently. In order to accomplish this, organizations must create full transparency and be clear about what metrics matter to their overall performance. This sounds so easy and straightforward, so why aren’t we all doing it?

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