Bernie Borges [00:00:00]:
What’s one thing leaders can do today to cultivate fulfillment in their teams? Even in the face of uncertainty, leaders today are caught between two realities, the need for agility and the human need for stability. You can’t innovate, adapt or thrive if your people are constantly bracing for the next wave of disruption without a foundation to stand on. Today, on this maximum episode, I am joined by by leadership and organizational development experts from Global Ascent Consulting Corporation. GACC for short. Their mission is helping leaders build cultures where people don’t just perform, they thrive. With decades of experience guiding both public and private sector organizations, they bring a perspective on leadership that goes far deeper than business metrics. It’s about human well being. GHCC leaders, welcome.
Bernie Borges [00:00:57]:
Thank you for being here. Please introduce yourselves one by one.
Fredrick Smith [00:01:01]:
Good morning everyone. My name is Frederick Smith. I’m the CEO and founder of Global Ascent Consulting. Delighted to be here today and hopefully we can share with you some of the experiences and learnings that we’ve had over the past few years. Thank you.
Loretta Monroe Calvin [00:01:15]:
Hello.
Amber Heckert [00:01:16]:
Thank you so much. And Bernie, thank you for that great introduction. My name is Amber Heckart and I am president at Global Ascent.
Loretta Monroe Calvin [00:01:23]:
Good morning. My name is Loretta Munro Calvin and I am a senior consultant focused on leadership development and client experience for gacc.
Billie Welchman [00:01:34]:
And good morning everyone. My name is Billy Welchman and I am GACC’s senior business optimizer. Thanks again for joining us.
Bernie Borges [00:01:43]:
Fantastic. Thank you for that. Let’s get right into it. Let’s begin with the following question. Let’s start at high level. What are you seeing among the leaders in the organizations that you work with today?
Frederick Smith [00:01:55]:
Well, Bernie, I’ll take that on and I’ll start it off. One of the things is the speed of change is really impacting organizations in a way that they haven’t seen in years. So the speed of change, the whole concept of AI and how it’s disrupting business, that’s another thing that we’re seeing. Those two things that are top two in my mind and obviously there are other ones.
Amber Heckert [00:02:19]:
Yes, I would say another is just the fatigue. So, you know, the resilience comes into play because there’s so much change in a level that no one within the industry has experienced before. And on top of that, there is multi generations in the workforce who all have different approaches, different ways of thinking. And it’s a lot. It’s put a whole level of intricate decision making and how you think about your business in a way we’ve never had to before. So it is a lot.
Bernie Borges [00:02:48]:
I’m Wondering, because you work with organizations across a variety of different industries, do you see these challenges as a common set of challenges regardless of industry, or is it impacted more so in some industries more than others?
Frederick Smith [00:03:05]:
Well, I think, Bernie, it’s to varying degrees, depending on what the industry is. The more the industry is relying on retail type sales. I think they’re being impacted first because people can feel that the cost of everything is going up. Just this morning I went to buy a steak and the price of it was like 30 bucks. And I’m like, do I really want this steak today? I went ahead and got it because next week the price may be higher. So everybody’s experiencing this in real time, but at different stages depending on the sector. If you go to retail clothing, they’re feeling it right away because of the tariffs. So there’s a number of factors that are impacting consumers across industries.
Frederick Smith [00:03:57]:
It really doesn’t matter. It’s just a matter of timing, of when they feel it.
Bernie Borges [00:04:01]:
So, Nat, everybody’s feeling it in one way or another, regardless of the industry that you’re in. Okay, that makes sense. That makes sense. Now, I know that as a consulting organization, you follow what thought leaders are writing and saying as it relates to these trends. So what are you seeing among the thought leaders, specifically in learning and development and human resources about what they’re saying about these challenges and these trends?
Loretta Monroe Calvin [00:04:27]:
Amber and I can talk to that because we do a lot of work in that area. One thing for sure, it doesn’t matter which information you’re looking at, but the top resources today are saying the same things. There’s a lot of focus and a need to focus on employees, well being, helping the organization to stabilize their organizational people part of the business. There is a need to provide care and the kinds of things that employees need to balance both their work life and their personal life and to make sure that those things are in place. So, Amber, some people may be asking why GACC or how JCC and the Fulfilled Work Academy joined forces on this podcast. What are your views about that?
Amber Heckert [00:05:19]:
Right, So I would say first of all, I mean, we met Bernie and he’s just amazing. And what the Academy is looking to accomplish is just incredible. And there’s a lot of synergy and alignment with the values that Bernie and the Life Fulfilled Academy, all of that, there’s a lot of alignment with what we’re doing. So really it’s that we all have a common goal to put the best practices and the best solutions out there for our clients across the industry. And that we really want people to walk away feeling like they’re fulfilled. You know, it’s about the balance. Right. So many articles are coming out, so many trends are saying that everyone’s driving for the bottom line.
Amber Heckert [00:05:56]:
It’s kind of gone back to this very old school way of thinking and that the bottom line is what matters. People have to go back to the office, you have to be present. It’s created this really interesting flip from where we were just a few years ago during COVID And I think what’s happening is people are forgetting. It’s not an either or, it’s an and situation. And if you forget about the people, you’ll have some changes. You might see some bottom line growth going up, but it’s not sustainable. You’re going to burn people out, it’s going to cause attrition, people will leave, you’re going to have a revolving door. And nobody wants that because at the end of the day, that cost is going to impact the bottom line in a way that’s far more financially detrimental long term than you can really process when you’re trying to make those quick decisions.
Amber Heckert [00:06:42]:
So it’s about the people. It’s about the balance.
Bernie Borges [00:06:45]:
Yeah. And Amber, what I would add, and I agree to your point, we have a lot of alignment because the whole point of how a lot of organizations are focused on caring about their employee population and of course that’s my focus through fulfillment centric leadership, because it is about employee well being, but it’s also a struggle. A lot of organizations don’t know how to do that. And so that leads me to the next question that I wanted to ask you all. And that is, what are some of the best practices for building resilient teams both at the individual level and, and also at the organizational level? Because that’s where I see the connection to my mantra, fulfillment centric leadership. So maybe speak to it from a best practices standpoint from your experience as an organizational development and leadership organization.
Fredrick Smith [00:07:32]:
I look at it like this, Bernie. At the heart of the solutions that we provide, I think between the Fulfillment Academy and gacc, we really are aiming at a holistic and balanced approach where the first and most important thing is that we build trust and transparency. When we’re able to do that with organizations where there’s trust and there’s transparency, then comes the whole concept of psychological safety. And then people are open and they’re willing to try new things, to innovate so they feel safe and they feel secure. And so we have to always be feeding both sides of that equation because people will not function at their optimum if, in fact, they do not feel psychologically safe. The productivity would be impacted. If you’re not happy at home, could have an adverse impact at work. If you’re not happy at work, it could have an adverse impact.
Fredrick Smith [00:08:37]:
So we’re looking to strike a balance. And when we can strike a balance in organizations, the productivity rises, revenues rises, and it’s a win win for everyone.
Bernie Borges [00:08:50]:
Exactly, Fred. And profits rise. I mean, organizations that have an engaged workforce report 23% higher profits. It’s well documented. So this is clearly an initiative that all organizations should prioritize. Let’s discuss how each of you, individually and collectively, how you’re delivering value to organizations. I know each of you has a specialty that you contribute. And so, Billy, we haven’t heard from you yet.
Bernie Borges [00:09:22]:
You’ve got a specialization in optimization and operational stability. Why don’t you unpack that a little bit for us and how that fits into this whole conversation that we’re having.
Billie Welchman [00:09:31]:
So my role is to help with that trust and transparency, because I’m coming in to help build that foundation so leaders and teams are able to function holistically. And so kind of a little bit about what that means and what I do is I look at the systems, the processes, and the workflows to identify gaps and inefficiencies. And then I come at it as a holistic approach again. And I look at it as the current tools and resources that the organization is using, the AI and also individual strengths. And this helps me to optimize the current programs and structure them in a way that brings clarity and consistency while also aligning from the top down. And, you know, as Greta mentioned, so when things are clear, people know what they’re doing, they have expectations, and they know what they need to do. It brings predictability. With predictability, people feel safe, which improves the communication, the workflow, your team’s focus, and their overall ability to do their best for your organization.
Billie Welchman [00:10:31]:
And it’s not just about efficiency. It’s about helping teams work together from the same playbook and pulling in the same direction. And so this is where fulfillment becomes possible, because it’s not just about the performance or the tasks. It’s about each individual being able to focus on their core strengths and to support the organization. And so this is kind of how I set the foundation and help them optimize their team and programs, not only internally, but also for our clients as well.
Loretta Monroe Calvin [00:11:01]:
Loretta when we’re partnering with an organization, we really view the work that we do as co working, so we understand the foundations of what they’re doing. Billie talked about the whole operational piece. But then we delve into who they are, what their goals are collectively. We look at what will it take in this particular organization to help move the needle in terms of leadership development. And also keeping in mind what that client need is and really what makes this particular client different than the other client. We find that in our partnerships, it becomes very critical for us to not come across as Onka Shell, but more come across as we’re partnering with you, we understand your business and we’re not pulling off the shelf what our solutions are. We are tailoring it. And with you, you’re validating that.
Loretta Monroe Calvin [00:11:57]:
What we’re tailoring and what we’re doing to help move the needle with your leadership development is what you need. The other thing is making sure that we’re looking at any systemic barriers that may or may not impact. Impact the training. And then finally we work with the partner to make sure that while we think something is clear and effective, we insert our assessments which either validate that or it tells us something differently. But it is a good feeling when we have provided that solution, the partners working with us, and at the end of the sessions, we are lockstep and it’s a win, win.
Bernie Borges [00:12:38]:
Amber?
Amber Heckert [00:12:39]:
Yes. I’d love to follow up on what Loretta said, specifically that partnership, it really does matter to us. We truly mean when we are your partner, we see your business as part of our business. Your success is our success. And so the best way to do that is to gather information and really understand what is happening. So to Loretta’s point, that sustainability looking, you know, looking at what systemic opportunities, barriers, like any of those doing that kind of that analysis and assessment. So we always start with a organizational assessment. We really want to get to know who you are and what is happening and what’s happening behind the scenes.
Amber Heckert [00:13:21]:
Because, you know, it’s always that when do you have a voice you can actually speak up? Who are the voices in the room, what’s being heard? We want to know all of that. That because it’s going to really help you uncover things that you hadn’t even considered. And then when we craft any programs, whether it’s leadership development, whether it’s specifically launching an assessment or however that solution shows up for your organization. Because, Marnie, as we said, we are taking that time to really learn about that organization. And I know you do the same focus with your clients, which is another reason why we were so excited to partner with you. And we share that common. There’s emotional intelligence. You know, we look at conflict resolution.
Amber Heckert [00:14:02]:
We’re thinking about personal branding, negotiation. There’s a whole cadre of things that we’re thinking about to round out the kinds of programs that we’re presenting. And to that point, not all of those topics are going to work with every client. So we really do customize. We say these are what we’ve done, this is what’s trending. Based on what we’ve discovered about your organization, here’s what we recommend and how that’s going to show up. And then we do quarterly check ins. There’s a lot of quality control.
Amber Heckert [00:14:30]:
Billie sort of touched on it. She creates these amazing systems that keep everything in alignment and makes it so seamless. It’s going to make it a lot easier. And really, at the end of the day, that impact shows up. You know, when we get our evaluations and things and we usually end up, I think the lowest scores we’ve ever gotten are 4.04. On average it’s 4.6 or 4.7 out of 5. So that’s very impressive from any standpoint. But we’re very proud of those results.
Amber Heckert [00:14:57]:
And we have several clients who we’ve worked with for many years or they go away and they come back. And I think that speaks highly to our approach as well as the people driving that approach.
Bernie Borges [00:15:08]:
Fred, you’re the founder and CEO of gacc. I’d love to hear from you what your perspective.
Fredrick Smith [00:15:14]:
I think Amber did a really terrific job of covering really how we approach and how we think about our relationship with our clients. And the only thing that I can add to that is the testament of whether or not you’re being effective or not is not a matter of we did these things, we took people through these experiences, it’s the application of those. How do they go back and what are the behaviors? Have we impacted the behaviors that we want to have instilled in the organization? And how is that being translated down to the individual contributor? If we’re not making that kind of impact in an organization, we’re not doing our jobs. We want to be so good at what we do that we work our way out of a job. If given the chance, we can prove that our approach is consistent, it’s reliable and it produces long standing results, which is sustainable. Because you hear this all the time, hey, I just went through this training session and it was all day and it was boring. When we take people through an experience, they forget how much time they’ve spent. They’re in there and they’re saying to themselves, oh, they hang around after the sessions, after the learning experience, because they are engulfed in the learning.
Fredrick Smith [00:16:44]:
So we make a point of making it fun, but interactive to such a level of interactivity that people are like, oh, our hour and a half is up. We have to go now. That’s what we do better than anybody else on this planet.
Bernie Borges [00:17:01]:
Sure. I want to connect the dot here because we are on my Life Fulfilled podcast. And the dot that I want to connect is that we’ve been speaking about resiliency and leadership in the context of organizations, specifically the kind of organizations that GACC supports, as well as in partnership with me. We support together. And as you all know, and anybody who’s been listening to the Life of Hope podcast knows my platform is five life pillars. Health, fitness, career, relationships and legacy. That pillar in the middle career is a big one. We spend two thirds of our awake time in our career.
Bernie Borges [00:17:47]:
So everything that we’ve been discussing here today, not only does it impact the career pillar, but the career pillar doesn’t live in isolation as an island. It is touched by the other pillars. And so when we talk about this concept of well being in the workplace and fulfilled employees so that they do their best work, that’s what it’s about. It’s so that people feel well and will do their best work. And I’ll give a quick example of a company that I’m doing some work with. They’ve been in business 30 years. It’s a company that is a manufacturer. They make crystal products for awards and recognition.
Bernie Borges [00:18:28]:
And so when someone gets one of their products given to them, because it’s typically given to them, they’re making a memory. So their culture internally is they don’t refer to their employees as employees. It’s not even in their terminology. They refer to them as memory makers because everybody is on the same page in that company. They are making memories. Their end user clients who are purchasing their products are making memories. They don’t have the word fulfillment in their terminology either. So they don’t think about fulfillment in terms of that’s what we want our memory makers to experience.
Bernie Borges [00:19:07]:
But they get to the same place. So what we’re talking about here fundamentally is that leadership isn’t just about getting the end business result. Of course we need to get business results, of course that’s a prerequisite. But it’s really about building a culture where everybody feels valued. And this thing that I call fulfillment, and I know you all embrace it’s not a perk. It’s just part of the DNA of the organization. So as you all have said, we’re very, very well aligned and I’ve enjoyed this conversation. And before we bring it to a wrap, because I know you’ve got a resource that you want to share with my listener, I would ask you for a closing thought.
Bernie Borges [00:19:49]:
So would one of you want to share a closing thought? Before we get to your resource, I.
Fredrick Smith [00:19:53]:
Would like to give it a shot. What we’re really pursuing is discretionary effort because if you show up at work every day, you get to make a decision about how much you’re going to be engaged because nobody’s standing over your shoulder all the time. So what I believe between the Fulfillment Academy and gacc, what we’re trying to say to those of you who are listening is this is. It’s a two sided equation and you got to feed both sides of the beast because that’s when the magic happens and the person says to themselves, I’m going to go the extra mile and do the extra thing. Not because someone told me to do it, but because I’m in a culture that embraces myself as an individual, not as just another member of the herd.
Loretta Monroe Calvin [00:20:44]:
So what I would say, there’s so many challenges for leaders, for organizations, and we know it’s a difficult journey. And really, at the end of the day, if these people are treated well and if they feel that they matter, at the end of the day, the production will be great.
Billie Welchman [00:21:02]:
So I want you to get to know your team not only on a professional level, but but also on a personal level and figure out who they are, what they do, and what other value that they can bring as well, because this is going to help you as a leader to better understand and help with that fulfillment piece.
Amber Heckert [00:21:22]:
I would have to say, when it comes to the culture, we all know that will make or break an organization. And as the leader, think of yourself as the weather. You show up and you can transform the room, you can transform the team, you, you could transform the organization. It starts with you. It starts with how you show up, how you have that ripple effect on those around you and the organization as a whole. And it’s a little building block. It can seem insurmountable. You set those goals, you’re going to feel that you actually are making a difference.
Amber Heckert [00:21:52]:
You’re moving the needle and in a way that’s not going to feel overwhelming over tasked.
Bernie Borges [00:21:57]:
I also know that you’ve got a free resource that you’ve prepared to offer to listeners of the Life Fulfill podcast. So who wants to explain what that is?
Billie Welchman [00:22:07]:
I’ll take that one on. Thanks Bernie. So we put together a free Leadership Strategy starter kick because we want to help kickstart you into your leadership journey. And so we build a practical tool that helps with building team resilience and fulfillment centered stability. And in this kit includes a snapshot of your leadership habits and growth areas and practical leadership language that builds connection and trust as well as soft skills checklist and a guidance on how to start strong and lead with clarity as well as some articles referenced to help give you more context and information about what is going on currently as well. So let me just invite you to Please take our 1 to 2 minute leadership readiness assessment and then you’ll receive your results along with this starter kit.
Bernie Borges [00:22:53]:
Fantastic. And that is linked up in the show notes for this episode. So just scroll over or down to the show notes and you will find a link to the Leadership Readiness assessment. Just click on it and you can grab it right there. Well GACC team, I just want to thank you for joining me today. For this episode I will have each of your LinkedIn profile URL’s along with the GACC website URL linked up in the show notes. So anybody listening or watching today knows exactly how to connect with you. I really enjoyed this conversation and I’m going to add just one closing thought that I think really represents everything that we discuss here today and that is that all leaders want to create business results and business results are lagging indicators.
Bernie Borges [00:23:44]:
Leading indicators are things that will get you there. And so I think part of our combined value proposition is that we can optimize those leading indicators to get to the lagging indicators that our clients all want to experience. So I’ll leave it there. And again, thank you for joining me today and look forward to continuing the conversation.
