Staff – Organizational Culture (skype call)

People want to be recognized for the work they do – want to be publically acknowledged and tokens of appreciation. Small, but meaningful. Want to be seen as added value, not necessarily money.

Tokens – know what’s important to your folks. Some people want flexibility, some want time off, some want something very visible

Are we giving our employees the tools and are we making clear what success looks like?

Tokens can backfire if you don’t know what your employees need or are perceived as not caring about your people – must be authentic and not manufactured.

Self-evaluation – what would I keep and what would I change? What went well, what do I hope goes differently next time?

“The Power of Thanks” by Eric MosleyMany different channels of communication – not just email.

Show your dedication to talent management – a lot of people don’t know. Show them that you pay attention and foster talent in your people. They want to know that you care, and it’s not always obvious that leaders are paying attention to this. Show that it’s a key tenant.

Actively monitor engagement – you can keep staff, but if they’re not committed, then you’re not going to get a lot out of the relationship. What does engagement look like in your organization? What can you do about that? Have conversations with people about engagement.

LA Phil

Not shy at cutting people who aren’t working with the culture.

Union group of musicians, large staff. How to get musicians engaged.

Constructive criticism is not something that is culturally accepted.

I think that musicians tend to get a defensive mechanism from all the times people have screwed them over with money and they feel like everyone is out to get them all the time because they don’t perceive the general public as valuing what they do.