Business Spotlight!

LeggUP Inc. Talent Insurance is a professional coaching and people development platform offered as an employee benefit. With access to their large network of certified coaches, science-backed assessments, hyper-relevant coaching topics, and people analytics, LeggUP Inc. helps organizations of all sizes effectively develop their leaders or managers, protect the wellbeing of their organization, and reduce turnover.

We can't thank the LeggUP Inc. team enough for investing in our HIHR Team and providing amazing development initiatives that complement our services and resources so well!

We are grateful to leverage this awesome coaching and training platform for ourselves and our clients!

www.leggup.com

Let’s talk about mistakes! This one was a doozy.

I’ll never forget the judge's unamused, stoic face. 
 
I was being trained as the new HR leader at our site and went to my first unemployment trial with my Trainer. My Trainer made sure I was well-prepped and ready to fairly represent our organization.
 
What followed next, I did not see coming. We could not have been assigned to a more serious and stoic individual (and dare I say, cranky…must have been having a bad day?) to decide over our case. 
 
It was my turn.  He asked for my name. Next, he asked me for my title. I responded firmly and confidently. “Mrs.”. He looked annoyed and asked the question again. 
 
I re-stated my answer, but a bit louder this time, “Mrs.”! 
 
Again, not satisfied with my answer, he asked me a third time. You think by now I would have caught-on, I was not providing the correct answer. 
 
But nope…I looked him square in the eye and raised my voice a bit louder and slowly annunciated, "Mrs. Erika Butler". 
 
At this point, there were some chuckles in the room. I’m sure my trainer was shaking his head and wanted to give me a poke with the right answer! 
 
Next, he said, ‘Your BUSINESS Title!’. 
 
“OHH!” ….and it finally clicked, and we were able to move on. Oops!
 
Talk about embarrassing! Even the ex-employee was trying to hold back his laughter. What made it worse was the man overseeing our case didn't even crack a smile. 
 
A few days later, I came into the office with a new title that was made up on my office door “Mrs. Erika Butler”. I will never be able to live this down. My friends from this season still joke with me about this. Though I was mortified at the time, now I can’t help but laugh! 
 
I think this is a great example of what it can be like for new-in role leaders. Obviously, this should have been self-explanatory to me, but for some reason it did not initially click. It’s true that you just don’t know what you don’t know. 
 
Going off of this, many times new leaders do not realize how impactful their words and action are to those around them. What they say matters and they are many times the dinner conversation (whether it be, 'my boss gave me some great recognition today!' Or, ‘my manager threw me under the bus today'…etc…etc.). New leaders have a big job taking care of their team. They need all the support, training, development, and guidance they can get!
 
We all make mistakes and need to give ourselves and our team members permission to be a beginner - permission to trip, fall, learn and grow!

Making this clear to new-in-role leaders helps them feel supported, encouraged, and more able to thrive!

​Author: Erika Butler, CEO

It's the 'Aha' moments for me...experiencing them myself and getting so much joy out of observing these moments in others!

Thank you so much to Marco Blankenburgh and the KnowledgeWorkx Team for the top-notch training and resources you provide. The last year has been incredible, learning from you and working with you!

Your body of knowledge and the work you do continues to positively transform the way we work, how we lead and enables amazing cultures/teams!

Since my DiSC Certification Training Q1-Q2 2022, I've been happy to equip 10+ organizations (from non-profit, Fortune 500, ministries, and other businesses) with the DiSC tools, resources, and training! I've enjoyed witnessing the 'Aha' moments, recognition, accountability, and desire to take things to the next level. 

The programs have been very well-received. I believe DiSC is making a tangible impact for the teams invested in their continuing growth and communication. I also see it providing more enjoyable and effective collaboration across the board! 

I'm thankful for the KnowledgeWorkx Team's partnership in providing great certification training, resources and on-going support! It has been an incredible experience.

​#culturematters #culturetransformation #leadership #leadershipcoaching #leadershiptraining #businessconsulting #growthmindset #development

​Author: Erika Butler, CEO

This month, we were able to save one of our clients and their employees 50% on their benefits cost (with better coverage) through our partnership with R&B Insurance!

If you're looking to save in this area, while continuing or improving your level of coverage, we can't say enough about the organization. The customized care they provide for our HIHR Team and those in our community is incredible.

R&B specializes in saving employers time, money, and resources through their simple, yet customized work-site solutions. Their work-site solutions offer quality benefits at affordable prices that can increase retention, satisfaction, and peace of mind among employees. With over 75 years of combined benefits experience, R&B has become a trusted partner of ours.

Let us know if you need help and we are happy to get you on a great path!

www.rbinsuranceservice.com

For almost 2 decades now, you could say I've been obsessed with this notion of finding ways to thrive at home and at work. Some call this life balance, work-life balance, being centered, wholeness...and the list goes on.
 
I was so obsessed with this topic (even in my college years), that I wrote my entire master's thesis about it.  I was unsure how I would have the career I wanted and be the mom I wanted to be. I truly didn't know if it would be possible or not. 
 
Given this obsession, one of the things I'm most happy with is how our team can include our kids in the business.  I also love to see other organizations do this well! 
 
Here are a few fun ways we love to involve our kids:

• Celebration & Recognition - At our most recent HIHR Team celebration, our kids had an important role and helped present the awards. They too received an award to thank them for supporting their parents!
• Creativity - One of our team members has invited her children to draw pictures for other team members that she includes in envelopes when sending out team mail! It's so lovely all around and this has been a fun routine for several years.
• Innovation - Asking your kids' opinion on business ideas! They really seem to get a kick out of this, and most times have something to add.
• Communicaiton - Let them listen in on team meetings and trainings.
• Inclusion - Invite them to come and say hello when they are near the home office.
• Teamwork - Give them an opportunity to help. My kids ended up being super into setting up our training space last week! My daughter happily passed out the papers and markers and my son had the responsibility of setting up the flip charts. It was a family affair just before the school day and we had a blast doing this together! I felt excitement for the day to come and the family matched that energy. 🙂

Of course, our kids are not always in the helping mode or may not seem to care in the moment. However, the times we've been able to pull them in has overall been a positive experience. 
 
Fostering an environment across the team that is family focused brings much care, connection, and trust to the workplace! When possible, it’s great for parents to get kids involved with their work! Show them that work can be exciting, life-giving, and fun! Not that it is easy every moment or there are not hard things to do at times... but invite them in. Bring them to 'Take-Your-Child-to-Work Day!’ 
 
One of the most awesome requests we received at our Mom's Career Development event last week was to provide a space for our daughters to be exposed to these powerful conversations and learn some of this at an early age. I loved this idea and can't wait to dive into the possibilities of bringing our boys and girls along with us on this journey.

It's awesome to see things continue to improve in this area, allowing families and careers to thrive! Much more to come!

​Author: Erika Butler, CEO

This message is from my heart to the incredible ladies out there - many who play multiple roles and conquer incredible feats weekly, if not daily!
 
I want to talk about the phrase I hear SO often - "I’m Just…"
 
I’m here as someone who has a history of saying this, more often than I would like to admit. 
 
AND…l did it AGAIN last week! I have to confess that it was unfortunately not just about me this time. This time I was referring to a whole group of women!
 
After I picked my kiddos up from school, I trammed over to the Novartis campus to grab them a snack (always a necessity). I also was there to check out the Pavilion space where we have an upcoming career development event, geared towards moms! 
 
I went up to the counter and introduced myself, asking for the event coordinator we booked the space with. 
 
Next, for some CRAZY reason, I introduced myself and the rock-star group of moms as “We are JUST a group of moms doing a little event here…”. 
 
After I said that, I felt an alarm go off inside and tried to course correct the intro. 
 
The group I referred to as 'just' is an ABSOLUTELY Brillant, talented, accomplished group of moms/professional women. It’s one thing to represent them in a humble way, but “We are JUST...???” 
 
Speaking candidly, they are some of the most amazing people I've ever met. Most speak more than 3 languages (some as many as 6+), global mind-set, highest degrees, incredibly driven leaders. From what I have seen, they also happen to be wonderful, humble, loving & kind mothers…who desire continued growth and to make the most of this life! 
 
The funny thing is, I actually have it written on a ‘Ground Rules’ slide for this event that we will not say “I’m just…”, or “I’m sorry…" during the session. Yet, I introduce our group this way??
 
I'm all for apologies, accountability, humbleness (in fact those are great leadership qualities)…but why do we have to go as far as minimize what is true in ourselves?
 
You may hear it too....

‘I just lead a small team.’

'I just went to a public University.'

'I'm just a stay-at-home Mom' - (What?! Only arguably the hardest and most rewarding job in the world) 
 
'I just... I just... I just....?!!!'

Here are the main issues I see with this. Depending on the situation, when we downplay our value we:

• Remove energy 
• Miss opportunities
• Decrease credibility
• Communicate to others and ourselves we are 'less than'
• Choose a scarcity verse abundance mindset
• Miss influence for positive change
• Miss impact 

 
Our words matter. They have power. They deeply impact us and those around us for amazing good ...or can take the wind out from under our wings.
 
I don't know where I picked this "I’m just"/'We're just" habit up. I'm working hard to improve and want to model this better for my kids.
 
I can't wait to do this event next week where we will encourage each other along the way...and hopefully with no more "I'm justs"! ​

Author: Erika Butler, CEO

Top Hacks for Impactful Performance Reviews: 
 
Many organizations are currently in their performance review season. I can tell stories of extremely impactful review sessions…and some pretty big duds! 
 
I see performance reviews as a chance to take more time with your leader to dive deeper and really focus on your development. Celebrating the year and what is going well but also have a few areas to grow.
 
This is a two-way street so the hacks can be used by both team member and leader. Both absolutely have ownership to make this a meaningful, value-added process.
 
I know these sometimes get a bad rap for various reasons (and I can sympathize with this). However, when done intentionally, they can add a TON of value for the leader and team member engaged in the conversation. It can be extremely motivating and fulling and help chart a fantastic course for the coming months!
   
Top Hacks for Impactful Performance Reviews:

• Set solid SMART goals that align with the organization (Always love the bonus personal development goal or two!)
• Prepare and provide objective examples throughout 
• Avoid any biases (i.e. One project went well, so everything got a 5 star rating with no constructive feedback).
• Don’t shy away from honest and constructive feedback, in good faith. Done in a kind, caring and professional way can promote the most positive impact/growth.
• Two-way feedback and conversation
• Document, revisit and update throughout the year
• Plan next steps and map out the ‘how’! 
• Recognize and celebrate the great accomplishments.

  
 The biggest and best hack: 

• No surprises! Always strive for on-going feedback and performance communication. It is engaging and meaningful to know where you stand, what is going well and what can be focused on for continued growth!

Kudos to several of our clients who have had us update and relaunch their performance review process now and over the past few years! Great job taking care of your team and providing a solid path forward!

Author: Erika Butler, CEO