Legacy + Empires

It’s been a minute.?

Hi friends! We’ve been on the road non-stop for 6 weeks…talking with you. Or people like you.?

Then I unexpectedly spent the last few days cleaning up from the massive floods here in Florida. The upside is kids with canceled summer camps find cleaning floods surprisingly fun.?

Where have we been? At a range of events that included: CHRO conferences, PE/Investor & CEO Summits, Kunik People Leader MasterMind (pic above!), and 3 Exec Team Offsites.?

Conversations at all of these events broke down into the elements we can control (things in our orgs & lives) and those that we can’t (elections, war, weather). There’s an undercurrent of stress around uncertainty, but compared to 6 months ago, I sense a real push towards action. Yes, there are big macro factors that raise real concerns. There’s also little (nothing) we can do about most of that. I’m still reflecting on what we’ve been hearing, but what stands-out right now is 2 things:

1. How universal People Problems are (everyone’s got them!)?
2. How similar the convos were everywhere - despite really different: leadership roles, industries, size orgs, etc

My biggest take-away was about connection & relationships. Of course, there’s a natural bias built-in given that all of us took the time to come be in person and learn together. But “relationship” was, without a doubt, the buzz-word I’d pick from across all these events. That’s never happened before. Intentionality, Communication, Efficiency - those are the ones I had been hearing before. This was a noticeable shift. If I had to sum up every keynote, panel and discussion from the last month, this would be it: relationships - real, authentic connections with people - are the core currency that run everything.?

These are the insights that surfaced first for me from all these convos. I’d like to dig deeper into some of the broader challenges we’ve heard, but first I’d like to hear from you. What on this list resonates/conflicts with what’s top of mind for you:?

• Relationships run the world, not transactions. Innovative leaders are focusing on building genuine connections with people. The basis of all business is people
• Broadcasting isn't the same as effectively communicating. Ditch the corporate jargon. True communication requires intentional context and an invitation to collaborate
• Loneliness is quite literally killing your employees faster than cigarettes. Mental health and human connection should be priorities
• Authenticity trumps armor. Tough-guy armor is actually just fragile insecurity wrapped in pretense. Ditch the machismo and learn to be vulnerably human
• Your CEO's real story isn't in the slogans. Official leadership narratives miss the raw human experiences that actually build trust. Seek the unvarnished truth behind the marketing stories
• Data is everywhere - it’s never been easier to collect or analyze. The real work is telling the story begging the numbers?
• For elite talent today, compensation is just table stakes. People want great cultures, awesome teammates, and visionary leaders they can actually believe in

At a fundamental level, a company is just a collection of humans collaborating together. Figuring out how to get those people into a groove together is what separates winners from losers. It’s what drives companies to greatness - or not. Or, as I heard in a fireside chat, “Optimize for legacy, not empire. Empires die because they’re alone, legacies live because they involve others. Build community around your brand and in your company.” We should all be thinking about legacy.?

That can sound overwhelming. It’s a big ask. Especially if this isn’t something your company has been prioritizing. That’s OK. You don’t need to do it all at once. Our friend and Kunik Expert Colin H. Mincy said it better than we can: "Don't wait for great, it's not coming. Find those small wins and work from there."?

I’ve missed hearing from you all, so I’d love to know: what stands out from the take-aways above? What small wins are you aiming for…or better yet, already celebrating!?

Join Us

1. ERG Roundtable : Mastering ERG Off-sites: hear from McKesson, DuckCreek & Waymo about what makes an impactful ERG offsite (Sage Milton Michael Evans )
2. Real Talk: What's next for DEI? : Where does DEI go + what does that mean for talent development, retention + performance. Real Talk with former DEI heads from SiriusXM and Wind River ( Nicole Hughey + Tom T. )
3. Employee Experience Roundtable: CEO Ansel Duff digs into how to make feedback + performance management more inclusive, responsive and primed for personal and organizational growth

What we’re reading:

• Deloitte 2024 GenZ + Millennial survey?
• Performance management that puts people first?
• Landing a job is all about who your know (again)
• From correlations to causation in people analytics?
• I’ve worked in DEI for a decade. It won’t survive beyond 2025