Read: Make Strategic Thinking Your Blueprint: This article summarizes the characteristics of a strategic thinker and outlines best practices of strategic thinking.

Watch: The Difference Between Strategic Planning and Strategic Thinking (1:50): This video explains the difference between strategic planning and strategic thinking, with an emphasis on decision-making.

Read: Through the Eyes of Another: A large part of strategic thinking is questioning your assumptions to be more open-minded. This article describes ways to strengthen your empathy muscles and ultimately bolster your ability to make decisions with full consideration to others.

Model It: Leaders can help support employees by looking ahead, preparing for the unexpected, and remain innovative when plans change. This can be done by talking through potential challenges and anticipating likely situations. Leaders can’t anticipate every situation, but they can remain open-minded to solutions and be willing to learn alongside their employees to adapt to challenges in the workplace.

Spread the Word: Strategic thinking means thinking outside the box. It helps to include others in your thought process to promote sharing teamwork.

“Hi team! Yesterday had some unexpected challenges. During our huddle this morning, I would like for us to debrief on how the day went from your perspective and to share ideas on how to tackle this situation in the future.”

Team Building: Consider facilitating a brainstorming activity with your team to tap into strategic thinking as a group. One way to do this is by breaking into groups of 3 or 4 and coming up with a plan to address a single unexpected challenge. After 5 minutes, debrief together as a large group. Record the ideas, making note of similarities and differences. You may be surprised at the different ways of thinking in the room, which may yield several viable plans in the event of a challenge. Try this activity with a few different situations, from ones that are more common (such as a staffing shortage) to ones that are less common (such as a severe weather emergency).

Tell a Story: Stories about our mission are a powerful way to affect company culture because when an employee connects their daily work to the greater purpose, they’ll likely feel more connected to the organization. GESMN’s greater purpose is commonly referred to as “the mission,” but do your employees really know what that means? You can help them understand by sharing a participant story. After you read the story, encourage your team to give themselves a well-deserved round of applause.

Marcus finds support and ‘family’ with FATHER Project

Read: 5 Guidelines for Managing Change: This article summarizes five guidelines to help with change management, as suggested by management consultancy Robert Half.

Watch: Appreciative Coaching with Sara Orem: An Introduction (8:14): Sara Orem describes the benefits and techniques of appreciative inquiry to support employees through change.

Read: A Change Can Start With You: This article provides tips on modeling change through inclusive leadership strategies.

Model It: Leaders can help support employees through change by keeping an open line of communication about the reasons for the change, the anticipated pros and cons and how the transition is impacting the team (and yourself as a leader). Try modeling extra grace for yourself and others, as it is natural to experience distress during times of transition.

Spread the Word: Sharing fears about workplace changes can feel vulnerable. Help your team build confidence around asking questions and sharing feedback.

“Hi team! I was recently given feedback regarding the new process. I would like to review this feedback and open discussion about the new process during our meeting this morning. As we get used to this, please come to me with any questions or concerns – I’m here to support you all! Thank you all for your extra effort during this transition.”

Team Building: A change in the workplace can leave employees feeling unsettled and at times fearful or resentful. Help your employees recognize each other’s strengths and discuss how these strengths can make the change a more positive process.

Take a moment to ask your team these questions. Give time to reflect, share and brainstorm together about how these ideas fit into the workplace change.

• What inspires you?
• When do you perform your best?
• Can you share a list all of the things that work well for you right now?
• Do you have ideas about incorporating those strengths into this change?How can I (the leader) support you to develop your talents?

Tell a Story: Stories about our mission are a powerful way to affect company culture because when an employee connects their daily work to the greater purpose, they’ll likely feel more connected to the organization. GESMN’s greater purpose is commonly referred to as “the mission,” but do your employees really know what that means? You can help them understand by sharing a participant story. After you read the story, encourage your team to give themselves a well-deserved round of applause.

Elizabeth’s Self-Advocacy Leads to Career Success

Read: How Better Boundaries Can Prevent Burnout: In this article, licensed psychotherapist Sharon Martin outlines the signs of burnout, the connection between burnout and boundaries and how to communicate and uphold one’s own boundaries.

Watch: 3 Rules for Better Work-Life Balance (5:06): In this video, Harvard Business School professor Ashley Whillans shares about how to make the most of our free time and three practical steps for setting professional boundaries that stick.

Read: Supporting Employees in Setting Boundaries at Work: It’s important to recognize when identity and cultural differences intersect with establishing boundaries. People who are in a position of power might be less practiced in offering flexibility to individuals who are requesting that a boundary be upheld. This article discusses how leaders can support employees in setting healthy boundaries.

Model It: Leaders can help promote a workplace with healthy boundaries when they lead by example. Try modeling healthy workplace boundaries by taking your lunch break, leaving work on time, not checking work email outside of your work hours and communicating clearly what is your responsibility and what is not.

Spread the Word: Establishing boundaries takes practice and intentional communication. When setting a boundary, it’s important to be clear about what you need and what you are asking for. When possible, set boundaries that can be enforced by your own behavior.

“Hi [colleague], I notice that you have been messaging me about work outside of work hours. I need to be able to turn my work brain off so that I can relax in my free time. I am asking you to keep work communications during work hours. Going forward, I will not be responding to work messages outside of my work day.”

Team Building: Setting boundaries can feel vulnerable, but practicing can help build confidence! Try practicing with your team by setting boundaries to hypothetical situations that could come up during a work day. Take turns making a hypothetical request, and responding with a clear boundary.

An example of a hypothetical request:

“Hi [colleague], I am wondering if you could cover my shift tomorrow?”

An example of a boundary:

“Hi [colleague], I want to help you out, but I am not able to change my schedule with this short of notice. Next time, I ask that you give me 3 days notice.”

Tell a Story: Stories about our mission are a powerful way to affect company culture because when an employee connects their daily work to the greater purpose, they’ll likely feel more connected to the organization. GESMN’s greater purpose is commonly referred to as “the mission,” but do your employees really know what that means? You can help them understand by sharing a participant story. After you read the story, encourage your team to give themselves a well-deserved round of applause.

Steve’s Work Ethic Leads to Stability and Career Success

Read: When and How to Respond to Microaggressions – This article discusses racial microaggressions and focuses on the experience of Black Americans. It outlines three different ways to respond as well as how to handle the conversation if you choose to have one.

Watch: How Unintentional but Insidious Bias Can Be the Most Harmful (7:57) – PBS News Hour interviews Dr. Derald Wing Sue at Columbia University, who discusses the spectrum of microaggressions and their impact on marginalized groups.

Read: 11 Essential Traits of an Inclusive Workplace – This article outlines 11 essentials traits of an inclusive workplace, as well as some statistics reflecting the benefits of employees who feel included.

Model It: What do you do if you commit a microaggression?

We have all committed microaggressions, likely without knowing. Here are a few steps to take when you realize you have committed a microaggression:

1. Listen to increase understanding.

• Don’t try to defend or rationalize
• Focus on what the person is telling you
• Keep in mind the end goal – a work environment where everyone feels equally valued and respected.

2. Acknowledge the impact.

• Take responsibility for your actions.
• Apologize without making excuses.

3. Thank the person for the feedback.

• Acknowledge the person's effort.
• Thank them for their feedback.

4. Continue to learn.

• Research and learn more.
• Connect with your HRBP for resources.

Spread the Word: Take a moment to remember the steps outlined in “model it” as you prepare your response:

1. Listen to increase understanding.
2. Acknowledge the impact.
3. Thank the person for the feedback.
4. Continue to learn.

“Hey [colleague]! I can see that what I said/did was harmful, I apologize for what I said/did. I want to thank you for telling me – giving feedback to a leader can be vulnerable and I appreciate your effort. I’ll do some research about this topic to better understand this issue.”

Team Building:Try out the technique “opening the front door” (OTFD), developed by Ganote, Cheung and Souza. OTFD is a method of addressing microaggressions that can help equip allies, observers, and victims of microaggressions to speak up when microaggressions occur. OTFD stands for Observe, Think, Feel, and Desire.

Observe: Describe clearly and succinctly what you see happening.

Think: State what you think about it.

Feel: Express your feelings about the situation.

Desire: Assert what you would like to happen.

Example:

Microaggression:

“When you talk about your relationship with your [same-sex] partner it makes others feel uncomfortable and awkward.”

Response:

Observe: “I’m hearing you say that hearing about same-sex relationships makes others feel uncomfortable and awkward.”

Think: “I think that is a double-standard, since others are able to discuss their opposite-sex relationships without that same judgement.”

Feel: “I feel upset that same-sex relationships are implied to be abnormal and offensive.”

Desire: “I would like for our work environment be respectful and supportive of colleagues sharing about their personal lives, regardless of sexual orientation.”

Invite your team to form OTFD statements in response to the following microaggression examples.

- Ethnic microaggression:

• A person says to their black colleague, “I see your hair is big today! Are you planning to wear it like that to the client meeting?”

- Gender microaggression

• Like a cisgender woman telling a trans woman, "I was born a real woman, but you're so much prettier than me. "

- Disability microaggression

• A non-disabled person telling a person in a wheelchair, "Wow, you're such an inspiration. I have two legs and could never do what you do.”

Tell a Story: Stories about our mission are a powerful way to affect company culture because when an employee connects their daily work to the greater purpose, they’ll likely feel more connected to the organization. GESMN’s greater purpose is commonly referred to as “the mission,” but do your employees really know what that means? You can help them understand by sharing a participant story. After you read the story, encourage your team to give themselves a well-deserved round of applause.

GESMN Addresses Digital Divide with Computer Skills Tutoring and More

Learn more about how GESMN is addressing the digital literacy divide by connecting people to digital resources, including computer skills tutoring and internet cost assistance.

Read: How To Hold Employees Accountable When They Don't Follow Through - 16 Forbes Coaches Council members share ways for leaders to ensure employees are held accountable for doing their work. Learn how to set clear expectations and ensure better performance going forward while still maintaining a positive work environment.

Watch:  How to Have a Difficult Conversation (4:18) - Having a difficult or uncomfortable conversation can be challenging and not fun. BUT that doesn’t mean you should avoid them. In fact, that’s exactly what you SHOULDN’T do.​

Read: Talking About Pronouns in the Workplace - As a leader, it’s important to hold yourself and others accountable to respecting and acknowledging the correct pronouns for employees. Employees may opt to use gender expansive pronouns such as ‘they, them and theirs’ instead of the gendered ‘he, him, his’ or ‘she, her and hers’. This article provides a great overview of the importance of pronouns, and includes an excellent PDF focused on talking about pronouns in the workplace.

Model It:  What does it mean to hold yourself accountable?

Self-accountability means taking responsibility for your actions and behaviors without blaming others. It means you're fulfilling your obligations, tasks and goals without excuses. And, if an unexpected challenge comes your way, being accountable means you can focus on a solution without pointing fingers. 

Spread the Word:  Hey team! As you’re completing development conversations and following up on expectations, you or your employees may need some resources to help accomplish the goals set in place. Check out the Employee Development page in the UKG Library, there are some great options including ‘How to Have a Successful Employee Development Conversation’ and ‘How to Hold Yourself Accountable to Your Career Goals’.

Or check out all the resources available in the UKG Content Library for a variety of topics available to read or watch.

Team Building:  Looking for a way to share successes and some missteps that made your team better?

Create an Accomplishment Timeline -

GESMN had a fantastic FY23. Is your team aware? More importantly, do they know how they contributed to our success?

An accomplishment timeline showing the journey to success is a great way to reinforce the continued success of your team. This can be done by sharing the wins and lessons learned.

Here are some highlights from FY23 shared by out President and CEO Michael Wirth-Davis:

• We served 5,579 people in our community, which is a 16% increase from 4,785 in FY22.
• A public awareness campaign brought our mission into prominent spaces, and we launched a new texting option for people to access our services.
• DGR’s net income was over $29.3M, exceeding a budget of $19.39M, and e-commerce finished with over $20M in revenue.  This support allows us to keep investing in our services and programs.
• Over 850 employees used 6,592.63 total DEI enrichment hours this year, learning and growing to help foster inclusion in our workplace and our community.

Below are some examples you could use on the timeline:

• Highlight how your team supported the mission
• Recognize individuals or teams that stepped up
• Share how regardless of position in the company their affects are felt throughout
• Did your location or department accomplish a new goal?
• Show how improvements were made after a mistake was identified and how that helped those on your team grow and benefit from it. (Be sure to focus on team/store mistakes, avoiding calling out any one person)

The timeline can be shared on a white board, handout, electronically or a combination of methods. Show your employees what they do on the day to day and how holding themselves accountable can truly make a difference.

Success In Action: Learning about success stories of fellow leaders within our organization can be a powerful source of inspiration and motivation. These narratives provide valuable insights into the paths to success, demonstrating that determination, resilience and learning from setbacks are key factors in achieving one's goals as a leader. By studying the experiences of those who have been successful in helping employees grow and learn from their mistakes, you can gain a deeper understanding of the strategies and qualities that lead to leadership achievements.

Here is a great example from one of our HRBP’s about a recent experience she was involved with.

A typically reliable employee started arriving late for their shifts and was unresponsive to calls from the manager. As you can imagine this caused a bit of extra stress for the manager and they were forced to re-adjust the schedule to ensure there would be coverage for store operations. Not only was placing extra stress on the manager, but team members were also now taking on the extra burden of covering the workload for this employee.

The manager decided it was time to reach out to their HRBP for some talking points they could use to reach out to the employee when they arrived for their shift. The manager let the employee know what they were seeing and shared their actions were out of character for them and not in line with the attendance expectations and policy.

The employee opened up and shared they were dealing with several stressful, personal matters and were having trouble handling it all. The manager wanted to make sure the employee knew they were part of the team and cared about them. While the manager did have to remind the employee of the attendance policy and expectations, they also shared resources available to the employee that could help them deal with matters outside of work.

By reaching out to the employee and taking the time to learn more about what was going on, not only did they have a grateful team member but an employee who has been able to access the resources and is now showing a significant improvement with their attendance and communication.