Join Daniel for a new podcast: Imagine What's Next. IWN launches on March 30th, and you can find it wherever you listen to podcasts.

IWN explores the mindsets, methods, and skills that leaders and product managers must employ to think long-term--also known as vision and strategic foresight. Ignoring the future and the confluence of trends, risks, opportunities, technologies, and systemic challenges coming at your organization produces blind spots that force reactive thinking and strategies. Join host Daniel Forrester, an author, entrepreneur, trusted advisor to CEOs, and massive open online course instructor through the University of Maryland, as he interviews leading strategists, futurists, CEOs, foresight experts, economists, psychologists, and authors from around the world. Daniel takes listeners far away from the tyranny of innovation-stifling “short-termism” as he unveils the art and science behind discovering the “big ideas” that inspire employees and stakeholders.

In this episode of The Culture Gap, Daniel talks about the intersection of high-performing companies and healthy culture, whether companies can overcome the negative impact of poor leaders, and the value of working through the difficulties within a company to create a stronger culture. Daniel also offers insights into the cultural differences between the Midwest and Alaska, where he splits his time. Welcome to Culture Gap.

Key Takeaways:

[:44] Daniel introduces his guest for this episode — Daniel Coyle.

[2:39] How did Daniel Coyle become Daniel Coyle?

[5:53] Uncovering the energy that drives culture.

[6:26] What is Daniel’s working definition of the word “culture”?

[9:10] What is the connection between a high-performing, healthy culture and the performance of a firm?

[15:06] Key takeaways from examples of toxic company culture.

[20:20] The role of “we” versus “I” — and pausing — in a healthy company culture.

[24:29] Does the company culture have the potential to outperform the positive or negative performance of its leadership team?

[28:57] Should companies hire for culture fits or culture adds?

[32:51] Daniel’s advice for the challenges of culture activation.

[38:14] Daniel explains Tip #23, Kill the Happy, Smoothness Fallacy.

[42:22] How to approach ESG in a healthy work environment.

The Culture Gap Podcast

THRUUE

Podfly Productions

Learn more about:

Daniel Coyle

Daniel Coyle on LinkedIn

Daniel Coyle on Twitter

Dee Ann Turner is a retired veteran of Chick-fil-A who spent 33 years rising to be one of the first female officers of this iconic company. Dee Ann started in HR before eventually leading the talent and franchisee selection and the sustainability division, in the last part of her career at Chick-fil-A. She also helped to design the talent systems and processes of the culture of Chick-fil-A, and in July 2018, Dee Ann ventured out on her own to start her own company. Today, she is an author, speaker, consultant and coach at helping organizations globally strengthen their organizational culture and talent systems.

In the second part of this two-part episode of The Culture Gap, Dee Ann sheds light on how she helped Chick-fil-A to design an intentional culture in which every single customer experience went above and beyond expectations, and how principles rather than rules helped make this possible. She also shares her wisdom about accountability, scaling for growth, and the intersection of customer and employee experience. Find out more about some of the many lessons she has reflected on in writing her three books. Welcome to Culture Gap.

Key Takeaways:

[:45] Daniel introduces his guest for this episode — Dee Ann Turner.

[1:26] People don’t get behind rules, they get behind principles. What are Dee Ann’s beliefs about rules and principles and how to balance them?

[6:38] Dee Ann shares an anecdote about Chick-fil-A where putting rules over principles almost ended really badly.

[10:54] What advice does Dee Ann have about knowing when to invest more effort into growing an employee vs. just calling it quits?

[15:40] What distinguishes a customer experience from employee experience? What should CEOs know about the intersection of experience for customers and employees?

[18:21] Dee Ann shares some anecdotes of how customer experience and employee experience were intertwined at Chick-fil-A.

[23:25] What is Dee Ann’s next book going to be about?

[25:40] What are some common questions Dee Ann gets asked about corporate culture?

[29:18] What wisdom would Dee Ann impart to her younger self?

Brought to You By:

The Culture Gap Podcast

THRUUE

Podfly Productions

Learn more about:

Dee Ann Turner

Chick-fil-A

Bet on Talent: How to Create a Remarkable Culture and Win the Hearts of Customers,
by Dee Ann Turner

It’s My Pleasure: The Impact of Extraordinary Talent and a Compelling Culture,
by Dee Ann Turner

S. Truett Cathy, Founder of Chick-fil-A

The Culture Gap Podcast Episode: “Dee Ann Turner, Veteran of Chick-fil-A, Inc. (Part 1 of 2)”