Culture Matters: Summer Reads
I am enjoying a much-needed break from law school this summer, but never a break from learning! I have been catching up on some recent additions to my reading/watching/listening list from folks who have appeared before in my feeds because of the great work they do distilling insights in behavioral economics, management, psychology, and other disciplines that can have a significant impact on culture. I may not always agree with everything they share, but it almost always makes me rethink and improve my approach.
Frances Frei and Anne Morriss: Trust & Inclusion
I was reminded this past week during MCAPS Start (the Microsoft FY kickoff event for the field and partners) of Frances Frei's work around trust, which is foundational when it comes to culture, esp. in areas of diversity & inclusion. She walked us through the "Trust Triangle" during the Americas kick-off, where many of us had to confess where we "wobbled." There was a great summary of the concept in HBR a few years ago that would be good to bookmark, not only for the Trust Triangle, but also for the inclusion diagram further below.
And this reminder came in handy the next day, when some of our women's and disability community members came together to discuss neurodiversity and fostering inclusion. Low-trust organizations rarely see the benefits of a diverse workforce because the lack of trust also means a lack of inclusion. But addressing all aspects of the Trust Triangle helps support truly inclusive teams who can share more freely across multiple dimensions of diversity. Remember: an individual is not diverse alone - it all depends on who else is in their team and whether they are actually being included in a meaningful way.
That's why I added Unleashed to my reading list this summer, to review more of the related research and findings from Frances Frei and Anne Morriss that address some of these key topics.
Kim Scott: Radical Candor & Radical Respect
I loved Kim Scott's Radical Candor when it came out because it described something I had encountered over the years that seemed nice, but wasn't actually very helpful - something she liked to call "ruinous empathy."
Ruinous Empathy happens when people want to avoid the tension or discomfort that can occur when delivering feedback that might make someone feel mad, sad or bad in the short term, but will help them succeed in the long run. So they avoid conflict and don’t address areas that need improvement.?
I'll let her explain it to you via https://www.radicalcandor.com/faq/what-is-ruinous-empathy/
She has incorporated feedback about Radical Candor for her related book that just came out earlier this year on Radical Respect . (And I must say I love the 2x2 framework for all of this because it makes problem identification a lot easier when you know things are not where they should be.)
Feeling disrespected can have a negative impact on so many other areas of the culture people experience that it is considered foundational, along with trust, to be able to build upon it effectively. Left unaddressed, disrespect can quickly fester into more problematic behaviors like bullying, discrimination and harassment, and Kim Scott does a great job laying out the terminology she uses to cover behaviors across the spectrum, particularly when it moves from a cultural to legal concern.
Amy Cuddy: Bullies, Bystanders & Bravehearts (forthcoming)
Amy Cuddy helps bring several of these topics together from a psychologist's point of view based for her upcoming book on Bullies, Bystanders, and Bravehearts . What many people may have referred to as upstanders, as in Radical Respect , Cuddy likes to call "Bravehearts" because of the courage it takes to intervene in bullying or other harmful situations.
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She joined Frances Frei and Anne Morriss recently for 2 episodes of the Fixable podcast where she talked about How to Spot a Bully (Part 1, transcript ) and How to Stop a Bully (Part 2, transcript ). This is helpful whether you are the unfortunate target of such behavior, a potential Braveheart, or perhaps an unwitting enabler or "accessory bully." The sooner people recognize the signs and dynamics of these situations, the better they will be able to respond effectively.
While many people are familiar with childhood bullying, the problem is growing in the workplace, too. Organizations like Speak Out Revolution have data available via https://www.speakoutrevolution.co.uk/dashboard so you can learn more about how to identify the problem and address the underlying cultural issues before it gets worse.
Dan Ariely: Misbelief & Bureaucracy
It's been a while since I had a chance to catch up on Dan Ariely's recent work, although I have been a follower of his since I read Predictably Irrational several years ago. His most recent book is on Misbelief: What Makes Rational People Believe Irrational Things . What is interesting about this is how much of hinges on trust, as he covers in "The Funnel Writ Large: A Societal Spiral of Decreasing Trust."
The accumulation of misbeliefs makes sense when we realize that misbelief thrives on a loss of trust. When we start mistrusting one institution, it becomes easier to mistrust another. In fact, we can quickly assume that maybe all institutions are the same: corrupt, greedy, and malevolent. -- Ariely, Dan. Misbelief: What Makes Rational People Believe Irrational Things (pp. 37-38). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.
This is a good reminder about how trust at the individual level can scale out, positively or negatively, to affect the trust placed in institutions and other social organizations that help maintain stability and some semblance of order. When that starts to break down, we all end up paying the price for it.
On a somewhat related note, Ariely also has a site for the "Center for Advanced Bureaucracy ." Suffice it to say, he is not a big fan of "needless complexity," although it has been interesting to see how some people view bureaucracies as a necessity in large societies, while many still tend to associate them with being overcomplicated and ineffective. Lack of trust and lack of respect are a recurring theme here as well and you can hear him talk about that some more in this recent clip . Be sure to follow him on LinkedIn so you can see more of the fabulous bureaucracy memes, too.
Bob Sutton & Huggy Rao: Friction Fixers
I learned about Bob Sutton because of his breakthrough idea in 2004 (when I was in law school the first time) for the "no a**hole" rule. It certainly sparked some lively conversation for those of us studying to enter a profession notorious for a disproportionate amount of such characters. I, of course, bought the book when it came out a few years later as well as the survival guide a decade after that, but as you can tell from my current reading list, the topic is still relevant and I can appreciate the perspectives Kim Scott and Amy Cuddy have added to the mix.
But this is also why I knew I'd enjoy his most recent collaboration with Huggy Rao on the Friction Project . As an industrial engineer by training, I can appreciate the optimization approach of the friction fixers described in the book. But even traditional IE approaches to some of these areas tend to overlook the cultural impact of approaching it like "trustees of others' time." This is where the empathy from the Trust Triangle earlier joins with the logic that many IEs are anchored in to improve the experience for everyone involved in the flow of work.
The heart of book digs into the causes and solutions for five of the most common and damaging friction troubles: oblivious leaders, addition sickness, broken connections, jargon monoxide, and fast and frenzied people and teams.?
I've learned a lot already about recognizing "power poisoning," the "Swiss Cheese Theory," and why "Hierarchy Is Inevitable and Useful; Clueless Leaders Are Avoidable and Destructive." That makes it all the more interesting when the topic of organizational structure and bureaucracy comes up on LinkedIn , too. And that's also why you'll find Marina Nitze and Nick Sinai 's Hack Your Bureaucracy in the reference section here and queued up for a future edition of this newsletter.
I know I just barely scratched the surface with all these great reads, and I'm looking forward to learning more from the authors across all their channels this summer, but I have a feeling my reading list will just keep growing at this rate!
Reference
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4 个月I want to be like you when I grow up, Nivine! I was seriously considering law school earlier this year. You’ve inspired me to re-visit it yet again. I keep thinking I’ve moved on….but it still tugs at me. Thank you for the summer reads.
Leader focused on Customers’ Business Outcomes
4 个月I enjoy your posts Nivine K. Zakhari. Perusing the books and concepts you've highlighted brings to mind additional similar teachings - all good! It's uplifting to know we seem to crave "better" trust and inclusion - surely the consumption of a variety of these works will help us all improve!