Hello Everyone! We have some wonderful news to share today! As Whirling Chief matures into its first year, we are not only growing in followership and community, we are extending our services. One of the key services we will provide starting Fall of 2017 is a set of paid workshops. There has been amazing encouragement and support for our online free webinars, we wanted to take the opportunity to go deeper into certain topics with our colleagues interested. Below you will find a list of workshops we are planning. Please stay tuned for registration information and fees. If there are other…

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I love this question. To answer it, I performed my usual research: I started with Geert Hofstede, a Dutch social psychologist born in 1928 and best known for his pioneering research on cross-cultural groups and organizations. Hofstede’s most notable work has been in developing cultural dimensions theory, which he explored in his books Culture’s Consequences and Cultures and Organizations. I then turned to Frederic Laloux and his book Reinventing Organizations. I  love what he has to say on this topic: “Corporate cultures and context and purpose drive a culture that is called for in an organization. But beyond the unique culture of each company,…

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A few weeks ago, at the HR Tomorrow Conference, I presented about the gap between science and work practices. During one of our discussions, we talked about Rewards Management. For centuries now, our approach to rewards management has been linear, meaning ‘if you do this, you will get this.’ Dan Ariely, a renowned behavioral economist, has long studied motivation. In 2015, he published a study concerning what motivates us to work. Not only did he drop a bombshell on the conventional wisdom of people working for money – he discovered that for 21st century jobs, if you keep throwing money…

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There is so much reference to employee engagement lately – especially in certain geographies. I personally am not in favor of the term ‘engagement’ as it is unquantifiable – scientifically speaking. We can monitor and measure many factors such as motivation, satisfaction, agreeableness, etc., ‘engagement’ is not a valid construct. That said, if we assume for a second we understand and agree to what ‘engagement’ is, then, you may want to know the brains of ‘engaged’ employees in the workplace functions differently than those others. Here is a wonderful video from Melisa Hughes on what happens in an engaged brain, enjoy!

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With the shift in business context, many organizations are either being bought out or merging with compatible organizations to strengthen capabilities and/or expand market reach/value. When we consider the geographic spread of global M&A events, most flurries of activity take place in the developed worlds: The largest deals by dollar amount in 2016 are listed below: According to the Thomson Reuters Mergers & Acquisitions Review, published earlier this year, “worldwide M&A activity totaled US$777.7 billion during the first quarter of 2017, a 12% increase compared to the first quarter of 2016. During the quarter, 138 deals with a value greater than US$1…

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By Fateme Banishoeib No conversation about male/female equality can begin without first acknowledging the reality of ‘implicit bias.’ Let me share a personal story from a few years ago, which will help you understand what the role of implicit bias plays in our personal definition of equality. I was at the lead of a department in a global company based in the United States. I had just been appointed, and was ready to bring my excitement to every event I attended, especially to those organised by the company-dedicated group for women leaders. Their mission was to focus on strategies to…

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Founded in 1997 by Seamus and Helen McGardle, SRI Executive Search was initially conceived as an executive search firm focused solely on the Not-For-Profit and Life Science sector. Since then, the organization has evolved and developed, becoming a global consulting practice. Specializing in Executive Search, Diversity, Leadership Development, and Board Services, SRI Executive offers a variety of services in the Not-For-Profit and Life Sciences arena. As there is so much development in these sectors, we asked Seamus McGardle, Managing Director of SRI Executive, about the shift in the business context and the impact he is seeing across organizations. Whirling Chief:…

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Good morning everyone! Today, we have published our #6 video under our Human Resources Management 101 curriculum. We are talking Talent Management, a subject so large we decided not to parse it all out and instead, focus the conversation on future. What does it mean for us to “manage” talent in the 21st century? Who is “talent”? How do we support them? These are the questions we are asking… C’mon, jump in the conversation and let us know what you think…

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My husband comes home the other week and asks, “Mrs. Psychologist, when faced with the challenge of a project deadline – which you know is going to kill your team! – how do you prioritize? Do you take sides with the workload or the people?” When it comes to prioritization, I hate to say it but there is no magic bullet. We all look for ways to be efficient when it comes to organizing and managing our life activities; everyone has their own distinct recipe, depending on where they find meaning, excitement, inspiration, and relief. Having said that, for the…

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Last week, I was in the U.S. supporting project teams for our client work, and attending a leading HR Conference. The HR Tomorrow Conference is the premier professional development event, presented by the University of Minnesota’s Center for Human Resources and Labor Studies. This annual, day-long conference highlights current trends, issues, challenges, and opportunities in the field of human resources and labor relations, and features exceptional speakers and presentations on cutting-edge HR practices and leading faculty research, and outstanding networking opportunities. The conference attracts more than 300 attendees each year, including senior HR executives from the Twin Cities, greater Minnesota,…

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