Kristopher Newbauer

Many professional associations (i.e., SHRM, ATD, ISPI, etc.) have local chapters that host workshops and other professional development opportunities. This is a great way to connecting with other professionals in your area who share your interests and experiences is a great way to build a community.

People tend to remember things that interests them and to which they can relate through a personal connection. Television shows, movies, plays and song lyrics are all proof that we seek out stories to make sense of the world and our experiences. We find context and meaning helpful and important in learning new information by drawing upon our past experiences and connecting new information in meaningful ways to what we know or have already experienced. Of course, in order to maximize the potential for learning, storytelling can help focus learners’ attention and evoke thoughts and feelings that build connections between what learners know or have experienced to that which is related through storytelling.

Exit interviews offer a way for departing employees to share insight into what led to their decision to leave. Many employees prefer to move on quietly without “burning any bridges.” While there may be merit to giving weight to the opinions and perspectives of employees who chose to stay (“stay interviews”), it’s still helpful to identify trends that may emerge from the input of departing employees. Perhaps there’s a manager who isn’t great at leading people who is causing folks to quit. Perhaps a teammate who isn’t pulling their weight or being held accountable. Perhaps a deficiency in benefits. Whatever the case, it’s more useful to hear from departing employees in a meaning way rather than later reading an anonymous review online.

For far too long, employers have relied upon active recruiting: a build-it-and-they-will-come approach. The reality is that the best, most-qualified, top-caliber talent may not be actively job-seeking when an employer is searching. Employers need to get better at passive recruiting, or proactively seeking out highly-qualified professionals who may not be actively seeking to make a career change. Employers who do so still have to make a compelling case as to why a perfectly engaged employee with a favorable employee experience would want to even entertain making a leap to their company. Sure, pay might be a consideration, but if the right person wasn’t actively looking for work, it will likely take more than the promise of money.

Being willing and able to speak confidently before a crowd of people you’re convinced are judgemental and dismissive of you is an important life skill. When I was in my early 20’s, I found myself as a rookie teacher standing before classrooms of 20+ students every hour. I quickly learned that public speaking was but one important skill required for my success. I also needed to be a compelling story-teller. I needed to capture their attention, pique their interest, spark their curiosity, engage their inquisitiveness, and invite them to be part of the discussion.

As a People leader, it is my goal to create consistency and fairness across our many offices around the world so that when one of our employees is asked what it’s like to work for us, that answer is consistently positive no matter what the person’s position, level, title, pay, office location, etc. It’s often said that people leave managers, not companies. My goal is ensure that our enterprise-wide People Strategy clearly articulates to all people-leaders how they are expected to engage and lead people so that everyone has as universal an experience as possible. Switching bosses can be a game-changing experience. We need to ensure that employees’ commitment and dedication is as strong toward the company as it is toward their manager.