Voltcast: Illuminating Leadership

When you think of a high performing team, what are the qualities you think this team possesses? We are excited to welcome back Joanne Loce on VoltCast to discuss with CEO, Jeff Smith, on how a group of people differentiate from a team of people. There are common qualities that we often see within great teams that range from trust and accountability to the ability to take feedback and to settle conflicts. Join our discussion on VoltCast to learn more about creating synergy within teams and to hear more about our new book on this important topic!

Are you trying to help your employee’s move from surviving to thriving? Do you want to have a culture that has a motivated and engaged workforce? Do you know how to get your team to give you feedback so that they can perform their best? Please join host, Jeff Smith, and his guest Dr. Mark Greenawald as they discuss culture, feedback and cases of organizations with a strong culture. We will share best practices, tips and tools to help you design the culture you are looking for while also helping you improve your leadership.

We have all heard the saying, “People are our greatest asset”. If so, then why do many organizations drop the ball with regard to their on-boarding? By the time we find them, tell them, sell them on joining our organization and ramp them to productivity, we have a small fortune invested! Done well, on-boarding positively impacts culture and reduces bad turnover. Yet some think it’s acceptable to pay lip services to this crucial function. A good hire can be turned into a bad hire if proper on-boarding is practiced. And the worst of it is that this is self-inflicted! Phrases like, “we were just too busy”, or “they have x number of years of experience and should know what to do” are offered up as after the fact excuses for not understanding the importance of getting new stakeholders properly integrated with their new work family. If you have had challenges with this in the past, or are evaluation your on-boarding processes, you won’t want to miss Illuminating Leadership!

Are you thinking about taking a global assignment for your organization? Is your organization thinking about expanding internationally? Are you hiring people from other companies and bringing them to your headquarters? We are working in an ever more connected world where we might be in Missouri one day, Malaysia later that week, and Monaco to wrap up the week. We are going to have a conversation about our experiences on global assignments, ideas for expanding globally and things you might want to consider when working with your global team. Please join your host, Jeff Smith and his guest, Susan Ward next Tuesday at 1PM EDT on Voltcast: Illuminating Leadership. Susan has worked for global companies and global assignments for the past 25 years. She recently was working with Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi and is currently coaching clients around the world. Please join us to learn best practices, great tips and some funny stories from working in places around the globe.

In a disrupted world, what does effective change leadership look like today? How do you take the lessons learned from your change experiences and apply them quickly and effectively to the next change you lead? What do our teams and organizations need from us to successfully navigate change? And how do we manage our own mindset in the process? Join the conversation as Jennifer Owen-O’Quill welcome Amy Robertson to our show. Amy is in the midst of preparing her team for a significant regional merger. We will share stories, lessons learned, and challenges that are arising in her day right now. Bring your questions for this real-time conversation.

For the first time in history we may have 5 Generations at work, working side by side. What do generations at work really think of reach other? What part of that is mythology based on assumptions vs actual experience? What guidance is available for Managers and Employee of different generations? How can we all interface at work to tap each other's strengths and minimize misunderstanding? What are some of the false assumptions made about Generations X, Y, Z, B and T? Please join us Voltage Leadership CEO Jeff Smith (Gen-X) and Principal Consultant Lee Hubert (Boomer) as they discuss “Generational Reality vs Generational Mythology”.

Studies have found that people who live, lead and work with purpose live up to 7 years longer, are 42% more likely to experience contentment in life and at work, and are four times more likely to be engaged in their jobs (Gallup, 2013; National Institutes of Health, 1998; New York University, 2015). In addition, organizations who have a strong sense of purpose are more profitable and outperform the market 6:1 (Deloitte, 2014). Please join Jeff Smith and Zach Mercurio at 1pm EST on 10/24/17 as we discuss defining your organization’s purpose, creating meaningful work experiences and creating a leadership style that allows others to find purpose and meaning in your organization. We will discuss practical tools, tips and case studies on how to build an authentically purpose driven organization. We look forward a great conversation and we hope you can join us.

Should we focus on innovation or stability? Do I need to focus on getting more tasks done or building relationships with my team? Should we centralize functions or decentralize? Should I exercise at 5am or get more rest? Do you find yourself asking these questions on a daily basis? If so, then please join Jeff Smith and Cara Wilson as we host Voltcast: Illuminating Leadership on Tuesday at 1pm EDT on VoiceAmerica. We will be discussing Polarities which are interdependent pairs that need each other over time to maintain and gain performance. Since polarities are unavoidable, they are present in every individual, team, and organization. We will be talking about how to recognize polarities, how to change your either/or thinking to and thinking and how to implement changes in your mindset. We look forward to a fast-moving, entertaining show that will highlight case studies of using polarity management. We hope you can join us on Tuesday.

When US Airways Flight 1549, or “The Miracle on the Hudson,” ditched into the Hudson River on January 15, 2009, Dave Sanderson knew he was exactly where he was supposed to be. The last passenger off the back of the plane on that fateful day, he was largely responsible for the well-being and safety of others, risking his own life in frigid water to help other passengers off the plane. Despite the hazards to himself, Sanderson thought only of helping others and emerged from the wreckage with a mission: to encourage others to do the right thing. Do you feel like you are swimming all day and are just trying to keep your head above water? Jeff and Dave will be talking about what leaders can learn about themselves during chaos. We will also explore how Dave has used his experience to influence and teach others. We will give lots of tips and suggestions for our listeners while providing an inspiration story on Tuesday at 1PM EDT.

You are in a meeting with the Team, the boss, a client or maybe colleague and want to make sure you don’t miss anything important. Later, as you review notes from the meeting, you struggle to understand what they say, (let alone what they mean.) How can that be? After all, you were the one taking the notes, right? Are there better ways to handle meeting notes? What do others do and how does that work for them? Should I even be in this meeting at all? If you have ever had this experience you won’t want to miss our next VoltCast. Voltage CEO Jeff Smith and Principal Consultant Lee Hubert will share tips and tools on How to Take Great Notes and Get the Most out of Your Meetings

Do you ever feel like an imposter, posing as a leader? Do you have a lot of intentions for something you plan on doing but not as many results as you had hoped? Do you think in a couple of years, you will have more self-confidence and be a better leader, spouse, parent, friend, etc. Please join Jeff Smith and April Armstrong, Founder of AHA Insight as we tackle these types of questions. We will explain our philosophy, share our coaching cases and tips for you to design the life you are looking to live.

What do you think other generations, like Boomers, think of Millennials? What part of that is mythology based on assumptions vs experience? What guidance is available for Boomers who work for Millennial managers? How can we all interface at work to tap each other's strengths and minimize misunderstanding? What are some of the false assumptions about Boomers as older people? Please join us Principal Consultant Lee Hubert (Boomer) and Voltage Office Manager Diane Nguyen (Millennial) as they discuss “Millennial Mythology”.

It is said that trust is a lot like oxygen. Everybody knows when its present and everybody seems to feel it when it’s not. It is also the main reason professional (and some personal) relationships fail. Trust is reciprocal like a two-way street. It is also like a seed planted that, over time, builds stable and predictable relationships. Conversely, Trust or lack of it, often shows up in increased “bad” turn-over statistics, low engagement survey scores and lots of gossip driven “noise” in the system. So how can Leaders help build up Trust on their Teams and in their organizations? What are the behaviors they can model that engender Trust? Please join us on the next Voltcast as Voltage CEO Jeff Smith and Principal Consultant Lee Hubert as they discuss Leadership Behaviors That Build Employee Trust across the organization.

What makes a great team? What are the factors that play into the recipe for a successful team? Why do some Teams gel and seem to have fun with the work they are tasked with while other do not? If you have contemplated these questions or have current challenges with building a successful Team, then you wont want to miss our next Voltcast. Please join us as Voltage Principal Consultant Lee Hubert and Special Guest Van Garnett, Training Program Specialist from Community Housing Partners (CHP) discuss practical tips and tools for building great Teams.

You work hard to get to know what your customers want and how much they are willing to pay for it. You define the right strategies for your business’ future. However, when you look around at your team, you do not always have enough of the right talent to fully implement and lead your strategies. Businesses in every industry face this growing challenge, especially as your organizational chart has holes caused by Baby Boomers retiring in greater numbers, and Gen X’ers and Millennials not quite ready to step into senior roles. Please join Jeff Smith and his guest Joanne Loce, as they discuss demographic trends and their impact on succession planning and talent development in the workplace. Joanne is Managing Partner of Fortify Leadership Group and a leading expert on Talent Development who has hosted numerous conferences on this important topic. Please join us for this informative and critical conversation at 1pm EDT on Tuesday, August 15th for Voltcast: Illuminating Leadership.

Do you ever feel like your days are flying by and running into one another? Do you have good intentions about planning for your work but end up being consumed by e-mail and the crisis of the day? Have you wanted to start a work-out regimen but somehow never seem to get around to it? If you are curious about these type of questions, then please join us on Tuesday, August 8th at 1pm EDT for our next Voltcast: Illuminating Leadership. Host, Jeff Smith, will be talking with Dr. Alan Schlechter, who is the co-author of the book UThrive: How to Succeed in College and Life. He and co-author, Daniel Lerner, teach the most popular elective class at New York University, The Science of Happiness. We will discuss best practices around well-being, ways to grow your effectiveness and share case studies of leaders who have grown their skills while also enjoying their role more. This will be a fun conversation full of tips and ideas for leaders to implement right after the show!

What does it take to get people to bring their best new ideas to the table? How can leaders foster creativity and innovation in ways that deliver results? We hear all the catch phrases and buzz words: Design Thinking, Creativity and Innovation Spaces, being a Great Place to Work, but the question I hear from leaders most often is simply, “How can I get started?” After being the opening speaker for the Valley Business Keynote, Jennifer Owen-O’Quill continues the conversation about the ingredients that drive creativity and innovation at work. (And no, it doesn’t take big capital investment and a lot of infrastructure.) Tune in to hear about the two key ingredients that innovative teams have, and three simple steps that will get you started on the path to your own version of Creativity INC. Jeff and Jennifer look forward to taking your questions during this timely conversation.

Are you looking for a way to have motivated and engaged employees? Are you looking for the next leader of your organization? Department? Project? If so, feedback and development are two tools to help ensure you will the person ready when you need them. However, so many of are so focused on our day to day tasks, we never seem to have time for relationships and growing the people on our team. Please join host Jeff Smith and his guest, Tiffany Quivers who is a thought leader on feedback, development and growing talent in organizations. We will cover a model on feedback, share ideas from organizations we have worked with and practical tips to help you grow your skillset. This fast moving show will inspire and provide you steps on how to grow others on your team.