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Fostering a civil workplace is key to the future of work.

As organizations reintroduce their people to the workplace, they must also reckon with social responsibility.

It is one thing for management to express a desire for positive social change. It is quite another to “walk the talk” to create a civil work environment.

Sejal Thakkar understands the sting of incivility like few others. During her teenage years in the Chicago suburbs, she suffered from near daily racial prejudice and bullying.

Now, as a self-described Chief Civility Officer; Sejal uses her personal experience to provide effective workplace training that fosters civility.

In this episode, Sejal:

• Describes her role as Chief Civility Officer for TrainXtra. Starts at 2:57
• Relives growing up as a bullied “other” in the Chicago suburbs. Starts at 4:26
• Relates the experience of representing clients accused of workplace incivility, bias, and discrimination. Starts at 7:52
• Defines the term microagression. Starts at 21:58
• Pairs the civility narrative with the return to the workplace. Starts at 29:39
• Explains how fostering a civil workplace provides positive ROI benefits. Starts at 32:12

In the wake of Covid, remote work, and civil unrest, Sejal believes that we have hit an inflection point for fostering a civil workplace:

“[There have been] so many things happening in such a short period of time that people are not putting up with B.S. at work, anymore.”

About our guest:

Sejal Thakkar earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Juris Doctorate from Northern Illinois University. She is a TEDx speaker focused on bias. Sejal lives and works in the Bay Area of California.

EPISODE DATE: April 30, 2021

Social media:

– LinkedIn

– TrainXtra Website

– TEDx: The Pain, Power, and Paradox of Bias

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 33:49 — 46.5MB)

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Few issues pair as precariously as A.I. and the future of work.

Artificial intelligence or A.I. frightens people who fear that robots will take away their jobs and paychecks.

Truth be told, A.I. will soon replace millions of low-skill jobs, for it can manage many tasks faster and better than people.

But A.I. has no heart; only people can do jobs that require human touch and interaction.

To help us understand A.I. and the future of work, we turn to Prateek Joshi. The author of numerous books on Artificial Intelligence, Prateek is the Founder and CEO of Plutoshift, a company that uses A.I. to make the world a better place.

In this episode, Prateek:

• Describes Plutoshift and his role in the company. Starts at 3:03
• Defines A.I. and contrasts it with Machine Learning. Starts at 3:51
• Addresses workforce concerns that A.I. takes jobs away from people. Starts at 8:52
• Illustrates how Plutoshift helps clients involved with providing clean and potable water. Starts at 13:03
• Identifies the training and advanced skill that he seeks in hired talent. Starts at 20:25
• Tells us how, beyond his work, he adds fun and enjoyable activity to each day. Starts at 27:59

In regards to A.I. and the future of work, Prateek says:

“One of the biggest things that [we look for] is the ability to learn. [Are you] the type of person who has learned how to learn?”

About our guest:

Prateek Joshi earned a Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the National Institute of Technology Karnataka and a Masters of Science in Computer Vision from USC. He is the author of numerous books on Artificial Intelligence. Prateek lives and works in Palo Alto, California.

EPISODE DATE: April 23, 2021

Social media:

– LinkedIn

– Twitter

– Plutoshift Website

– Prateek Joshi Website

– Amazon Author Page

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:11 — 44.3MB)

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We pose five questions on post pandemic work experiences to our guest, Edythe Richards.

Edythe is an Emotional Intelligence expert. She is also the new host of the EQ at Work podcast which explores how EQ may be used to positively shape the future of work.

As we emerge from the pandemic, some of us will travel back to co-located offices. The prospect of returning is both exciting and terrifying.

People used to working remotely for more than a year may be ill-prepared for their return to the office. With that in mind, we ask Edythe for answers to these five future of work questions:

1. What does one do if someone thrusts their hand out for a handshake? Starts at 4:55
2. How do we negotiate others’ needs for personal space? Starts at 8:46
3. How do we empower those who want to work anywhere but at a traditional office setting? Starts at 13:29
4. How do we reduce Zoom time and encourage more asynchronous communication? Starts at 20:12
5. How do we contend with post-pandemic “irrational exuberance?” Starts at 25:03

What is more, Edythe expresses the need for intentionality in our ongoing work communications:

“[For me], it’s about the difference between urgent and important. So, I think that smart organizations are going to differentiate between what’s urgent and what’s important.”

About our guest:

Edythe Richards received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Delaware and a Masters of Arts degree in Counseling from Seton Hall University. Her nationally recognized career counseling consultancy, A Top Career, is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia.

EPISODE DATE: April 16, 2021

Social media:

– Website

– EQ at Work Podcast

– Myers Briggs Question Corner Podcast

– LinkedIn Page

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 33:41 — 46.3MB)

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Entrepreneurs need financial security to scale business, but also have choices to do meaningful work.

And more broadly speaking, financial security plays a big role in the future of work.

Some entrepreneurs strive to scale take their start-ups public. But, more often than not, they are just people looking for autonomy to create products and services that solve vexing problems. And their pursuits typically take the form of side hustles.

Angela Anderson is a veteran wealth advisor who counsels entrepreneurs and other careerists to make sound money decisions.

With a process of thorough engagement that includes money therapy and other tools, Angela frees people to build wealth.  That allows them choices to enjoy a good retirement or for a second act career that may favor social purpose.

In this episode, Angela:

• Introduces her company and the value that it provides her clients. Starts at 3:08
• Explains the sports metaphor that conveys her unique value proposition. Starts at 4:18
• Offers examples of what clients seek for financial security. Starts at 7:22
• Describes the experience of working with people who may be career successful, but not financially sophisticated. Starts at 15:41
• Recalls the money lessons she learned from her time in the Peace Corps. Starts at 21:58
• Discusses how wealth building considerations factor for doing work with a purpose. Starts at 25:56

About our guest:

Angela Anderson earned a Bachelor of Arts in International Business and Spanish from Adams State University. She lives and works in Colorado.

EPISODE DATE: April 9, 2021

Social media:

– Facebook

– LinkedIn

– Website

– Media

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 31:34 — 43.4MB)

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We revisit some amazing interviews with workplace futurists who helped the future of work to become present.

Astronishingly, 2020 ushered in massive changes in how and where we work.

Helping to us navigate the changes are these featured guests from The Dan Smolen Podcast:

Anne Driscoll and Chris Schultz: Launch Pad is their co-working community of first believers.

Anne and Chris, the married co-founders of Launch Pad., celebrate co-working by fostering a community of first believers. Starts at 2:04

Nellie Hayat: she leads workplace transformation at VergeSense.

Nellie, the Head of Workplace Transformation at VergeSense, helps companies and people get the most out of their workplaces, wherever they happen to be. Starts at 8:39

Dan Rosenzweig: he co-founded KettleSpace to offer co-working spaces with a sense of place.

Dan explains how KettleSpace benefits workforce professionals who need an inspiring place to meet others or do heads-down work. KettleSpace also helps the owners and operators of venues—like restaurants and hotels—fill their underutilized spaces with happy workforce professionals. Starts at 15:05

Marti Konstant: she drives the future of work agility mindset.

Marti conveys the importance of agility in the workplace. Especially as we exit the pandemic, agility will be mission-critical in the future of work. Start at 20:40

Darren Murph: he is the world’s first Head of Remote Work.

Darren, the Head of Remote Work at GitLab, recounts the joy of people who get to live and work for this 100 percent distributed workforce company wherever they choose. Starts at 26:29

In 2021, each of our guests helped the future of work to become present.

EPISODE DATE: April 2, 2021

Social media:

–    Launch Pad Website

–    VergeSense Website

–    KettleSpace Website

–    Konstant Change Website

–    GitLab Website