Most business leaders see their job as managing results. Results are important, but they’re only half the leaders’ job. The other half? Managing respect. Our experience and research lead us to this core truth of business leadership: Employes of all generations desire and deserve a work culture where they are respected and validated for their aligned ideas, efforts, and contributions, every day. When employees experience respect and validation, they bring their best. They proactively solve proble...
Dec 13, 2022•4 min•Ep. 107
We’re not yet over the “Great Resignation.” The latest job report indicates that another 4.2 million US workers voluntarily quit in August 2022. LinkedIn’s 2022 Workforce Confidence Index found that nearly 25 percent of Gen-Z respondents and Millennials plan to change jobs in the next six months. This study found that Gen-Zs and Millennials deliberately seek careers that offer: Better alignment with their interests and values Opportunities to learn and practice new skills Better compensation and...
Oct 17, 2022•3 min•Ep. 106
A month ago, the term “quiet quitting” hadn’t made much of a mark. A social media post on the concept went viral – and now everyone is talking about it. I was delighted to join BBC News’ The Context broadcast and speak to host Nuala McGovern about quiet quitting – and how business leaders can address it. This podcast includes the audio from the live broadcast on August 25, 2022. What is quiet quitting? It means employees are no longer going “above and beyond” – they’re doing exactly what their j...
Sep 05, 2022•4 min•Ep. 106
Companies around the globe are short-staffed. Leaders have tried to boost hiring through higher wages and even bonuses, but staffing shortages continue. The problem? Many business leaders want to return to the “old normal” but employees and candidates don’t want “old normal.” A new Deloitte study found the top four things Gen-Y and Gen-Z workers want include work/life balance, development opportunities, higher salaries, and a positive culture. Money isn’t their primary driver. What must leaders ...
Jul 10, 2022•4 min•Ep. 105
About that title? We’ll get to Bruno in a minute. The foundational principle of our book, Good Comes First , is that today’s leaders must make RESPECT as important as RESULTS, every day. My colleague and co-author, Mark Babbitt, and I were keynoting a conference. In our presentation, we share this fundamental model - the Performance-Values Matrix. Once you formalize performance expectations AND values expectations, players categorize themselves into one of four quadrants. The upper right is wher...
Jun 13, 2022•4 min
Most of you know me as a speaker, writer, and consultant. Some of you know that I’m a working musician on the side. I grew up in California in the ’50’s and ’60’s. I watched great artists playing cool guitars - and I fell in love with stringed instruments. I’ve been collecting them since college. To stay healthy, stringed instruments need one thing every minute of every day: proper humidity. These instruments are made of wood - wood that reacts to the environment they’re in. Acoustic instruments...
May 17, 2022•4 min•Ep. 103
In our new book, Good Comes First, co-author Mark Babbitt and I propose four culture cornerstones that are the foundation of an uncompromising work culture. These cornerstones help align people and practices to your ideal work culture. Our first cornerstone, “Live Our Servant Purpose,” enables leaders, employees, contractors, and even customers to see that your company serves a purpose other than just making money. What is a “servant purpose”? A servant purpose describes how or what your company...
Apr 12, 2022•4 min•Ep. 102
Business leaders today have a lot on their minds – and on their plates. They juggle hiring challenges. Mask mandates. Retaining talented players. Vaccine guidelines. Supply chain issues. Generating revenue. All these tasks are demanding, requiring attention and intention every minute. Yes, these are important considerations in today’s business environment. However, they are not the ONLY important considerations. Leaders may have a preconceived notion about these considerations: “This is my sole ...
Mar 15, 2022•4 min•Ep. 101
I’m old. Over the years, back and neck pain caused me to hold my neck & shoulders & back very tightly – so moving wouldn’t hurt. Those tight muscles learned to be inflexible and immovable – so I wouldn’t hurt. Muscles are incredibly powerful. If they learn to be inflexible and immovable, they act like bones – firm and solid. That firmness causes muscles to adhere to other muscles (for greater inflexibility) which compresses nerves. The result was a pinched nerve in my neck. Two surgeries...
Jan 15, 2022•4 min
I’m reflecting on an anniversary this month. Twenty-eight years ago this month I had a heart attack. It was not how I planned to spend the day. Thanks to exceptional health professionals, dedicated family, and the grace of God, I survived. Like many others who have experienced a significant health issue, my heart attack caused me to reflect on my life. I knew my job at the time was not a great fit for me. I was not using my talents to proactively serve others. So, I left that role and started on...
Dec 18, 2021•3 min
If you’re trying to hire staff right now, you’re not having fun. The US Federal Reserve Bank in September estimated that the average time required to fill an open job rose from 20 days to 50 days over the previous four months. And a new global McKinsey study found that 40% of respondents are somewhat likely to quit in the next three to six months. 18% of those said their intentions to quit ranged from likely to almost certain. This study also revealed why so many employees are ready to walk out ...
Nov 12, 2021•4 min
Years ago, a friend received some brilliant leadership advice from a mentor. The mentor said, “How you treat people today becomes conversation around their dinner table tonight.” Today, it’s not just dinner table conversations that leaders need to be aware of. It’s Glassdoor.com and social media platforms where examples of great or lousy leadership efforts go viral with just a click! As a culture geek, I’m constantly asking people what their company’s work culture is like. People are surprised t...
Oct 12, 2021•4 min
Today’s video features Good Comes First book co-authors Mark Babbitt and yours truly discussing a core foundation of a purposeful, positive, productive work culture. Here’s an excerpt. Mark: “I often say, Chris, that most of what I learned about leadership was on the baseball field as a coach for three decades now. On the diamond, I learned that if you set rules and then you don’t follow those rules yourself – for instance, if you say showing up late to practice is unacceptable, but then you sho...
Sep 20, 2021•5 min
Today’s podcast features Good Comes First book co-authors Mark Babbitt and Chris Edmonds discussing a core foundation of uncompromising work cultures - making values measurable AND socially relevant. Here’s an excerpt. Chris: “What I find when I, you and I both experienced that as we work with leaders to help them define what values mean, what does respect mean? What are the two or three behaviors that you want? Teamwork? To demonstrate with each other, with their bosses. You want bosses to demo...
Sep 06, 2021•5 min
Today’s video features Good Comes First book co-authors Mark Babbitt and yours truly discussing what it takes to build and sustain an uncompromising work culture. Here’s an excerpt. Chris: Once leaders get to a stage where they realize “This is not sustainable. We’re not going to be able to attract the kind of talent we need. We’re not going to be able to manage using, you know, everybody around the conference room table so I can yell at you!” A toxic work culture doesn’t translate to global rem...
Aug 03, 2021•4 min
Today’s video features Good Comes First book co-authors Mark Babbitt and Chris Edmonds discussing what it takes to build and sustain an uncompromising work culture. Here’s an excerpt. Mark: Chris, in the book we talk about not just what it takes for leaders to become change champions, but how to build a team that will support, live, model a good comes first work culture. And the reality is this is not always an easy process. It takes months and years to actually execute. One of the criteria that...
Jul 23, 2021•6 min
Today’s video features Good Comes First book co-authors Mark Babbitt and Chris Edmonds (yours truly) discussing what it takes to build and sustain an uncompromising work culture. Here’s an excerpt. Mark: “Let’s talk about this ‘old normal, new normal.’ What we’re doing with Good Comes First is creating a new normal or creating a means by which to generate a new normal. We don’t have to go back to a toxic work culture. One of the things we’re seeing in the news as we talk today is this concept of...
Jul 19, 2021•4 min
Today’s video features Good Comes First book co-authors Mark Babbitt and me discussing what it takes to build and sustain an uncompromising work culture. Here’s an excerpt. Mark: Chris, a question I get often is not so much why this book, but why now? We’re coming out of this strange phase of business with a pandemic. And so, what does why now mean to you? Chris: The idea of having leaders be interested in doing better, doing different . . . they can see the flaws of their operation, but often t...
Jun 15, 2021•4 min
I’m grateful to tell you about my upcoming book, Good Comes First . Written with the amazing Mark Babbitt, Good Comes First is a practical, step-by-step guide to creating a work culture that’s better for morale and for your bottom line. For decades, business leaders around the globe have spent billions of dollars and countless hours attempting to improve employee engagement, decrease burnout, increase retention, and improve productivity. Yet most workplaces still suck: employees don’t feel value...
May 18, 2021•4 min
If you’ve been following my thinking over the past 20+ years, you know I coach senior leaders to define their desired culture, align their desired culture, and refine their desired culture. Defining your desired culture is the easy part. Aligning and refining demands that leaders lean on the accountability lever, holding leaders and team members throughout their organization accountable for both respect and results, every day. Workplace accountability means that 1) people understand what is expe...
Apr 14, 2021•4 min•Ep. 95
For decades, talented people have tolerated old-school leaders that put results before respect. Now is the time for leaders to create a work culture where good comes first for every employee—in every interaction – and where the doing of good leads directly to improved productivity, better customer service, increased retention rates, passionate employees, and higher profits. Employees – your team leaders and team members – deserve a work environment that treats them, their efforts, their ideas, t...
Mar 19, 2021•3 min
What is your stress level? What are your employees’ stress levels? The pandemic has placed tremendous burdens on every human—and every company – on the planet. Closed businesses and lost jobs have taken a significant toll on the economy and human wellbeing. Stress is at an all-time high. A 2020 Harris Poll found that US adults’ average stress level was 5.4 (on a 10-point scale). This rating is significantly higher than the 2019 average stress level of 4.9. Parents with children under the age of ...
Feb 19, 2021•3 min
You measure results religiously. How often do you measure how well you and your company’s formal leaders treat others in your work culture? Just as you measure progress towards desired results regularly, you must measure progress towards desired respect regularly. You must gather objective feedback through regular assessments – at least twice annually – that enable employees to rate how well your company’s leaders model your values and behaviors. By measuring values and respect in a formal way, ...
Jan 11, 2021•3 min
The 2020 election presents a constitutional opportunity for the USA. Voter turnout - about 65% as of today's counts - is the highest it's been here in over 100 years! And - that high mark here falls short of the voter participation in other developed countries like Belgium (87% in 2014), Sweden (82% in 2014), and Denmark (80% in 2015). Our states have the responsibility to ensure that every citizen of voting age casts their vote in every election. What is required of states to increase voter tur...
Nov 19, 2020•3 min
Us Westerners have the unfortunate tendency to link our identity to what we do for a living. “I’m a plumber,” one says, or “I’m a teacher,” another says. When someone asks me what I do – often on an airplane – I might answer, “I’m a speaker,” or “I’m an author,” or “I’m an executive consultant.” I’m answering truthfully; those are things I do. Often. And, I might add, I do them really well. But I am not what I do. Neither are you. Who we are is different than what we do. Sometimes I’m presenting...
Oct 23, 2020•3 min
The pandemic has caused immeasurable harm to the economy. Some businesses are operating at 50% capacity while others are closing – or are on the verge. Some employees are able to work from home while many have been laid off. And social injustice and racial inequity are at the forefront. These issues can no longer be ignored – in our society, in our workplaces . . . anywhere. Moving forward, employees expect companies to make morally just decisions. They expect respect. They expect to have a voic...
Sep 17, 2020•3 min
In July 2020, results of an investigation reveal multiple current and former employees of The Ellen Degeneres Show reporting racism, bullying, sexual harassment, and intimidation by executive producers and other senior staff. Her show is deep in a crisis of culture. Ellen herself was not the cause of the toxic environment – but she was insulated from the day-to-day employee experiences. Ellen wrote a letter to staff members expressing her disappointment at the toxicity of the show’s culture. “On...
Aug 16, 2020•3 min
How often do you receive praise or recognition at work? We’ve had bosses that expressed gratitude well and bosses that never did it. To understand the impact of expressed gratitude, let’s look at three common types: praise, recognition, and validation. By praise, I mean the communication of appreciation for a person’s ideas, efforts, or contributions. Expressing praise can be as simple as writing or emailing a thank you note or calling a person up to thank them verbally. Praise has the least ben...
Jul 05, 2020•3 min
This is an important point in time for our country’s republic. Society is bent, if not broken. George Floyd’s death has generated international protests - most of them peaceful, calling for an end to racial bias and discrimination from police. Society has a bigger problem, I believe - and the time has come to address the broader implications of discrimination. We must eliminate systematic racial bias and discrimination from our society. Now is the time for white people to work together to elimin...
Jun 08, 2020•4 min
We’re living in unprecedented times. With non-essential businesses closed and many people working from home, the world of work looks very different than it did three months ago. The demands on folks working from home are extensive. Besides experiencing anxiety about the well-being of their family, friends, and community, team members are juggling multiple requirements that are new, different, and exhausting. To lead effectively under normal circumstances is not easy. To do so under these circums...
May 15, 2020•4 min
