It’s approaching two years since the pandemic forcefully transformed our lives. For most of us, it was an abrupt transition from customary ways of working to a virtual work environment. There was no alternative – we had to figure it out and make it work.

Ultimately, we realized that working remotely fit many people pretty well, driving higher-than-expected engagement numbers and keeping productivity high after the initial shock.

Fast forward to today. We’re still dealing with the pandemic, but businesses are realizing that it’s time to redirect their organizations for positive growth. There is renewed hope that we will overcome this virus – or at least get better at living with it. The show must go on, and we can’t be in “emergency mode” forever.

As we push through the second half of 2021, many unknowns remain from a tumultuous 2020. We’re in uncharted territory, so it’s important to consider what leadership skills will be critical as teams sail this new course.

Your company’s culture: strategic asset and competitive advantage

Your company culture is what employees say and do every day, how they work together (or don’t), what leaders reinforce (or don’t), and all the habits, practices, processes, and customs of the workplace.

It wasn’t raining when Noah built the Ark. — Howard Ruff

When’s the right time to change the oil in your car? When’s the right time to buy insurance, or to improve your diet? The “right” time is before there is a need. Timing really is everything.

For organizations, when’s the right time to begin developing tomorrow’s leaders? In time-starved organizations, leadership is constantly faced with tradeoff and prioritization issues, but one thing that should be at the top of their priority list is developing tomorrow’s leaders, today.

Author: Jessica Miller

Kitchen tables, make-shift computer trays on car consoles, scribbling notes on the back of napkins… Working arrangements in 2020 looked a lot different due to the pandemic’s impact. We toughed it out one video call at a time, but all the while our mindset of what was “normal” was shifting and evolving, and so was the mindset of the global workforce. We truly are in a work-from-anywhere world now and like many of you, ALULA was curious about the impacts of that dramatic shift.

Recently I moderated the virtual Women in Leadership panel at the American Biomanufacturing Summit. This was my second time moderating this panel virtually, and I continue to be amazed by the richness of the conversation—despite being unable to meet face-to-face. The panel included senior female leaders of Acceleron, Genentech, Novartis, Roche, and Sobi, each having rich experiences to share.

Author: J.P. Martinez

The flames are mesmerizing, the noise overwhelming, and the sheer power is remarkable. These words do not come close to illustrating the brilliance of a rocket launched on its way into space. And while truly incredible, the awe-inspiring physical representation of achieving escape velocity in some ways distracts from the true accomplishment; consider what is necessary for a successful launch. All the people, all the parts, and all the conditions must line up together, in just the right way, at the right time.

With businesses continuing to work from anywhere, companies are more focused on efforts to ensure their people are engaged, no matter where they may be working. These days, many people seek employment with organizations that have environments and cultures that support their personal values. In the US, April is National Volunteer Month, so there’s no time like the present to start thinking about how and why you should support volunteering efforts in your company.

Why is it that most organizational change initiatives tend to fall into one of the following categories:

• It is slow to launch
• Are recycled from previous efforts that did not achieve intended outcomes
• Never realize their full potential

Before you can drive positive engagement behaviors, it's critical to understand what those look like for your teams. As companies forge ahead with new work environments, new communication tools and new technologies, it's more important than ever for everyone in the organization to have clarity.

What 'good' looks like may be different depending on what part of the organization you are engaging. So if working with accounting the desired behavior may look different than working with customer service.

Having clear definition, consistency and reinforcement is an important step for leaders to further positive engagement in an organization.

In this video ALULA's Danielle Geissler, Ph.D., provides steps leaders can take to help drive positive engagement behaviors throughout the organization.