September 19, 2024 • 16 mins
Ready to harness the power of culture to turn your organization into a high-performing team & an unstoppable force for success?
In this episode, David Anderson, CEO & Founder of DWA Leadership, shares his journey from government roles to entrepreneurship and executive leadership.
David emphasizes the critical role of building high-performing teams and fostering a healthy, evolving culture to drive business success. He discusses the importance of intentional culture - how leaders need to adapt as their companies grow, and the challenges of managing people, processes, and profits to maximize potential.
He highlights the disconnect that exists between leadership’s perception of culture and the reality experienced by employees, stressing the need for constant communication and feedback.
He dives into the challenges and opportunities of managing a multi-generational workforce, revealing how leadership is like chemistry - requiring constant adjustments for optimal team dynamics and sustained growth.
David also notes the value of psychological safety, servant leadership, and the benefits of empowering influencers within the organization to shape and sustain a winning culture.
Get ready to explore the intricacies of evolving roles within organizations and why clear, consistent communication from leaders is crucial. David's practical advice and strategies serve as a reminder of the impact culture has on cultivating performance, growth, and overall success.
We'd love your feedback on how we can improve - send us a Text!!
Seeking to align your culture, boost performance & impact your bottom line? Let’s chat—no sales, just real talk about your challenges. Not ready? Join our PL3 Community for free insights & connections.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
William Gladhart (00:00):
Welcome to the Leadership Le Podcast.
I'm your host, Will Gladhart,CMO at the Culture Think Tank.
At the Culture Think Tank, weempower leaders with metrics
that strengthen culture, driveperformance and return.
We're here today to learn aboutthe actions leaders have taken
to address organizational change.
(00:21):
Our guest today is DavidAnderson, CEO and founder of DWA
Leadership.
Thanks so much for taking thetime to join us.
Thank you, g lad to be here,Looking forward to it.
Excellent.
Well, let's start by having youshare with our audience a bit
about yourself, your backgroundand your organization.
David Anderson (00:41):
All right, and in 30 minutes, or you want the
three minute version, the threeminute version please?
Yeah, no problem.
Problem, thanks for having meon today.
So my name is David Anderson.
I am a lifelong entrepreneur 30years.
Entrepreneurs have startednumerous companies a marketing
agency that's been in businessoff Madison Ave for over 25
(01:04):
years.
I have a software marketingMarcom software company been
around six or seven.
That's still what keeps meawake at night.
I really focus now I don't havea day-to-day role in either of
those companies on working withexecutive teams, on building
high-performing teams.
We all know that if you have agreat, you can have the best
(01:25):
strategy in the world, but ifyou don't have the right team in
place high-performing teamyou're never going to achieve
that.
I do some public speaking.
I sit on some boards.
My past before that I did astint in government which was
interesting, from government toentrepreneurship, worked in
Washington DC, capitol Hill andthe White House and a bunch of
(01:51):
other stuff.
But to spare your audience ofall of the details of my life,
hopefully that covers it all andyou can dive in where you see
appropriately from there.
William Gladhart (01:57):
Absolutely Well.
I'm glad you don't let any dustsettle, as you, like many
entrepreneurs, you just keepiterating or creating.
So we'll be discussing threequestions today as a warm-up to
start our conversation.
Would you share why you believea healthy culture is critical?
David Anderson (02:12):
Yeah, it's absolutely.
You know what, and it took me along, long time to really
actually, being honest, fullyunderstand the importance of
culture in an organization andhow that contributes and is
actually the guiding force inbuilding high-performing teams,
which I focus so much on now.
(02:34):
Which high-performing teams?
The stats I could rattle offfor another 10 minutes on the
stats of how, when you have theright culture and which results
in a high-performing teamincreased productivity,
increased efficiency, increasedprofitability, increased revenue
growth, increased sales I meanthe list just goes on and on and
that's not my stats.
Just pull it up on ChatGPT,look at HBR, look at McKinsey,
(02:58):
look at any of them.
We'll give you tons there.
So really having that healthyculture, a people-focused
culture with boundaries and wecan go more into that if you
want is really what drivespeople and you know.
But we also always have to keepin mind that culture means
(03:19):
different things to differentpeople.
What culture means to my25-year-old?
I don't know, is thatmillennial or whatever he is?
And my 22-year-old is verydifferent than a culture for a
60-year-old.
That you have in anorganization and how you blend
those together can definitely bea challenge.
William Gladhart (03:39):
Yeah, I think well one.
I love that you addressed someof the stats, because those are
the things that we really diveinto and love here at the
Culture Think Tank, simplybecause there is a direct
correlation between culture,well-being and performance.
Productivity bottom line returnone of the most frequent
questions we get these days justabout you know, how do we
(04:05):
manage four generations ofpeople with all different
perceptions of culture, alldifferent needs, all different
styles of communication?
So it's been our experiencethat leaders tend to struggle in
three key areas people, processor profits.
In your role as a leader, butalso with working with
high-performing or buildinghigh-performing teams, could you
identify which of these areashas presented a cultural
(04:27):
challenge in your ownorganization or in another group
that you've worked with?
David Anderson (04:32):
Yeah, so I got through college by checking the
box.
All of the above those all leadinto it and you know it's
really interesting.
A lot of what I work with nowis I love working with growth
oriented companies, companiesthat are really focused on
growth, not necessarily thestable, and what I found is
(04:55):
where culture needs to form andevolve because cultures
absolutely need to evolve isfirst is as companies go from it
.
You know there's the five.
There's different theories, butthe five I like the seven
stages of growth that companiesgo through.
As those companies grow and alot of them are tied to not only
revenue, but the number ofpeople that you have in the
(05:15):
organization process becomes akey factor in managing and
sustaining growth.
Because you go like, even in myown companies, three people
sitting around a room yellingover our shoulder we need this,
we need that, we need this to 21people, which is one of the
first next steps, and then 49 orwhatever it is yeah, whatever
(05:38):
it is as you go through how theprocess becomes so key to
organizational growth.
Now, as an entrepreneur, whatdo I despise more than anything
else?
Dave, you have to follow theprocess, so it's usually us
leaders that are the ones thatare causing some of the biggest
(05:59):
problems around the process,because we just don't do a good
job following it.
Moving forward with that, thepeople mix.
In my book I talk about and whenI'm public speaking I talk
about.
Being a leader is like being achemist, because it's the
constantly changing of theformulas that you need to have
to maximize your end product,whether that's a chemical, a
(06:21):
pharmaceutical, whatever it is,it's chemistry and we as leaders
those trying to build, maintainand grow cultures evolve
cultures.
It's being a chemist every daywhen you bring in a new
president, senior level personor something that's going to
change the culture or it canaffect the culture, and how do
you change the chemistry aroundthat, with the person, the
(06:44):
people and all of that and thosetwo.
I think the third P you talkedabout was profits, right?
Yes?
Well, you don't have profits.
You don't have profits withoutP1 and P2.
I'm in this, I'm in marketing,because it's about as simple of
math as you can do.
I don't need to know anythingmore than plus and subtraction
in most cases in running ourcompany, and P1 plus P2 equals
(07:07):
P3, in this case equals profit,and if one of those two aren't
operating most efficiently.
You can still have profits butyou're definitely not maximizing
your profit potential.
William Gladhart (07:20):
Absolutely Well.
I appreciate that you bring upthat you share a little bit more
about those challenges but alsodive a little deeper into the
people element but also theprocess, because I know from
experience as a leader likeyourself or even a fellow
entrepreneur, that sometimes theprocess feels very burdensome.
It gets in the way of likeeither creativity, next steps,
(07:40):
you know, going out and sellingwhatever that is, but if that
structure isn't there you can'tgrow to the next level and you
tend to plateau, et cetera.
So kind of explain thatchallenge Was there any
particular negative impact onthe organization in that as you
were working through that peopleprocess or profit element?
David Anderson (08:00):
I think, in a growing company.
One of the challenges you havewhere people and process can
conflict is when you start abusiness and your first five,
eight, nine, 10 people are onboard and then you go to the
next level and you put processon them and they get more and
more removed from maybe theleader or the leadership things.
(08:23):
Our egos are natural.
I'm not criticizing Just ournatural egos is I'm less
important around here.
My role's changed.
I used to be involved ineverything, now I'm not.
And how you manage that can bevery challenging going through
that because there's a lot ofbrain chemistry involved.
(08:45):
You know, in all of that.
That goes into how people reactto that and, as a leader, the
ability to constantly reinforce,reassure people, their role,
the importance that they play,people their role, the
(09:06):
importance that they play it'sjust a bigger piece of the pie
and we need you to do otherthings is one area Plus.
A lot of times, too, people arelike the Is it three words, six
words?
This is how we used to do.
It is the six words I despisemore than any six words in
business and that comes to theright people mixes.
Well, this is how we've alwaysdone it.
(09:27):
Well, that's great when we werea million dollar company and 12
of us and now we're a $5million company and 25 of us.
It just doesn't work.
And if I can say one more thingabout this, one of my absolute
favorite books I coach about,I'm a Marshall Goldsmith
certified coach.
Marshall Goldsmith, I think,sums it up the best is what got
(09:48):
you here won't get you there,and that's a hundred percent how
you have to manage theevolution, not change the
evolution of your culture as thepeople in process part grow.
William Gladhart (10:03):
Yeah, I think it's really impactful that you
touched on the part abouthelping people understand their
role and the constantcommunication required, because
we've heard from CEOs from thehorse's mouth of well, you know,
my employees don't really knowwhat they're doing.
You know, my employees seemlike they're lazy and it
literally comes back that theleader has not been clear in
(10:24):
communication, in direction, innext steps for leaders, managers
, et cetera.
So people are just ping pongingaround or there is the quiet
quitters that people have juststopped working and they come to
work.
You know it means something alittle different now that you
know we're all back in the fullswing of the business world.
But yeah, it's been reallyinteresting to kind of see that
(10:46):
change and movement happen.
But the disconnect of what theleader perceives versus what
actually the employeeexperiences is something that's
really important to bring up.
So thank you for sharing that.
So could you share with usmaybe the one thing that you
identified that helped impactyour culture, or how you've
helped with thathigh-performance team area?
David Anderson (11:08):
Yeah, a couple of things.
It's going back to what youjust said.
That's why I work with teams,not just CEOs, because it's a
combination of issues and when aCEO says that, or a leader,
it's like you want to hold up amirror right, my team, my team,
my team or play MichaelJackson's song.
Take a look in the mirror, orwhatever it was.
(11:30):
And that's a lot of what needsto be done.
Is you just have to?
What got you here won't get youthere going forward.
The question you asked me was aparticular instance.
Is that what you said?
William Gladhart (11:44):
One thing you identified that helped impact
your culture, or you know a teamthat you worked with positively
.
David Anderson (11:51):
Yeah, absolutely .
Well, you know, I think youwould agree with me.
For the CEOs Well, you know, Ithink you would agree with me.
For the CEOs listening,entrepreneurs, owners, even CEOs
to a level Leaders can discussand set the tone for the
direction, but it's the peoplebelow you that set the culture.
You don't set the culture.
(12:12):
You have a wish list of whatyou want the culture to be, but
it's really the team, because,you know, I know leaders who say
the culture of my company isthis, and then I go talk to
their team and they're likethat's not the culture of this,
that's a fantasy, that's what heor she thinks.
So I firmly believe that it is.
(12:34):
Every single organization hasinfluencers below the leadership
that will have a verysignificant not a total, but a
very significant role on theculture.
And it's just like we need tobe doing all the time.
We need to be growing thepeople below us.
We need to be communicatingwith the people below us.
We need them to be the onesthat say to their peers no,
(12:56):
that's not how we do this aroundhere, not the CEO or COO or
senior leader, because it'speer-to-peer then and that's
where that grows there.
So literally one of my clients.
Now I, you know, oh, what's theculture of your company?
And then I talk to their teamand they're oh yeah, that's in
his mind, that's really not howit is at all.
(13:16):
Team, and they're oh yeah,that's in his mind, that's
really not how it is at all.
So what we, as leaders, need issomebody who can give us
reality checks and tell uswhat's really going on and how
to adjust things.
We need leader interpreters, asI call them, translators, stuff
like that that can helpformulate the.
It's not a one person job ofcreating the culture.
(13:39):
It's the full team.
William Gladhart (13:40):
Right.
Well, I really love that youshared that CEO or leader
disconnect, because westatistically, in several of our
white papers and research we'vedone, we see an almost 52%
perception gap of what theemployee actually says or
believes their role or theculture is at an organization
(14:00):
versus what the CEO or C-suiteis actually determined or think
it is.
You're preaching to the choiron that particular piece and,
yeah, it's very fascinating, butI think you also have a really
great positive message to sharewith leaders about thinking
about that communication, theculture, the constant
observation of what's happeningat the company.
(14:22):
So is there anything else you'dlike to add or share with
fellow leaders?
David Anderson (14:26):
Yeah, I mean the best cultures that an
organization will have again,not Dave's research pick any of
them, and I'm interested inyours Will are the organizations
that foster a culture ofpsychological safety, one where
everybody feels they're heardDoesn't mean that it goes their
(14:49):
way, but everyone feels they'reheard, everyone is comfortable
raising issues, everyone iscomfortable respectfully
challenging each other, becausewe know that through
collaboration and brainstorm,not conflict, the only
difference between brainstormand conflict is when ego gets in
the way is where it leads tothe best outcomes for the
(15:13):
organizations and when theorganization is winning in total
, the people are winning intotal.
There's more growthopportunities.
There's more opportunities tolearn and grow.
There's.
You know, people want to go towork for the companies with the
great cultures.
Yeah, there's a financialaspect to it, but even more and
more with the currentgenerations, and that it's a lot
(15:34):
less about the money and things.
And just don't make the samemistake I made for the first I
don't know at least half of mycareer, if not more of
underestimating the value of thepeople and the culture that is
created and how that directlyties to the performance of your
(15:54):
company overall.
William Gladhart (15:56):
That's a really excellent way to wrap up
our session.
So, David, I've enjoyed havingyou on our Leadership Levers
podcast.
Thanks again for your insights.
David Anderson (16:05):
Awesome.
Thank you for having me.
William Gladhart (16:08):
Thank you for joining us on the Leadership
Levers podcast.
Find all our Leadership Leversepisodes on the Culture Think
Tank website at www.
theculturethinktank.
com or listen on your favoritestreaming platform.
We'd love to hear from youabout the challenges you have
faced as a leader.
Tune in weekly as we inviteleaders to share their
(16:32):
experiences in strengtheningculture and performance, one
action at a time.
Welcome to the Leadership Le Podcast.
I'm your host, Will Gladhart,CMO at the Culture Think Tank.
At the Culture Think Tank, weempower leaders with metrics
that strengthen culture, driveperformance and return.
We're here today to learn aboutthe actions leaders have taken
to address organizational change.
(00:21):
Our guest today is DavidAnderson, CEO and founder of DWA
Leadership.
Thanks so much for taking thetime to join us.
Thank you, g lad to be here,Looking forward to it.
Excellent.
Well, let's start by having youshare with our audience a bit
about yourself, your backgroundand your organization.
David Anderson (00:41):
All right, and in 30 minutes, or you want the
three minute version, the threeminute version please?
Yeah, no problem.
Problem, thanks for having meon today.
So my name is David Anderson.
I am a lifelong entrepreneur 30years.
Entrepreneurs have startednumerous companies a marketing
agency that's been in businessoff Madison Ave for over 25
(01:04):
years.
I have a software marketingMarcom software company been
around six or seven.
That's still what keeps meawake at night.
I really focus now I don't havea day-to-day role in either of
those companies on working withexecutive teams, on building
high-performing teams.
We all know that if you have agreat, you can have the best
(01:25):
strategy in the world, but ifyou don't have the right team in
place high-performing teamyou're never going to achieve
that.
I do some public speaking.
I sit on some boards.
My past before that I did astint in government which was
interesting, from government toentrepreneurship, worked in
Washington DC, capitol Hill andthe White House and a bunch of
(01:51):
other stuff.
But to spare your audience ofall of the details of my life,
hopefully that covers it all andyou can dive in where you see
appropriately from there.
William Gladhart (01:57):
Absolutely Well.
I'm glad you don't let any dustsettle, as you, like many
entrepreneurs, you just keepiterating or creating.
So we'll be discussing threequestions today as a warm-up to
start our conversation.
Would you share why you believea healthy culture is critical?
David Anderson (02:12):
Yeah, it's absolutely.
You know what, and it took me along, long time to really
actually, being honest, fullyunderstand the importance of
culture in an organization andhow that contributes and is
actually the guiding force inbuilding high-performing teams,
which I focus so much on now.
(02:34):
Which high-performing teams?
The stats I could rattle offfor another 10 minutes on the
stats of how, when you have theright culture and which results
in a high-performing teamincreased productivity,
increased efficiency, increasedprofitability, increased revenue
growth, increased sales I meanthe list just goes on and on and
that's not my stats.
Just pull it up on ChatGPT,look at HBR, look at McKinsey,
(02:58):
look at any of them.
We'll give you tons there.
So really having that healthyculture, a people-focused
culture with boundaries and wecan go more into that if you
want is really what drivespeople and you know.
But we also always have to keepin mind that culture means
(03:19):
different things to differentpeople.
What culture means to my25-year-old?
I don't know, is thatmillennial or whatever he is?
And my 22-year-old is verydifferent than a culture for a
60-year-old.
That you have in anorganization and how you blend
those together can definitely bea challenge.
William Gladhart (03:39):
Yeah, I think well one.
I love that you addressed someof the stats, because those are
the things that we really diveinto and love here at the
Culture Think Tank, simplybecause there is a direct
correlation between culture,well-being and performance.
Productivity bottom line returnone of the most frequent
questions we get these days justabout you know, how do we
(04:05):
manage four generations ofpeople with all different
perceptions of culture, alldifferent needs, all different
styles of communication?
So it's been our experiencethat leaders tend to struggle in
three key areas people, processor profits.
In your role as a leader, butalso with working with
high-performing or buildinghigh-performing teams, could you
identify which of these areashas presented a cultural
(04:27):
challenge in your ownorganization or in another group
that you've worked with?
David Anderson (04:32):
Yeah, so I got through college by checking the
box.
All of the above those all leadinto it and you know it's
really interesting.
A lot of what I work with nowis I love working with growth
oriented companies, companiesthat are really focused on
growth, not necessarily thestable, and what I found is
(04:55):
where culture needs to form andevolve because cultures
absolutely need to evolve isfirst is as companies go from it
.
You know there's the five.
There's different theories, butthe five I like the seven
stages of growth that companiesgo through.
As those companies grow and alot of them are tied to not only
revenue, but the number ofpeople that you have in the
(05:15):
organization process becomes akey factor in managing and
sustaining growth.
Because you go like, even in myown companies, three people
sitting around a room yellingover our shoulder we need this,
we need that, we need this to 21people, which is one of the
first next steps, and then 49 orwhatever it is yeah, whatever
(05:38):
it is as you go through how theprocess becomes so key to
organizational growth.
Now, as an entrepreneur, whatdo I despise more than anything
else?
Dave, you have to follow theprocess, so it's usually us
leaders that are the ones thatare causing some of the biggest
(05:59):
problems around the process,because we just don't do a good
job following it.
Moving forward with that, thepeople mix.
In my book I talk about and whenI'm public speaking I talk
about.
Being a leader is like being achemist, because it's the
constantly changing of theformulas that you need to have
to maximize your end product,whether that's a chemical, a
(06:21):
pharmaceutical, whatever it is,it's chemistry and we as leaders
those trying to build, maintainand grow cultures evolve
cultures.
It's being a chemist every daywhen you bring in a new
president, senior level personor something that's going to
change the culture or it canaffect the culture, and how do
you change the chemistry aroundthat, with the person, the
(06:44):
people and all of that and thosetwo.
I think the third P you talkedabout was profits, right?
Yes?
Well, you don't have profits.
You don't have profits withoutP1 and P2.
I'm in this, I'm in marketing,because it's about as simple of
math as you can do.
I don't need to know anythingmore than plus and subtraction
in most cases in running ourcompany, and P1 plus P2 equals
(07:07):
P3, in this case equals profit,and if one of those two aren't
operating most efficiently.
You can still have profits butyou're definitely not maximizing
your profit potential.
William Gladhart (07:20):
Absolutely Well.
I appreciate that you bring upthat you share a little bit more
about those challenges but alsodive a little deeper into the
people element but also theprocess, because I know from
experience as a leader likeyourself or even a fellow
entrepreneur, that sometimes theprocess feels very burdensome.
It gets in the way of likeeither creativity, next steps,
(07:40):
you know, going out and sellingwhatever that is, but if that
structure isn't there you can'tgrow to the next level and you
tend to plateau, et cetera.
So kind of explain thatchallenge Was there any
particular negative impact onthe organization in that as you
were working through that peopleprocess or profit element?
David Anderson (08:00):
I think, in a growing company.
One of the challenges you havewhere people and process can
conflict is when you start abusiness and your first five,
eight, nine, 10 people are onboard and then you go to the
next level and you put processon them and they get more and
more removed from maybe theleader or the leadership things.
(08:23):
Our egos are natural.
I'm not criticizing Just ournatural egos is I'm less
important around here.
My role's changed.
I used to be involved ineverything, now I'm not.
And how you manage that can bevery challenging going through
that because there's a lot ofbrain chemistry involved.
(08:45):
You know, in all of that.
That goes into how people reactto that and, as a leader, the
ability to constantly reinforce,reassure people, their role,
the importance that they play,people their role, the
(09:06):
importance that they play it'sjust a bigger piece of the pie
and we need you to do otherthings is one area Plus.
A lot of times, too, people arelike the Is it three words, six
words?
This is how we used to do.
It is the six words I despisemore than any six words in
business and that comes to theright people mixes.
Well, this is how we've alwaysdone it.
(09:27):
Well, that's great when we werea million dollar company and 12
of us and now we're a $5million company and 25 of us.
It just doesn't work.
And if I can say one more thingabout this, one of my absolute
favorite books I coach about,I'm a Marshall Goldsmith
certified coach.
Marshall Goldsmith, I think,sums it up the best is what got
(09:48):
you here won't get you there,and that's a hundred percent how
you have to manage theevolution, not change the
evolution of your culture as thepeople in process part grow.
William Gladhart (10:03):
Yeah, I think it's really impactful that you
touched on the part abouthelping people understand their
role and the constantcommunication required, because
we've heard from CEOs from thehorse's mouth of well, you know,
my employees don't really knowwhat they're doing.
You know, my employees seemlike they're lazy and it
literally comes back that theleader has not been clear in
(10:24):
communication, in direction, innext steps for leaders, managers
, et cetera.
So people are just ping pongingaround or there is the quiet
quitters that people have juststopped working and they come to
work.
You know it means something alittle different now that you
know we're all back in the fullswing of the business world.
But yeah, it's been reallyinteresting to kind of see that
(10:46):
change and movement happen.
But the disconnect of what theleader perceives versus what
actually the employeeexperiences is something that's
really important to bring up.
So thank you for sharing that.
So could you share with usmaybe the one thing that you
identified that helped impactyour culture, or how you've
helped with thathigh-performance team area?
David Anderson (11:08):
Yeah, a couple of things.
It's going back to what youjust said.
That's why I work with teams,not just CEOs, because it's a
combination of issues and when aCEO says that, or a leader,
it's like you want to hold up amirror right, my team, my team,
my team or play MichaelJackson's song.
Take a look in the mirror, orwhatever it was.
(11:30):
And that's a lot of what needsto be done.
Is you just have to?
What got you here won't get youthere going forward.
The question you asked me was aparticular instance.
Is that what you said?
William Gladhart (11:44):
One thing you identified that helped impact
your culture, or you know a teamthat you worked with positively
.
David Anderson (11:51):
Yeah, absolutely .
Well, you know, I think youwould agree with me.
For the CEOs Well, you know, Ithink you would agree with me.
For the CEOs listening,entrepreneurs, owners, even CEOs
to a level Leaders can discussand set the tone for the
direction, but it's the peoplebelow you that set the culture.
You don't set the culture.
(12:12):
You have a wish list of whatyou want the culture to be, but
it's really the team, because,you know, I know leaders who say
the culture of my company isthis, and then I go talk to
their team and they're likethat's not the culture of this,
that's a fantasy, that's what heor she thinks.
So I firmly believe that it is.
(12:34):
Every single organization hasinfluencers below the leadership
that will have a verysignificant not a total, but a
very significant role on theculture.
And it's just like we need tobe doing all the time.
We need to be growing thepeople below us.
We need to be communicatingwith the people below us.
We need them to be the onesthat say to their peers no,
(12:56):
that's not how we do this aroundhere, not the CEO or COO or
senior leader, because it'speer-to-peer then and that's
where that grows there.
So literally one of my clients.
Now I, you know, oh, what's theculture of your company?
And then I talk to their teamand they're oh yeah, that's in
his mind, that's really not howit is at all.
(13:16):
Team, and they're oh yeah,that's in his mind, that's
really not how it is at all.
So what we, as leaders, need issomebody who can give us
reality checks and tell uswhat's really going on and how
to adjust things.
We need leader interpreters, asI call them, translators, stuff
like that that can helpformulate the.
It's not a one person job ofcreating the culture.
(13:39):
It's the full team.
William Gladhart (13:40):
Right.
Well, I really love that youshared that CEO or leader
disconnect, because westatistically, in several of our
white papers and research we'vedone, we see an almost 52%
perception gap of what theemployee actually says or
believes their role or theculture is at an organization
(14:00):
versus what the CEO or C-suiteis actually determined or think
it is.
You're preaching to the choiron that particular piece and,
yeah, it's very fascinating, butI think you also have a really
great positive message to sharewith leaders about thinking
about that communication, theculture, the constant
observation of what's happeningat the company.
(14:22):
So is there anything else you'dlike to add or share with
fellow leaders?
David Anderson (14:26):
Yeah, I mean the best cultures that an
organization will have again,not Dave's research pick any of
them, and I'm interested inyours Will are the organizations
that foster a culture ofpsychological safety, one where
everybody feels they're heardDoesn't mean that it goes their
(14:49):
way, but everyone feels they'reheard, everyone is comfortable
raising issues, everyone iscomfortable respectfully
challenging each other, becausewe know that through
collaboration and brainstorm,not conflict, the only
difference between brainstormand conflict is when ego gets in
the way is where it leads tothe best outcomes for the
(15:13):
organizations and when theorganization is winning in total
, the people are winning intotal.
There's more growthopportunities.
There's more opportunities tolearn and grow.
There's.
You know, people want to go towork for the companies with the
great cultures.
Yeah, there's a financialaspect to it, but even more and
more with the currentgenerations, and that it's a lot
(15:34):
less about the money and things.
And just don't make the samemistake I made for the first I
don't know at least half of mycareer, if not more of
underestimating the value of thepeople and the culture that is
created and how that directlyties to the performance of your
(15:54):
company overall.
William Gladhart (15:56):
That's a really excellent way to wrap up
our session.
So, David, I've enjoyed havingyou on our Leadership Levers
podcast.
Thanks again for your insights.
David Anderson (16:05):
Awesome.
Thank you for having me.
William Gladhart (16:08):
Thank you for joining us on the Leadership
Levers podcast.
Find all our Leadership Leversepisodes on the Culture Think
Tank website at www.
theculturethinktank.
com or listen on your favoritestreaming platform.
We'd love to hear from youabout the challenges you have
faced as a leader.
Tune in weekly as we inviteleaders to share their
(16:32):
experiences in strengtheningculture and performance, one
action at a time.
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