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IT'S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS: What Great Leadership Looks Like
If you manage people, your job is  people. It’s not just about processes or deliverables—it’s about how humans work together in the...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jul 303 min read
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Meetings Stink - and what you can do about it
What's so bad about meetings? Meetings are everywhere—so common, they fade into the background. 11 million meetings take place in the...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jun 253 min read
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Turning the tables at The Big Table
One recent September morning, we participated as hosts in the Columbus Foundation's Big Table , "a community-wide day of conversation."...

Andrea J. Applegate
Sep 26, 20243 min read
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Psychological Safety - A primer
Often in conversations with executives, we talk about the importance of psychologi cal safety. After all, as lea ders in an...

Andrea J. Applegate
Sep 5, 20242 min read
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If You Manage People, Your Job IS People
Managing people isn’t just an added responsibility; it’s the core of your job. If you’ve ever found yourself in a position of leadership,...

Andrea J. Applegate
Aug 29, 20242 min read
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Curiosity is all the rage. How curious are you?
Curiosity is all the rage. Everywhere I look, leaders, consultants, and gurus talk about the importance of curiosity. I agree. Curiosity...

Andrea J. Applegate
Aug 26, 20242 min read
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What is so brilliant about the Mutual Learning Approach
I love my job. I love that I get to help people learn how to work together more effectively through our workshops, executive coaching,...

Andrea J. Applegate
Aug 12, 20241 min read
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What we've got here is failure to communicate
I was reminded of this iconic* line, "What we've got here is failure to communicate," from the excellent movie, Cool Hand Luke, starring...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jul 23, 20242 min read
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Trouble hanging on to workers? Part-time jobs may be a solution.
Two recent articles have come across my desk -- both on the topic of the increasing prevalence of part-time jobs. "These jobs soared...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jul 10, 20241 min read
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Do you have a lousy work ethic or is it something else?
Well-being is important. But how is well-being tied to work ethic? As employers, we've long known that the physical health of our...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jul 1, 20242 min read
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With contempt in your heart, your words come out contemptuously
One of our clients has engaged us to help them improve their effectiveness as a leadership team of six people. We are teaching them a...

Andrea J. Applegate
Feb 14, 20243 min read
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Family? Is It OK to call your job your family?
Every couple of months, we host what we call a Workforce and Talent Salon. No, not the beauty parlor kind, but the pretentious 17th...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jan 18, 20243 min read
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What Jerry Seinfeld Taught Us About Job Retention
Can you imagine going to pick up your car rental, and they don’t have one for you? Even though you reserved it two weeks ago. When Jerry...

Lora Fish, SHRM-SCP
Aug 30, 20232 min read
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Do you still "hold their feet to the fire"?
Years ago, I worked for a guy who, when discussing strategy and performance, talked about "having to hold their feet to the fire." It...

Andrea J. Applegate
Aug 14, 20233 min read
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How will Central Ohio's looming labor shortage impact business?
Did you see the recent episode of Columbus on the Record discussing the current and future labor shortage? The Workforce Development...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jul 14, 20231 min read
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What Women Want from the Workplace
More than 25,000 human resource professionals gathered in Las Vegas for SHRM 23. We enjoyed learning the history of HR with an...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jul 7, 20231 min read
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Do Women Really Deserve To Be Paid Less Than Men?
Have you ever stopped to consider why the jobs that are typically occupied by women--jobs like taking care of children, taking care of...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jun 27, 20233 min read
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Recent legislation may impact you as an employer
Recent legislation may impact you as an employer. Are you familiar with PWFA? How about PUMP? The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) is...

Andrea J. Applegate
Jun 20, 20231 min read
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I am not Lora. But I am committed just the same.
On a recent Saturday morning, my colleague, Lora, called me. It was early. I knew it was important. She told me she was stressed. So much...

Andrea J. Applegate
May 12, 20232 min read
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The opposite of love is not hate. It's indifference.
The opposite of love is not hate. The opposite of love is indifference. When I first heard that, it boggled my mind. How can that be, I...

Andrea J. Applegate
Apr 18, 20232 min read
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What is this "Inclusion" you speak of?
"DEI interventions must be designed with the most vulnerable community in mind." That is what inclusion means. We must open up the door...

Andrea J. Applegate
Mar 9, 20231 min read
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Nobody is crying a river for an investment banker's stay-at-home wife
"Nobody is crying a river for an investment banker's stay-at-home wife. But I often think, if it’s this hard for us, how the hell are...

Andrea J. Applegate
Feb 15, 20232 min read
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Healthy Conflict Leads to Highly Productive Teams
Healthy conflict, or what I refer to as creative friction, is characterized by 1) clear, candid dialogue and 2) robust, open debate. Lora...

Andrea J. Applegate
Oct 1, 20222 min read
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Happy National Dog Day
Apparently, it's National Dog Day. Fortunately, we love dogs!

Andrea J. Applegate
Aug 26, 20221 min read
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