When organizations hurt, everything becomes a top priority—C and D tasks become fire drills overnight—busyness suddenly feels like a full-time job. Already stressed workers often translate this type of busy work as something happening behind the scenes—increasing their anxiety. Everyday tasks feel heavier, leaving little room for creative problem solving. Broken systems and processes become more obvious during a crisis. Read more →

In the last six months I’ve had a number of career professionals from various industries and business backgrounds requesting one of my rotating mentoring slots on a single topic: risktaking. Their requests have run the gamut from just beginning their hero’s risktaking journey to someone who once thought their risktaking chops would last a career lifetime, only to discover that after recent setbacks their risktaking efforts are considered reckless instead of responsible. Read more →

Since reading Joseph Campbell’s book The Hero with a Thousand Faces over two decades ago, his “mythological structure of the journey of the archetypal hero that he found in world myths” continues to fascinate me as a writer, learning producer, and emerging documentary filmmaker. Given today’s global challenges it’s not too difficult to understand why so many people feel overwhelmed and incapable of seeking out their heroic nature, when just getting by each day can feel heroic. Read more →

It’s the middle strata that gets squeezed by leadership teams that demand more output with less budget and resources, squeezed by direct reports, stakeholders, and functional teams who demand time and energy, and squeezed by vendors and suppliers who look to them for day-to-day operational direction. The good news? There’s no such thing as a wasted experience. Read more →

A slew of articles caught my eye this week that could provide us with a sneak peek into future skills and tasks that will impact the types of jobs available, particularly for what I call the middle strata—program and project managers, change practitioners, and mid-level leaders—career professionals who will shoulder the brunt of transformational change for organizations, particularly as AI and other advanced technologies take root. Let’s begin by taking a look at three areas—human data labeling, AI communications, and human-to-machine collaboration—in order to get a better idea of how the dots might connect for the middle strata in the next few years. Read more →

Economic downturns can happen at any time. The toughest part in planning for a recession is that those who may be impacted the most will typically have less time to plan. This means that you'll want to be prepared ahead of the curve-at all times. Let’s look at seven reasons why you’ll want to recession-proof your next career reinvention—now. Read more →

Gartner projects that by 2030 artificial intelligence will replace up to 80 percent of the tasks managed today by project managers. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Project managers manage a myriad of granular tasks that could (and should) be offloaded to smart machines so that PM’s can focus on implementing more complex, high-risk initiatives. Read more →

We've decided to so something a bit different this year in celebration of my book's publication by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. in September 2011 (how fast these seven years have passed!). I'm offering readers a complimentary subscription to our Seeding Change membership site. Please use CODE IIRW2018 at checkout to receive one month free access to our interactive courses. Sign-ups are good through 12/30/18. This would be a great opportunity to work through our current online courses in preparation for our upcoming training in early 2019 AI in the Workplace. Read more →

Employers, business leaders, and career professionals can expect considerable workplace disruption in the coming decade. What we do today to manage change associated with this technological transformation will impact the lives we live in 2030 and beyond. Read more →

Business leaders might have it tough today, but it’s about to get a whole lot tougher. Except this time there won’t be any faking it until you make it. Leadership will truly come into its own in the next few years and it won’t be for the faint of heart. We’re leading up to a technological inflection point that increasingly includes AI as part of any digital transformation. In less than a decade the skills required to effectively keep the “wheels on the bus” rolling for organizations will look very different. The workplace itself will look and feel different. Read more →