I’m not afraid to have bold conversations, and this may be my boldest episode yet! Today on Playing in the Sandbox, I take you with me as I draw a line in the sand - if we want to improve company culture, we can’t just focus on leadership… It is so important that we empower and educate our amazing managers! Positive change happens at all levels, so listen in to hear how leadership and management can work together to help an organization thrive!

  1. We, as a culture, have overemphasized the role of leadership in building healthy business cultures, while undervaluing and underutilizing management.
  2. Middle managers have one of the toughest jobs - they communicate both up to leadership and down to team members.
  3. Problems with company culture often come from communication breakdowns between leadership and the front-line staff.
  4. “Title envy” can be a big problem for managers. They may envy the prestige of leadership titles - but when we focus on titles, we lose sight of the importance of the work itself.
  5. Comparing titles often creates unnecessary friction and undermines collaboration, whether one person is belittling themself or others.
  6. Studies show that organizations with a balance of leadership and management qualities thrive.
  7. Sweeping positive cultural changes can only happen in an organization when leaders check their egos at the door and work in collaboration with all levels of the team. They have to roll up their sleeves and get out there!