David Mead

Often, organizations don’t realize they are self-sabotaging their own growth through the experience they create for their people.

When the culture we talk about doesn’t align with the culture our people experience, Culture Dissonance occurs. People go into self-preservation mode and they find it more difficult to trust and develop connections with others. Healthy, productive environments have Culture Congruence, where the stated culture aligns with daily behaviors.

In this interactive talk, David identifies the symptoms of Culture Dissonance and explore three specific leadership traits that, when put into practice, lead to Culture Congruence.

Culture Congruence serves as a strong foundation for:
Well being
Performance
Discretionary effort
Retention
Innovation
Transparent communication

At the end of the session, participants will have some simple, practical tools they can use to contribute to the congruence of the cultures they lead and influence.

It’s human nature to seek the sense of comfort we feel with consistency and stability. And yet, we look toward the future and see more change and uncertainty than ever.

This state of uncertainty can leave us feeling unsettled, demoralized, and anxious about the future. As a result, decision making tends to stagnate and progress slows; we become more rigid and effective leadership declines. We see obstacles rather than opportunities.

What if we shifted our perception of uncertainty from an obstacle to our progress, to seeing it as a springboard to our progress? Rather than resisting uncertainty, what if we chose to run toward it? When we know how to embrace it, uncertainty becomes opportunity. This is what separates the leaders and organizations that thrive from those that merely survive during uncertainty.

In this interactive talk, David will share simple ideas tha make it possible to approach uncertainty in a way which opens new possibilities we may not have seen before.

In many ways, the pandemic catapulted us into the future of work at a speed that some of us weren’t quite ready for. The lines between work life and personal life have blurred like never before. As we all learn our way through a new way of working, major changes in how, when and where we work are having a significant impact on leaders and their teams. 

As we deal with shifts in technology, geography and flexibility, we must stay grounded in our humanity. Successfully navigating the future of work demands knowing, accepting and caring for the whole human, not just the “work” human.

This interactive talk explores why humanity matters to the future of work. David challenges participants to focus on culture and how they can take individual responsibility for it. By intentionally building and maintaining a culture of trust and human connection, leaders and teams can ignite transparent communication, collaboration and a sense of belonging, which become the rocket fuel for future engagement