Photo courtesy of curtis.kennington

This past Tuesday, I had the opportunity to appear as a guest on the Real Recognition Radio show, which airs every Tuesday at 1PM Eastern Standard Time (EST) on the VoiceAmerica Business channel.  In this week’s episode, titled “A Better Workplace Conversation”, hosts Roy Saunderson and S. Max Brown interviewed feedback expert Sonia Di Maulo and myself on the issues of leadership, workplace interactions and fostering motivation in employees (Sonia has written a follow-up piece about our interview on her blog.  I invite you to check it out and find out what key points stood out from this discussion).

For those who didn’t get a chance to hear the radio broadcast, or who’d like to hear the show again, you can listen to the interview using the audio player below.  Or if you prefer, you can download a MP3 copy of the show from the Real Recognition Radio show web page.

Some of the topics discussed during this show include:

• Why giving positive feedback is critical to creating a productive workplace.
• How listening can foster opportunities for growth.
• Why the best leaders are those who focus on serving those they lead.
• The importance of praise and recognition in the workplace and how we can start implementing it today.
• How we can engage our employees in these tough economic times.
• Why leaders should encourage a more emotional workplace.
• What are the most important opportunities facing organizations today.

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I want to take this opportunity to thank Roy Saunderson and S. Max Brown for inviting me to appear on their show.  It was a pleasure to share my insights on leadership and motivating employees with your listeners.  And I look forward to hearing your thoughts about this conversation on leadership and motivating employees.

What ideas resonated with you and what would you add to the discussion on these issues?

I would like to invite all of you to listen to my interview on the Real Recognition Radio show, found on the VoiceAmerica Business Channel, which will air Tuesday, March 16th at 1 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST).

The episode, titled “A Better Workplace Conversation”, will feature myself, along with feedback expert Sonia Di Maulo, discussing some of the issues facing today’s workplace and what leaders can do to improve the performance and productivity of their workforce.

Real Recognition Radio is hosted by S. Max Brown and Roy Saunderson of the Recognition Management Institute. The show focuses on the importance of recognition and appreciation in the workplace and through their guests, offers insights and ideas on what companies can do to improve their workplace culture and with it, employee morale.

Real Recognition Radio has already hosted such renowned speakers as John Hope Bryant, author of the bestselling book “Love Leadership” and in upcoming shows will be interviewing many industry leaders and thinkers including leadership authors Jim Kouzes, Michael Stallard and Jason Pankau, Dr. Matthew J. Grawitch, Dr. David W. Ballard, and Dr. Don Schultz to name but a few.

It’s truly an honour to be included in such an incredible list of guests and I hope you will check out both my interview, which will air Tuesday, March 16th at 1PM EST on the VoiceAmerica Business Channel website, as well as these upcoming shows for the wealth of information that will be offered on leadership and the workplace.

NOTE: I’ll be posting a piece about this interview later this week which will include a streaming version of this broadcast for my readers to listen to here on my blog.

Over the last few posts, I’ve been writing about the subject of employee engagement – of how it can be fostered in the workforce without elaborate plans or costly incentives, as well as pointing out what employers would gain in creating an engaged team of partners in place of a group of subordinates.

Of course, despite everything that has been written here and elsewhere about the value of employee engagement, there are inevitability many leaders out there who simply refuse to incorporate this viewpoint into how they lead their teams. For employees who work under such leadership, it can be a frustrating and demoralizing experience. However, even though your boss doesn’t see the value in engaging his workforce doesn’t mean employees can’t nurture a respectful and motivating work environment.

Again, we have to remember that creating an engaged workplace is not about Click here to continue reading »”Employee Engagement Is Not Just For Leaders”

Employee engagement is certainly a hot-button issue these days, and with good reason. With businesses struggling to gain a stronger foothold on an increasingly global market, companies are starting to look beyond their current practises in order to find that magic bullet which will give them a competitive edge.

However, some leaders still resist the idea that we need to foster a sense of engagement in the workforce as a possible means of gaining traction in their market, mainly because they don’t see this as something businesses need to focus on. After all, shouldn’t we expect employees to do the job we’re paying them to do? On the surface, it certainly sounds like a fair and reasonable statement. So why, then, do we need to concern ourselves with engaging our employees? Well, it all comes down to whether we want a group of subordinates as opposed to a team of partners.

It’s a common reality of the business world for companies to Click here to continue reading »”Why Employers Need To Engage With A Purpose”

Inspiration can be a curious thing.

I’m always amazed at how seemingly unrelated pieces can stir up new ideas or perspectives about our world and the way we live and conduct ourselves within it. Take, for example, this commercial released on YouTube last week by Coca-Cola called the “Happiness Machine”.

While the commercial is effective in creating this idea of Coca-Cola being a source of happiness, there’s also a valuable lesson here that can be imparted to business leaders in how they interact with their employees.

It’s not hard to see that this social experiment by Coca-Cola led to Click here to continue reading »”What A Soda Vending Machine Can Teach Us About Employee Engagement”