Net Impact San Francisco

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED TO THE FALL… PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES.

Workshop on Making Change in Your Organization!!

Date: TBD
Time: 10:00-1:00 pm
Location: TBD (potentially outdoors or in a sunny venue appropriate to a Sunday afternoon)
RSVP: http://makeyourimpact.eventbrite.com/

Join us for a practical workshop on making social and environmental change at your organization from within. In an interactive morning, we will cover topics such as strategically approaching your company culture, navigating sustainability conversations, goal-setting and action-planning. Combining short lectures with small and large group discussions, this session is designed for you to develop and tailor an approach that allows you to make a difference in your organization. The frameworks and topics covered will be broad enough to accommodate a wide variety of experiences. Whether you have already launched an established initiative or have felt tongue-tied in your attempts to broach the topic of sustainability at work, this workshop is for you!

Abby Jandro is a PhD candidate in Organizational Psychology at Alliant International University with a passion for leadership, organization strategy and making positive change.

Alessia Carega is a Sustainability Practitioner in San Francisco. She is a Senior Strategist in consulting services at Saatchi & Saatchi S, specializing in designing and implementing strategies for integrating sustainability into company culture by engaging employees.

The discussion at last Wednesday’s “Careers to Callings” event was fantastic. Thanks to everyone who made it out – and a special thanks to Ibanga Umanah for conceiving and catalyzing the event, Julie Menter for facilitating, Rayna Wiles for visually recording, and all of our special guests (Phillipe Goldin, Colleen Murray, Kate Mulder, and Brian Sullivan).

Some quick takeaways of the event are below (thanks to Emily Sadigh for helping with these notes!)

Personal Actions to Improve Work:

• Being happy at work often simply involves really knowing yourself. Taking the time to be mindful of your emotions and meditate can help with this – as can really understanding your particular strengths. Remember, what comes easily to you might be a valuable strength.
• Simply clarifying and stating your values can reduce stress-causing cortisol levels.
• Being really up front about who you are with co-workers is important – bring more dimensions of yourself to it. Don’t be a different person at work than you are outside of work.
• Journal, keep track of your successes and failures
• Take advantage of review processes, take people out to lunch, ask your boss what his/her long-term goals are
• Realize that what you’re doing at work – even if you don’t love it – may prove invaluable to you later on in life (and towards ends you care more about). Think about your experience path and the skills you are building.
• Each day, think about who you’re serving? When you feel like what you’re doing is helping others (even if only one person) – it can bring you out of the daily grind and give you a greater sense of meaning.

Model Company Programs (good examples for your workplace)

• The companies that have the most engaged employees are those that have a strong culture and can really clearly tell you what they are and what they are not (i.e. Patagonia).
• Google’s G2G program (googlers teaching googlers, everything from biking to statistics) (http://knol.google.com/k/steph-fastre/teach-and-you-shall-learn/1fc9wqbhtn4k0/2#)
• Google’s meditation rooms (knowing yourself builds self-confidence) and places for play and interaction (ball pen, cafeteria)
• Title 9’s worst mistake contest (risk-taking indicates autonomy/ownership)
• Sabre’s Walk in Your Shoes Program
• Sabre’s “Hack Day” (open time to invent something new and improved)
• St. Jude Medical bringing in a patient helped by the company’s product or emailing when a heart valve is made for a baby
• Talent show or group volunteer program to unearth skills and create other forms of interaction
• St Jude Medical’s performance reviews requiring employees to write down long-term goals that ensure annual conversations about employee’s long-term jobs and their current job relates

Other takeaways:

• As companies (and individuals) grow – there is an “ossification” process that makes them move slower.
• People are much more likely to stay in a situation where they feel unfulfilled than shift to something that is uncomfortable.
• Alignment of personal, societal, and business goals is a powerful combination.

Further resources and reading:

• Drive by Daniel Pink (three elements of true motivation—autonomy, mastery, and purpose). Also see TED Talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation.html
• Fred Factor by Mark Sanborn (the example of Fred the Postman)
• Firms of Endearment (about how values-based firms outperform) http://www.firmsofendearment.com/index.html
• Habits of the Heart (job, career, calling) (preview available on google books)
• Gallup’s “best friend at work” dimension: http://gmj.gallup.com/content/511/item-10-best-friend-work.aspx
• Wired to Care by Dev Patnaik (of Jump Associates)
• Mindfulness clock

Below are some images from the event – including the mindmap-style notes from Rayna (click to see larger).