Creating Better Work Experiences

Discover how to transform your work environment with insights from Dr. Katie Thomas, a seasoned organizational psychologist and founder of Better Work Experience. With over two decades in the field, Dr. Thomas shares her expertise on the pivotal role of leadership as the steady anchor amidst the chaos of modern work life. From navigating generational diversity to adapting to technological disruptions, she emphasizes the necessity of self-awareness and trust-building in leadership. Through assessments and coaching, she assists leaders in identifying blind spots and fostering team resilience. Listen in to learn how leadership development not only enhances team dynamics but also aligns teams with the overarching goals of the organization.

Our conversation takes an intriguing turn as Dr. Thomas delves into the finer points of team dynamics and employee engagement. She uncovers how unresolved conflicts and unclear roles can sabotage even the most talented teams, offering practical strategies like team-building exercises and open dialogues to address these issues. We explore the concept of alignment in teams and its critical link to employee engagement. Dr. Thomas passionately discusses the importance of genuine human connections in boosting productivity and loyalty, asserting that engagement is rooted in meaningful relationships with colleagues and the company's mission. Join us for a thought-provoking discussion that promises to elevate your team's potential and create a thriving work culture.

If you would like to get the links and show notes for this episode, click on the link below:​

• https://www.designerdiscussions.com/episodes/episode-126-Creating-Better-Work-Experiences

The links mentioned in the episode​

• www.betterworkexperience.com
• www.linkedin.com/in/dr-katie-thomas

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Designer Discussions is a partnership of three experts: Jason Lockhart, CEO of KABMS; Maria Martin, founder of DesignAppy; and Mirjam Lippuner, founder of Get Ink DIY

Episode Transcript

Jason Lockhart (00:00):
Hello and welcome to Designer.
Discussions with Jason, miriamand.
Maria.
Today we're talking aboutcreating better work experiences
with Dr Katie Thomas.

Maria Martin (00:12):
Welcome to the Designer Discussions podcast
with.
Jason Miriam and Maria, wherewe talk about marketing, pr and
business advice for designprofessionals.
Marketing, pr and businessadvice for design professionals.

Mirjam Lippuner (00:26):
So our guest today is someone who knows this
subject inside and out.
Dr Katie Thomas, phd, is anorganizational psychologist with
over 20 years of experienceconsulting for corporations and
coaching executives.
She's the founder of BetterWork Experience, a platform
focused on helping companiescreate cohesive cultures and

(00:50):
improve performance throughleadership development and team
alignment.
Welcome, dr Katie, I'm veryexcited to have you.
This brings me back to mycorporate days almost, so let's
talk about this.

Dr. Katie Thomas (01:04):
Yeah, thanks for having me.
I'm excited to be here Talkabout something that's so
crucial to the success of anysize organization.

Mirjam Lippuner (01:13):
Yes.
So, dr Katie, you've spent morethan two decades working with
leaders and teams.
Let's start with leadershipdevelopment.
In today's fast-paced world,where there's constant change
and disruption, why isleadership more important than?

Dr. Katie Thomas (01:29):
ever?
Oh, that's a great question,miriam.
Leadership it's really theanchor that holds the team
steady through uncertainty.
Today's leaders are navigatingchallenges like economic
instability, technologicaldisruption and evolving work
cultures, like navigatinggenerational diversity.
It's no longer enough to managethe day-to-day operations.

(01:51):
Leaders need to be adaptable,they need to inspire innovation
and keep their teams alignedwith the bigger picture.
The leadership development isthe key because it helps leaders
become self-aware, understandthe impact they have on others
and build the trust needed tolead effectively.

(02:13):
The stronger the leader, themore resilient the team.

Mirjam Lippuner (02:18):
That makes so much sense, and I have actually
experienced this more than oncein my personal career during my
corporate days.
You mentioned self-awareness.
How do you help leaders becomemore self-aware and attuned to
the needs of their teams?

Dr. Katie Thomas (02:36):
Yeah, well, one way is through assessments
and coaching, so we dig deepinto their strengths, their
challenges and how they'reperceived by their teams.
Often, leaders are unaware ofcertain blind spots, and by
bringing those to light we canwork on strategies to improve
communication, build trust andultimately enhance team

(02:58):
performance.
It's about helping leaders beintentional with their actions
and helping them fosterenvironments where their teams
can thrive.

Mirjam Lippuner (03:10):
I love that.
Speaking about teams, let'stalk about team dynamics.
You've mentioned in the pastthat even a group of talented
people can struggle if theirdynamics aren't right.
Can you explain what you meanby that?

Dr. Katie Thomas (03:26):
Yeah, absolutely.
A high-performing team isn'tjust a collection of talented
individuals.
It's a cohesive unit that meanseveryone understands their role
, communicates effectively andworks toward a common goal.
Though many times, teamsstruggle because of hidden
dynamics like unresolvedconflict, lack of trust or

(03:49):
unclear expectations, and mywork focuses on identifying
those underlying issues, whetherit's through team workshops or
one-on-one coaching.
Once we address them, teams canunlock their potential and
collaborate more effectively.

Mirjam Lippuner (04:07):
That's really interesting, and so, of course,
me and all our listeners arewondering how do you help teams
uncover these hidden issues?

Dr. Katie Thomas (04:17):
Well, we use a mix of diagnostics, such as
team building exercises and opendialogues.
Such as team building exercisesand open dialogues Like, for
example, we might conduct asession where team members talk
about what's working well andwhat's not.
I do this one exercise withclients.
Often it's called stop, startand continue.

(04:38):
It's really just a way to getthings out in the open, and just
giving them the space to havethose conversations opens the
door to uncovering what's reallygoing on beneath the surface
and once we identify the rootcauses of dysfunction, we can
work on building trust, settingclear roles and ensure everyone

(05:01):
is aligned on goals.

Mirjam Lippuner (05:04):
Yeah, it really sounds like alignment is key.
But how does that tie intoemployee engagement?
Because we know that engagedemployees are obviously more
productive and loyal.
But engagement doesn't justhappen.
What's your approach to drivingengagement within companies?

Dr. Katie Thomas (05:26):
Yeah, and this one is actually my favorite
because engagement is all aboutconnection, really like human
connection.
Employees need to feelconnected to their work, their
team, the overall mission of thecompany, especially our
generation, our millennialgeneration right.
My approach focuses on creatingenvironments where employees

(05:47):
feel valued, they feel heard,they feel empowered to grow, and
that could mean giving themmore autonomy in decision-making
or offering opportunities forprofessional development or even
simply recognizing theircontributions regularly.
I mean, leaders play such ahuge role in this, and when
leaders are transparent, theycommunicate well and provide

(06:10):
clear expectations.
Employees are more likely tofeel invested in their work.

Mirjam Lippuner (06:17):
Yeah, that's so true.
So it's really not just aboutoffering perks and bonuses to
your people.
Right, Exactly Right.

Dr. Katie Thomas (06:25):
Well, perks are nice, they don't drive deep
engagement.
What really matters is howemployees feel about their role
and the company.
Do they see a future forthemselves there?
Do they feel like their work ismaking a difference?
When employees are emotionallyconnected to their work, they
are more engaged, productive andlikely stay with the company a

(06:47):
long time.
And right about here I like totell a story, if you just close
your eyes for a minute, and I'mgoing to tell you a story of
three masons.
Imagine you're walking down thestreet and you see three Masons
working and you ask the firstone what are you doing?
And she says I'm laying bricks.

(07:09):
And you go to the second Masonand you say what are you doing?
And he says I'm building a wall.
And you go to the third Masonand you ask what are you doing?
And she says I'm building acathedral.
See, they're all doing the samework, but they're connecting
differently to their why andwhat is it that they're doing?

(07:31):
And more and more today, theworkforce needs to be that third
Mason.
They need to know what is thiscathedral I'm building.
They're just grasping for thatconnection to that bigger
purpose and it's a leader'sresponsibility to make that
connection.

Mirjam Lippuner (07:47):
Yeah, I love that perspective and it
definitely doesn't always happenin every organization you work
for.
It's probably the minority, soreally glad there's people like
you Now, you've worked withcountless organizations.
There's people like you Now,you've worked with countless
organizations.
What's one key thing you'veseen that can quickly shift
employee engagement or teamperformance and I assume this

(08:10):
applies to organizations of anysize, right, regardless of
whether you have five employeesor 500.
Absolutely.

Dr. Katie Thomas (08:19):
Yeah, or 5,000 or more?
Yeah, I mean.
One of the quickest ways toshift things is by focusing on
leadership, alignment andclarity of purpose.
So when the leaders at the top,no matter the size of the
organization, when those leadersare clear about the direction
they want to take and theycommunicate that vision
effectively, it trickles downthe entire organization.

(08:41):
People feel more connected tothe mission and they're more
motivated to contribute.
Conversely, when there'sconfusion or mixed messages from
leadership, engagement dropsquickly.
So the quickest way is togather your leaders together,
whether it be a mom and pop shoprunning a small business or a
CEO and their top leadershipteam, you know, running a tech

(09:05):
company or a startup, you know.
Get everybody together andreally aligned and get clarity
of purpose.
And what are the thingseveryone's doing to make that
reality come to fruition come tofruition.

Mirjam Lippuner (09:27):
Yeah, that really is such a critical point.
So, dr Katie, for any of ourlisteners who are leaders in
their own organizations, what isone actionable step they can
take today to start improvingtheir teams?

Dr. Katie Thomas (09:38):
Right.
One immediate step is to askfor feedback.
I mean real, honest feedbackfrom your team.
Find a way to create a safespace where your team members
feel comfortable sharingthoughts.
Ask them about the challengesthey're facing and what can be
improved.
You can use something from myplaybook which is a stop, start

(10:01):
and continue.
That's very simple.
You can use something from myplaybook which is a stop, start
and continue.
That's very simple.
You can create a safe space.
Maybe you have a conferenceroom or take everybody out to a
meal or something.
What should we stop doing?
What should we start doing andwhat should we continue doing?
I mean, it's a really powerfulway to build trust and uncover
areas where you can make quickimprovements.

(10:22):
But the critical part of thisis that once you gathered the
feedback, you have to act on itright.
You have to show your team thatyou value their input and are
committed to making a positivechange.
So don't let it go flat and notact on it.

Mirjam Lippuner (10:41):
You have to really act on it if you, if you
choose to get that feedback yeah, that's such practical advice
and you know you really have towalk the talk and not just talk
it, and I think that that can be.
That's a big challenge in manyplaces that I've worked for

(11:01):
directly or in companies that Iconsult with now.
So I really appreciate thatfeedback and hopefully for
companies that are a little bitsmaller, that can be a little
bit easier, would you say.

Dr. Katie Thomas (11:14):
Right, I think so.
Yeah, I think so.
I worked for a small companyvery early in my career and one
of the ways that managementdecided to get feedback from us
was they actually put a feedbackbox so they could collect
anonymous or people could puttheir name on them feedback into

(11:36):
a box and they would review atthe staff meeting what was in
there and that kind of put thefire to leaders to be able to
respond to things in the moment.
So that's another way.
If you don't think you canfacilitate the conversation
yourself, you can bring someonein like myself who's an

(11:57):
organizational psychologist orconsultant, or you can simply
put a feedback or suggestion boxout and see what you get.

Mirjam Lippuner (12:07):
I love this piece of practical advice and I
think our listeners can reallytake that and apply it right
away.
That's great.
So, Dr Katie, as we start towrap up, what is the core
message you want leaders andexecutives to take away from
this conversation?

Dr. Katie Thomas (12:24):
Really the core message, miriam, is that
leadership, team dynamics andengagement they're all
interconnected.
I have a deep understanding ofhow they're interconnected but,
in simple terms, really to builda resilient, high-performing
organization, you need strongleaders who know how to foster

(12:47):
trust with employees.
You need strong leaders whoknow how to foster trust with
employees.
You need teams that are alignedaround your mission, your goals
, your objectives, and reallythat is going to help bring a
cohesive experience to yourteams and how everybody operates
together and employees will betruly engaged.

(13:11):
When you can link those thingstogether and when you focus on
these areas, it will ultimatelycreate a culture where people
feel empowered, they feel valuedand they are motivated to do
their best work, and then,simply, is just going to work on
its own after that, with someregular maintenance, of course.

Mirjam Lippuner (13:31):
Yes, absolutely no.
I love this topic.
Thank you so much for sharingyour insights with us today.
Dr Katie, I appreciate it.
It's a little bit out of thenorm of what we normally talk
about, but I think it's a reallyimportant topic.
So for anybody who's listening,who wants to learn more about
your work and the Better WorkExperience platform, tell us

(13:55):
where they can go.
We'll also put the links in theshow notes, but just tell us
where they can learn more aboutyou and the work you do.

Dr. Katie Thomas (14:04):
Sure, yeah, you can visit my website,
wwwbetterworkexperiencecom, andI also have a presence on
LinkedIn, which you know.
It's easy to find me on there.
I'm always commenting onsomebody's crazy post about
workplace culture or teamdynamics.

(14:25):
But, yeah, those are the twomain places.
I'm also on Facebook, dr Katie,and Instagram as well.

Mirjam Lippuner (14:35):
Perfect.
Well, thank you so much, drKatie.
It's been a real pleasure.
Thanks everybody for listeningand please come listen to our
next episode, which is going tobe out in two weeks.

Dr. Katie Thomas (14:49):
Thanks for having me.
I enjoyed the conversation.

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