Engaging Leaders is the leading Culture Transformation Consultancy, and through Culture Matters, we go about exploring human stories for creating a better future of work. 

There are inherent challenges for teams and leaders in remote work. We explore with Sharon Lim and Nim Sivakumaran on how leaders need to understand factors that can make remote work especially demanding. Otherwise high-performing employees may experience declines in job performance and engagement when they begin working remotely, especially in the absence of trust and effective communication. ​ Sharon explains how as leaders, we need to amp up our self awareness and the sense of empathetic curiosity.  ​ "The leader sets the tone for the workplace. Like it or not, his or her energy will affect the team. The leader therefore needs to get his or her energy right. Self Awareness is key. No one is perfect but to be aware of how your actions and words can affect those who work with you is key to ensuring that the tone you set is one that is conducive for a productive and positive work environment." If you have enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and continue on this journey with us. www.engagingleaders.asia ​

There are inherent challenges for teams and leaders in remote work. We explore with Sharon Lim and Nim Sivakumaran on how leaders need to understand factors that can make remote work especially demanding. ​ Building on what psychological safety looks like at work, Sharon and Nim share about how Self awareness and Empathetic Curiosity are important components to psychological safety. If your employees are able to feel safe, they will be more open to sharing ideas and being creative. It will be less of a focus on the individual but a greater emphasis on the collective. "The genuine interest in their co-workers must also be consistent. An important aspect of consistency is self awareness as to how you are coming across." If you have enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and continue on this journey with us. www.engagingleaders.asia

Driving Diversity and Inclusion: Li Wei uses the example of rowing a boat. "You cannot have diversity without inclusion. You need to row with both oars or you will end up going in circles." Diversity and inclusion must go hand in hand. You cannot have one without the other. Culture of Diversity & Inclusion requires the buy in of business leaders to succeed. It cannot be the work of one person. There may be one person that comes up with the idea but for culture to take root, a group of like minded leaders in different sectors must be engaged and remain accountable. Various leaders across the business must retain ownership and commitment to keep it going. This a 2-part episode. Do check out the 2nd Part as well. If you have enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and continue on this journey with us. www.engagingleaders.asia/

Driving Diversity and Inclusion: Li Wei uses the example of rowing a boat. "You cannot have diversity without inclusion. You need to row with both oars or you will end up going in circles." Diversity and inclusion must go hand in hand. You cannot have one without the other. Culture of Diversity & Inclusion requires the buy in of business leaders to succeed. It cannot be the work of one person. There may be one person that comes up with the idea but for culture to take root, a group of like minded leaders in different sectors must be engaged and remain accountable. Various leaders across the business must retain ownership and commitment to keep it going. This a 2-part episode. Do check out the 1st Part as well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aN5zviId40 If you have enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and continue on this journey with us. www.engagingleaders.asia/

CULTURE MATTERS - EPISODE 3, PART 1 ROI OF CULTURE with Julian Neo, Managing Director, DHL Express Malaysia and Brunei www.engagingleaders.asia

Julian has so poignantly highlighted an emphasis of engaging the employees in both their hearts and brains that will truly empower employees to be part of DHL Express' Growth Story and there is a strong commitment to evolve and not stop.

Culture Fit: Talent Acquisition and Retention in this New Norm Talent Development starts from Recruitment and Julia Cheah shares with us through her work at Canon where she not only endeavours to recruit the Right Person for the Right Job but to continue to have an honest relationship with them as people beyond the organisation.

While the world is experiencing the effects of the global pandemic, it has brought significant disruption and a sense of crisis for many organisations. As organisations grapple with this challenge internationally, some have fared better than others and lessons have definitely been learnt. Here, we are talking to Tune Protect Group to see how they are navigating their challenges and leading through crisis.

Laurent has highlighted the important connection between Culture and Service and how it forms a symbiotic relationship; that's why service and culture must go hand in hand. In Laurent's vast experience consulting for different organisations, he has observed the need for mindsets to shift in order to attain a service culture.

Design thinking isn’t just a process that you can plug in and play to get a desired output. Design thinking is a mindset, a way of working and demonstrating a set of values. It requires intangibles such as humility and integrity to do it right and to do it well. To find out more, we spoke with Holly O’Driscoll, Founder & CEO of Ampersand Innovation and former Global Design Thinking Leader at Procter and Gamble. Design Thinking in Organisational Culture: People Before Technology (Part 1) #designthinking #innovation #collaboration #creativity #technology #engagingleaders www.engagingleaders.asia

Design Thinking in Organisational Culture: Empathetic & Human-Centered Leadership (Part 2) In Part 1 of this episode, Design Thinking in Organisational Culture, Holly has given us the background of how it starts with a People First approach and creating an environment and culture that supports Curiosity, Courage and Candor. In Part 2, we continue the journey with Holly on what it means for leaders and how they should show up inorder to help their people to thrive and reach their potential. #designthinking #innovation #collaboration #creativity #technology #engagingleaders #humancentredleadership www.engagingleaders.asia

Think Like A Futurist Part 1 - Changes in Values & Cultures across Generations Why has it become so important for us to focus on the future? We live in a VUCA world – that is, one that is full of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. This has created a heightened need for organisations to increase their agility and responsiveness to these constant changes. In this episode of "Think like a Futurist", we explore the fact that in order for organisations to not only survive in their increasingly competitive business environments, but also to thrive, there is an urgent need for them to be able to imagine the future through divergent scenarios. Doing so enables organisations to make robust strategic choices, which are more likely to withstand an exponentially more competitive future, and to keep strategies more adaptable to unforeseen scenarios. Our guest today is Anne Boysen, a professional futurist, whose work includes consulting for Fortune 500 companies in market forecasting, brand strategy and product development. Anne uses strategic foresight to help prepare clients for a future that will shape, and be shaped by, younger generations. www.engagingleaders.asia

In Part 1 with Anne, a professional futurist and researcher, we explored the fact that in order for organisations to not only survive in the increasingly competitive business environment, but also to thrive, there is an intensifying need for them to be able to imagine the future through divergent scenarios and more importantly incorporate more diverse and inclusive perspectives. In Part 2, we continue to learn more about how foresight works and how it influences organisations in making more robust strategic choices. www.engagingleaders.asia #thinklikeafuturist #culturematters #futurist #foresight #insight #culture

On this episode of Culture Matters, our guest is Merima Baralic, who is the Communications and Consumer Relations Director for Africa, Middle East & South Asia at PepsiCo. With COVID-19 pandemic as the backdrop, many companies have shifted to remote work, and employees are balancing major changes in their personal and professional lives. We unpack four primary focus areas in making the leap to managing remote teams: Part 1: Role of Communication & Culture Part 2: Building Remote Team Culture Part 3: Connecting as Humans Part 4: Leaders that Thrive We all know that Culture and Communication are inextricably intertwined. In this episode, Merima will share with us lessons she has learned from her vast experience and expertise leading remote teams across time zones and locations. In Part 1, we find out more about the importance of communication and how crucial it is for building Culture. So watch this episode of Culture Matters to find out why Culture is a living & breathing set of conscious or subconscious norms, as well as why Culture is ever-evolving and why your organisation's reputation is formed around your workplace culture. www.engagingleaders.asia #communicatingculture​ #culturematters​ #opencommunication​ #remoteteams​ #peopleandculture​ #workplaceculture #leadingremoteteams

On this episode of Culture Matters, our guest is Merima Baralic, who is the Communications and Consumer Relations Director for Africa, Middle East & South Asia at PepsiCo. With COVID-19 pandemic as the backdrop, many companies have shifted to remote work, and employees are balancing major changes in their personal and professional lives. We unpack four primary focus areas in making the leap to managing remote teams: Part 1: Role of Communication & Culture https://youtu.be/qU_fAokBa_4 (Watch Part 1 here) Part 2: Building Remote Team Culture Part 3: Connecting as Humans Part 4: Leaders that Thrive In Part 2 of this episode of Culture Matters, we take a deep dive into "Communication and Culture” with Merima Baralic. We discuss how Merima builds a Remote-Teams Culture, and why she believes there is a shift from “Capitalism” to “Talentism”. We learn from Merima about Trust, Active Listening, Structure, Recognition & Appreciation (such as pausing to celebrate wins), Respect, Flexibility and Self-Motivation being vitally important and why they are key ingredients for teams to work successfully across locations and time zones. www.engagingleaders.asia #culturematters​​ #remotetalent #buildingremoteteam #remoteteams​ #peopleandculture​ #workplaceculture #leadingremoteteams

On this episode of Culture Matters, our guest is Merima Baralic, who is the Communications and Consumer Relations Director for Africa, Middle East & South Asia at PepsiCo. With COVID-19 pandemic as the backdrop, many companies have shifted to remote work, and employees are balancing major changes in their personal and professional lives. We unpack four primary focus areas in making the leap to managing remote teams: Part 1: Role of Communication & Culture https://youtu.be/qU_fAokBa_4 (Watch Part 1 here) Part 2: Building Remote Team Culture https://youtu.be/hLhbc7P1kew (Watch Part 2 here) Part 3: Connecting as Humans - This Episode Part 4: Leaders that Thrive In Part 3 of this episode around Communication and Culture, we find out how Merima builds human connections and how you can communicate more effectively with your teams, wherever they’re located. We explore how we can connect more as humans in digital & remote workspaces, how communication can help with this, and how one can overcome some of the challenges faced. In order to build human connections and work together effectively, we need to open up, communicate transparently and allow ourselves to be vulnerable. Leaders need to be more empathetic and understanding, and we should all be able to voice our opinions fearlessly to encourage diversity of thought. Since non-verbal cues comprise 70% of conversations, communication with clarity is crucial. We should also get comfortable with silence, which is not as simple as it sounds. www.engagingleaders.asia #culturematters​​ #remotetalent #buildingremoteteam #remoteteams​ #peopleandculture​ #workplaceculture #leadingremoteteams #humanconnection

On this episode of Culture Matters, our guest is Merima Baralic, who is the Communications and Consumer Relations Director for Africa, Middle East & South Asia at PepsiCo. With COVID-19 pandemic as the backdrop, many companies have shifted to remote work, and employees are balancing major changes in their personal and professional lives. We unpack four primary focus areas in making the leap to managing remote teams: Part 1: Role of Communication & Culture https://youtu.be/qU_fAokBa_4 (Watch Part 1 here) Part 2: Building Remote Team Culture https://youtu.be/hLhbc7P1kew (Watch Part 2 here) Part 3: Connecting as Humans https://youtu.be/u7F2LByQIlM (Watch Part 3 here) Part 4: Leaders that Thrive - This Episode In our last but favourite part of this episode of "Communication and Culture” with Merima Baralic, we examine Leadership and the role of Leaders in communicating with colleagues and peers. We learn what leaders need to do to inspire and motivate others, what are some of the keys to being good communicators, and why storytelling & “Big-Picture Thinking” are vitally important – now more than ever. We examine how Merima defines Leadership, what she thinks are some of the traits of successful leaders, what leaders need to keep in mind when communicating with colleagues and others, and what makes a good communicator. Merima shares why Leaders need to inspire and motivate others virtually, be flexible and adapt as the goalposts are shifting all the time, why being authentic, self-aware and being a good communicator are key, why storytelling is crucial, why it’s important not just to listen but to actually hear what people are saying, why leaders need to pay attention and be mindful of cultural sensitivities, as well as why they have to be visionary and embrace “Big-Picture Thinking”.