Q: What positions are critical to the long-term health of your organization?

Regardless of the type of organization (corporate, government, non-profit) these roles are essential for them to thrive and are typically hard to fill.

Q: Who's included in the talent pool with the ability to advance to key positions?

Q: How are they prepared to meet the business need?

When leadership teams are diverse in thought, skill and culture, the organization is better prepared to innovate new products and services, dominate their competitive landscape, and reinvigorate organizational talent to exceed performance expectations.

Join this candid conversation on the Inclusive Enterprise Conversation Podcast with Dr. John Greene, Senior Vice President and CHRO of TDS® Telephone and Data Systems, a diversified telecommunications company serving over six million customers nationwide.

We discussed the opportunity to think differently and enhance current talent processes by making DEI part of succession planning with real-world actionable, coachable success practices to grow the business.

It doesn't take longer to build your leadership pipeline, instead it takes concerted effort and intention to challenge the status quo, to make your teams and organization stronger. Achieve even higher levels of performance by realizing everyones' full potential.

John’s leadership experience provides a solid foundation for a pragmatic and inclusive approach to succession with real-world application. He draws from leadership roles in the military and in corporations with Johnson Controls, RHR International Consulting including his first TDS role as Vice President, Enterprise Diversity, Equity & Inclusion where he led the development and implementation of the enterprise DEI strategy across the TDS family of companies and advanced to Senior Vice President, Human Resources Officer for the firm.

As organizations continue to establish a new norm for recruiting, retaining, and engaging talent, the best companies are mindful of the benefits of intentional succession planning.

These organizations understand that while their counterparts are busy facilitating replacement planning processes, their most competitive advantage stems from strategic talent management that supports both the current and future needs of the business.

Creating Workplace Cultures of Belonging....

Listen Carefully and Continuously for Better Results and Competitive Advantage.

That may seem obvious and simple, yet in today's tumultuous business environment, leaders can occasionally lose their focus along with low self-awareness. That's where asking questions and gaining answers from others with unique perspectives drives improvement to achieve better outcomes.

One extraordinary leader who demonstrates these positive attributes of listening intently, authentically, and responsively is Sanja Licina, PhD, President of QuestionPro Workforce.

She takes listening to a higher level by building bridges, connecting people, uncovering concerns, with empathy to co-create, sustainable solutions for mutual benefit. How? By cultivating an inclusion and belonging mindset. She is a citizen of the world, a person 'who never met a stranger.' Is easy to get to know, and eager to know the points of view of others, to learn from and grow people, organizations, and communities.

It was an absolute honor to sit down with my special guest, Sanja Licina, to discuss her life, work, passion and the power of listening when embedded in organizations' processes, as a priority to support an inclusive and belonging culture.

Sanja Licina, Ph.D. is an Organizational Psychologist and President at QuestionPro Workforce, a global leader in online survey and research services. In this role she has overall responsibility for driving growth, product development and client satisfaction for Workforce Experience division. Sanja has 20 years of experience as an executive and senior leader in high-growth organizations. For nine years she held multiple strategic roles at CareerBuilder, including product management, talent intelligence and workforce analytics. Prior to joining QuestionPro she led the Future of Organizations unit at Globant, a company that leverages digital-cognitive technologies to help companies transform. Early in her career she was a researcher for Ipsos and a consultant for Harvard Business School. She is also a member of the distinguished Forbes Human Resource Council.

In this episode of the Inclusive Enterprise Conversations Podcast, Listening Continuously, talks about maximizing benefits.

Don't miss this revealing conversation and key takeaways:

• How continuous listening can establish or invigorate effective DEI Strategy and business growth
• Recognize personal values and beliefs evolve over time for leaders and employees
• Leaders engaging more employees in decision-making can lead to faster and more meaningful change
• Building exceptional experiences and workplace cultures begins with Leaders' human connection, reflection, observation, innovation, and retention

Actively and consistently listening to employees demonstrates a commitment to inclusivity, making them feel valued and heard. When employees believe their voices matter, they are more likely to stay with the organization, leading to higher talent retention rates, which is an important concern for DEI, HR, and senior leaders!

As Sanja says 'Most of us spend so much of our lives working, and there is still a tremendous opportunity to help people feel better connected to their companies, to their colleagues, and to feel passionate to make a difference with their work. So, I dedicated my career to helping companies create a culture that employees love to be a part of.'

Who better than Sanja and her team to lead the way, modeling the behaviors, actions and shared knowledge with resources to empower organizations and individuals to reach their full potential.

Creating Workplace Cultures of Belonging....

While a lot has changed this year.. . at the same time, a lot remains 'in a holding pattern' or worse, in the reverse.

Q: How do you stay focused and push for positive change with persistent obstacles in your path to progress?

In this episode of the Inclusive Enterprise Conversation Podcast, I sat down with two dynamic Black women, warriors of DEIB, to hear their perspectives and shared purpose, empowering all people, needing access to care to reach the highest quality of life, in these challenging times.

My special guests include, a leader with an accomplished career in Government and Healthcare, most recently as Executive Vice President, Chief Social Justice & Accountability Officer of the largest, most comprehensive health system and provider in NJ, DeAnna Minus-Vincent. The other distinguished leader, was the first officer, Senior Director of Health Equity and Community Equity for a national healthcare payor, insurance company in NJ, Tracy Parris-Benjamin. We discussed their life changing experiences, how their careers intersect and inspired their path forward.

DeAnna is Founder and Managing Director with Tracy serving as Managing Partner of The Outcomes Architect-- a strategic advisory firm that executes across sectors to optimize leadership; leverage relationships; and gather insights to improve organizational results. Their aim is to develop efficient and cost-effective solutions that are integrated, equitable, and sustainable to empower companies and communities they serve. They proactively equip organizations with the tools necessary to architect their own successful outcomes!

Understanding systemic racism and how to eliminate it, requires a wholistic approach and key steps to advance health equity for real visible impact. It requires policy and practice review, before addressing drivers of health. It's essential that this work moves beyond programs and training, and is grounded in data analysis of current mindsets and human behavior, with clearly articulated outcomes for sustained change.

Together they create solutions that demand honest feedback, dealing with current reality, recognizing the daily lives of employees and communities they serve and barriers to living a quality life. Both are driven to dismantling policies and practices that get in the way of healthy living and rebuilding equitable organizations' to achieve their vision and mission.

Join the conversation. Listen to this enlightening episode. It's a must for leaders to recognize and empower employees, improve productivity and understand what your greatest assets need for greater impact in their professional and personal lives, and provide a stronger sense of purpose and prosperity.

Creating Workplace Cultures of Belonging....