Insights

This week on CEO Daily Brief, I spoke with my friend John Frehse. John is a labor strategy expert, and one of the few people I know who can talk about cost-cutting with both depth and humanity. We’ve known each other for years, but somehow this conversation uncovered...

Let’s talk about the A-word.  Accountability gets tossed around in every leadership meeting, strategy deck, and performance conversation, but rarely with clarity. What we call accountability is often just thinly veiled evaluation: performance reviews, stack rankings,...

Everyone left the offsite feeling “jazzed”. The decks were slick, the breakout sessions were productive, and the whiteboard had a lot of arrows that made everyone nod. The best part was the keynoter who inspired everyone.  That lasted about three days.  But two weeks...

AI is transforming business. That much is clear. The real question is whether leaders are equipped to guide their people through the change. Some are. Others are trying to have it both ways, insisting they are “people first” while replacing…people. And a few are...

Let’s talk about change initiatives. You’re likely in the middle of one right now—a technology rollout, a reorg, a “new way of working.” We label it, build a timeline, hold a few town halls, maybe even bring in a consultant with a colorful 5-step model. We grit our...

I stole that line from a client I was working with in Orlando last week.   This particular client is a global pharmaceutical and manufacturing company in the animal health space. We were about to kick off a leadership session with their top 100 leaders, all focused on...

In the 1990s, a group of high-earning professionals formed Workaholics Anonymous. A founder of the group said, “No matter how much work I did, it was never enough.”  Sound familiar?  This addiction is one we collectively share. It goes beyond an addiction to work—it...

A friend of mine once described working at Amazon as “building a rocket ship while being pushed off a cliff.” Back then, the company’s obsession with innovation made that intensity feel exciting. But today, Amazon’s attempt to reignite that startup energy feels less...

We’ve been sold a lie about leadership.  We’ve been told that great leaders take control. That they set the vision, enforce accountability, drive engagement, and build culture through sheer willpower.  But here’s the thing: Culture can’t be controlled. It can’t be...

I just got off the phone with the CEO of a global corporation with a $75B market cap who was expressing a common challenge: her team needs to learn how to collaborate now more than ever. The old rules of leadership, where silos were merely inefficient, no longer...

AI has gone from public enemy number one to the golden child of innovation in record time. Just look at this week’s AI summit in Paris. JD Vance made his first major policy speech there, declaring that the U.S. is going all in on AI and urging other countries to...

Everyone gets selective about their outrage. We see it in politics, in business, in culture—everywhere. But what separates outrage that leads to meaningful change from outrage that’s just noise? Accountability. Take the federal government. The Trump administration,...

Not long ago, the middle manager was the linchpin of the corporate world. They juggled project management, performance tracking, and resource allocation while ensuring their teams stayed on track. Today, those responsibilities are increasingly being handed over to...

For the past year, I’ve been wrestling with a nagging feeling that the stakes in my life aren’t high enough. It’s not that things are bad. They’re not. In many ways, life and work are going well. But there’s a part of me that feels like I’m not risking enough or...

Raise your hand if you’ve worked for a company that insisted on referring to employees as “partners” or “team members.” I’m looking at you, Starbucks. When I’m doing keynotes, about 15% of the time, I’m instructed not to say “employees.” This is a management choice to...

Change is inevitable, but resilience is a choice. Patagonia, once celebrated for seamlessly blending work, play, and purpose, now faces an identity crisis as it navigates operational and cultural upheaval. Recent decisions to streamline operations, cut jobs, and ramp...

As 2025 approaches, the workplace is set to experience seismic shifts. From navigating political changes to embracing cutting-edge technology, organizations face both challenges and opportunities. Here are the top predictions for workplace trends in 2025 and how...

As we head into the final weeks of the year, this newsletter kicks off a special series: 2025 Workplace Trends. These are the ideas shaping how we’ll work next year and beyond—starting with something that’s equal parts fascinating and terrifying: AI-powered empathy. ...

Guess what—skills and knowledge aren’t enough anymore. In a world where everyone has access to the same information and where technical expertise is a given, what’s going to set you apart?  The answer is mindset. Specifically, an accountability mindset. Whether you’re...

Imagine this: It’s May 1, 2028, and across the country, industries grind to a halt. Not just one union, not just one company, but hundreds of thousands of workers across sectors and industries standing together in one of the largest coordinated labor movements the...

As Amazon and Starbucks begin enforcing return-to-office policies, CEOs everywhere are asking if bringing employees back will save their company culture. I recently sat down with NBC’s Christine Romans for a segment on Nightly News with Lester Holt, tackling this very...

I’m working on a report that should be released by the end of the year on “CEO Chatter” (working title – if you have a better suggestion, send it to me).  Our senior partners and I travel the world chatting with CEOs about their challenges, vision, and transformation...

Let’s talk about a common complaint I hear across companies: “You’re not visible enough.” Someone can be a top performer, hitting all their goals, but somehow, if they’re not front and center with leadership, it feels like they’re not making the mark. Why is there this obsession with visibility? It’s a phenomenon that has been magnified by remote work, where being on Slack, speaking up in meetings, and generally being “seen” is often misinterpreted as a measure of performance.

The port strike isn’t over; it’s on pause for the next few months. And the biggest sticking point which puts your business in danger has yet to be agreed upon.   This has been a battle about two issues: wages and automation. The wages part has been settled thanks to...

As the mother of a seven-year-old, I will remember today. Today is the day that the most powerful woman in AI, Mira Murati, left her post as CTO of OpenAI, and the company announced its plans to transition to a for-profit entity. This is a critical moment for humanity...

As we near the end of the calendar year, the question on everyone's mind is: will we see salary increases in 2025? With economic uncertainty lingering, it’s tough to gauge what’s ahead for compensation budgets. To help us cut through the noise, I spoke with Tom...

I recently had the opportunity to interview Joshua Rhett Miller, Chief Investigative Reporter at Newsweek, about his cover story, "Resilient Economy 'Feels Very Untrue' to Many Americans." While the economic indicators suggest a soft landing for the U.S. economy, many...

Bosses Are Finding Ways to Pay Workers Less There's a major shift happening in the job market, and it’s turning everything we thought we knew about wages upside down. For years, we've believed that wages only go one way—up. That belief has been shattered. We are...

Bosses Are Finding Ways to Pay Workers Less There's a major shift happening in the job market, and it’s turning everything we thought we knew about wages upside down. For years, we've believed that wages only go one way—up. That belief has been shattered. We are...

For years, I have been crusading to rid corporate America of the false narrative that the concepts of people and profit are at odds. Too many business leaders feel they have to choose one over the other. But great organizations know that smart business means people...

I have a new workplace pet peeve. It’s when people send me a note asking me to give them a call. Call me petty, but hear me out. That is a way of passing off accountability. Now, their “talk to Jessica” item is off their to do list and I’ve just added “call that...

Change management continues to perplex leaders despite years and years of frameworks and models being thrown at it. It’s time for an upgrade.  First, why is change so hard? Change management is often a nightmare because it is treated as episodic in nature. The typical...

In the latest corporate showdown, a new hiring philosophy known as MEI—Merit, Excellence, and Intelligence—is taking center stage. Backed by influential figures like Alexandr Wang, CEO of Scale AI and Elon Musk, MEI is being promoted as the solution to the perceived...

  Wait – before you experience too much rage, keep reading.   Accountability, the way Culture Partners defines it, is a personal choice to focus on what you can control to drive results.  When it comes to layoffs, it's time to face the music: layoffs aren't a last...

Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP, CEO of SHRM, just dropped a bombshell: SHRM is removing 'Equity' from Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). Announced on Black Women's Equity Payday, no less. The HR world is buzzing with reactions—people on LinkedIn are outraged,...

There’s a growing number of Gen Zers who are deciding that traditional paths to adulthood aren’t for them. Instead of pursuing higher education or joining the workforce, they’re choosing to become NEETs—Not in Employment, Education, or Training. This trend is creating...

Blaming remote work for financial woes is the corporate equivalent of saying, “The dog ate my homework.” It’s a tired excuse that sidesteps the real issues plaguing organizational performance. Here’s the thing: it’s not remote work that’s the problem. It is the...

It's a buzzword that's been popping up more and more, especially for those of us navigating the hybrid work maze. Originally used to describe the logistical headaches of expanding businesses, "coordination tax" now hits close to home for many, describing the daily...

Sometimes tough love is what you need to break free from mediocrity. Just ask Howard Schultz, the former CEO of Starbucks, who got a face-full of it from none other than Steve Jobs. Back in 2008, during a critical time for Starbucks, Schultz sought advice from Jobs...

Loyalty at work no longer pays - and it's employers are who to blame Old-school loyalty at work is dead and I say good riddance. I don’t want loyal employees on my team and neither should you.  Just as misguided leaders say work is like “family,” employers looking for...

Meta’s new AI council is composed entirely of white men I have terrible news, world. The most innovative minds in the most innovative field about the most innovative technology in the history of man are stuck in the past. Meta formed an all-white, all-male AI advisory...

I ran into a friend of mine at a conference a couple of months ago and we grabbed dinner to catch up. This colleague was always one of the highest performers if not the highest at our company when we worked together. When I heard how he’s frustrated and always has...

From The Wall Street Journal this week, "The New Most Dreaded Word at Work: ‘Hey’" dives into how simple, context-free messages like "hey" are stirring up quite the emotional storm in the workplace. You can check out the full piece here.  The article does a great job...

How Traditional Enterprises Risk Becoming Mere Inputs to Big Tech The transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in shaping the future of traditional enterprises cannot be overstated. Dr. Lisa Palmer's poignant analysis in this article unveils something...

A good friend of mine, Greg Satell, recently wrote an invaluable article on the often-misunderstood facets of change management. In his piece, "Here’s Why 'Creating Awareness' Is Usually A Waste Of Time", Satell challenges the traditional approaches to organizational...

Well folks, spring has officially sprung and while I’m focusing on the warmer weather and the flowers blooming, Major League Baseball is catching my attention and not for good reason.   On Monday, just 5 pitches into the A’s - Yankees game, the Yankees’ manager Aaron...

Resenteeism is the latest workplace term our media has latched onto to decode the mystery of the modern workplace. Funnily enough it was invented by a tech company’s marketing department. It describes the resentment of the modern worker who hates their job but doesn’t...

Copperteams.ai is revolutionizing the traditional corporate culture with an unexpected addition to their executive team: a Chief Spiritual Officer (CSO). This groundbreaking move isn’t about adding religious practices into the workday but rather about nurturing the...

When it comes to DEI, no one is having fun anymore. The advocates are tired of dealing with the people who think it is a “distraction”. And those who think it’s a distraction are tired of the people who won’t stop talking about it. So here we are. We’re stuck. The...