Current Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol has signaled that the company is looking back to its past to rediscover its greatness.

In a recent article published by SmartBrief, Katharine Stallard and I share why part of that return to the past should include a people-first leadership philosophy exemplified by former Starbucks leader Howard Behar.

To learn more about Howard’s connection-focused leadership style, and how it could benefit Starbucks again, check out the SmartBrief article.

Photo of Howard Behar courtesy of Howard Behar

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The combination of rising political division and declining employee engagement levels present a significant challenge for organizations.

However, by training leaders and managers to cultivate cultures of connection, we can create workplaces where employees thrive despite their differences. This not only enhances individual and team performance but also contributes to a more harmonious and productive organizational culture. It is time for leaders to take proactive steps in building connected cultures that transcend political differences and foster a more engaged, collaborative, and cooperative workforce.

I wrote about this topic in a recent SmartBrief on Leadership article. In it, you can learn more about my recommendations on how to prepare your leaders for the upcoming election season.

Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash

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With all of the dialogue about how AI will shape our futures, let’s not forget to consider the impact of AI on one of the most important drivers of personal well being and organizational performance: human connection.

In this new article published in IE Insights, a publication of IE University in Spain, Katharine Stallard and I explore ideas raised by companies and individuals such as Aro, The Atlantic’s Adrienne LaFrance and Jonathan Haidt, Gallup’s Jon Clifton, The New York Times’ Kate Murphy, and the U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy.

Ultimately, AI has tremendous potential to be used for good, but we need to be mindful of and intentional about mitigating the risks. As we write in our conclusion:

“Our devices are tools. We can decide how and when we use them. We can decide when we don’t. What makes us human, and what gives us joy and purpose on this Earth, is how we connect with one another and discover our common humanity. So, in order to get the best out of our technology – tools that will become increasingly more potent thanks to AI – we must safeguard our humanity, by protecting our in-person social time, strengthening our communities and networks, and by watching out for those us who might be less fortunate.”

Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash

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During the challenging times of the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr. Tooba Kazmi and Patient Services Manager Lauren Thayer of Yale New Haven Health were tasked to spearhead a novel unit designed to provide care for chronically ventilated patients. The outcome of their dedicated efforts was they achieved record results in successfully weaning patients off ventilators.

It wasn’t until they attended a Connection Culture workshop that the team fully understood what had happened. In this new video, they explain the “a-ha” moment they had about why the unit was so successful. Being able to pinpoint the crucial elements means the team can replicate them in the future and help even more patients achieve successful outcomes.

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I’m excited to share that I’ll be participating in the Human Capital Institute’s (HCI) #StorytellingTuesday webinar series on Tuesday, November 20, 2018. We’ll be talking about why there really is one “best” type of culture, and how people analytics and workforce planning are instrumental to achieving the human connection that is essential for both individuals and organizations to thrive, no matter what comes their way.

Find the full details and register for the event here.

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Where were you when you first heard the news of an airliner striking World Trade Tower One on the morning of September 11, 2001? I was in my office near Times Square in Manhattan. At first I assumed it was an accident. Then came the unbelievable news that a second plane had hit Tower Two.

That night I hardly slept, concerned about the fate of people I knew who worked at the World Trade Center. In the days that followed I learned of those who did not survive the attacks and others who lost spouses, siblings, or parents.

Much has been written about September 11 since that day. One piece in particular moved me, although it came from an unlikely source. The humorist Dave Barry wrote a column about the heroism of the passengers on United Airlines flight 93 who organized the first resistance to the terrorists and the grief of those who lost loved ones who were passengers or crew on that flight.

In memory of all the innocent victims and first responders who lost their lives, and to their families and friends, here is “On Hallowed Ground.”

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Check out technology critic David Pogue’s “How Ballmer Missed the Tidal Shifts in Tech” which appeared on the New York Times’ website on August 24.

I believe the most relevant question to ask in assessing Ballmer’s leadership and why Microsoft missed the tidal shifts in tech is: did Ballmer and his leadership team develop a culture of control, a culture of indifference or a “connection culture?” (These are the three types of psychosocial cultures in organizations.) Connection Cultures are required to maximize innovation, employee engagement and productivity, a case we made in our book Fired Up or Burned Out: How to Reignite Your Team’s Passion, Creativity and Productivity. 

A second question to ask is: was the leadership team at Microsoft overwhelmingly comprised of linear-thinking, execution-oriented (and perhaps, at times, stubborn and bullying) leaders like Ballmer, or did it include curious, open-minded, integrative thinkers? An excellent book that examines and promotes integrative thinkers as CEOs is Roger Martin’s The Opposable Mind: How Successful Leaders Win Through Integrative Thinking.

Some years ago I gave a presentation on Connection Cultures at the Innovation Council.  In the Q&A following my presentation, one of the attendees, a venture capitalist from Silicon Valley, shared with the audience that despite the public’s impression of Apple’s Steve Jobs, a leader who was no stranger to bullying, Apple’s senior leadership team included leaders who collectively brought the Vision, Value and Voice elements of a Connection Culture.  If so, it would suggest some wisdom on the part of Jobs to see that he needed  a senior leadership team comprised of people whose wiring and talents differed than his.

I don’t have any personal experience with Apple’s or Microsoft’s leadership teams to know but I am curious if anyone out there has any experiences or observations they would be willing to share that shed light on the answers to these two questions.  If so, please post your comments below or, if you prefer, email me at mstallard@epluribuspartners.com.  Your comments can be either on or off the record (on the record comments may appear in future articles or books I’m writing).

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Connecting with people requires empathy i.e. you feel the emotion another individual feels.  This is different from sympathy where you recognize the emotion but don’t feel it.

In Fired Up or Burned Out, I wrote about the company Cranium and how it designs “high five moments” into its games.  High five moments are times when people connect via the shared empathy of joy (remember that we define “the force of connection” as shared identity, empathy and understanding).  When you are interacting with people you want to connect with, feeling and expressing emotion helps.  When you feel someone’s joy or pain, it connects.

In the news

Here are a few recent articles related to connection that you might enjoy:

Walter Isaacson wrote about leadership lessons from Steve Jobs’ life for Harvard Business Review.  In the article, Isaason addresses issues relevant to Connection Cultures including the elements of Vision, Value and Voice.  Jobs was brilliant when it came to Vision, terrible when it came to Value and mixed win it came to Voice.  Fortunately, there are other members of Apple’s senior leadership team whose strengths helped overcome Jobs’ weaknesses.

David Brooks just wrote a column for The New York Times entitled “The Relationship School” that touches on aspects of Connection Cultures in schools.

The Atlantic had a piece entitled “Stress Makes You Sick: Exploring the Immune System Connection.” The article explores how stress weakens the human immune system and mentions the link between stress and connection. (Remember I shared with you that recent research over a 20-year period showed people who work in cultures with supportive relationships had mortality rates that were 2.4 times lower than people who worked in cultures with weak relational support. This supports the longstanding view that lifestyles with little relational support produce chronic stress will kill you.)

While teaching seminars on leadership and Connection Cultures at the Darden Graduate School of Business, Professor Marian Moore introduced me to the work of her colleague Jonathan Haidt, a social psychology professor at the University of Virginia.  Haidt just wrote The Righteous Mind.  Here’s a well-written review of the book entitled “Why Won’t They Listen?”  The book review clearly shows it addresses issues related to the Connection Culture elements of Value and Voice.  I’ve ordered a copy but not read it yet.

Finally, I recently spoke with Jim Blasingame about the competitive advantage of culture on his nationally syndicated radio program entitled “Small Business Advocate” that you can hear at this link.  Also, I wrote an article on the  “Science of Engagement” for Training Industry Quarterly.

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Tomorrow I fly back to the U.S. after a 10-day trip to Amsterdam, Brussels, London and Edinburgh where I taught seminars for the Institute for Management Studies, spoke at ITV, saw several friends and spent a couple days on vacation with my wife, Katie.

While here, I learned about several new items of media coverage related to connection. Several items came from my friends Sean Witty and Jay Morris. Here are the items below.

Dr. Suzanne Zeedyk’s research on the importance of connection to babies and their ability to connect

Mental Heath Foundation of the UK report on rising loneliness and declining connection in the UK

UNICEF summary report on meeting children’s need for connection in the UK, Sweden and Spain

Article in Entrepreneur magazine “Forget Networking. How to be a Connector”

Center for Creative Leadership article on introverts who connect well with colleagues

Dr. Stephen Jones on the need to connect with others to keep your mind and memory sharp

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