Laszlo Bock is an American businessman who was formerly the Senior Vice President of People Operations at Google, Inc. Prior to joining Google, Bock served in executive roles at General Electric, as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, and in various roles at startups, nonprofits, and in acting.

Bock observed that at the 14-15 different jobs he held, what was consistent was that each organization had a gap between stated values and actual, functional values. 

He ventured into HR because of those disappointing experiences. Reflecting on his time at Google, the principle and practices that made GOOGLE successful is universal.

The most important thing – Give your work meaning. And as a leader, it is to provide an environment where work has meaning for every employee. 

For work to have continual meaning, the reasons why, the joy of the work MUST be communicated over and over and over again. Meaningful work is defined as meaningful when teh experiences at work

1. Figure why you are doing the work you’re doing – remind yourself every day.

2. Ask people around you: why are doing this?

3. Listen to stories face-to-face from those who benefit from the work your’e doing.

4. Do this over and over and over again.

TRUST:

• Organizations miss the foundational truth that people are innately good. Believing this will breed trust in the people working for us and with us.
• One practical expression is to invite the team to post / share their present goals, fostering connection around shared goals to fulfill the WHY.
• Inviting people to voice what needs to be fixed, followed by empowerment to provide solutions communicates VALUE and TRUST.
• Give the staff more FREEDOM – to the point of feeling uncomfortable about the freedom granted. 
• LISTEN to ideas generated from the freedom – and say “yes, do it!”

RECRUITING / HIRING: 

• We hire poorly because we make immediate judgements that we spend the rest of the conversation time looking for things that affirm our original thoughts.
• Don’t let the people who are responsible for hiring, do the interviewing.
• Commit to hire someone better than yourself; someone you can learn from.

Then – over and over and over and over – do this. 

Do your people right and they’ll do right by you.

Bock left Google recently and is launching a new initiative called HUMU. 

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Communicator, author, and pastor, ANDY STANLEY founded Atlanta-based North Point Ministries in 1995. Today, NPM is comprised of six churches in the Atlanta area and a network of 50… Continue reading →

Communicator, author, and pastor, ANDY STANLEY founded Atlanta-based North
Point Ministries in 1995. Today, NPM is comprised of six churches in the
Atlanta area and a network of 50 churches around the globe, collectively
serving nearly 90,000 people weekly. A survey of U.S. pastors in Outreach
Magazine identified Andy Stanley as one of the top 10 most influential
living pastors in America.

After 20 years at North Point and reflecting on phenomenal growth that has
slowed down, Andy asked this question of his leaders:

If we had it to do all over again, what … Continue reading →

BRYAN STEVENSON is the executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama, and a professor of law at New York University School of Law. He has won relief for dozens of condemned prisoners, argued five times before the Supreme Court, and won national acclaim for his work challenging bias against the poor and people of color. He has received numerous awards, including the MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Grant.

I’m not a lawyer. I’ve never been an activist to fight injustice. I’ve lived a “safe” life. This talk was for me.

1. We must get proximate to the people we are trying to serve. 

• Am I willing to write about injustice, but stay physically distant?
• How do the people I’m leading know that I’m with them? How do I practice “presence” with the people I say I care about?
• Am I thinking I have to know what to do

2. We must change the narratives that sustain the way we think.

• How have I been affected by fear and anger in ways that keep me from helping? 
• In what ways have I accepted the rationalizations that

3. We must remain hopeful.

• Am I hopeful about the condition of our world, that change can come, that I can be part of it? 
• Am I inclined to talk about that “one time” when I acted… or am I actively engaged?

4. We must choose to do things that are uncomfortable.

• Have I given myself to making life as comfortable as possible? 
• Have I accepted a mindset that the areas of discomfort are areas of comfort for someone else? 

The humans that Bryan has given his life to serve… are broken. And so is the system, the leadership. 

And so are we. So am I. 

I must be vulnerable enough to connect my own brokenness to those who are broken around me. It is not sufficient, nor most helpful, for people who are broken to hear me teach, train, preach, lead like I’m not broken too. 

I must continue to lean into the brokenness that is my story. I must be connected to the brokenness in others… through my brokenness. 

What are you willing to do, how are you willing to change for the sake of justice?

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BRYAN STEVENSON is the executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative
in Montgomery, Alabama, and a professor of law at New York University
School of Law. He has won relief for dozens of condemned prisoners, argued
five times before the Supreme Court, and won national acclaim for his work
challenging bias against the poor and people of color. He has received
numerous awards, including the MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Grant.

I’m not a lawyer. I’ve never been an activist to fight injustice. I’ve
lived a “safe” life. This talk was for me.

1. We must get proximate to the people we are trying… Continue reading →

Fredrik Härén is an author and speaker on Business Creativity. He has delivered over 1,500 presentations, lectures and workshops in over 45 countries and has inspired hundreds of thousands of business people to become more creative and to look at the world in a new way.

Most people value creativity; many think they possess creativity; but few experience their organization calling out creativity in them.

What is an IDEA? One person takes two former things and combines them. We do not create from nothing. Creativity is a person taking knowledge and information and creating something new. 

Do we not feel creative because of comparison? Because our idea is tied to our identify. We long to be accepted. Accept my idea; accept me. 

Do we lack creativity because we’re stuck doing things the way they’ve always been, the way we’ve always done it? 

Idea-perception is the ability to see that the world has changed. And our inability to keep up with change is the problem. 

People are inspired when they see creativity. 

What is the most creative thing we’ve done lately? 

Am I inspiring creativity?

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Fredrik Härén is an author and speaker on Business Creativity. He has
delivered over 1,500 presentations, lectures and workshops in over 45
countries and has inspired hundreds of thousands of business people to
become more creative and to look at the world in a new way.

Most people value creativity; many think they possess creativity; but few
experience their organization calling out creativity in them.

What is an IDEA? One… Continue reading →

Marcus is a Lebanese-born American businessman, investor, television personality, philanthropist and politician. He is currently the chairman and CEO of Camping World, Good Sa… Continue reading →

Marcus is a Lebanese-born American businessman, investor, television
personality, philanthropist and politician. He is currently the chairman
and CEO of Camping World, Good Sam Enterprises and Gander Mountain and the
star of The Profit, a CNBC reality show about saving small businesses.

Without a plea for pity, Marcus vulnerably shared his story of being
adopted, struggling with an eating disorder, being molested by a cousin,
and making two attempts to end his life. 

Marcus observed that those things that “happened” to him, don’t bring
embarrassment when he talks about his story. However, he suggested that he
was a bit embarrassed to talk about his attempts to suicide, because it was
cowardly.

I hate that Marcus still fills this way about those dark times… Continue reading →

Bill’s interview of Sheryl worked through a variety of topics.

On loss and resilience:

I’ve looked forward to this session, after listening to Krista Tippet
interview Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant regarding their book: Option B.
Her learnings through the untimely death of her husband shaped their book
on resilience. 

Reflecting on her book, Option B, no one in the middle of grief believes it
will get better. No one. In her book, she identifies 3 “p”s in the grieving
process:… Continue reading →